“The Irish Government..tends to take a neoliberal position"

[seafoid]

FG are a mix of socially progressive and fairly conservative.

So why are they currently (and in fact always have) decimating the education system?

Maybe down to the balance of power within the party? I think they don't have the balls to cut teachers salaries so they cut the rest of educational spending. Sure aren't half of them teachers?

I do know a little bit about this - teachers' salaries, especially for new teachers, have been cut very substantially, to the point where the quality of graduates is falling.  I think any experienced teacher in a management position will confirm.

Shafting young people is very neoliberal and very couter productive growth wise.  There is a kind of silent economic war going on in Ireland between people in their 20s and their public sector parents that seems to me to go against nature. Why would a parent do that to their own child?

[Billys Boots]

FG are a mix of socially progressive and fairly conservative.

So why are they currently (and in fact always have) decimating the education system?

Maybe down to the balance of power within the party? I think they don't have the balls to cut teachers salaries so they cut the rest of educational spending. Sure aren't half of them teachers?

I do know a little bit about this - teachers' salaries, especially for new teachers, have been cut very substantially, to the point where the quality of graduates is falling.  I think any experienced teacher in a management position will confirm.

Shafting young people is very neoliberal and very couter productive growth wise.  There is a kind of silent economic war going on in Ireland between people in their 20s and their public sector parents that seems to me to go against nature. Why would a parent do that to their own child?

It seems crazily regressive and counter-productive to me for any reason, be it conservative or liberal thinking?

[Rossfan]

When will the neo Liberals and their stupid ilk ever realise that the best way to have a good economy and subsequent good profits for themselves is to ensure that the ordinary folk have decent money in their pockets?
Ould Henry Ford realised it 100 years ago when he upped wages by a then huge amount. As he may have said - my workers can now afford to buy the cars they are making.

[seafoid]

When will the neo Liberals and their stupid ilk ever realise that the best way to have a good economy and subsequent good profits for themselves is to ensure that the ordinary folk have decent money in their pockets?
Ould Henry Ford realised it 100 years ago when he upped wages by a then huge amount. As he may have said - my workers can now afford to buy the cars they are making.

Well said. But greed overrides reason. And things fall apart

[Billys Boots]

When will the neo Liberals and their stupid ilk ever realise that the best way to have a good economy and subsequent good profits for themselves is to ensure that the ordinary folk have decent money in their pockets?
Ould Henry Ford realised it 100 years ago when he upped wages by a then huge amount. As he may have said - my workers can now afford to buy the cars they are making.

Well said. But greed overrides reason. And things fall apart

And voters are 'guided' by media-generated priorities. 

[seafoid]

When will the neo Liberals and their stupid ilk ever realise that the best way to have a good economy and subsequent good profits for themselves is to ensure that the ordinary folk have decent money in their pockets?
Ould Henry Ford realised it 100 years ago when he upped wages by a then huge amount. As he may have said - my workers can now afford to buy the cars they are making.

Well said. But greed overrides reason. And things fall apart

And voters are 'guided' by media-generated priorities.

media bought and sold. You might have thought they would have learnt something from 2008. No. Still the same lickarsing to their superiors who are Incoherent.  RTE is dreadful.

[magpie seanie]

When will the neo Liberals and their stupid ilk ever realise that the best way to have a good economy and subsequent good profits for themselves is to ensure that the ordinary folk have decent money in their pockets?
Ould Henry Ford realised it 100 years ago when he upped wages by a then huge amount. As he may have said - my workers can now afford to buy the cars they are making.

Well said. But greed overrides reason. And things fall apart

And voters are 'guided' by media-generated priorities.

media bought and sold. You might have thought they would have learnt something from 2008. No. Still the same lickarsing to their superiors who are Incoherent.  RTE is dreadful.

It's laughable. Pissed myself when I heard Dick Bruton on yesterday about some job creation figures and the biggest threat to job creation is......the election!!!!! They seriously believe this shite.

[seafoid]

The election is unreal, not in a GAA sense,more like detached from reality. FG will be talking 24/7 about 7% growth, as if this has anything to do with the real economy where most voters work.  Not about multinational transfer pricing from which few benefit, from where the 7% came. Euro zone inflation reported today at 0.2% which is disastrous.  QE is not working and another crash is inevitable and will happen sometime in the next Dail causing great suffering amongst the voters. WTF Rte is doing regurgitating neoliberal talking points when the ideology has nothing to offer its viewers and actively works against them. Vote Joe Higgins or Wallace. At least they care about people.

