Wow. Every news story makes me wonder if it’s the end of Europe as we know it.It may be, but not because of the riots.
Riots are as Greek as olive and feta pie (look at 2008), while France has a proud tradition of civil disobedience. The UK also has a good history of protest, although in recent years we've refrained from violence. So the student protests were a shock, although the level of bloodshed was nowhere near that seen in say Greece: rocks were thrown, but no petrol bombs. The police beat some people, and dragged a guy out of his wheelchair for no apparant reason, but there were no water cannons or teargas.
If anything, the level of disorder in Europe has been remarkably low. Compared to some of the reasons why people rioted in Europe during the 20th century, the current austerity measures are far more serious. If this was happening 20 years ago, we would have seen governments brought down by strikes and disorder by now. That hasn't happened because the European left isn't what it used to be.
Europeans (outside Germany and Scandinavia whose economies are strong as always) are basically being faced with a future structured on centre-right lines, after spending the past 60 years building nice centre-left welfare states. And it's not their fault, it's "the bankers", or at least that's what everyone believes. Europeans are angry and you can see why. But not angry enough to stop it.
So in a sense this is the end: the end of Europe as the land of tax-and-spend (which has never been a dirty phrase over here). At the moment the model is tax-and-don't-spend, which is obviously unpopular. But when the budgets are balanced again, in say 5 years, governments may find it easier to just cut taxes rather than trying to rebuild the welfare and social programs they dismantled.
17 comments:
Wow. I never figured you to be a Social Darwinist. I guess you masturbate to Herbert Spencer every night?
Eh? All I did was describe what I see happening in Europe right now. I'm not saying it should happen, personally I'm all for taxing 'n' spending but I can't see much prospect of that.
To many people carried by to few working. In France (like most 'rich' EU nations)the ratio is at present 1:6. Projections show as soon as the babyboom generation goes on retirement this ratio could descend to 1:4 or lower. Which ofcourse is untenable.
The planners at the time (late 70's) thought it a good idea to encourage the inflow if immigrants to compensate for the almost negative population growth rate.
Whilst in itself a good idea, they made a serious error in not setting up a selection process such as in Canada, Australia.
With as result an enormous influx of low chance people, which even in their own country weren't capable to gain a living. Logically those people could only take on menial labor if at all.
The fall-out rate was high, causing an even higher pressure on the social welfare systems. At present immigrant population is seriously overrepresented on welfare.
This causes their children to get a negative start in life and the vicious circle of observed negative behavior causing employers to shy away from hiring immigrant children which causes them to produce even more disenfranchised children.
All over Europe local population starts to question the wisdom of the policies regarding population growth causing even more friction. It's evident from the strong rise of seriously rightwing parties aboriginal have had it.
By now in major cities like Paris youths run around with AK47's shooting at cops for example.
Unfortunately there is no way back. I'm just glad i'm of an age where i'll most likely won't be around when this timebomb goes off.
It's worth remembering that taxing and spending has shaped the world we live in (even the US invested heavily in its infrastructure to escape the first great depression ) and taxing and spending continues to help shape the future with confidence and vision in places like Brazil , India and China as our ageing infrastructure crumbles. I suspect we'll get back to adequately funding public education, health and welfare because if we don't masses of Europeans are going to start migrating eastwards for a better life...
The problem is that it's a lot easier to cut these kinds of things than it is to put them back in place. Because cutting taxes is always a vote-winner.
What the left in Europe (including the UK) need to do is to realize that they're just not going to succeed in 'stopping' the cuts, and plan for the long game, to build up support for reinvestment in public services in 3 or 5 or 10 years time. Because the risk is that these cuts will become the "new normal". They can't be stopped now, the only question is whether they last 5 years or 25 years. There's no reason they have to last 25 years, but they will unless there's a concerted political effort.
@petrossa
By now in major cities like Paris youths run around with AK47's shooting at cops for example.
Turns out that it is not only veri who forget to take the meds...
I AM living in Paris, never seen or heard of anything like that.
Just back from 6 weeks in Europe, and what you say rings true. A feeling that things are trending center-right, and lots of frustration even in traditionally liberal enclaves like the Netherlands and Denmark.
@anonymous
Well that's that then. I'm glad you've got that straightened out. /sarc
Tirs à l’AK-47 sur des policiers à Aulnay-sous-Bois
http://www.minutebuzz.com/2010/12/14/tirs-a-lak-47-sur-des-policiers-a-aulnay-sous-bois/
Google this:
Un arsenal d'armes, dont une kalachnikov, saisi à Colombes
Des policiers tirent contre un homme pointant vers eux une Kalachnikov
Tirs de kalachnikov contre des policiers lyonnais
The recession has certainly upped the corruption index.
To the snotty croissant,
I bet you wouldn't even react to a drive by shooting: BB guns, kids playing cowboys. I fry people's brains, poison rats, I'm a hot French scientist.
Stop looking at your silky locks and think for a sec, don't you think you're being a psychopath by telling a man who could be as old as your father, to take his meds?
