Saturday, Jan 24, 2009
Free money for everyone!
Times: Taro Aso gives Japanese £100 each to stimulate economy
Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso believes that he has hit upon a scheme that will solve the crisis in an orgy of consumer spending.
The move, which he has described as “the best economic measure of all”, involves a handout of at least 12,000 yen (£100) to every citizen over the age of 18.
The scheme, however, has plenty of doubters. The problem is not that the Japanese do not have cash, but that they are too scared to spend it. Indeed, Japanese households are already sitting on net cash savings of Y778 trillion (£6.5 trillion).
Posted by little professor @ 05:36 AM (493 views) Add Comment
11 Comments
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1. japanese uncle said...
Sadly, Aso is neither literate nor numerate. (It's very hard for me to mention this, but true. He cannot read basic Japanese, which has been one of the major political issues in the country for the past few months. Just imagine a Dubya is serving as Japanese PM) Giving away ￡100 to all consumers alike, mega-rich or poor, is the best that occurred to this poor mind. You may safely assume ￡100 given to a minimum-wage worker will be spent instantly for food or else, while the same￡100 given to a millionaire is likely only to increase the balance of his savings.
2. bystander said...
Didn't GW try this earlier in the crisis with $600 rebates to every man and woman over 18 in the States?....did it work????
3. drewster said...
Bystander,
That's right, W gave a tax rebate of (I think) $400 per adult. Clearly it has worked wonders...
Most world leaders would still happily sell their grandmothers to have Japan's problems. Low unemployment, low crime, affordable housing, healthy and well-fed population, bullet trains that run on time, freedom of the press and judiciary, etc. If that's our main concern then bring it on!
4. japanese uncle said...
drewster
Low unemployment sustained by millions of temporary workers on near minimum wages (30% margin exploited by intermediary agencies), affordable housing only for regular employees of large companies, while still rabbit hutches for the majority of workers, and that 6-7 times annual salary in Tokyo. Freedom of the press and judiciary a blunt sarcasm? But, yes to the same extent as in the UK or US, which I mean non-existent in susbstance. True, bullet trains at least run on time.
5. plato said...
Aso thinks the 'peasants' (in his mind) are so poor they wll be eternally grateful and they will afford to eat freely until their simple minds have forgotten. Meanwhile the rich are so so tight they worship every single yen received in his honour.
6. japanese uncle said...
Incidentally, the issue of the PM's illiteracy (his main interest at the age 67 reportedly is Manga comics) which is a grave concern in terms of his qualification as a leading politician, let alone as PM, in such critical times for the nation, has not, as far as I know, been reported by the UK media to this day, although their Tokyo correspondents undoubtedly have been quite familiar with the news as it was taken up so widely by the local media. I am not sure whether it is thanks to their (UK media's) decency or they just did not find it worthwhile.
7. a saver said...
Just heard from an Aussie friend that their government has just sent families $1000 for every child they have, so they're all splashing out on holidays in Queensland etc, while middle-class taxpayers who've had their homes repossessed are living rough on the streets. Just cannot see that encouraging people to splurge is useful, seems immoral somehow.
JU -illiteracy/idiocy/complete lack of moral fibre is no barrier to high office as we've seen in our country and others.
8. paul said...
OMG
JPY12,000 = GBP98.00!?!
I remember when JPY22,000 = GBP100.00.
Japan doesn't have press freedom, just as JU suggests. There is a strictly regulated press club, and if you say anything out of line, you're out of the club. The only papers that buck this trend are the tabloids and sports journals.
9. japanese uncle said...
paul:
True, press club system is one structural malady in the Japanese media. As a result, I must admit writers in the Japanese press are much less imaginative than the press here. Newspapers in Tokyo are even more boring than the Daily Mail constantly bombarding their readers with the updates of Big Brother and Amy Weinhouse lunacy.
10. d'oh said...
What the Oz governemnt has been doing with cash hand-outs to families, pensioners and ftbs of late is the worst form of demagoguery. I despair at my fellow country men. Bunch of muppets.
11. P. Riddy said...
They should have cut taxes and spending, not spent and borrowed money. This will cause inflation.