7:30 Report Rant

Tonight on the 7:30 report they had a story in which the small business association said that the consolidation of the big 3 banks has made it harder for small businesses to get loans because the big 3 banks have bought up all the competition. They also alleged that the govt. loan guarantees had now made it even harder for small businesses to obtain loans.

All the big bank consolidation has pretty much occurred in the last decade. The small business association didn't utter a squawk of protest when big banks were buying up every regional bank, credit union and non bank lender they could get their hands on and the former govt. sat and watched. Those pricks praised Howard to the skies even as he created the conditions they deplore today.

I'm not sure how the current government's loan guarantees are making it harder for small businesses to get loans. Perhaps if they didn't guarantee loans and then everyone went into a panic and started calling in their loans it would have made things better, oh, that's right, it fucking well wouldn't have you tools. Apparently businesses that aren't risky in a global economic cluster fuck are still getting credit. It shocks me that banks will only lend money when they are reasonably sure they'll get it back. All this time I'd thought they were big cuddly charities that lent money to people out of the goodness of their hearts. Big banks have tightened up their lending because they think a lot of small businesses will go under. That's because most small businesses depend on discretionary spending. There isn't going to be a big market for pool cleaning and restaurant meals if people are going to be relying on their pools for fresh water (sucks to be you if you went salt water) and eating their pets. In fact there would have been an even smaller market if we'd gotten workchoices which the small business sector broadly supported.

The global credit crunch is the fault of your man's best buddy G W Bush. And so is what should be called the second Bush recession. Indirectly these things are the fault of pin headed ideologues like the small business association. To make things worse the small business association went for workchoices like a crack addict to er, well, crack. Most small businesses depend heavily on discretionary spending and yet the small brain business association championed policies that would have HURT small business by increasing compliance costs, reducing discretionary spending and driving consumers into the arms of big businesses who could maximally exploit the legislation.

It's incredible to me that these people are even allowed to use sharp cutlery, let alone operate businesses. If they can't see their way to protecting their own interests, it's going to be a bumpy recession for them. Take a look at the last stimulus package. You'd think that $1000 burning a hole in the back pocket of every Australian would be something they'd be screaming for and that Turnbull and the deadbeat senate independents would have come under pressure for stonewalling and paring the package back to score political points. Not a chance. Ideology trumps staying in business for some people.