Robert Ennever | Bendemere Books

WHEN THE CRASH HAPPENED

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Published on Tuesday, 29 July 2014 11:37

        When the crash happened, no-one was prepared. No-one could believe it.

        Those who thought more deeply had foreseen it, but nobody gave their dire predictions much credence. Life was easy, safe. Jobs were secure. The merchants of doom were too pessimistic. Globalization spread the risks. Countries were too big to fail. Governments would intervene.

         ‘Growth will save us!’ In the end it was growth which brought us undone.

        ‘The good times will never cease!’  But they did.

         Now, five years after that crash, world economies are gradually recovering.  Stock markets are once again at record highs. Confidence is growing.

         But have we learned the lesson? The division between rich and poor in America has widened, around the world many countries are facing an economic crisis. Civil unrest is occurring, unemployment is endemic, rebellions and war are devastating Africa, Syria, Iraq, Palestine and the Ukraine, and millions are dying for want of food, water and basic medical services.

         And what are the solutions being proposed? America has resorted to printing money, Russia is seeking to re-create its former USSR empire, Sunnis and Shiites are slaughtering each other in the name of religion, Japan has been fighting ongoing deflation, Europe has problems with stagnating economies, refugees, and the financial disparity of nations within the EU; and China has embarked on a massive expansion program of buying up vast tracks of foreign countries in order to secure its future food requirements.

         But, according to the economic gurus, governments which are at a loss as to what to do, and greedy international companies, the solution to all our woes is to CONSUME MORE!  Waste precious, sometimes irreplaceable, resources, pollute more, and above all over-populate!   ‘Growth is Good’, ‘It is the Universal Panacea!’

        I would prefer to call it the ‘Universal Placebo’. Given in sufficient doses it might conceivably mask the symptoms or deceive us into believing our situation is improving, but it does nothing about curing the underlying sickness. And, like all illnesses, if ignored or wrongly treated, they tend to become worse.

        The lessons of past mistakes are there for all to see. Let us hope our leaders are not too greedy, too obstinate, short-sighted and self-interested, to benefit from them.

Robert Ennever                                   26^th July, 2014