The video above is a tribute from people across the world to the international banking community and those politicians that support austerity measures putting additional burdens on the people’s interests they have sworn to protect.
People throughout the world are rejecting calls for austerity. From France who just elected it’s first Socialist President since 1995 (source), to the growing socialist administrations throughout South America (source), to the local elections in Britain flipping 823 seats for the Labor party, to Germany where Angela Merkel’s center-right coalition was voted out today, to Italy where voters appear to be on the verge of “punishing” former ruling parties, and in Greece – the two controlling parties went from 77% control of the legislature to just 33%.
Each of these countries has imposed austerity measures on it’s citizens based on scaring the public that if they don’t pay their bankers by raising taxes and cutting services…then their economies will dive into a Deep Depression. Of course – one must only look at the lessons of Iceland and Argentina to know that this is completely bogus; both of those countries rejected calls for burdening their citizens with huge swaths of debt and promises to pay back foreign investors and both are doing much better than the EU. The European Union is a fiscal disaster because countries no longer control their own currency and unlike in America and China where governments are able to create money to avoid deflation or reign in inflation…the European Union doesn’t give each country that right anymore. This puts tremendous financial hardship on these countries and their citizens. It essentially makes the Europe Union one big country…one big dysfunctional country.
But what you don’t usually hear is that these foreign investors, these “international bankers” who are usually large financial firms (Goldman Sachs etc) and billionaire financiers (think George Soros)…if the majority of major countries around the world are rejecting calls for austerity…where are the going to put their money? They’re not going to put it in a vault since inflation will eat away at real values of those assets whereas investing it would produce actual returns on their investments. In short – there aren’t enough places for rich people to put their money if they can’t invest in the buying of government debt.
The Wall Street Journal reports in an excellent and thorough article on Greece’s elections today:
More than 60% of the popular vote went to smaller left- and right-wing parties that have campaigned against the austerity program Greece must implement in exchange for continued financing from its European partners and the International Monetary Fund.
Greece’s two mainstream parties looked set to secure just 150 seats in the 300-seat Parliament, garnering just under 33% of the vote between them, with more than 90% of the vote counted. The projection includes a 50-seat bonus awarded to the conservative New Democracy party, which holds a slim lead with 19.1% of the vote and 109 seats. That’s a sharp drop from the combined 77% the two parties won in the last election less than three years ago.
Der Speigel has the story on today’s losses for Angela Merkel’s coalition in Germany – article HERE:
Center-Left Alliance With Danish Minority Party Seen Likely
The result would give both parties 22 seats in the 69-seat assembly and opens up a range of coalition options. The most likely is seen as an alliance between the Greens, the SPD and the South Schleswig Party, representing the state’s Danish minority.“This is our goal,” SPD candidate Torsten Albig told German television on Sunday night. “If that doesn’t work we’ll see what other coaltions are possible.”
The Greens saw their support rise by around 1 percent to just over 13 percent, while the Pirate Party, which appeals to young, Internet-savvy voters, scored over 8 percent — it’s third strong showing following surprise gains in the Berlin city state election last September and the Saarland election in March.
Bloomberg forecasts what we’re likely to hear from finalized elections from Italy tomorrow – article HERE:
Prime Minister Mario Monti may tighten his grip on Italian power as voters weary of recession and the debt crisis prepare to punish former ruling parties in local elections.
Italians are losing faith in their traditional political parties, according to an April 17 poll by Tecne for L’Unita newspaper. More than 48 percent of Italians said they wouldn’t vote for any party if general elections were held now, while support for the parties has fallen by half in the past year.
“The parties have failed,” Grillo, the comedian whose 5 Star Movement will present candidate lists in 101 cities, said in a recent blog on his website.
Grillo has called for exiting the euro, and remaining in the EU and defaulting or paying only part of Italy’s debt. His movement would win about 7.3 percent of the votes were a general election held now, a poll by SWG Srl showed on April 20.
