Simon C says:
October 2 2017 at 1:42 pm
I was a big fan of Sir Vince Cable before the coalition, partly due to him being lauded for predicting the crash. However, my opinion of him steadily lowered during his time in Government, but I still can’t quite understand how someone who has an economics PhD, various experiences working as an economist, and who is an Honorary Professor of Economics could think that what Labour is offering is Venezuelan economics, something he has repeatedly claimed in recent weeks.At his conference speech he said “You don’t qualify for the Labour Shadow Cabinet these days unless you have studied the Venezuelan guide on how to bankrupt a rich economy”, so it’s not just Corbyn and McDonnell, but, according to Sir Vince, the likes of Sir Kier Starmer and Tom Watson who are also into Venezuelan economics.
I’d like for him to point out when exactly Corbyn has said he wants to base our economy on an overreliance on oil exports and base our political-economic system on corruption.
Does he genuinely believe this or is he knowingly misleading as part of his strategy to paint the two main parties as extreme left and right, with the Lib Dems the only sensible voices?
Reply
Richard Murphy says:
October 2 2017 at 1:44 pm
He also wrote for The Orange Book, remember
People will say absolutely fucking anything to get to run it.
I got my reply from City Uni:
It seems that grant-farming is worth more than scholarship 😉
@Diogenes
I love that “provably incompetent in his chosen subject (plus many others besides)” isn’t sufficient to worry City Uni.
Do you think they are holding on to him in case he actually amounts to something, politically?
At the grass roots we ignored the Orange Bookers as an irrelevance as the national party would never get into government and we were running local government perfectly well as traditional yellow liberals and kicking the Oranges upstairs into the national party kept them safely away from power. That didn’t go too well, did it?
So Murphy is a traitor? “funded almost entirely by overseas sponsors”
John S, I never imagined that my complaint would be upheld or get very far. However, Snippa is now known to the governing body in a new and different way.
From the tone of the reply it is clear that his department head has had to scurry around to write the reply, which I am sure he/she would rather not do.
It is interesting that the reply puts the focus squarely on tax rather than economics. Also that he conducts research rather than teach, despite what he says on his blog.
My point that he is turning City into a laughing stock is unaddressed. If he didn’t parade his City job at every occasion, it would be another matter. Of course he is free to express his opinions but I am hoping to get City to stop him claiming the academic high ground.
One complaint was never going to achieve anything. But no Vice Chancellor wants to be addressed by outsiders questioning the competence of his staff
Check out his replies to Hayek’s Son here; http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2017/10/02/whatever-corbyn-offers-its-nothing-like-venezuela/#comment-789734
Last time he mentioned his teaching he had retreated to a claim of one lesson a week for one term.
John77,
Yeah, how much lifting is “almost” doing there?
And, it should be fairly easy to determine who, almost entirely, the “overseas sponsors” are.
It would be unfortunate should their identities prove to be, candidly, embarrassing.
I can only imagine Snippa’s reaction but the thought makes me happy, William. It is more rewarding to debate with a budgie than Snippa.
Maybe there could be a crowd funding campaign to compile a list of every blog post or comment where Snippa mentions his academic employment and then to ask the Vice Chancellor whether this actually amounts to running a blog associated with City?
Diogenes – “The blog you refer to (taxreasearch.org.uk) is a personal website run by Professor Murphy and reflects the personal views of Professor Murphy.”
He should express some doubt about the intellectual capacities of women or Blacks.
Then we would see the “university’s” commitment to that position.
Off topic, it seems Tom Petty has died. Not a Top Tier artist but I expect everyone can hum along to two or three of his songs.
If you want a very SFW story of how f**ked up rock and roll can be read on the story behind Don’t Come Around Here No More
Not a top tier artist? Tom Petty was a fucking Rock God.
Also: “I was a big fan of Sir Vince Cable before the coalition[…]”
Whereas I have consistently thought he’s a cunt since I became aware of his existence.
@SMFS
Petty was an asshole, according to some other rock luminaries. Conceited, rude, entitled, unpleasant to staff and so forth
And at least one of the people who thought that about him had a much better claim to ‘god’ status.
Bloke in Costa Rica – “Not a top tier artist? Tom Petty was a fucking Rock God.”
What the hell? OK so you like the man. Get a sense of perspective.
In this case Tom Petty claimed to have sold around half as many records as Garth Brooks. I am happy to agree Brooks is twice the Rock God Petty was.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_music_artists
To put that in perspective, he was significantly out sold by Olivia Newton-John, The Carpenters and Genesis. He sold about the same as Barry Manilow – and I thought there were more Gays with poor taste in the world – but without his massive song writing achievements or, God help us, influence.
John Square – “Petty was an asshole, according to some other rock luminaries. Conceited, rude, entitled, unpleasant to staff and so forth”
I would be very sorry to think that was true about Petty.
@SMFS
The specific person who related that tale was Christine Perfect/McVie.
She has nothing but good things to say about Winwood, Clapton, Grohl and dozens of others (Dylan- I can’t remember what was said about, but i recall the question being asked), but apparently Petty was a very noteworthy exception to the rule of ‘they’re all pretty good people’.
Which is strange, because you can sort of excuse poor behaviour by someone absolutely stellar, but Petty’s great works are usually collaborations (Jeff Lynne for Full Moon fever, Dave Stewart for Into the Great Wide Open and so forth), and I’m not sure where he got such an (allegedly) high opinion of himself.
Perfect is a very normal person, btw- not given to diva-ish ness, so it’s not bias on her part.
Connie St Louis – the fantasist who destroyed Tim Hunt – was and still is employed by City University. She makes the boy wonder look like a genius.
Ergo, they have no shame.
Murphy couldn’t teach ivy to climb a wall.