Angered
An amusing take on things, courtesy of CNBC:
And who could expect anything else from their "leaders" than anger? Submitting major decisions about the fate of your nation to a vote of the people, rather than just doing whatever the bankers want, regardless of the destruction it causes- what a subversive idea.
Luckily for us, no one needs to worry about that sort of Communistic thinking taking hold in this country.
"European leaders were angered by Papandreou's surprise unilateral announcement on Monday of a referendum on a bailout deal reached with euro zone leaders at a summit last week."
And who could expect anything else from their "leaders" than anger? Submitting major decisions about the fate of your nation to a vote of the people, rather than just doing whatever the bankers want, regardless of the destruction it causes- what a subversive idea.
Luckily for us, no one needs to worry about that sort of Communistic thinking taking hold in this country.
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“At this point, protest is the message: income inequality is grinding down that middle class, increasing the ranks of the poor, and threatening to create a permanent underclass of able, willing but jobless people … Research shows that such extreme inequality correlates to a host of ills, including lower levels of educational attainment, poorer health and less public investment. It also skews political power …”
Followed by this account, Sarkozy Warns France of New Economic Reality:
“We will have to revise and adapt our budget plan to the new reality,” Mr. Sarkozy told an estimated 12 million viewers as he revealed that his government had lowered its forecast for next year’s gross domestic product growth to 1 percent from 1.75 percent … “It’s because of this debt crisis that we find ourselves in a situation of having to defend France’s triple-A credit rating,” Mr. Sarkozy said, noting that a rating downgrade would only increase the interest burden on the country’s public debt …”
The bogeymen are not just Wall Street but the entire global financial system - holding the citizens hostage through their elected officials.
To put this into perspective, consider the relative positions of debt to percentage of GDP for Greece versus Italy (as of July 2011): Greece – 126%; Italy 116%. Very close ratios, yet all attention is focused on Greece but not Italy. Why?
Because Italy’s debt is privately held inside Italy (meaning citizens) whereas Greece’s debt is held by international bond and hedge fund traders. The key word is “exposure.” Citizens do not drive up interest rates on their own country, whereas global traders and speculators are holding Greece in thrall.
Case in point: Last summer, the interest rate on Greece’s debt was roughly 3.65%. This year it is over 26% (loan sharp rates). Italy’s interest rate has remained relatively unchanged from last year. The difference here: Citizens with a stake in their country vs. outside carpetbaggers and robber barons.