How Britain avoided double dipping

[GB9]

If you take out the massive boom and the following bust, then we have had very gentle growth this decade. You can hardly blame Osbourne for the point at which he started. Labour got us to an unsustainable peak, and although they wiped a lot off in one quarter (near 7%) there was still a bit to go.

[Paddy]

Works both ways though. I am in the process of buying an SL mercedes. (2nd one I will have owned but first one from new) the first one was an SL320 it cost its first owner over £80k in 2000 I bought it in 2004 for 22k My new one will be an SL350 and will cost me £77k and in four years will be worth 22k ... If the way you are thinking was true I would have to spend 100k to have achieved the same thing. So why if I am buying a foreign car in a devalued currency (and one that is considerably weaker against the Euro than it was in 2000) but getting more for my money instead of less?

Cars are not commodities. Compare income with the cost of fuel, food, gas and water.

[bobspud]

Cars are not commodities. Compare income with the cost of fuel, food, gas and water.

But those items are price rigged and are always going to go up because there is a finite market and collusion to profit from the behaviour. It's not economics or printing money that caused fuel to sky rocket. Its the fact that only a few companies can get it our the ground and OPEC collude to keep the price of a barrel where they want it.

[Jeebo72]

Works both ways though. I am in the process of buying an SL mercedes. (2nd one I will have owned but first one from new) the first one was an SL320 it cost its first owner over £80k in 2000 I bought it in 2004 for 22k My new one will be an SL350 and will cost me £77k and in four years will be worth 22k ... If the way you are thinking was true I would have to spend 100k to have achieved the same thing. So why if I am buying a foreign car in a devalued currency (and one that is considerably weaker against the Euro than it was in 2000) but getting more for my money instead of less?

This is actually a great example of just how bad the contractor market has become. 6 years ago, myself and my colleagues wouldn’t touch a Merc unless it had AMG in its name. Maybe a newbie might consider a SL with a 5 ltr engine, but nothing as girly (unless a girl of course) as a car with under 300 bhp.

Although I must admit, any decent contractor still wouldn’t. But then any decent contractor never went to 450.

[AtW]

Works both ways though. I am in the process of buying an SL mercedes. (2nd one I will have owned but first one from new) the first one was an SL320 it cost its first owner over £80k in 2000 I bought it in 2004 for 22k My new one will be an SL350 and will cost me £77k and in four years will be worth 22k ... If the way you are thinking was true I would have to spend 100k to have achieved the same thing. So why if I am buying a foreign car in a devalued currency (and one that is considerably weaker against the Euro than it was in 2000) but getting more for my money instead of less?

It's deflation, innit?

[AtW]

You can hardly blame Osbourne for the point at which he started.

No, but you can blame him for everything he has promised but has not actually delivered - those "massive cuts" won't kick in until next Parliament, he's increased taxes and made some cuts, yet he borrows almost as much as before.

LibCons are just following more or less same policy as the Labour did which has got only one real aspect - print money to avoid bursting of the consumer real estate bubble.

Ok, he cut 50% income tax to 45%, but it's not like many people paid 50% in the first place.

[AtW]

It's not economics or printing money that caused fuel to sky rocket.

Right now printing of money is exactly what keeps most commodities highly priced.