by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
The Ernst Young ITEM Club has announced that Britain is technically back in recession with two quarters of – and this term always makes me laugh – negative growth. Negative growth, let's face it, is not even zero growth; it is a downturn in output and sales in all but name. The term growth here is used to confuse, methinks.
All I can say that the “technical” bit here is a bit of a – and please pardon the pun – technicality and a play on words and terms.
The “back” also is a little – oh, and here comes a serious understatement from me – poetic license for, as far as most people are concerned Britain has not, actually, come out of recession ever since the financial crisis and the subsequent arrival of the Great Recession.
It has been obvious to anyone but most economists and politicians, who all seem to live the gods only know where, that the UK has remained in the Great Recession that began a couple of years ago.
While other countries in Europe, such as Germany, and the USA, may have fared a little better that the UK the crisis in the Euro-Zone which could, to all intents and purposes, lead to the break up of the Euro-Zone and lead to the very end of the Euro even, also could bring down and very low many of the EU economies, including Germany, in the end.
Despite all what we can see headed our way the economists and governments are hellbent to try and fix the broken economic system which, in fact, never was fit for the purpose and definitely not for the New Millennium.
It is broken and no amount of tinkering and duct tape and superglue will be able to stick it back together. Humpty Dumpty has fallen off the wall and that's it. Its irreparably broken.
Time for a serious change for we will have to change if we want to go on.
© 2012
