Why is it now unattainable utopianism to want what we all had only a few years ago?
David Cameron: he told you you couldn’t afford the services that were once considered the bare minimum required in the UK, while funnelling the money that would have paid for those services to his rich friends. It has been going on for years.
It’s a good question, isn’t it?
Why are people who might broadly be described as socialists routinely ridiculed and patronised for ‘immaturity,’ ‘delusion,’ ‘utopianism,’ ‘naivety,’ ‘dreaming,’ and on and on – just for wanting a fairer society?
Martin Odoni tackles this in a new Critique Archives article, in which he states:
The idea behind this is the little-questioned assumption that being a socialist means believing in Utopia, and that socialists are therefore attempting to achieve the unachievable. The thing is, socialism has never been about making the world a perfect place, but only about making it a fairer place. A better place where no one is placed under unnecessary life pressure. Does that really sound wildly unattainable, or undesirable?
Of course it isn’t.
And the fact is that we had a much fairer society, here in the UK, within This Writer’s lifetime – and I’m not all that old.
— SophieRam97 (@SophieP25397) May 8, 2023
The problem is that a succession of neoliberal governments – both Tory and Labour – have eroded that fairness away in the name of greater profit for the richest people in society.
They have privatised public utilities to make their services exclusive to people who can afford to pay higher prices for them, rather than a right that we all deserve. Did you not realise that this is the reason your heating bill was so high over the winter?
They have changed the tax system to ensure that the poorest people pay the largest proportion of their earnings. Rishi Sunak is the richest man in the entire country, and he pays a smaller proportion of his earnings in tax than a nurse.
They have cut average pay for employees while enabling bankers to take home huge undeserved bonuses.
And they have done these things to take money out of the economy and put it into private, tax-free bank accounts where it cannot be used to improve the quality of life of the nation as a whole.
This is the plan.
And while they have done it, they have been telling you that the services you once took for granted are now unaffordable.
It is the biggest, dirtiest lie in UK politics.
It has caused countless deaths – think of all the people who have died because their benefit claims were denied and they were too sick or disabled to defend themselves. Think of everyone who died of Covid-19 because the Tories were busy funnelling money that should have been spent on protective equipment and medical aid into the bank accounts of their friends, in return for nothing.
And they insult you by telling you anybody who thinks these deaths should be stopped is a naive dreamer. How do you feel about that – and what are you going to do?
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (in the right margin). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Join the uPopulus group at https://upopulus.com/groups/vox-political/
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
The Livingstone Presumption is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
My stepfather was a biscuit salesman. He won holidays every year, and we went on holiday as a family once a year as well. He had a free brand new company car every 2 years and bought his home. He was asked to take early retirement with a huge pay off in his late 50’s. They then started recruiting younger salespeople who wouldn’t expect the same kind of perks of their jobs. These days you wont get anywhere close to what our parents got from the companies they work for. That money goes right back into the company pot and no doubt into tax haven accounts to avoid tax. These companies will never allow us to believe we are worth anything close to how they used to treat their employees. Our children are expected to be beholden to this establishment rule that Jeremy Corbyn wanted to get us out of. I wonder how many more chances for someone like Corbyn to come along and get into a position of power that will give us the chance to get away from establishment power & rule? It is so rare. The people failed to grab this opportunity to gain power over their own lives.