In politics the opposite of progressive is not regressive, there can still be reformation, an active community and an NHS. Advocates of progressive politics would have us believe that someone paying tax at 20% on £30k pays the same amount as someone paying tax at 20% on £100k. The idea that the more you have the more you should pay, not just in absolute terms, which I agree with, but in percentage terms also. They believe that all we have to do is hammer the rich and we will all be better off. Feudalism never went away, today we have New Feudalism.
What you are describing is not a progressive policy, it is the policy of governments who want to stand some chance of balancing the books (or at least be seen to be trying) in such a way as to stand any possible chance of getting elected. Do you seriously believe that a government-in-waiting will get elected by saying that they will make taxes more fair by eliminating the higher rate of tax and putting the basic rate of tax up by, oh I don't know, say 5% in order to protect the government's revenue stream? Not going to happen, is it? People conflate "progressive politics" with "the art of getting re-elected". Real progressive activities take place at irregular intervals - 1947 in the case of the NHS, probably lesser developments are in the pipeline at any given moment (at least, I hope so). You're seeing it in the US with "Obamacare" and that piece of progressiveness has right-wingers wanting to dissolve the USA into separate nations. In reality, you don't see progressive politics any more than you see conservative politics ... politicians at the extreme ends of the spectrum like that don't get elected. Absofuckinglutely. I rant about that all the time.
The opposite of progressive is reactionary. That, I imagine, is what you would define yourself as, John.
"Progressive" - er.... "wanting to progress". Well let's not have any of that! Let's have stasis instead, then we can have no change, no improvements in anything and no infrastructure investment as clearly, everything is already tickety-boo.
Clay tablet? We'll have none of that modern thinking. I'm going to sign up with pictograms on a cave wall in central France.
Colz, you still haven't said why you like the status quo? i am assuming you don't subscribe to the usual too wee, too poor too stupid arguments. have you seen this? all world champions in the art of debate. our English friends will be astonished at 25minutes onwards. I was. the pro Indy case is entertaining from 17 minutes onwards.
1. Because I honestly dont think it will make the big difference that the pro's are making out it will 2. We will end up paying more to those tits in the scottish parliament just so we can say that their our own scottish tits, better the devil you know
Thats interesting. by contrast, over in or out of Europe thread, the vote is overwhelmingly out. I suspect because people want to bring control nearer I home, and that it will make a difference. Any EU out folks care to comment? all I would say is, that at least being our tits, if we want to get them out we can. Whereas before we could never get Thatcher and her tits out.
Frankie Boyle (who i love), on scottish independance: wind on to bout 11.30... Comedian Frankie Boyle talks about Scottish independence - YouTube
