They already privatised public transport a long time ago (and well, you'll hear plenty of complaints about how that's turned out), and Royal Mail more recently. The NHS is actually in the process of privatisation; ditto various other services - supporters of Cambridge Library recently won a victory against having its 4th floor privatised. ETA: Pardon me; it was the 3rd floor, and here are some details: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/don-t-privatise-the-third-floor-of-cambridge-central-library
no subject
They already privatised public transport a long time ago (and well, you'll hear plenty of complaints about how that's turned out), and Royal Mail more recently. The NHS is actually in the process of privatisation; ditto various other services - supporters of Cambridge Library recently won a victory against having its 4th floor privatised. ETA: Pardon me; it was the 3rd floor, and here are some details: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/don-t-privatise-the-third-floor-of-cambridge-central-library
I read a really great article about austerity as a choice (rather than an inevitability), comparing how different countries have handled the same decision, just after the general election: http://www.theguardian.com/business/ng-interactive/2015/apr/29/the-austerity-delusion
(Also, here's a really interesting take on the vintage trend and austerity - it's the first thing I've seen that manages to critique our incongruous nostalgia without throwing the anti-consumerist, green and environmental angles under the bus: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/apr/30/ditch-nostalgia-television-politics-austerity-bake-off )
And yeah, what I've heard about privatisation in the prison system in America is absolutely horrifying.