Posted by
Andrews on Wednesday, December 16, 2009 11:34:35 AM
I have been watching British programs on television the past few days (mostly my recently purchased DVD of the second season of "Life on mars"), and I have been struck by the many interesting parallels between the way modern US "artists" demonize Reagan (or did until his death made him untouchable for a time), and the many ills the British blame on Thatcher. It first struck me watching the mediocre film This Is England, but since then I have begun to notice it more and more.
What makes this interesting is that it ties in very well to my thesis in "
How To Blame the Free Market", "
The Endless Cycle of Intervention" and elsewhere. The British suffered through absurd degrees of government intervention, starting with the "war socialism" of the Second World War, and culminating in the near control of the nation by unions in the 1970's, and the subsequent death of British heavy industry, yet somehow the one brief revival of something resembling a free market under Thatcher gets the blame for all the ills England has suffered.
Not that it should seem all that foreign. Reagan was the first gasp of free market thought in government (if we exclude Goldwater, as his influence at the time was minimal, though his impact on the future was massive) since Grover Cleveland, yet eighty solid years of both parties endorsing big government is never blamed for any ills, somehow Reagan's reforms brought about every social ill, even ills that long predate his presidency.
It is a topic I want to look at in greater detail in the future, but for now I just thought I would point out what seems an interesting similarity. It is nice, in a way, as I am always happy to see a continuation of the traditional ties between the US and England, even if the context is rather disappointing. Still, expect this to come up again, as it would be interesting to not only look at the way the US and England are similar in their characterizations of conservative leaders from the 1980's, but also asking why they, or at least the "artists" and "intelligentsia", now feel the need to cast those leaders as demons.
POSTSCRIPT
I seem to have forgotten the links when I posted this. It has been one of those sort of days. I am working on it now, and it should be fixed soon. Sorry for the oversight.