It just amazes me how socially bankrupt some scientists are.
Kindly stick to directing your 'moi tap veri ass' liners on me. Unless of course Neo masturbating to Herbert Spencer is your thing. How does one even come up with that is so disturbing. I had to momentarily divert my eyes from the screen, the crudeness literally stung my retina. I'm a lady for goodness sakes! There's a decorum to these things.
@petrossa
Tirs à l’AK-47 sur des policiers à Aulnay-sous-Bois
A bank robbery, nothing about youngsters.
@petrossa
Un arsenal d'armes, dont une kalachnikov, saisi à Colombes.
A 50 years old ivolved in cocaine and cannabis traffic;
Nothing about youngsters.
@petrossa
Des policiers tirent contre un homme pointant vers eux une Kalachnikov
South France gangsters you should know about those, 3 mens two of them 31 years old.
Nothing about youngsters.
@petrossa
Tirs de kalachnikov contre des policiers lyonnais
A jewellery robbery, nothing about youngsters, beside the south Lyon is another banditry hot spot.
To summarize, you are disingenuous, paranoid or just a moron.
@anonymous
Sigh. You did check the age of the bankrobbers?
Close your eyes, sleep tight all is well.
Nothing is going on, buses aren't followed by policesquads to prevent youths harassing, cars aren't burnt on a regular basis, ransacking mobs don't terrorize, woman aren't being attacked for wearing dresses, youths aren't firing on police, there are no NOGO zones.
All this is a figment of the newspapers imagination.
Balancing the budgets is only one half of the problem.
Balancing the budget is simply not spending more than you bring in within a financial year. The problem is that we've been running a budget deficit for a number of many many years, and now, along with future pension and PFI pay-outs, we left with a hug debt. i think it was the BBC's statistical program 'More or Less' that estimated that every house hold would have to pay £90 000 to bring the country's balance back up to zero.
As far as I'm concerned this debt will never be paid back. These cuts are painful, but they're a bit of a drop in the ocean.
In December 2005 after the riots in Paris, there was a seminar on official development assistance in Paris, addressing the link between security and development. Apparently there was a need for the EU to enact American style security with development.
http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/france-priorities_1/development_2108/ french-policy_2589/key-documents_3443/seminar-on-official-development-assistance-paris-december-2005-summary_4315.html
Sarkozy snapped up this opportunity because he was once in charge of the police. His election campaign for the presidency consisted of right-wing, hard line stances in line with American style foreign policy. Particularly against migrant populations like 2nd and 3rd generation North-African migrants.. France has the second largest influx of immigrants in Europe but it don't collect ethnic data or allow public access to Eurostat (statistical arm of the European Commission) or EU ICS (European and Crime Safety Survey). But other independent reports have found experiences of 'hate crimes' particularly against minorities most prevalent in France relative to other European countries.
Police brutality against the civilian population since Sarkozy took reign is unbelievable. Take for example the time when the centre-right UMP party had big losses, police raided homes, or when 200 police officers raided homes in Grigney, south of Paris because a few officers were hurt by a group of people.
Also the police chief under him is in charge of the EU regional policy reforms for crisis regions. So I guess they first decided to experiment in France, with the circulation of AK-47s among other weapons.. that's just a known fact.
I have a transcript of what Michel Marcus said in November 2005 at the European Parliament which I think sums up quite nicely what is happening in France.
... Currently in France, the young people openly defy the State while attacking its representatives by means of a violence whose intensity is with the height of their feeling of injustice and who, in their eyes, remains their only means of expression. Whereas the other European police forces place the prevention like the principle number one of their action, France has, these last years, gradually abandoned the experiment of the police force of proximity. This caused to increase the tensions between inhabitants of the underprivileged districts … they are all the actors of the public policy who should gather to answer these urban evils.’ [Translated from French]
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?language=FR&type=IM-PRESS &reference= 20051115BKG02329
My point is: Anon, you’re WRONG. Just admit it and apologize to Petrossa. When I put my public hat on and look at this title;
AK-47 Attack Takes Violence in Parisian Suburbs to New High
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/17096/
The first thing that comes to my mind is not 40 something suburban hobos. I would think hey youth gangs! Now go masturbate to Herbert Spencer.
It's not just the debts which bite, it's also the fact that every penny a bank has it has an outstanding up to a factor 10. Sure, measures are being taken to bring down the ratio, but one can question the wisdom to couple the bizarre notion of eternal economic growth with loaning every penny several times.
In the end there is hardly any country which actually has their value somewhere either in assets or really existing money.
Since limitless growth is just not possible, at one point the entire bubble is going to burst. Not if, but when.
Greece has just been devalued to Junk status which in effect means that the outstanding Greek government bonds of many European banks are now worthless.
Who'd want to buy them? No chance Greece is going to able to repay it, so
yet another bite out of the virtual money cloud.
And banks are in it for billions of euros. And most still have to repay the taxpayers aid to pay for their incompetence.
Apres moi la deluge, i'm glad i have no children.
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