It’s another week in austerity land, and our glorious leader (who has replaced the previous glorious leader) is asking for your opinions. Yes that’s right, they want to know what you THINK. It’s like a huge country wide version of that pointless programme “Question time”.
Your government would like you, the public to nominate laws and regulations they would like to see abolished. It’s all Radio 4 seem to be talking about at the moment, and it’s absolutely masterful.
Masterful????
Yes, masterful. The British public (especially the middle class) loves to chunter. We might not be any good at football, but boy can we tell you our opinions. Well here’s my mindless opinion.............. nothing will come of this.
It’s a smoke screen. It’s a way of saying “See, we are listening.” Yes they might alter one or two things to try and prove this exercise had a point, but no great changes will amount from this. It is simply a tool to divert your attention and give the media another means to tell you how to think.
You didn’t think this was being done for your benefit did you? Hell, I even found myself getting wrapped up in the spin........ for about 5 minutes. But that’s the amazing thing about radios, they come with off buttons. If only we used them more often. Now how’s that for an opinion?
You see, we are about to enter a very difficult period in the history of this country. If you think the public spending cuts being proposed are harsh, well you aint seen nothing yet. These are just the appetisers, mere canapés. The main course arrives next year.
For a while there, I actually thought the government was going to try and hyperinflate away our debt. But with billions being pulled from public spending, and banks still refusing to lend, the numbers show we are heading in the opposite direction. That’s not my opinion by the way, just the opinion of someone else who claims to know how to read the numbers.
Deflation seems to be where we are heading. And that’s fine if you haven’t got any debt or don’t own any assets, because with deflation, cash is king.
Could I be wrong here? Hell yes. I’m wrong all the time. And it would be nice to imagine that the economy can tick over as it has been, but that isn’t going to happen, not in the short term. In the short term, millions will be made unemployed, the economy will shrink and your public services will suffer. I know this because it said so on Radio 4 yesterday .............. erm, hang on.
I know that opinion sounds bad, but it’s better than the alternative. Inflating and debasing the currency would have been a disaster.... in someone else’s opinion. It would have been like trying to cure an alcoholic by getting him drunk. Our debt must be repaid before it gets too big to service. If it gets too big to service, we go into default, and then the currency goes down the toilet..... along with any and all of your wealth. And think of the opinions the population would have about that.
As an example, just do a bit of research into what happened in Argentina. The middle class were destroyed. At least in deflation there will be a middle class left in this country.
Does this mean I agree with the Tory spending cuts? No! I don’t think they are cutting enough, and where they are cutting is in the wrong places. But then that statement is based on my opinions...... most of which aren’t actually mine. They were “borrowed” from the minds of others and lumped together into something I claim to be mine. My knowledge of economics is limited, so really, how the hell can I have an opinion that is actually valid?
I can’t. And that’s the point that most people don’t realise. Most of our opinions are meaningless. But then, that’s just my opinion.
Ok, ok, enough. I hope you see what I am trying to do here. I am merely trying to point out that most of our opinions aren’t actually ours. They were given to use by someone or something. Now ask me how to do a composite, that’s something I can have a valid opinion on. Why? Because it’s my field of expertise and I do them daily. But ask me about Climate Gate or whether I should be using plastic bags for my shopping and really have no idea. Whatever I say would merely be a guess based on the information I have collected over the years.
And my opinions change constantly. What about yours?
One of my opinions that has not changed is my belief in the importance of systems in business. I know I’m preaching to the converted (I know because my records show that most of the people reading this have bought my Practice Systems Templates, and in 5 years only 1 person has ever asked for their money back), but systemisation is key to the smooth running of your practice. Yes you can still make money without them, and yes you can still enjoy dentistry, but systems make things so much easier.
But why make things more difficult for yourself? Doesn’t make any sense to me.
Keep smiling
Regards
Stephen Hudson BDS, MFGDP, DRDP
Please help support the Sick Dentist Scheme and the BDA Benevolent fund by buying my book atChoose Your Reality. A proportion of the profits from its sale are split equally between these two charities
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