Today's Shallow Thought: Austerity for Some, Xmas Bonuses and Golden Parachutes for Others

That's a short summary of the obvious difficulties in promoting an austerity policy all over the world when one sees the promoters step out of limousines in their $5000 tailored suits and better haircuts than I have!

If we really mean to promote austerity, we should bring everyone down to that level. That means gigantic drops for the wealthy one percent. Austerity for so many others is already the wolf knocking on the door at the end of each month when they paycheck has been spent. Even for many nominally in the middle classes.

Here's my Christmas suggestion: I want to hear all the powers that be tell us in public what they are giving up for this austerity lent. Their private airplanes? Weekly pedicures? Third homes in Aspen?

This is a shallow thought but it is based on real outrage, the kind that burns cold and pure inside my warped mind. If you are telling other people that they have been but naughty children and must now suffer (whether they did anything wrong or not), the least you can do is to show the way to that land of suffering by your own behavior.