World-wide, coordinated attack on working-class living standards by the international ruling class

[Hannah Bell]

Iceland, Latvia, Romania, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Portugal, & more coming...

Britain:

"In Britain, with the new Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition just beginning to unveil its right-wing agenda of “emergency” measures, the governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, stated that there could be no delay in implementing a deficit-reduction program."

Scotland:

Osborne sparks fears of £5bn cut to Scottish budget "The prospect of savage reductions to public spending in Scotland were raised by George Osborne today when he backed forecasts of a 15 per cent budget cut..."


Germany:

"In Germany, Roland Koch, deputy leader of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Party and considered a likely candidate to succeed the ailing Wolfgang Schauble as finance minister, warned that no cutbacks could be “considered taboo” as Germany confronts its own 10 billion euro fiscal deficit, as well as the cost of its 123 billion euro contribution to the EU rescue package."

Cyprus, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland:

"The European Commission, speaking for the European and international banks, warned Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark and Finland Wednesday that their budget deficits have grown too large, and that they will be subjected to “excessive deficit procedures” (EDPs), imposing deadlines for slashing public spending."

Netherlands:

"In the Netherlands, meanwhile, the committees of civil servants have investigated possible austerity measures. Political parties are now offered a menu of possible cutbacks from which they can pick and choose in the run-up to the June 9 national election. With all the possibilities on the table, no political party can pass on including some in their election platforms. The issues will also have to be discussed in coalition talks directly after the parliamentary election. This might soon make the Netherlands part of the vanguard of Europe.."

Hungary:

Hungary's parliament on Monday approved the country's 2010 austerity budget, targeting a public deficit of 3.8 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), one of the lowest in the European Union.
Inflation was meanwhile expected to average 3.9 percent, down from 4.2 percent in 2009. The budget includes severe cuts in ministry spending, public transport and municipalities.

& that doesn't even cover it all.


and more coming, including the PHONEY DEFICIT COMMISSION HERE IN THE US.

Reduced government spending = UNEMPLOYMENT

[begin_within]

1. Is there even a middle class or working class left to attack?

Hasn't the ruling class already destroyed all classes but their own?

[Hannah Bell]

2. they're working on it.

[sabrina 1]

3. I've been reading about that..

It's an attack on 'entitlement' programs, all over the western world. Mission accomplished, Naomi Klein was right. This is Disaster Capitalism at work. And they are blaming 'expensive socialist programs'. We saw it here regarding Greece.

There will have to be a world-wide people's uprising to stop them, otherwise the future looks dire for the working class everywhere. Just as they wanted.

Here, Obama will move on to Social Security, this will probably be his most difficult task. They've plundered all the other public funds, but the SS fund is the big prize. Bush failed to get it done. Now it's Obama's turn. With support from the same people who freaked out when Bush tried to do it, Obama just might succeed, unless people's eyes are a little more open by the time he gets around to it. Which will probably be right after the November election.

[Name removed]

4. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Hannah Bell]

5. Which is why the whole world is in debt to finance capital -- because they're rigging the game to

raise their rents.

Pure parasitism.

Meanwhile, most of the US working class doesn't have clue one, & the way they're going to go about it is, promise people currently collecting SS they won't get hit, thus neutralizing one source of opposition.


More unemployment coming.

[sabrina 1]

9. That's an excellent article.

People all over the world should be organizing now.

Iceland, Latvia and now Greece are the opening shots in the resulting global campaign to roll back the great democratic reform program of the 19th century and the Progressive Era: taxation of land and the “unearned increment” of price gains for real estate, stocks and bonds, and subordination of the financial sector to the needs of economic growth under democratic direction. This doctrine was still being followed by the post-1945 era of progressive taxation that saw the 20th century’s greatest rise in living standards and economic growth. But most countries have reversed the fiscal trend since 1980.Tax collectors have “freed” income from public obligation only to see it pledged to banks for higher loans to bid up property prices.

They are moving even more money to the top and as has happened in Greece, forcing the working class to pay for their corruption.

I agree if the U.S. working class fights back the rest of the world may follow. But nothing is happening here at all. At least in Greece they have been actively working against these policies. Here, all we hear about is Sarah Palin and Glen Beck and all the other distractions that eat up valuable time.

[WinkyDink]

14. The "U.S. working class" needs their jobs; they don't have the luxury of demonstrating.

Yes, let's put the onus of saving the world on the backs of the SLAVES.

[sabrina 1]

21. And who do you suggest should do it? This working class

person is pissed off enough to find the time to do whatever is needed to stop the greedy capitalists from moving even more money to the top.

