Culture

Billy Bragg pins market crisis on Thatcher's 80s attack on miners

by mike_yvr | March 6, 2009 at 10:51 pm

531 views | 20 Recommendations | 7 comments

Billy Bragg opines in the Guardian that Maggie Thatcher's attack on the miners set in motion the calamity that has beset global financial markets today.

It's worth a read -- and includes a fascinating BBC video clip that looks at the impact of the mid-80s attack on British workers on the folk-punk music scene.

There is a bitter irony in the fact that the Bank of England chose the 25th anniversary of the beginning of the miners' strike to fire off its weapon of last resort in an attempt to damp down the conflagration currently sweeping through global capitalism. The wry smile that passes across the lips of those who opposed the naked selfishness at the heart of the Thatcherite experiment will be mirrored by the disconcerted frowns of those who, having wholeheartedly embraced the free market, never thought that it would lead to this. Like Frankenstein's monster, Thatcherism has turned on its creators.

Is there anybody out there willing to stand up – on this, of all days – and raise a toast to the wilful destruction of our manufacturing industry and its replacement by the financial services sector? Yes, there were unions who were resistant to change, but whoever came up with the idea that the solution to this problem was to import cars rather than make them ourselves sacrificed more than just the entire engineering skills base.

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Fripouille

at 07:02 on March 7th, 2009

Billy Bragg is an ass and a bourgois-caviar "socialist".

I am no fan of Thatcher, but she was elected to put an end to the scandalous abuse of strike-power wielded by the Trade Unions of that time which consisted of energy workers (coal, electricity and others) striking, sometimes for months on end, to keep their corporatist benefits. She had to use the army to do it, but she was carrying out the wishes of millions of decent and hard-working British people. Moreover, she was re-elected for a second term. NO other western country ever experienced, or would have accepted, that kind of outrageous banditry.

They held the whole country to ransom, often in winter, when people went without hot water or heating. This killed many people.

I was an active trade-unionist in England, so I am not anti-union, but this indecent amalgam is dishonest.

Whatever may be the pitfalls or not of global capitalism and Thatcher's time in office, she was elected to put an end to the anarchic and violent excesses perpetrated by selfish interests, and I am glad she did. That has nothing to do with the excesses of globalised trade, and saying it does is a lie.

Thanks for an excellent post!.

mtammas

at 15:31 on March 7th, 2009

Love Billly Bragg! Thatcher, not at all. As a powerless, regular citizen, watching the Reagan, Mulroney, Thatcher triad take hold was a nightmare. They brought on a period of neo-conservatism from which we are still recovering.

Thanks for the story!

Fripouille

at 15:42 on March 7th, 2009

Oh!?

Maybe it would have been better that the miners won?!!

"Reagan, Mulroney, Thatcher triad" ?

Sorry mtammas, but there is nothing less objective than post-analysis of historical events.

Moreover, given your own lifestyle, as expressed on your page, you would have been one of the first victims of their "victory".

Please excuse me, but that is no more than an "affordable" opinion in my view...

Amy Judd

at 15:54 on March 7th, 2009

Please don't make comments on peoples' lifestyle and what they choose to believe - that's too personal.

Fripouille

at 16:03 on March 7th, 2009

Accepted Amyjudd, and thank you......My apologies...

poor oligarch (not verified)

at 08:37 on March 8th, 2009

We aren't supposed to say that...

...Indeed, and if you do, you will be given Chomsky's Manufacturing Consent for homework (to be followed by Klein's The Shock Doctrine) - just so you know how you fell into that particular trap