Pop culture and politics

If you're a regular reader, you'll be familiar with my contention that Back to the Future is a left-liberal critique of Reagan's America, though it's let down by a very dubious racial politics (white kid goes back in time to teach black musicians rock and roll - really?).

I turn to another pop culture classic whenever I think about the media, bankers, capitalism and the economy - Gremlins II, The New Batch. The original Gremlins was of course a satire on adolescence, but the sequel is a whip smart take on Big Media, yuppies, venal politicians and New York in general. it could be modelled on Murdoch and Co.

Here's a rather delightful scene set in the New York Stock Exchange. As we learn today that the Tories have managed to shrink the economy yet again, it seems somehow appropriate.



Other than that, this is my favourite scene. How many kids' films manage to shoehorn in a reference to Susan Sontag?

Who needs books?

I've read a lot of very good books recently about the tragedy of Ireland's economic collapse.

This quite sweary Irishman summarises them rather pithily.

Eat the rich…

This is Greg Philo: leading lefty professor. Enjoy.

(Ire)Land For Sale

From Daft.ie

Full planning permission for 300,000 homes, 8 prisons, 5 public hospitals, one city metro system, 10,000 schools with extensions as well as hundreds of unfinished road developments ranging in size from national primary roads to larger motorway systems.

In need of some refurbishing, is quite dated but lies to the north west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of stunning islands and islets.

Neighbours are ****s but can be quite helpful. Generally a nice area. Also comes with a variety of weather, nationalities and political opinions.

Three Cheers For George Osborne

So awfully kind of George to offer we Irish a few billion quid to get us out of a hole. Although it's perhaps a small way of making recompense for the hundreds of years of imperial exploitation.

After all, 'George Osborne' is really Gideon George Osborne, and when Daddy dies, he'll be the 18th Baronet of Ballentaylor (Tipperary) and of Ballylemon in Waterford (despite Ireland being independent for 90 years and a Republic for 61 years, the aristocracy hangs on to the glory days).

One city financier (via Paul Mason's very good blog) reckons that Osborne's offer is actually a bit of a cheat: it's a way of handing more British taxpayers' cash directly to the banks to get the economy going without using the magic words 'helicopter money' (i.e. quantitative easing, or throwing cash at the country to keep it circulating) and to prevent more British banks going bust:

City economist Graham Turner issued the following note to clients:

"In truth, the rumoured £6-7bn of support for Ireland is effectively QE2 by the backdoor. Despite the UK chancellor's denials, the bi-lateral aid for Ireland is absolutely an attempt to pre-empt further difficulties for UK banks. The huge increase in wholesale liabilities of UK banks due to roll over in 2011 shows that perhaps the UK had more than any other country to lose from an outright default of Irish bank and sovereign debt." 

Still, beggars can't be choosers. As this photograph demonstrates: the well-dressed gentlemen are from the International Monetary Fund, come to take Cowen and Lenihan's calculator off them. The seated gentleman - well, he's Ireland. Much respect to photographer Peter Morrison.

He's got an even better one:

Gideon George Osborne, economic genius

This man is in charge of running the UK economy. What did he think of Ireland's economic policies (i.e. the ones that have bankrupted the country and according to the EU President, might destroy the European Union)? Read it and weep…

Look and learn from across the Irish Sea

A generation ago it would have seemed ridiculous to go to Ireland for economics lessons. Not any more.

Ireland stands as a shining example of the art of the possible in long-term economic policymaking, and that is why I am in Dublin: to listen and to learn.

capital will go wherever investment is most attractive. Ireland’s business tax rates are only 12.5 per cent, while Britain's are becoming among the highest in the developed world.

They have freed their markets, developed the skills of their workforce, encouraged enterprise and innovation and created a dynamic economy. They have much to teach us, if only we are willing to learn.

Donald's ducked

An amusing tour round the extremist - but extremely popular - world of American talk radio, as experienced by Donald Duck.

The Recession in Soundbites; or Let's Play Bullshit Bingo!

