From the author of The Celtic Tiger: The Myth of Special Partnership (2000) and The Corporate Takeover of Ireland (2007) comes a new book entitled ‘Irelands Economic Crash’.
The author, Dr. Kieran Allen, a senior lecturer at the School of Sociology in University College Dublin, recounts how a miracle economy turned into an economic disaster zone. While ordinary people suffer hardships, the government seeks solutions through bailing out banks and imposing wage cuts, levies and reductions in basic public services. The result is a downward spiral with further unnecessary expenditure, skyrocketing health care costs, soaring personal debt and increased government spending.
Ireland’s Economic Crash is a call for new thinking about economic alternatives for Ireland’s future
In this damning critique, Dr Allen advocates a withdrawal of state support to private banks and the creation of a “good” public banking system. He calls for a scheme of public works to give jobs to the unemployed and to stimulate an economy on the verge of extinction. He argues that those who made vast fortunes during the boom years should carry the cost of cleaning up the mess they largely created. Shifting from the local to global dimensions, Allen examines the reckless growth of our ‘casino economy’ where valuable resources were squandered by hedge funds and other financial speculators. He suggests that our current ‘for profit’ system is facing a deep, long-term crisis.
Written in a clear and very accessible style, this book backs up its claims using carefully marshalled evidence and logical argument, destroying five myths about the Irish crash, including the belief that we must all share pain. It further goes on to propose specific solutions to our present crisis.
Dr Allen launched his book at a public meeting in Grants Hotel, Castle St., Roscrea, Co. Tipperary recently.
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