Fools rush in
by digby
Commenting on a shockingly obvious question in the Washington Post ("Does austerity really work?") Atrios quips:
We are ruled by fools who think mass poverty is the solution to a bad economy.
New fools same as the old fools, I'm afraid:
Mellon became unpopular with the onset of the Great Depression. He advised Herbert Hoover to "liquidate labor, liquidate stocks, liquidate farmers, liquidate real estate… it will purge the rottenness out of the system. High costs of living and high living will come down. People will work harder, live a more moral life. Values will be adjusted, and enterprising people will pick up from less competent people."
Oh and he advocated spending cuts, refused to loan money to banks, opposed any kind of spending cuts and insisted on budget balancing. In the Great Depression. It didn't work out. (What's Bush's old saying? "Fool me once,.... won't get fooled again?" Apparently not.)
But you can see what he's saying there. It's a matter of people working harder and living a "more moral life." It's good for 'em. Teach 'em the value of a real days work for a change. Make 'em grateful for they have instead of always wanting more.
This is tough love for the rubes who have to get used to their reduced circumstances. The "value" of being "middle class" or following the American Dream has to be adjusted. It's a dirty job, but somebody's got to do it.
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