There's an excellent piece in the Irish Times by Fintan O'Toole about the political class's abuse of language, which is well worth reading even if you don't know or care about Irish politics.

Underneath, the comments are rather better than average. Particularly good is 'Pablo', who provides us with an exhaustive list of the lies and bullshit ladled out by the establishment over the last couple of years - you've heard the same words from every politician and banker the world over:

Stop talking the country down Fintan. 

They stopped making land a long time ago Fintan. 

This is not a time to apportion blame Fintan. 

Rent is dead money Fintan. 

We are where we are Fintan. 

Everyone lost the run of themselves Fintan. 

There will be a soft landing Fintan.

Leave it to the experts Fintan. 

No one could have foresaw the collapse Fintan. 

The bank guarantee will be the cheapest bank rescue in the world Fintan. 

No one could have foresaw the costs that Anglo would incur Fintan. 

Ireland is different Fintan. 

We will all share the pain Fintan. 

NAMA is the only (holy) show in town Fintan. 

The banks are well capitalized Fintan. 

We need to recapitalize the banks to get credit flowing again Fintan. 

We need to adequately reward the wonderful entrepreneurship of our best and brightest Fintan. 

The fundamentals of the economy are sound Fintan. 

There is no evidence of any wrongdoing Fintan. 

The banks are fine, it's only a short-term liquidity problem Fintan. 

Regulation is strangling innovation Fintan. 

We need to protect the bondholders or our borrowing costs will go up Fintan. 

Everything we do is in an attempt to protect taxpayers Fintan. 

We can't expect to keep the best talent if we don't pay them these wages Fintan. 

The losses are very annoying but they are manageable Fintan. 

I don't know why people who talk the economy down don't go and commit suicide Fintan.

The economy has turned the corner Fintan. 

People are just playing politics here Fintan. 

We have a job to do (going forward) Fintan. 

Our European colleagues support us fully Fintan. 

We need to don the green jersey and drive it on Fintan. 

The Taoiseach was only a little hoarse and he has my full support Fintan.  

Top Marx

This is how the recession happened:

You think you've got problems?

Most of you probably don't pay much attention to Ireland except when your teams lose at rugby, football, guerilla warfare and so on.

So you'll have missed a wonderful real-life soap opera recently: TDs (=MPs) resigning because they've not been made party leader in their first year, the Minister of Defence resigning in disgrace, the Minister for Potatoes resigning in disgrace, another TD resigning in a huff, all the banks going bust, the Prime Minister admitting that he regularly carried round suitcases of cash donated by property developers (while he was the Finance Minister he claims not to have had a bank account, the former Prime Minister who imported weapons for the IRA, who owned an island, a fleet of helicopters which he used to visit his shirtmaker in Paris and a €45 million estate while earning £IR3500 and tapped the phones of opponents and journalists… loads more.

The problem is that because it's next door and white, nobody thinks of Ireland as a postcolonial nation. In reality, it's just like the other colonies you were thrown out of: a foreign élite was replaced by an incredibly tight group of people who controlled the government, the judiciary, the law, business, industry, education and local government. They all went to Trinity College Dublin or UCD after attending two or three schools. The little people don't and never have got a look-in. Their job is to vote for the party their great-grandparents fought for in the Civil War (Fianna Fail, who accepted what the British gave them, or Fine Gael, who liked what the British gave them) without regard for the rotten economic and political state of the country.

The politicians are the bankers are the developers are the businessmen are the clergy are the politicians and round and round it goes in a carousel of complacency, greed and selfishness.

While minor weirdoes resign, have any ministers, developers or bankers gone to prison or really paid for their mistakes or crimes? No. No they haven't.

In the words of a recent Kenyan government minister: 'Now it is our turn to eat'. In Ireland, it's potato blight for most and banquets for a few. 'Twas ever thus.

Ursine Arboreal Fertilisation Shocker

I know this is very hard to believe, but bear with me.

