Families in the U.K now owe a record 173% of their incomes in debt, up from 129% five years ago. This is the highest level of debt a G7 country has ever seen, and it has been largely financed by rising house values, so-called. Meanwhile consumwer cofidence is now a minus figure of 34, the lowest since 1990. Americans think they have problems!
Epicurus, were he alive today, would put all this down to unregulated, unrestrained capitalist greed, and would point out that those who have preached a hands-off policy and total free enterprise should be taken out and shaken till their teeth rattle. Now we will see a huge reaction against so-called free markets and the dumb clowns who will have no oversight over the greed-merchants. Alas, a bit late.
It’s useless trying to engage with the libertarians and ultra-free enterprise people. To them it’s a religion, the tenets of which are as sacred as the Koran. If attacked they behave as if your are stark mad and ignore you as an idiot. Alas, the emperor now has no clothes and some smarter people are beginning to see what a pass greed and lack of regulation has gotten us into.
Clowns!
Neither did the ’emperor’ have the foresight to fill our barns in the years of plenty (the last ten) in order to keep us afloat now we are in the lean years.
( the next five at least).
Greed and lack of regulation is indicative of short term gratification which has cost our government the confidence of its people.