But then, that is the nature of austerity.
Public austerity and transparency are the watchwords in the manifesto.
Many claim that fiscal austerity could even boost growth in the short term.
A more serious argument is that excessive austerity may aggravate the recession.
Pundits are coining phrases such as "austerity chic" and "luxury shame".
Remember: Spain's debt was downgraded because austerity measures' materially 'reduce its growth prospects.
Hi, well, I am not surprised. But obviously austerity, notwithstanding what's going on in Luxembourg, austerity very much the way of the world as far as Europe is concerned.
Worse, the austerity measures and reforms that Mr Papandreou has pushed through are not visibly making anything better.
One caustic critic referred to claims about the expansionary effects of austerity as amounting to belief in the “confidence fairy.”
Fierce austerity measures, imposed on a country that was told it did not need them, are unlikely to improve it.
A speech he gave in August on the danger to the economic recovery from the government's austerity plan was the most acclaimed of the race.
"Financial worries and austerity changes in diet cause intestinal disorders," he says, and sales of suppositories therefore rise as the economy goes down the pan.
Ireland and Greece are in deep austerity needed to stabilise their public finances will make it hard for them to climb out.
The stubbornly poor economic numbers vindicate calls for a slower pace of austerity , says the Labour opposition, led by Ed Miliband.
Greeks have turned out in droves to a series of nationwide protests against the economy and austerity measures, outraged that they are being asked to make more sacrifices.
This was the first election since Mr Zapatero's May austerity measures, designed to fend off Suggestions that Spain might be on the list of euro countries needing bail-outs.
This week EU finance ministers talked of the possibility of bilateral loans to rescue Greece, as a reward for the government's new fiscal austerity-though details were conspicuously lacking.
Merkel said the 27-member eu was going to push Greece and another ailing eurozone member, Portugal, to respect austerity programs they have agreed to in exchange for massive loans.
But the fallout may eventually be even greater in southern Europe and Ireland. These countries are already struggling to deal with the onerous austerity packages that are the price of their rescues.