According to the International Monetary Fund, which seems to be having a quick break from bullying poor countries, banks and associated financial organisations which spend tons of money lobbying governments to tilt the playing field in their favour, aren't very good at their core business (i.e. making money). Even more shocking, they behave more recklessly with other peoples' money than organisations which don't spend their time trying to rig the market!

The study, entitled A Fistful of Dollars: Lobbying and the Financial Crisis, published by the IMF, reveals a stark correlation between lobbying by lenders and high loan-to-income loans.

The paper, written by a trio of high-profile IMF economists, established that firms who spend more on buying access to politicians are more likely to engage in risky securitisation of their loan books, have faster-growing mortgage loan portfolios as well as poorer share performance and larger loan defaults.

Highlighting 33 pieces of federal legislation that would have tamed predatory lending or introduced more responsible banking but were the target of intense lobbying, the IMF found that the efforts by banks to resist the legislation overwhelmingly succeeded. 

Who'd have thought that a bunch of tricky short-term buck-chasers could behave in such a way?

Eat the rich!

Today's the big day when Alastair Darling announces his Pre-Budget Report, which is actually a mini-budget. It's a big job: claw money back from the fatcats, cut back public services and still persuade everyone to vote Labour in 5 months' time.

Follow the fun here.

Meanwhile over in Ireland, which is even more screwed through having 2 Tory parties vying to be the most capitalist, a second emergency budget is announced today (follow it here from 3.45 GMT). Just like the UK, ordinary workers are going to suffer because all the money's gone to bail out the banks which have bankrupted the country. Can anyone else see what's wrong with this picture?

No, Peter, of course it isn't.

Peter Mandelson, silky sinister unelected eminence grise of New Labour turned silky sinister unelected eminence grise of Labour, has announced that today's supertax on bankers' bonuses isn't a punishment for their greed, hypocrisy, destruction of the economy, arrogance and failure to acknowledge that we've saved their skins.

He's right in a way: it's also a cheap and easy way to make New Labour look like it's on the side of the people for a change (it was Mandelson who said that he was 'intensely relaxed about people getting filthy rich as long as they pay their taxes' in response to a question about the ever-widening gap between rich and poor - despite leaving massive gaps in the tax regulations and selling the Inland Revenue's offices to a company based in a tax haven!).

It's a cynical piece of electoral politics which won't make much of a dent in the national debt. I still support it though. Many of the banks are state-owned and almost all of them are propped up by state guarantees and asset swapped. The bankers need punishing. They mentally decoupled the real economy from the financial services sector. They've bankrupted their institutions and nearly bankrupted the country, evade tax, award themselves massive bonuses and are generally partying like it's 1928.

This 50% tax on bonuses is nothing: supertax on the very highest sums once reached somewhere in the 90%+ range in the late 70s, and Thatcher only gradually reduced it.

The bankers will no doubt redouble their efforts to get the Tories re-elected. Cameron will make tutting noises about bankers until he's elected (because the Daily Mail isn't happy with them either), then resume his position (kneeling before a pinstriped crotch, mouth open). Will some bankers leave the country? Maybe. Where will they go? Somewhere the banking system's in rude health, with no angry citizens protesting over their continued beggary at the hands of financial whizzkids.

Oh dear. There's no such place. Poor bankers.

News from Norway

Not the most thrilling story for most of you, I admit, but they had a general election in the Nordic Paradise on Monday. The ruling (in coalition) Labour Party gained a few seats, the Socialist Left party lost a few. The Communists and Greens have no seats, unfortunately, nor do the Republicans. The Conservatives gained a few and the rightwing Progress Party quite a lot, but the Labour/Socialist Left/Centre Party coalition will maintain power. Hooray!

How did Labour and their allies do it? By promising to spend MORE on the already wonderful Norwegian Welfare State! Meanwhile in Britain, we're going to respond to being bankrupted by naked capitalist bankers by electing the naked capitalist Conservative Party, on a ticket of slashing public services and punishing the blameless poor, to pay for bailing out the bankers. Well done, people of Britain.

