Our Business Secretary, Vince Cable, has said it's difficult for the government to explain to the general public, just how bad our economic shape is..
He explained in an interview to the Guardian, that Britain is no longer a 'price setting nation'.. ceding that to India and China..
Inflation has hit 4.5% here.. and Vince blames the worldwide recession, plus the changing economic climate in general.. He admitted it will take years to dig ourselves out of the hole we find ourselves in today.. and said it was problematic for the government to get the public to imagine what this mess entails..
Bottom line would seem to be, that we're in for a very rocky ride for the foreseeable future, and there will be no quick fix to get us back to where we were before Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae..

An interesting discussion on the British Monarchy this morning.. it was said 'the Queen knew she had to develop the common touch.. or she'd be out..'.
It's amazing how many Brits are anti-monarchists without really understanding what the Royals do for the country..
They are Ambassadors to the world, without agenda.. They bring in far more in tourist revenue than is ever paid to them by the Exchequer.. They represent a tradition that goes as far back as British history itself.. and their very presence affords many a sense of security, of continuity..
As was said in this morning's exchange..'The US would buy the Monarchy, if it were for sale..'
Such an institution though, is priceless..

Spain's the next domino in line to fall in the Eurozone..
Thousands of protestors took to the streets in most of that country's major cities.. angry at that country's 45% youth unemployment..
Now these protests were banned, in the leadup to local elections slated for tomorrow.. but a total of some 60,000 protesters has gathered across Spain, in Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Bilbao as well as the capital Madrid..
Police are on the scene(s), but so far no violence has been reported..
The overall unemployment rate in Spain now stands at about 21.3%.. the highest in Europe.. and it's a wonder Sapaniards haven't taken to the streets before this..
What they want, is a reorganization of the countrys' debt, and an end to the domination of Parliament by the two main parties..
Spains Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero says he sympathises with the protestors..
But this is the same movement we've seen in London, Paris, Rome, and Brussels.. with students and the older unemployed have expressed their opposition to the strict austerity programs set in place by their respective governments.. these same governments who, while paying attention to the public furore, have staunchly defended their measures to bring them back into economic stability..
It's a hard luck life, these days...
Interesting to note, the same protests are taking place in Chile.. One has to wonder when it will hit the US..

More later...