And Now For Today’s Guardian Stupidity

That The Guardian doesn’t gasp matters economic is obvious and well known enough. But it’s difficult to get across to the general public quite how ignorant the people who write the thing are. Here’s an opportunity:

[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Corporation tax receipts have increased since the financial crisis, although profits of firms have risen as the economy has recovered.[/perfectpullquote]

What’s the “although” doing in there? It’s because.

Sigh.

Various bits of the economy are more variable than others over the business cycle. Rich people incomes vary more than poor people ones do. That’s why inequality falls in recessions, because the poor pootle along much as they did before and the rich b’stards living off their profits lose 25 and 50% of their incomes. As the economy climbs up out of a recession then rich peeps’ incomes rise faster than everyone elses’ in a reversal of this same process.

Note that about incomes, it’s profits which make the difference. And corporate profits vary as do those incomes. Can you see where the recession is here:

Yes, well done. Now all we’ve got to do is get The Guardian on board with reality.