!Whatthefuck?

Occasionally, we're all faced with periods of introspection. Our lives seem worthless, our activities pointless, our presence a drag on our families, friends and colleagues.

I have the solution. Whenever you have a self-esteem crisis, open the website of !Whatif? They're an 'innovations' company. I've read their site and still don't know what they actually do (or even how to pronounce it). I have divined that they wear zany facial hair, combats, and revere Nathan Barley as some kind of god. They charge companies big fees for sounding like they know what's hip - that's as close as I can get. Their name makes me scream with impotent fury. It encapsulates a mindless kind of trendiness, covers utter intellectual bankruptcy. This is what we've done to this country. Honest people making things have been sacked. Bullshitters with no regard for the decencies of grammar run the world. How I hope the recession sends them back to the fields (or as in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, perhaps they'll be on the first ship to a new planet. We'll follow you, honestly).

There does seem to be a total loss of confidence in company names now too. British Telecom is now officially BP. Vesper Thorneycroft is now VT. The BBC's privatised engineering wing is Red Bee. British Airways is BA. British Petroleum is now BP. West Brom's failed art-gallery-and-whatever is 'The Public' and on and on - what's wrong with a name which says who you are, or what you do? Especially for the shameful industries - BAe (formerly British Aerospace) should be Shiny Weapons of Mass Destruction No Questions Asked, Bribes Available.

How Can I Miss You If You Won't Go Away?

Anyone watch Newsnight last night? I was infuriated by the vox pops with a pair of bankers. One of them had the classic combination of long, greased-back hair, loud suit, louder shirt and yet louder tie. He looked, in fact, like a paedophile otter, and I say that as a relative rodent. With a straight face, he attacked the new 50% tax rate (which only applies to earnings above £150,000, not the whole pay-packet) as a class-driven way to pay for government mistakes, and threatened the emigration of the banking sector.

Er… isn't the country in massive amounts of debt because we've had to bail out pretty much all the banks? Yes, this and the previous government volunteered their services like desperate rent boys, but there's no getting round the fact that these bankers made millions personally while bankrupting the entire nation - and now they're squealing because we want a little more of their stratospheric pay in order to keep the country afloat. If they want to emigrate, brilliant. I can't think that many countries will be queuing up to avail themselves of bankers' services, but at least they'll be off our patch.

Perhaps we should start a letter writing campaign. Let's each adopt a merchant bank and send postcards every day encouraging these bastards to leave (or kill themselves).

(the title of this post is a country song: terrible music, great lyrics)

Moneybox Live

I just had a quick trawl through the budget details: more tax for those on £150,000 is good, though I'm not sure how much it will raise. Pensions up, state redundancy allowances up, ISA allowances up - all good. Support for 'scrappage' and CCS - nonsense designed to keep the car manufacturers and power generators happy. Darling's figures depend on a sharp and fast recovery though, and it's not clear where he finds the justification for that. I guess if the £ stays weak and other countries recover quickly, exports will help - but that's a big 'if'.

The tax rise for the very rich is a decade overdue - but these people can afford tax lawyers to help them evade it as usual. The obvious dodge is to arrange their pay as capital gains - taxed at 15% I think. This is what the hedge fund traders did when the rate was 10% - thus paying far less tax proportionately than their cleaners, while not benefiting the country at all.

Begorrah! We're all doomed

Its solutions are desperately rightwing, but this article's description of Ireland's capitalist-induced depression is shocking. Thanks to Maura for mailing it to me.

Angela's clashes

In my ongoing personal battle to save the economy single-handed, I've just received this classic 70s poster of the wonderful Angela Davis, and will take it to the framers tomorrow. Thanks again to Left on the Shelf - for all your commie-lovin' book and ephemera needs.

I gave quite an impassioned lecture about the recession and banking crash last week. Mojo Nixon summarises my feelings rather more succinctly. Wish I'd seen this in time to include it…