Vince Cable: a populist, not a Marxist
Posted on Wednesday 22 September, 2010
Filed Under Liberal Democrats
POLITICAL theory does have a name for ritual rhetorical denunciation of fats cats and the labour movement alike, in the name of standing up for the little guy. It’s called populism, it is generally considered an ideology of the right, and it was the only –ism that the business secretary was retailing in his speech to the Lib Dem conference today.
Not that you’d know it from the hysterical reaction to the advance text of Vince Cable’s oration, which has been denounced by several commentators as an attack on capitalism. Cable himself was backfooted to the extent where he was forced to deny any Marxist intent. He was even at pains to insert an additional reference to Adam Smith in the speech as delivered.
Yet look at what Cable actually said. There was, for example, an ignorant swipe at the alleged ‘Trotskyite fantasies’ of Bob Crow. This is, for starters, factually incorrect. It is common knowledge among those who care to discover the political proclivities of trade union leaders that Crow is not a Trot. But why let the facts get in the way of playing to the commuterland gallery with a spot of union-bashing?
In case anyone missed the point, he went on purposefully to conflate trade unions with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, a gag that reveals an unmistakeable but disgraceful contempt for democratic organisations pledged to protest against progressive austerity.
There was talk, too, of keeping prices down for consumers and maintaining a level playing field for small businesses. This was a direct appeal for support from the middle class, many of whom are about to suffer directly from the devastation that the Coalition is about to inflict on the welfare state.
Nor, I suspect, will bankers be that bothered about being branded gamblers and spivs. After all, City Boys are not known as sensitive souls. If they get to hang onto their bonuses, they will be laughing all the way to the banks. The banks that we own, but still pay out the huge bonuses they demand.
What we heard from Cable today was little more than an arse-covering exercise for the administration of which he is a constituent part, in the hope of deflecting Middle England anger, should it arise in the next period.
It was Tea Party politics, dressed up with the sophistication of a PhD-trained economist who cannot possibly be mistaken for Christine O’Donnell. There is nothing for the Daily Mail not to love, let alone anything for the Daily Telegraph to fear.
After all, verbal assaults on wide boys are meaningless unless matched with a practical programme for wealth redistribution in favour of the poor. Only when that happens will I have Cable pegged for any kind of leftie.
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19 Responses to “Vince Cable: a populist, not a Marxist”
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Not to mention announcing the details of RM privatisation.
Of course, you are 100% right about Cable.
But what interests me is that the calculation has obviously been made that it is “safe” to make “capitalism” the object of mainstream political debate, presumably in the belief that capitalism will ultimately survive that debate. In the long-term, I think this is a mistake and it will backfire on the right. We must be sure to exploit this mistake wherever possible.
Cable thinks he is clever trying to play the middle against both ends with his `Trotskyism’ this, `City Spivs’ that. Our little wannabe Bonaparte is making a big mistake if he thinks the workers, let alone the petty bourgs, are going to sit back and applaud his `reasonableness’ whilst he and his filthy government smash up their livelihoods in the name of monopoly capitalism.
Definitely take up the cudgels. Capitalism is out of control and finished as anything remotely progressive and until the monopolists that are crushing both workers and the middle class are dispropriated and socialised the middle classes can forget about cheap credit or economic stability or enterprise to say nothing of the fate of the workers.
Cable is playing the age old game of the people are so thick that I can throw some ‘populist’ rhetoric around and people will think we are attacking the rich like we are attacking you.
Well workers are seeing their jobs axed, their work intensified, their service slashed, their pay cut, their benefits reduced and rich boys are being told they are very naughty boys. Spot the difference plebs!
It should also be added that the Mail etc are using the same language as the US right – Cable’s a socialist, Marxist etc, in an attempt to make the British workers as backward as some elements of the US. But those terms do not have the same impact in the UK, so its quite embarassing.
The problem we have here is that this type of populism has often worked in the past. Given the level of political awareness of todays celebrity obsessed society there is no reason to suppose that it won’t continue to work in the future.
Dean. The Tory media hyped Cable for all he was worth this last few years. It was all about getting rid of Labour which I am sure you are happy with. Cable will take his salary and stay on board with the Tories. He was a mouthpiece for the Tories attacking Labour when no one listened to the Tories. He is a Tory now. The public service are about to be fucked now. Well done Vince. All his jokes in the Commons were to a common end. The Tories/Lib/Dems.
Just wanted to offer my congratulations, Dave. I heard that that Johanna Kasckhe (I know I haven’t spelt it right, but you know who I mean)request to appeal her ludicrous libel case has been denied. What a timewaster.
Vince does seem to have lost the sainthood that the media had given him after the financial crisis. I guess it was already going with that joke about him forecasting seven out of the last two recessions.
Ha, ha, ha
Someone in the “comments” at Shiraz Socialist drew our attention to this:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11388764
Denham,
Ha Ha Ha???
When I read the comparison on working for the common good I literally wanted to kill someone!!
As I said before I don’t think labelling everyone a Marxist has the same impact in Europe, actually it may be a postive thing that Marx gets linked to bashing bankers.
Not surprising that Vince Cable unself-consciously echoes some of Marx’s thinking, it is after all, based on reality.
Obviously, it’s not especially Marxist to condemn bankers for their naughty behaviour: that’s more like the hypocritical Victorian Christian moralism usually associated with the SWP or the STWC.
Rather, genuine Marxists would look for their explanations at the distinct incentive structures that condition the behaviour of distinct social groups, within the specific stage of development of the mode of production dominated by private property and free market competition—the main drivers of capitalist dynamism, as well as socio-ecomic injustice and instability.
[Forgetting the useless Lib-dems, the ever faithful poodles of the Tories for a moment.]
Congrats, Dave, I am glad your case has finished
I have collated posts on your libel win, the judgement, etc I hope that you will post on it shortly, sub judice permitting.
Right now, Mod, I just wanna forget about it all.
My mum just told me that this ‘Cable is Marxist’ rubbish comes from Steven Richards. Steven Richards was my brother’s best friend at primary school, andn he will always be a ten year=old in a baggy, home-knitted jumper to me. So, I wouldn’t take it seriously, chaps.
Over at Shiraz Fuckwits the fucking liberal dicks that administer it are giving a platform to a hedgefund guru who links to far right pro-pinochet “libertarians” and are also deleating comments against him that are “abusive”. Like typical liberal scum they prefer polite members of the enemy boss class to the proletarians that challenge them using “ungentlemanly” language. Jim – you’re really dragging your name through the shit associating with these fucking arseholes – if you wanna blog start your own for fucks sake – liberals are the enemy, never forget.
Yep — shiraz is shitpit gone bad.
and that comment above me isn’t me!!#$!@!$#!!#$!#$!!!!!
Aye, that Shiraz Socialist is virtually indistinguishable from HP Sauce these days — a little boat in a sea of shit, drifting ever rightwards. They should change the name to Shiraz Swamp or maybe Swamp Sauce.