Letters: More austerity isn’t the answer
Re “True austerity,” Opinion, May 18
Fiscal conservatives will always claim that the real problem is that the austerity measures undertaken in Europe didn’t go far enough.
Similarly, there’s the claim that the reasonGeorge W. Bush, through his tax cuts and anti-regulatory stance, presided over the worst economic performance of any president in modern history was because he wasn’t a true conservative.
We have an obvious historical parallel. How did we finally exit the Depression? What were the fiscal policies that coincided with World War II? Wasn’t it a massive tax increase on the rich (the war tax) along with equally massive government spending that finally brought back economic well-being? Plus, the middle class actually shared in the benefits.
Growth wins over austerity every time.
Gerry Kamin
Sherman Oaks
No matter how many times the “Austerians’” economic policies crash and burn, they keep coming back, insisting that if only more had been done it would have worked. This mind-set is akin to saying: “Yes, the Titanic sank, but it will eventually emerge on the other side of the world; we simply need to allow the policy of sinking to work its magic.”
And never mind the human carnage.
Michael Hayne
Tujunga
ALSO:
A cure for the common opinion
Get thought-provoking perspectives with our weekly newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