You don't have much faith in the working class. When they organize they are and always have been a formidable force to deal with. Which the ruling class knows. Which is why we see posts like yours trying to diminish their power. History shows that when they get pissed off enough, things begin to change, and I am hearing it everywhere these days. Let them try to touch SS and see what happens.

[WinkyDink]

13. Young Americans are FOR privatization of SS; think the stock-mkt is better.

And without the youth in revolt, there is no revolt.

[sabrina 1]

19. I don't know about that. None of the young people I know are

for privatizing SS. And those who are only have to look at what would have happened to that fund had Bush succeeded in 2005 when he tried it. If they had gotten their hands on it then, it would have been used to quietly bail out the corrupt institutions and squandered away on big bonuses etc. And we might never have known how bad things really were. No wonder they were so desperate to access those funds.

But I do think there needs to be an organized movement to educate people. Wall St. is a giant Casino. No one should be risking their future security in a gambling casino which is what has happened to people's 401Ks. It's a rightwing idea, all laid out in several papers on sites like the CATO Institute.

But I know that Obama is going to try it, most likely after the November elections. They may be counting on the young, but I think they will be very disappointed.

[Cal Carpenter]

8. With all due respect to Ms Klein - it's just plain Capitalism

Calling it things like 'Disaster Capitalism' just makes it seem like there's some kinder, gentler version of capitalism out there. Some nicer 'regulated' version that can withstand the forces that make it the fucked up system of growing inequality it is for any length of time.

It's not. There's no such thing.

Capitalism is a disaster. Period.

Rant off :)

[sabrina 1]

11. True, but I don't think she was trying to be kind.

I think she was pointing out how they move in after a disaster with their Capitalist ideas and as in Haiti eg, just take over while people are still in shock. This is what is happening in Europe. First they created the disaster, now they are moving in for the kill.

[WinkyDink]

10. THIS is the Long-Range Norquist/Bush/Cheney/Carlyle Group goal.

But of course, those who have been writing FOR DECADES of this "co-ordination by the international ruling elite" have been derided as NUTCASES.

[musette_sf]

18. + 1,000,000

[sabrina 1]

22. Not by me! n/t

[tonysam]

20. Public education as well.

The World Bank is behind it all.

[amborin]

6. knr

[fascisthunter]

7. yeah, well maybe one day the majority around the World will Hit Back

and this time, make it impossible for their kind to ever screw us over again.

[WinkyDink]

12. As they say: WITH WHAT ARMIES?? Did you SEE Blackwater during Katrina?

The mounted police in NYC during the March(es) Against the Illegal Invasion?

PEOPLE WILL, AND MUST BE WILLING TO, DIE. THE RULERS WILL NOT GO QUIETLY.

WILL YOU LEAD? OR JUST ASK OTHERS TO?

[fascisthunter]

16. didn't realize I "had" to lead

and asking others to "lead"? No... it's not that black and white.

[Hannah Bell]

27. your posts are very interesting.

[Overseas]

15. K&R! Sure feels like it! //nt

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

17. The capitalists are just "levelling the playing field" until labor is free and feudalism returns.

Unfortunately for them, eventually the people get pissed off.

"We've got new generals our leaders are new
They sit and they argue and all that they do
Is sell their own colleagues and ride upon their backs
And jail them and break them and give them all the axe
Screaming in language that no one understands
Of the rights that we grabbed with our own bleeding hands
When we wiped out the bosses and stormed through the wall
Of the prison they told us would outlast us all
Marat we're poor
And the poor stay poor
Marat don't make
Us wait anymore
We want our rights and we don't care how
We want our revolution now"

From "Marat/Sade"

[Odin2005]

23. K&R

[bvar22]

24. The attack began 30 years ago.

"They" won, and are now in the Mopping Up Stage.
Like the Hyenas they are, "They" will strip the Working Class down to the bare bones as we enter another Gilded Age.

A big consolation:
No matter how much money they accumulate, "they" will never enjoy a Strawberry better than the one I picked and ate this morning while standing in my garden.
Never.

[troubledamerican]

25. Each case = "Center Left" govts installed to implement austerity, take the blame/anger.

Which makes this an organized, orchestrated prelude to this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Condor

(the International version, right after the "International 9/11")

[Hannah Bell]

26. why do you think the grinding of the working class is the prelude to Operation condor 2.0?

[ConsAreLiars]

28. Same struggle, same fight; workers of the world,

get a fucking clue. Know that the KKKorporate media was created to deceive you and those who own the state are determined to enslave you. Or then lie down or then resist. Lying down is easier, if you are OK with your children being slaves for life and devoured by the monsters.