Navigating the Minefield of Short-Termism
Its disappearance went largely unnoticed. There was no post mortem, no eulogy, no deep sighs for what had been lost. Posterity slipped from our consciousness as we ushered in the neoliberal era 40 years ago. Populations would now be administered, not led. Grand vision was a quaint artifact of generations past. Besides, the invisible hand of the marketplace would see to all our needs today, tomorrow, forever. Politicians grew smaller and smaller until they shrunk to fit the mold of technocracy. Like sheep being dipped we were plunged into a world of supply-side economics in which lower taxation and deregulation would deliver manna from heaven. We focused on skinning the economy, and society, right to the bone. Everything would be maximized, nothing would be wasted, not even the offal. We were surrendered to a world of short-termism. We elected governments of technocrats - grey suits stuffed with wet cardboard - whose horizons were measured in electoral cycles. They would do what they
Pierre Poilievre is a career politician that never held an honest day job much like his contemporary USA Trump.
ReplyDeleteSadly for the sleeping masses in Canada, his wish to redefine Canada plods along with little opposition.
It's time to boost Canadian interest in politics; perhaps we can talk about the price of beer or gender issues?
TB
If you want to regenerate interest in politics, give the voting public a say. That means electoral reform. It's the only way to make the political caste more responsive and accountable to the public. When a 40 per cent vote share can deliver a majority you can wind up with three out of five voters essentially disenfranchised. The false majority government can do what it likes, rewarding those whom it likes, and honing another and formulate another batch of empty promises to lure just enough votes to perpetuate their rigged game.
DeleteMeanwhile, in existential news ....
ReplyDelete"Antarctic Ice Shelf, Almost as Big as Los Angeles, Completely Collapses
"The Conger ice shelf was there and then suddenly it was gone.""
Relax, NPoV. After a while we'll become inured to this. It's called "creeping normalcy."
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