Bring on the Recession!

George Monboit never one to shy away from controversy now is putting forward the idea that a little recession never hurt anyone.

In Bring on the Recession Posted October 9, 2007 he asks: How else will the destructive effects of growth be stopped?

If you are of a sensitive disposition, I advise you to turn the page now. I am about to break the last of the universal taboos. I hope that the recession now
being forecast by some economists materialises.

I recognise that recession causes hardship. Like everyone I am aware that it
would cause some people to lose their jobs and homes. I do not dismiss these
impacts or the harm they inflict, though I would argue that they are the
avoidable results of an economy designed to maximise growth rather than
welfare. What I would like you to recognise is something much less discussed:
that, beyond a certain point, hardship is also caused by economic growth.