Neoliberalism

[straw man]

I would love to see what would happen if a country just said, tough luck, I'm taking this stuff back, but also made it clear that aside from the take back, everything else was business as usual. What could the world do?

Downgrade their credit rating

 

[Pratters]

We have land acquisition acts in India whereby the government can acquire any land for nominal rates from it's citizens.

 

[harsh.ag]

We have land acquisition acts in India whereby the government can acquire any land for nominal rates from it's citizens.

That's everywhere. Eminent domain.

And it's only nominal rates in India because the reported market values are low as compared to real market values because of black money transactions.

 

[watson]

Globalisation is about the removal of barriers to trade: the elimination of subsidies and tariffs, the establishment of common standards and rules and the movement towards increased specialisation in commerce. The sale of public assets is neither here nor there as far as the debate around globalisation is concerned. If your argument is that public asset sales rob the people of the dividends of their labour, then it makes no difference whether the public asset is sold to a local entity or a foreign one.

That's right, it's equally bad either way. But that still doesn't alter the fact that the infrastructure paid for by my grandfather has effectively been pissed-up against the wall in what amounts to an international garage sale.

For example;

Chinese investment in Australia's power grid explained
By political editor Chris Uhlmann

There are four parts to the electricity market: generation, distribution, transmission and retail.

Of Australia's eight states and territories, three governments retain full ownership of all elements of their electricity networks: Western Australia; Tasmania; and the Northern Territory.

Queensland also owns the generation, distribution and transmission of electricity, but the retail market has been privatised.

Chinese Government-owned State Grid Corporate and Hong Kong-listed Cheung Kong Infrastructure — the two companies whose bid for NSW electricity distributor Ausgrid were blocked by Treasurer Scott Morrison — already own significant shares in the privatised state power distributors.


Chinese investment in Australia's power grid explained - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

 

[Pratters]

GeorgeMonbiot (GeorgeMonbiot)

My golden arches theory of political decline. No country with a McDonald's can remain a democracy: https://t.co/LPWr4AvEyE

1:07 PM Dec 7th via Twitter Web Client
https://twitter.com/GeorgeMonbiot/status/806402162959982596

 

[Pratters]

That's everywhere. Eminent domain.

And it's only nominal rates in India because the reported market values are low as compared to real market values because of black money transactions.

There are stricter rules in other countries I think.

 

[Uppercut]

I dont know that median income is such a great measure. I always wonder why they don't use mean income. It would more accurately reflect the disparity in wealth between people.

Mean usually reflects inequality worse than median. Those Caribbean slave colonies that had one obscenely rich slave-owner for every 10 slaves would show a solid enough mean income but a median of almost zero.

Neither are great for it though tbf. Maybe just go with Gini.

 

[indiaholic]

But the Gini won't reflect the rise in wealth?

 

[Uppercut]

But the Gini won't reflect the rise in wealth?

Right I mean that you need to use both. Can't really have one figure that tells you two things.

 

[Redbacks]

That's right, it's equally bad either way. But that still doesn't alter the fact that the infrastructure paid for by my grandfather has effectively been pissed-up against the wall in what amounts to an international garage sale

Sounds like you are being robbed. Part of our current bills should be going to you.

 

[hendrix]

Globalisation is about the removal of barriers to trade: the elimination of subsidies and tariffs, the establishment of common standards and rules and the movement towards increased specialisation in commerce. The sale of public assets is neither here nor there as far as the debate around globalisation is concerned. If your argument is that public asset sales rob the people of the dividends of their labour, then it makes no difference whether the public asset is sold to a local entity or a foreign one.

yup.

 

[watson]

Sounds like you are being robbed. Part of our current bills should be going to you.

In a way yes. The cost of electricity has risen more than 100% in the last decade, and is set to increase another $200 per annum on average. So all this deregulation doesn't seem to have the desired effect so far.

The political upshot of the electricity price hikes is that the Turnbull government is now in panic mode when it comes to instituting the necessary 'carbon pricing' to drive down green house gas emissions. Something that must be done.

This panic is yet another indicator that Governments have lost much of their ability to govern the economy and govern the country. And we can put this down to deregulated markets and the fact that private corporations now own much of the key infrastructure and hardware.

