No magic wand or silver bullet

The economic crisis lurches on. I listened to Zoellick and Lagarde yesterday afternoon, and their frustration was obvious. None of our political masters appears to have the answers, or at least any that are palatable to the electorate. Perhaps no one has the balls to spell it out. Bankers and politicians distrust one another, and the public is inclined to a plague on both their houses. Prior to the last election I sensed a consensus amongst voters for a dose of Vince Cable’s sackcloth and ashes. However, this willingness to accept a little pain, a lifestyle adjustment, now looks to have waned. I guess it was always predicated on the misguided assumption we were in this together; that if only the government would increase taxes on bankers and other rich people, bear down on the undeserving poor, life could return to its comfortable rhythm, the natural order. If only life was so simple. Democracy can be a frustrating inconvenience.