In an Economist article entitled “Bankruptcy in Rhode Island“, Governor Lincoln Chafee is quoted
as saying “We’ve hit rock bottom in this state”. And, frankly, I don’t know how
to take it.
The article is about the municipal budget problems that
are cropping up across the Rhode
Island . Essentially, as we well know, Rhode Island is
undergoing austerity, and in ways that of course fall mostly on those that can
least afford it (as Rolling Stone‘s Matt Taibbi has pointed out, austerity only applies to
regular people).
The recent showings inGreece
and France , where
anti-austerity forces triumphed and expanded (turning Europe
back towards fascism and communism as it did in the post-WW1 era), provide
continued support to my thesis that austerity overthrows its own enactors.
And that’s to say nothing ofItaly ,
where in local provincial elections, an anti-austerity political party set up
by a comedian thrashed the parties in government.
The recent showings in
And that’s to say nothing of
The problem for Gov.
Chafee is that he and the General Assembly are largely responsible for Rhode
Island’s austerity crisis (indeed, the General Assembly can only blame
themselves). But for the small caucus of progressives in both the House and
Senate, even most Democratic legislators are pro-austerity.
Since anything coming out of the right would be DOA, any such party would have to partly modeled on the Vermont Progressive Party. And let’s face it, large swathes of political players in Rhode Island are completely tied to the current model of politics as it is now; changing that threatens much of the work that’s done to understand and operate in the system that many, many organizations have built up.
The work towards change is largely focused on working within the Democratic dynamic, which leaves progressives particularly open to co-optation by the demands of various party factions when they come to power.
But even that sort of wishful thinking ignores what Gov.
Chafee said. Rhode Island
is at rock bottom, and if the Governor is wrong, it’s only because we have
further to fall. We’re completely shot through, economically, we’re devastated.
And yet, the policy makers, like a man stuck at the bottom of a very deep hole, can only find ways to chew off their own hands rather then reach for ways out. If you’re not convinced, read URI economics professor Len Ladardo’s blog, which has been positing that Rhode Island is struggling to prevent a double dip recession for a while now (Mr. Ladardo is now telling RIPR’s Ian Donnis that Rhode Island needs deep structural changes).
Or you could read GoLocalProv’s recent no-duh inflammatory headline. Yet the reality is that no matter whether you’re a conservative or liberal, objectivist or socialist, no one has a clear way forward out of our economic disaster. I particularly find “let the free market sort this out” arguments entirely unconvincing, because the free market got us into this mess.
And yet, the policy makers, like a man stuck at the bottom of a very deep hole, can only find ways to chew off their own hands rather then reach for ways out. If you’re not convinced, read URI economics professor Len Ladardo’s blog, which has been positing that Rhode Island is struggling to prevent a double dip recession for a while now (Mr. Ladardo is now telling RIPR’s Ian Donnis that Rhode Island needs deep structural changes).
Or you could read GoLocalProv’s recent no-duh inflammatory headline. Yet the reality is that no matter whether you’re a conservative or liberal, objectivist or socialist, no one has a clear way forward out of our economic disaster. I particularly find “let the free market sort this out” arguments entirely unconvincing, because the free market got us into this mess.
What is striking to
me, and maybe this is due to editing on the Economist’s part, is that there’s
no sugar-coating on the Governor’s words. There isn’t even a “but Rhode
Islanders have the strength to pull through.”
It’s a grim statement, because the reality is very, very grim. Luckily we have Hope in this state. And we’re going to need it.
It’s a grim statement, because the reality is very, very grim. Luckily we have Hope in this state. And we’re going to need it.