The people are now sensing this loss of control and and don't like it because it ultimately means a loss of autonomy and self-determination. While people can hammer the government at the polls to voice their discontent they have very little leverage against private companies, especially if they are foreign or part of a near monopoly. Therefore, in the current context of centre left v centre right politics parlimentary elections have become a meaningless exercise. If the actual power resides in the private corporations, why bother or care about the politcal process?

Far-left and far-right politicians all advocate that the Government 'take back control' and have the policies to match. That's why they are currently polling strongly or winning elections.

In short, Neoliberalism has stuffed-up the political process to everyones loss.

 

[16 tins of Spam]

Muldoon had left NZ moribund in the 70s and 80s, so market reform of some kind had to happen. But like a lot of reactions to the status quo, it went too far. Lots of folk saw their jobs disappear entirely or get shipped overseas, government regulation and assistance gradually dried up in the form of selloffs, services contracted out to profit seekers, or user pays. Foreign entities of all stripes came and bought up land, infrastructure and companies, and the capital that went with it.

The idea was that we would get easier access to foreign capital, using it to build better businesses and therefore generate better jobs, and become rich selling to a newly accessible world market. While we have had some success (especially in tiny niches), the reality is that we struggle to compete with bigger, richer countries that are closer to markets, and are still doing what we've always done, which is farming.

Many already well-off folk have done very well from neoliberalism, but the rising tide never came close to lifting all boats. The former working class have been left behind as their decent paying jobs have disappeared overseas and been replaced (if at all) with service industry jobs of poorer pay and unstable hours and tenure, coupled with runaway increases in the cost of housing, utilities, education, healthcare and food. Labour used to represent these people, but has been a Blairite 'third-way' party for 20 years now, pandering to the so-called centre and differing little from the Nats.

Both parties have cynically fostered resentment of the biggest victims of neoliberalism, painting them as bludgers and drug addicts. Is it any wonder these people are losing faith in our democracy?

Obviously this refers to the NZ experience, because it's what I know. But the stories from other western nations sound pretty similar.

 

[Son Of Coco]

In a way yes. The cost of electricity has risen more than 100% in the last decade, and is set to increase another $200 per annum on average. So all this deregulation doesn't seem to have the desired effect so far.

The political upshot of the electricity price hikes is that the Turnbull government is now in panic mode when it comes to instituting the necessary 'carbon pricing' to drive down green house gas emissions. Something that must be done.

This panic is yet another indicator that Governments have lost much of their ability to govern the economy and govern the country. And we can put this down to deregulated markets and the fact that private corporations now own much of the key infrastructure and hardware.

The people are now sensing this loss of control and and don't like it because it ultimately means a loss of autonomy and self-determination. While people can hammer the government at the polls to voice their discontent they have very little leverage against private companies, especially if they are foreign or part of a near monopoly. Therefore, in the current context of centre left v centre right politics parlimentary elections have become a meaningless exercise. If the actual power resides in the private corporations, why bother or care about the politcal process?

Far-left and far-right politicians all advocate that the Government 'take back control' and have the policies to match. That's why they are currently polling strongly or winning elections.

In short, Neoliberalism has stuffed-up the political process to everyones loss.

Privatisation never drives costs down. It just places the power in the hands of shareholders, and **** everybody else.

 

[harsh.ag]

Privatisation never drives costs down. It just places the power in the hands of shareholders, and **** everybody else.

Yeah, a lot of political commentary tends to confuse the difference between more privatization and more competition.

 

[NZTailender]

Privatisation to create competition just opens things up for take overs and you end up with super corporations with less competition than before.

 

[Flem274*]

privatization = smarter because free market is my favourite myth. i can name a company in my field who created their biggest competitor through their own arrogance. it's beautiful.

 

[Pratters]

Pop and mom stores ftw.

 

[andruid]

Interesting insights here
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016...l&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

 

[Bahnz]

Labour used to represent these people, but has been a Blairite 'third-way' party for 20 years now, pandering to the so-called centre and differing little from the Nats.

Really wouldn't call the Clark government 'Blairite', given they increased taxes, massively expanded public expenditures, reduced costs of higher education, avoided foreign intervention and provided large subsidies for working class families. If anything, the fact that there is now so little difference between National and Labour is more because National lurched to the centre under Key than vice versa.