Goldman Sachs, the Vampire Squid.

Posted on 21/11/2011 by ixpieth

The full, frightening extent of Goldman Sachs influence in Europe is revealed in a startling tale of “U.S.A. like” revolving doors for high finance executives, into and out of high government positions. This was previously thought to be “un European”.

The U.K. “Independent” had a full run down on Goldman’s Grip on Europe;

The ascension of Mario Monti to the Italian prime ministership is remarkable for more reasons than it is possible to count. By replacing the scandal-surfing Silvio Berlusconi, Italy has dislodged the undislodgeable. By imposing rule by unelected technocrats, it has suspended the normal rules of democracy, and maybe democracy itself. And by putting a senior adviser at Goldman Sachs in charge of a Western nation, it has taken to new heights the political power of an investment bank that you might have thought was prohibitively politically toxic.

This is the most remarkable thing of all: a giant leap forward for, or perhaps even the successful culmination of, the Goldman Sachs Project.

The full story, well worth reading at ; http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/what-price-the-new-democracy-goldman-sachs-conquers-europe-6264091.html

Who Reigns in Spain

Posted on 21/11/2011 by ixpieth

Spanish banking stocks fell in July after Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services and Fitch Ratings downgraded the country’s leading lenders, citing dimming economic growth prospects, a depressed property market and turbulence in capital markets.In reports issued later, the two credit rating agencies said they are keeping the negative outlook on all the banks.

Mr (has) Bean at the G20, ex Spanish P.M. Jose Luis Zapatero

IMF chief Christine Lagarde, the new woman in P.M. Mariano Rajoy’s life.

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Spain has become the new poster child for what ails the EU periphery, with its 10-year bond rate surpassing even Italy’s in a very short timespan. Looking at the details, that shouldn’t be all that surprising.

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Capitalism vs the Climate – Naomi Klein

Posted on 21/11/2011 by ixpieth

This article appears in the November edition of :The Nation”, http://www.thenation.com/article/164497/capitalism-vs-climate?page=0,0

There is a question from a gentleman in the fourth row.

He introduces himself as Richard Rothschild. He tells the crowd that he ran for county commissioner in Maryland’s Carroll County because he had come to the conclusion that policies to combat global warming were actually “an attack on middle-class American capitalism.” His question for the panelists, gathered in a Washington, DC, Marriott Hotel in late June, is this: “To what extent is this entire movement simply a green Trojan horse, whose belly is full with red Marxist socioeconomic doctrine?”

Here at the Heartland Institute’s Sixth International Conference on Climate Change, the premier gathering for those dedicated to denying the overwhelming scientific consensus that human activity is warming the planet, this qualifies as a rhetorical question. Like asking a meeting of German central bankers if Greeks are untrustworthy. Still, the panelists aren’t going to pass up an opportunity to tell the questioner just how right he is.

Chris Horner, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute who specializes in harassing climate scientists with nuisance lawsuits and Freedom of Information fishing expeditions, angles the table mic over to his mouth. “You can believe this is about the climate,” he says darkly, “and many people do, but it’s not a reasonable belief.” Horner, whose prematurely silver hair makes him look like a right-wing Anderson Cooper, likes to invoke Saul Alinsky: “The issue isn’t the issue.” The issue, apparently, is that “no free society would do to itself what this agenda requires…. The first step to that is to remove these nagging freedoms that keep getting in the way.”

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Naomi Klein, Occupy and Wombat.

Posted on 21/11/2011 by ixpieth

Naomi Klein gave an inspiring acceptance speech when she was given the “Challenging Business as Usual Award” at the Rainforest Action Network Conference in San Francisco. She portrayed the “Occupy” movement as a “state of mind” which was based on “sharing”. This is something the current economic fundamentalism knows nothing about, and given the projected population increase to 10 billion by 2050, we are all going to have to learn.

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One of Naomi’s major points was the need to change the system, unlock the radical imagination, and share. WOMBAT explains it as no human being could. Jason ABles made this clip in 2005 perhaps realising that it was the pnly hope for humanity. Thanks Jason.

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