Austerity

Greeks commemorate 1970s student uprising crushed by US-backed military junta

"Thousands of Greeks marched behind a blood-stained national flag on Saturday to commemorate the violent suppression of a 1973 student uprising against a US-backed military junta. The bloodied flag that flew over the Athens Polytechnic on the night of November 17, 1973 — seen as a key moment in the restoration of democracy to Greece — was carried as usual at the head of the annual demonstration in memory of those who died. Police said about 20,000 people marched in total in the capital. Outside the U.S. embassy, some of the protesters set fire to an American flag." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGreeks commemorate 1970s student uprising crushed by US-backed military junta

Here’s What’s In That Economist Article That Has France Outraged

"Here are some key bullets from the report. Public spending is 57% of the nation's output. Debt-to-GDP is 90%. No new company has entered the CAC-40 stock market index since 1987. Nobody gets fired. Unions protest over any reforms. France still has a high standard of living, and has some of the best companies in the world, but growth has stalled. Unemployment is 10%. Youth unemployment much higher. France can still borrow cheaply, but it's also resting on past laurels (it's still a gigantic tourist destination). New President Francois Hollande is ostensibly powerful, but his approval rating has plunged." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHere’s What’s In That Economist Article That Has France Outraged

Spain’s Anti-Tax “Carrot Rebellion”

"If there was a prize for fighting back against tax authorities, the Italians would probably deserve first place. I’m not aware of any other country where tax offices get firebombed. The Italians also believe in passive forms of resistance, with tens of thousands of boat owners sailing away to protect themselves from the government. But the Spanish are beginning to get into the swing of things, perhaps because they are increasingly upset by the plethora of tax hikes imposed by the supposedly right-of-center government in Madrid." Continue reading →

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French officials furious at Economist “time-bomb” taunt

"French officials angrily rejected a charge by Britain's The Economist weekly on Friday that France was the 'time-bomb at the heart of Europe' and a danger to the euro single currency, accusing the magazine of sensationalism. French public spending accounts for 56 percent of gross domestic product, the highest level in the euro zone, and public debt reached 90 percent of GDP this year. Hollande's deficit-reduction strategy is based two-thirds on tax increases, much of it on businesses, and one-third on spending cuts." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFrench officials furious at Economist “time-bomb” taunt

Spain halts evictions of vulnerable homeowners

"Spain announced Thursday a two-year halt to evictions of the most vulnerable home owners as a public outcry mounted over suicides linked to desperate people facing expulsion. The Spanish Banking Association announced Monday it was freezing mortgage-related evictions for two years in extreme cases. Savings banks, too, suspended expulsions while awaiting new government rules. Many people were shocked by two suicides in 15 days by indebted homeowners facing expulsion in Spain, where both banks and borrowers were hammered by a 2008 property crash." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSpain halts evictions of vulnerable homeowners

The Crack-Up of the Eurozone Detailed in One Chart

"Keep in mind that Greece is in such bad shape that it didn't even make this chart. Only Germany of the Eurozone Big 5 is showing positive industrial production [growth] over the last 7 plus years. Germany will not be able to bail everyone else out. It comes down to European Central Bank money printing which will result in a devalued euro, making the debt easier to payoff in the cheaper euros, or it is collapse of the Eurozone." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Crack-Up of the Eurozone Detailed in One Chart

Merkel booed as she praises austerity cuts in bailed-out Portugal

"Police deployed in large numbers in Lisbon, blocking off some streets and keeping at bay demonstrators who booed Merkel as she arrived at the presidential headquarters. Activists brandished banners reading: 'She wants to kill the Portuguese, she wants supremacy in Europe!'; 'Portugal is not Merkel's country'; 'Angela Merkel assassin'; and 'A European Germany yes, a German Europe no'. Demonstrators released black balloons in a sign of 'mourning' and covered several Lisbon monuments in black sheets to show their discontent." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMerkel booed as she praises austerity cuts in bailed-out Portugal

Directed History: A Fact of Life?

"Last Wednesday, just before Angela Merkel flew to London to tell David Cameron how desperately she wants Britain to stay in the EU, she told the European Parliament: 'Of course the European Commission will one day become a government, the European Council a second chamber and the European Parliament will have more powers – but for now we have to focus on the euro and give people a little more time to come along.' In other words, the EU is still on track to become precisely that 'government of Europe' that Jacques Delors was boasting about in 1989 (to which Mrs Thatcher famously responded 'No, no, no')." Continue reading →

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Interpol elects French woman as first female president

"Ballestrazzi, 58, became a police commissioner in France in 1975 and was already vice-president for Europe on Interpol’s executive committee. French Interior Minister Manuel Valls, who attended the Interpol assembly earlier this week, said Ballestrazzi was 'a great police woman'. Valls said her experience with organised crime would serve her well in fighting drug trafficking, mafias from southern and eastern Europe as well as growing political violence that requires a coordinated international response." Continue reading →

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Money Laundering Accusations Could Delay Cyprus Bailout

"Cyprus had applied in June to become the fifth nation to receive a bailout in the euro crisis. But there are no signs whatsoever that Cyprus is willing to commit to a serious austerity program, sources in Brussels said. The talks could now be delayed by accusations that Cyprus is lax on money-laundering. Banks in Cyprus hold $26 billion (€20.33 billion) in deposits by Russian investors. According to the BND, most of this money has been illegally moved abroad to evade Russian tax authorities. By Cypriot standards it's a tremendous sum given that the island's entire annual GDP amounts to €17 billion." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMoney Laundering Accusations Could Delay Cyprus Bailout