Syriza and voodoo economics

The term “voodoo” economics was originally aimed at the Reaganite right – and, specifically, their belief that cuts in taxes would pay for themselves through the higher growth they generated. Now, in Greece, the new Syriza government has come up with a left-wing version of voodoo economics: the belief that a spending splurge will pay for itself, if it is just pushed with enough energy and determination. Unfortunately, given that Greece’s starting point is immeasurably weaker than that of the US in 1980, the Greek experiment with voodoo economics is likely to come crashing down – and quickly.