What maps will guide us through 2009?

Ray

The Bible.

wonderfulforhisage

Try this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Plan-Twelve-Months-Renew-Britain/dp/0955979900

Trumpeter Lanfried

Freedom and Reality by Enoch Powell.

'You have nothing to fear either from exercising freedom, or from facing reality. Your dangers lie in the opposite direction - in surrendering yourselves to control and management, and in retreating to live in a world of fantasy.'

Gawain

The Bible plus The Wealth of Nations

naddo

Luckily for the Great Leader, there's a new part work being advertised on TV at the moment which is perfect for him, "The Tractor Collection" which build up into the ultimate collection of model tractors.

Tiberius

If The Bible is too heavy for you, give a re-run to Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life" starring James Stewart.

cuffleyburgers

Recommend The Black Swan by Nicolas nasim Taleb - he's a bit full of himself but he makes some good points rather well.

PayDirt

Just as the financial collapse has been largely unexpected and thrown the world out of gear many will be wondering what other things can shortly go wrong. One really worrying thing for the near future is how we have all come to rely so heavily on the internet. Just how robust is this modern marvel? I hope the powers that be have good back-up plans for when our computer networks get the crunch treatment. Don’t let’s get caught napping like we were with the banks failure, and I don’t mean climate failure which hardly needs more publicity, more like a decent risk assessment department for you policitians. That of course has its own problems in that the gurus become complacent with their risk-management strategies and then they miss the all-important big event not on their radar which changes everything. Does the Conservative Party have contingency plans for “unexpected” events? Do they broadcast them?

Augustus

The book that hasn't been written yet: After Blair, David Cameron?

Verity

Enoch Powell was maliciously pummelled and trashed by the left because they knew they couldn't beat him on the appeal of his thinking.

It is astounding how much malice there is in the world that the slimy, malignant left appeals to so many voters.

James Forsyth

Tiberius, I think you'll enjoy this piece on Its a Wonderful Life http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/10/AR2008101002267_pf.html

Austin Barry

Orwell's "The Road to Wigan Pier" from which comes:

"We of the sinking middle class may sink without further struggles into the working classes where we belong, and probably when we get there it will not be so dreadful as we feared, for, after all, we have nothing to lose but our aitches.”

seb

@ Trumpeter Lanfried

Apt. The fantasy of a return to Winston Brown's Potemkin Economy is all that is on offer. Once again, I've been trawling the net for information on personality disorders to see which one[s] seem to best describe whatever the Prime Minister is suffering from. Is Political Betting reporting odds on Winston cracking up in the near future? This is one of those rare occasions when it would be morally acceptable to make a few bob out of another's affliction. Wendy, more than any of the other vegetables, must be acutely aware that a psychotic crisis in Number Ten is looming.

Will

origin of financial crises by george cooper

Very good analysis of how we got into this mess but also some sensible suggestions about how central banks should operate going forward

Short the UK

I would go for a real-time blog that is written by someone who is calling it right:

http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/

If the link is no good, google, Mish Shedlock's Global Economic Trend Analysis.

He puts forward free market solutions.

The Final Crash by Hugo Bouleau is a cracking read.

BrianSJ

For dealing with Brown:
Political Ponerology: A Science on the Nature of Evil Adjusted for Political Purposes
For the economy:
Petre Schiff - Crash-proof: How to Profit from the Coming Economic Collapse

Tiberius

James: an entertaining piece indeed, but I can only conclude the author is either a guilt-ridden or an in-denial Democrat.

In naming "Baileyism" as the cause of the sub-prime crisis, he seems to be trying to argue for a more general blame than simply that the Clinton administration coerced the US banks to lend to sub-prime mortgagees.

I would not despoil the character of George Bailey by equating him with Bill Clinton.

The great lesson from the film for me is the keeping of panic caused by the discovery of financial black holes in check. Many financiers and accountants will be familiar with that condition, which initially sends you into emotional freefall.

Dr Blue

Dan Atkinson and larry elliott's "Fantasy Island" and "The Gods that Failed" are good on the diagnosis of the current condition.

I suspect Milton Friedman and his doctrine of sound money is as good as anyone on the cure.

We face being a devalued country with a devalued economy, a devalued currency in a devalued society of devalued people. Educational qualifications have been oversupplied and so devalued. Friedman's comments on what makes for strong economies, countries and currencies seem as accurate a prescription as any.

Hoolio

"Gordon Brown" by Tom Bower. I'm constantly amazed how prescient this book has been: read it and you won't be surprised by Brown's next move, whatever that may be. BTW, I have given the book pride of place on my bookshelf between Mao (Yung Chang) and Pol Pol (Philip Short).

JimBob

There no point in reading a book written by any economist, politician or analyst since practically none of them predicted it. How about flipping a coin?

Augustus

The winner of the 2008 'FT business book of the year' was Mohammed El-Erian's 'When Markets Collide'. It purports to be a lucid account of the credit crisis and how to survive it. It illuminates the shift in power from West to East, and even offers tips on how to allocate your assets. In short: Global strategies for the age of global economic change. So maybe we should all order that one.

Short the UK

Augustus,

That book is pretty bland. I can't understand why the FT gave it such an award. Doesn't say much for the FT!