An interesting feature has been the discrepancy between the reaction of the Tory establishment and its lackeys - including of course the right wing press - and public opinion. The papers have got quite hysterical at yet another example of tasteless celebration of her death while most are either not bothered or are a little amused. The powers that be have made her death into a political occasion. They misjudged the reaction.

Elsewhere on this site I have suggested that it may be that Marxist (or perhaps, Marx-inspired) Revolution in Capitalist countries was prevented by the adoption of social democratic ameliorative measures by Capitalist classes.  The bosses were allowed to make money but a significant amount of their profits were redistributed.

Fast forward to the 1970s.  It was clear this redistributionist model was not working in the UK.  The evidence of this was the  almost continuous trades union activity that was reducing productivity and profits.  The Capitalist class were  losing interest in maintaining their cooperation.  Furthermore, without  profitability, there were not the resources available for  redistribution.  Of course, the strikes also hid the sheer incompetence of much of British management of the time.
 
This analysis allows for a different take on Mrs Thatcher.  Viewed in this  light her vision of a property owning and share holding democracy might be seen an attempt at another solution to the challenge posed by Marx.  Instead of a redistributionist Capitalism overseen by a powerful State, she tried a populist Capitalism where  everyone would be a Capitalist.  This would reduce the role of the State and free enterprise to be more profitable but everyone would benefit.

It didn't work of course, and it is not clear how long the vision lasted.  By the time she left office the USSR had fallen, Socialism appeared defeated and triumphal Capitalism had less interest in 'appeasing' the working class.

The strategy of the current Neo-liberal administration is to use the economic crisis to demolish as much of the welfare provision created since 1911 as possible.

So while the pretence is that cuts are being introduced for financial reasons, the reality is that they're being introduced for ideological reasons.

The cuts won't work for financial reasons, if only because the Government needs pensioners votes to have a chance of staying in power and this means buying them off. The bill for this is colossal.

But pensioners' votes will not be enough to save them, particularly with UKIP's strong showing; this means the Government needs to whip up the bigots and prejudiced.

As the general election nears, we shall see hysterical nonsense from various Neo-liberal politicians. Duncan Smith's £53 a week nonsense is one drop in the torrent of clap-trap we can expect in the months ahead.

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.

Last year there was a picture in one of the UK daily newspapers of Nick Clegg with new trainees at a branch of a well-known fast-food outlet. He was having to pretend that he thought the jobs being created were the sort of valuable employment that pointed the way forward for the Britain of the future.

Even Tory-lite Clegg looked miserable, as if he was thinking, 'I used to have ideals once, is this what it's come to? A fall guy for right-wing Tories?'

The Liberal Party used to be a party of social improvement. Much of our social welfare provision was ultimately created or inspired by Liberals. The Lib Dems are a pale shadow of a once great party.

The economic crisis in Greece, the extraordinary story in Cyprus, and the social disintegration that the Capitalist response has triggered, has been a revelation to many.

The only question asked by our betters has been, essentially, does the German government, mindful of its electoral chances, believe that German taxpayers are willing to fork out money for the maintenance of the European Union's economic system created largely for Germany's economic benefit?

Or would they risk the end of the Euro in Greece and other countries, with the longer term risk to their manufacturing supremacy?

In a rational and humane world, the priority would not be to crush Greece's social institutions in order to fix a broken currency (for the benefit not of Greeks but of others), but to find a way for Greece to relaunch the drachma to minimize the misery and hardship the economic melt-down is causing.