When the cash runs out

NY Post ^ | October 25, 2010 | Editorial

[Scanian]

The trouble with socialism, Margaret Thatcher said, is that eventually you run out of other people's money. Brits are now learning that the hard way.

Britain's welfare state reached an absurd peak in 2008 when it began offering benefits for the extra wives of polygamous immigrants. But that era is now over, say the Conservatives, who announced massive cuts to fight a deficit of some $235 billion this year.

"Today's the day when Britain steps back from the brink, when we confront the bills from a decade of debt," Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said last week.

It's tough medicine: Some 490,000 public-sector workers could be fired as government agencies absorb a 19 percent budget cut over the next five years.

But as Britain trims fat, it's also slicing muscle -- literally. Defense spending is to be slashed 7.5 percent, as vital pieces of military infrastructure are scrapped:

* 17,000 soldiers, sailors and airmen, plus 25,000 civilians.

* 600 tanks, armored vehicles and artillery, about a third the overall force.

* Recon and surveillance aircraft doing vital work in Afghanistan.

The navy's flagship carrier and its entire fleet of Harrier jets also are being ditched. (Replacement fighters won't be ready until 2020.)

There's a lesson here for America: Runaway spending comes with a steep price.

[lowbridge]

bump

[Liz]

When the cash runs out------ Britain's welfare state reached an absurd peak in 2008 when it began offering benefits for the extra wives of polygamous immigrants.

Duh.

[Little Pig]

I wonder how bad this is affecting the other parts of Britain. For example, granted that England is nearly in shambles as a result of a couple decades of multi-culti socialism, and Wales, Manx, Scotland and North Ireland are feeling the bite, but just how bad? I ask because I’d love to be able to work in Scotland for a while, but I’m not going until they’re well on the mend. Ditto for the Low Countries and Scandinavia (though Finland is doing ok, and it’s pretty much first on my list for places to try).

[gary_b_UK]

Actually, Scotland is the most socialist part of the UK (and voting proves it, only one Conservative Member of Parliament out of 59, the other 58 all held by left-wing political parties), followed by large parts of Wales, the North East and parts of the North West of England. Northern Ireland is a socially conservative part of the UK, but economically it is heavily socialist with large numbers of public sector workers.

[griswold3]

Here’s an even better quote:

“Socialism will only work in two places: Heaven, where they don’t need it, and hell where they’ve always had it.” ~ Ronald Reagan