Corbyn 'worse threat to business than Brexit'

[jakswan]

Maybe Jack, in years to come when Thatcherism is a mere memory, when it no longer seems economic sense to impoverish the majority then there may be a case for voting for a Blajorite conservatism.

Comrade,

I doubt neo-liberal politics will die, the EU being such a big supporter of such policies.

Besides as the memories of the horrors of 1970 Socialism die the politics that gave rise to the nightmare are reborn.

[ProfessorDavey]

Besides as the memories of the horrors of 1970 Socialism die the politics that gave rise to the nightmare are reborn.

Were the 'horrors' of 1970s socialism any worse than the 'horrors' of 1980s capitalism under Thatcher.

Discuss.

[Walt Zingmatilder]

Comrade,

I doubt neo-liberal politics will die, the EU being such a big supporter of such policies.

Besides as the memories of the horrors of 1970 Socialism die the politics that gave rise to the nightmare are reborn.

Lord Swannington

Your Grace

You are a masochistic fantasist if you think I am advocating a return to Economic Stalinism.
The sad truth is though is that Right wingers and old etonians cannot be trusted to rebalance economies.
Thatcher did a major coup by limiting the unions but suffered from a vindictiveness.
Cameron was all about what an Etonian could achieve if he remembered what he was entitled to.
Fast forward to today where the life of the poor person is reduced to clothes and shoes by Jacob Rees Mogg for whom a Dickensian Britain is the Norm. I wonder if JRM expects to wake up back in a history lesson in 1990 or whenever.
So a rebalancing to revive the economy is necessary, now before an extensive reintroduction of a command economy is needed.

[floo]

Were the 'horrors' of 1970s socialism any worse than the 'horrors' of 1980s capitalism under Thatcher.

Discuss.

They were both unpleasant episodes in UK political history.

[ProfessorDavey]

They were both unpleasant episodes in UK political history.

Possibly - however I think that the changes in the 80s have had a far longer negative impact. For example the banking crash in 2007 which has effectively flat-lined our personal prosperity can be traced directly back to the flagship banking deregulation of the 80s. Likewise the many 'lost' communities we now have up and down the country, where long standing industry and jobs were hollowed out in the 80s without any plan for regeneration. Much of the discontent that lead to the brexit vote can be laid at the door of those two factors - abandoned communities that starting blaming 'foreigners' despite the fact that many had just about the least proportion of immigrants in their area, plus the exhaustion of years and years of austerity due to the failure of banking deregulation.

[jeremyp]

Were the 'horrors' of 1970s socialism any worse than the 'horrors' of 1980s capitalism under Thatcher.

No. Because the horrors of both have been mythicised. I was 13 when Callaghan got kicked out and my memory of that Labour government is one of economic chaos such as rampant inflation and strikes and  and is totally distorted by the Winter of Discontent. However, if you look back on it objectively, it really wasn't all that bad.

Similarly, almost everything we "know" about the Thatcher years is a myth. For example, everybody thinks she destroyed British industry even though, apart from the recession at the beginning of her term, it grew every year she was in office. Similarly, the NHS budget, on average grew by 3% per year (in real terms).

As for Jeremy Corbyn, I do not fear him being elected at all, excepting that he is a Brexiteer. He has some naive ideas about taxation, but I think we need to pay more taxes. He has some other "radical" ideas, but he won't be able to implement them. In fact, once the is in power, I predict he won't be able to do much of anything. I think he's completely incompetent.