To understand new phenomena, we need new language. Language is critical to our comprehension because language allows us to paint mental pictures. Language is a shortcut and a sort of thought organiser that allows us to see the world with more nuance and depth.
Unfortunately, economics treats language as an afterthought, mangling its beauty and humanity in a grating, mechanical dullness.
“This will be a Government of enterprise, creating new jobs.”
“Creating 200,000 jobs by 2025” [in tourism].
There are 14 separate quotations from the programme for government, all citing something mythical called “job creation”. There is no such thing.
During the week I joined a fascinating webinar given by the brains and policy guru behind the European Central Bank, Philip Lane, its chief economist. He looks like a man with the job he always wanted and is comfortable with it.
The reason I used the term “brains” is very simple: Lane is now the intellectual driver of policy. As I listened to him, I heard a combination of Ben Bernanke’s deep appreciation of monetary history and Mario Draghi’s sharp understanding of the power of the central bank and the breathtaking array of tools at his disposal. Lane grasps what is at stake and is prepared to act comprehensively.
A gerontocracy is a country run by old people or people who are considerably older than the average. Traditional societies (and communist ones) were typically run by the elderly.
For Plato it was obvious that the old would run Athens as they would bring wisdom to decision-making. In contrast, the Roman republic usually vouched for younger men. Later Roman emperors tended to be young not least because being the boss was a dangerous job; many met with premature and nasty deaths.
As the lockdown eases, let’s look to the future with confidence. We should soon have a new government and maybe this will bring new thinking. There is little to fear as the local economy and the global economy open up. While we might have to get used to living with Covid-19 rather than talking about “before” and “after”, it is time for big thinking. The lockdown has given us this opportunity.
By coincidence, the financial markets are presenting the country with a unique opportunity and we must take it.
It is difficult to be confident about the future when our rate of unemployment is 25 per cent, the State’s budget deficit is massive, and geo-politically the streets of the US, our most important investment partner, are in flames. But there are grounds for optimism. If we do the right thing now there is a pathway whereby the economy can recover quickly, and, with political vision, it can be reset to create a more inclusive and ebullient society underpinned by a competitive economy.
At the moment people are traumatised. Trauma tends to shorten time horizons. In a crisis we stop thinking about the future and focus on the here-and-now. Tomorrow becomes today. However, it is important to see beyond this emergency, and appreciate that the economy was vibrant in March. That economy has not died. It remains in “virus-imposed” hibernation. We can waken it.