Austerity isn't the ruling class shooting itself in the foot. It's effectively in a world of limitless free trade, immense inequality, where collective action has been rendered literally unthinkable by neoliberal ideological hegemony, "tightening of the belts" for working people and endless credits, bailouts, and tax cuts for the rich are the new normal. Rates of profit are falling and wealth is permanently draining upward, so austerity is the political-ideological apparatus constructed to justify this state of affairs. Thats why they have to sell it as temporary, but the truth is that it's permanent - capitalism's inherent contradictions can't be resolved, only delayed and laundered through ideology.
Agree with most of what you wrote, but this also depends on your perspective. Neoliberal policies like Austerity, Outsourcing and globalisation is actively hurting the purchasing power of the west, destabilising it's democracies, as these contradictions continue the global economy will shift east and eventually the contradictions will become to much to bear. This is very clearly creating a new world order and is clearly freaking out western capital.
It’s hard to articulate this, but like it’s not that austerity is an irrational policy choice that keeps capitalism from working, it is the fact that capitalism doesn’t work, and has reached a stage of perpetual crisis, that makes austerity necessary from the perspective of the ruling class.
The perspective of the bourgeoisie worldwide is indefinite austerity.
To be honest austerity doesn't even feel like a real thing to me. I wasn't an adult in the era before it became bipartisan consensus in America, so what people call austerity just seems like the ambient state of things. To "end" austerity would feel much more like starting something new that didn't exist before rather than ending an intentional regime of denial. People's imaginations of what is politically possible have been so limited, even if you know better is possible it still doesn't feel real.
Yup. But what is more amazing is Dems talking about this even before the election happens. Why can't they just STFU for the next few months if beating Trump really is "all that matters"?
because we are STILL in the post-2008 zombie economy that never actually recovered from the crash. It was only papered over with 12 years of interest rates at rock bottom and gig economy expansion. And COVID made this bizarre schizophrenic zombie economy worse. We're basically holding our breath for the shoe to drop and the stock market to reconnect with real conditions.
Austerity is a permanent state of affairs in the post-2008 world
As long as neoliberal capitalism remains the predominant ideology in the west, we will continue to shoot ourselves in the foot with austerity.
Austerity isn't the ruling class shooting itself in the foot. It's effectively in a world of limitless free trade, immense inequality, where collective action has been rendered literally unthinkable by neoliberal ideological hegemony, "tightening of the belts" for working people and endless credits, bailouts, and tax cuts for the rich are the new normal. Rates of profit are falling and wealth is permanently draining upward, so austerity is the political-ideological apparatus constructed to justify this state of affairs. Thats why they have to sell it as temporary, but the truth is that it's permanent - capitalism's inherent contradictions can't be resolved, only delayed and laundered through ideology.
Agree with most of what you wrote, but this also depends on your perspective. Neoliberal policies like Austerity, Outsourcing and globalisation is actively hurting the purchasing power of the west, destabilising it's democracies, as these contradictions continue the global economy will shift east and eventually the contradictions will become to much to bear. This is very clearly creating a new world order and is clearly freaking out western capital.
It’s hard to articulate this, but like it’s not that austerity is an irrational policy choice that keeps capitalism from working, it is the fact that capitalism doesn’t work, and has reached a stage of perpetual crisis, that makes austerity necessary from the perspective of the ruling class.
The perspective of the bourgeoisie worldwide is indefinite austerity.
To be honest austerity doesn't even feel like a real thing to me. I wasn't an adult in the era before it became bipartisan consensus in America, so what people call austerity just seems like the ambient state of things. To "end" austerity would feel much more like starting something new that didn't exist before rather than ending an intentional regime of denial. People's imaginations of what is politically possible have been so limited, even if you know better is possible it still doesn't feel real.
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Yup. But what is more amazing is Dems talking about this even before the election happens. Why can't they just STFU for the next few months if beating Trump really is "all that matters"?
because we are STILL in the post-2008 zombie economy that never actually recovered from the crash. It was only papered over with 12 years of interest rates at rock bottom and gig economy expansion. And COVID made this bizarre schizophrenic zombie economy worse. We're basically holding our breath for the shoe to drop and the stock market to reconnect with real conditions.
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Well you got it, they actually only care about enriching themselves.