[armaghniac]

The election is unreal, not in a GAA sense,more like detached from reality. FG will be talking 24/7 about 7% growth, as if this has anything to do with the real economy where most voters work.  Not about multinational transfer pricing from which few benefit, from where the 7% came.

OK, maybe 2-3% of this growth is transfer pricing or wahtever, but the real economy is growing at 4.5% or so, which is still rather good.

Euro zone inflation reported today at 0.2% which is disastrous.  QE is not working and another crash is inevitable and will happen sometime in the next Dail causing great suffering amongst the voters.

Hardly the Irish government's fault.

Vote Joe Higgins or Wallace. At least they care about people.

Yes, they care about Joe Higgins and Wallace.

[seafoid]

The election is unreal, not in a GAA sense,more like detached from reality. FG will be talking 24/7 about 7% growth, as if this has anything to do with the real economy where most voters work.  Not about multinational transfer pricing from which few benefit, from where the 7% came.

OK, maybe 2-3% of this growth is transfer pricing or wahtever, but the real economy is growing at 4.5% or so, which is still rather good.

Not sustainable. What is driving growth ? Exports to the UK and elsewhere. And how is the UK doing ? Fucked.  Global capitalism is in a severe crisis and inflation well below target is a sign of things much worse to come.


Euro zone inflation reported today at 0.2% which is disastrous.  QE is not working and another crash is inevitable and will happen sometime in the next Dail causing great suffering amongst the voters.

Hardly the Irish government's fault.

No. But Irish Gov not ready for anything other than a return to the sunny uplands. Reminds me of 2006.
Reform never happened after the bailout either.
Just look at this ESRI paper. Imagine how shit things are in the Civil Service
http://www.esri.ie/publications/researchers-imply-policymakers-infer-the-relationship-between-evidence-and-policy/

Vote Joe Higgins or Wallace. At least they care about people.

Yes, they care about Joe Higgins and Wallace.

The left wing independents are the only people with a coherent analysis of what is going on. The next 5 years are going to be brutal.

[armaghniac]

The left wing independents are the only people with a coherent analysis of what is going on.

You're having a laugh, aren't you. And even if their analysis had any merit, their solutions do not.

The next 5 years are going to be brutal.

Don't you mean the last 5 years.

[ashman]

The election is unreal, not in a GAA sense,more like detached from reality. FG will be talking 24/7 about 7% growth, as if this has anything to do with the real economy where most voters work.  Not about multinational transfer pricing from which few benefit, from where the 7% came. Euro zone inflation reported today at 0.2% which is disastrous.  QE is not working and another crash is inevitable and will happen sometime in the next Dail causing great suffering amongst the voters. WTF Rte is doing regurgitating neoliberal talking points when the ideology has nothing to offer its viewers and actively works against them. Vote Joe Higgins or Wallace. At least they care about people.

Your analysis is very debateable .

Your last line is comical .  Joe who I like is retiring .  Wallace ? I take it this is WUM??

[Eamonnca1]

The next 5 years are going to be brutal.

You might be right. I see the papers talking up property prices again. It seems like every day there's at least one article about some "spectacular" home that's worth a million Euros.  That can't be a good sign.

[seafoid]

The election is unreal, not in a GAA sense,more like detached from reality. FG will be talking 24/7 about 7% growth, as if this has anything to do with the real economy where most voters work.  Not about multinational transfer pricing from which few benefit, from where the 7% came. Euro zone inflation reported today at 0.2% which is disastrous.  QE is not working and another crash is inevitable and will happen sometime in the next Dail causing great suffering amongst the voters. WTF Rte is doing regurgitating neoliberal talking points when the ideology has nothing to offer its viewers and actively works against them. Vote Joe Higgins or Wallace. At least they care about people.

Your analysis is very debateable .

Your last line is comical .  Joe who I like is retiring .  Wallace ? I take it this is WUM??

Just watch it unfold. The US is also fucked. Most of the OECD countries are bankrupt.
Nice diligent people go to work tomorrow doing their jobs, not tooling around on the internet, focused but accountancy, solvency , interest rates, discount rates / the whole plumbing of modern finance is going to break down.   

[Rossfan]

m. Vote Joe Higgins or Wallace. At least they care about people.

Ahhh Seaf.... Have ya lost th'oul marbles altogether