Monthly Archives: January 2009

Bubbles are great whilst they last. Eventually hubris is eclipsed by nemesis. In the late 1980s I was in Japan at the peak of their property bubble. They proudly told me the land surrounding the Emperor’s Palace, had it been a development site, was worth more than the state of California. I suggested to my [...]

Just a few weeks after Gordon let slip that he had saved the world, we learn from authoritative briefing of the Times that Mr Darling is having to work on another bank package. The first very expensive one has not led to sensible amounts of credit flowing in the economy. Far from saving the world, [...]

The government has a policy to get us to change our lifestyles. Thin is the new green. Most people must know that if they want to be thinner they need to eat less fatty food and exercise more. Many choose not to take this simple advice. Is the government now going to employ a new [...]

It is a scandal that train fares are going up by between 6% and 10%, with some off peak prices soaring. This morning on the Today programme the BBC interveiwer got through a discussion and commentary without ever once mentioning the word “costs”. There is one simple reason why train fares are so high and [...]

In this age of spin, where appearances are preferred over reality, this site concentrates on the underlying truths of the situation. Instead of believing there will be no more boom and bust, or acccepting that we have an independent Bank which is all wise, this site looks at what is happening underneath the lies, and [...]

Thanks to all the readers and contributors. I look forward to hearing your thoughts during 2009. Doubtless there is going to be plenty to talk about, when we look at the inheritance from 2008!

The government experiment with a so-called independent Policy Committee of the Bank of England has been a disaster, made worse by the way the Establishment has made it a matter principle to genuflect to its success at a time of unprecedented economic instabiliy, made worse by its actions. Readers of this site will remember how [...]

Just as we feared, the cost of UK government borrowing has been rising over the last year. The cost of 10 year money has gone up from 3.5% to 4.17%. The cost of 19 year money has gone up from 3.76% to 4.47%. That has happened despite the huge purchases of government debt by the [...]