[Marxism] (fwd) Iceland government plans 30% cuts in public spending as thousands protest
[forwarded for Joonas Laine] Icelanders are angry but will make sacrifices By Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir Published: August 13 2009 18:53 | Last updated: August 13 2009 18:53 http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/73bd25fc-8830-11de-82e4-00144feabdc0,dwp_uuid=a36d4c40-fb42-11dc-8c3e-77b07658.html?nclick_check=1 [..] My government, which took over in February and gained a majority in general elections in May, has to deal with the aftermath of the fall of nearly all of Iceland's privatised banking sector. We plan a 30 per cent contraction in government finances over the next three years, with extensive cuts to infrastructure spending and wages - a heavy burden for our population of 300,000. We have, in co-operation with the International Monetary Fund, formulated an economic strategy that is being fully adhered to. Indeed, we have already reached agreements on a recapitalisation of the banking sector, a stability pact with social partners and a strategy for lifting current account restrictions. [..] Icelanders, who do not feel responsible for the global banking crisis, are willing to make sacrifices to secure normal relations and trade with the world. But they are angry at having to take on the burden of compensation for the Icesave savings accounts of Landsbanki - failed, privately owned, commercial bank, which attracted hundreds of thousands of UK and Dutch savers with high interest rates. The amount to be shouldered by Iceland is huge - bout 50 per cent of our gross domestic product. Assets against this debt will substantially lower the net amount, but there is much uncertainty about the valuations and forecasts underpinning such calculations. . Thousands Protest Icesave Deal at Iceland's Parliament 14/08/2009 | 11:15 http://www.icelandreview.com/icelandreview/daily_news/?cat_id=28304ew_0_a_id=337787 An estimated number of 3,000 people [of a population of 320 000 -JL] gathered in front of the Althingi parliament at Austurvöllur square in central Reykjavík yesterday to protest the Icesave agreement in its current form, urging MPs not to approve it. The demonstration was organized by the Indefence group, which earlier ran the campaign 'Icelanders are not terrorists,' n response to the UK government's use of the anti-terrorism legislation to freeze Icelandic assets in the UK. We are satisfied with the meeting. It is important that the nation stands together, Ólafur Elíasson, one of Indefences spokespersons, told Fréttabladid. The group described yesterdays event as a meeting for people to show solidarity. The Indefence group is now preparing to bring its cause to the attention of foreign media. 'We were half promised that if the meeting would be big then we would get to write and translate articles for foreign newspapers, ' Elíasson said. Some MPs and other well-known people attended the demonstration yesterday, among them former Prime Minister and Central Bank governor Davíd Oddsson. According to Fréttabladids sources, a cross-political agreement on the government's Icesave proposition is unlikely after the parliament's Economic and Tax Committee's meeting ended in disagreement last night. The proposition includes state guarantee on loans from the UK and the Netherlands to the Icelandic Depositors' and Investors' arantee Fund so that Iceland can compensate Landsbanki's Icesave account holders in these countries. The committee assembled five times yesterday and Minister of Finance Steingrímur J. Sigfússon joined its members in a meeting after midnight last night, Morgunbladid reports. The opposition parties want to include a disclaimer in the agreement that no payments are made to the UK and the Netherlands if there is no economic growth in Iceland. They also want to limit annual payments to 2.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), while the government parties have suggested 3.5 percent. Prime Minister Jóhanna Sigurdardóttir said yesterday that she hoped a solution could be reached on disclaimers that could fit within the current Icesave agreement, while, according to Fréttabladid, the opposition wants a new agreement altogether. YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] European recovery explained
http://chronicle.com/blogPost/What-Does-Europe-Have-That-We/7705/ August 17, 2009, 10:00 AM ET What Does Europe Have That We Don't? By Teresa Ghilarducci France, Germany, and most European nations are pulling out of the global recession faster than the U.S. Euro-zone GDP is down 0.4 percent: French and German GDP measures are up 1.3 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively. Sadly, it looks as if the U.S. economy is flagging: U.S. GDP is down a full one percent and leading indicators -- like consumer confidence -- are showing weakness. What does Europe have that we don’t have? Aggregate demand. The first reason Europe is doing better: Unemployed Europeans have more buying power. Although unemployment rates are still high in Europe (like in the U.S., they have the highest levels in decades), their unemployment insurance -- and other forms of social support -- are more generous and help boost consumer spending when consumer spending needs the most boosting. It's shocking that only about a third of people unemployed in the United States are eligible for Unemployment Index benefits. And the average weekly unemployment benefit in the U.S. is around $300. The 2009 stimulus bill temporarily increases payments by $25. But that doesn't go very far when the average weekly wage is over $800. The second reason is that European government spending was bolder and quicker. Cash-for-clunkers programs were adopted early in Germany and France. Looks like the US Cash for Clunkers boosted auto sales by 2.4 percent last month. But the mother of all reasons the Europeans are doing better is that they don’t use voluntary, individual financial accounts to pay for retirement and college education like we Americans do. They use mandatory universal programs. What is the unintended result? The recession wiped out many American's retirement and college funds so Americans, unlike the Europeans, are curbing spending now to build up that savings. Because the micro isn’t the macro, this private virtue turns into a public vice: High savings rates hurt aggregate demand and prolong the recession. YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] (Keep your cold and analytical hands off my orgasms please) was: Another forward from Rosa L. - Analytic Marxsim
Rosa L. makes claims and, on the contrary to any reasonable philosopher, does not give any reason. She says dialectical philosophy is conservative. This is fine. But expects me to prove the contrary. Why shall I do her job? She is the one to give reason, not me to prove the contrary. So if she want to have a debate she must show that she is engaged with the matter before her. Dialectic is objective law applying to nature, society (history) and thought, though in different forms. If one does not accept this he/she can hardly explain motion (evolution and revolution) in nature, society and their reflection in thought. With the concept of the negation of the negation, for example, it opens a perspective that enables us to look beyond the present situation. Analytical philosophy, on the contrary, is conservative just because it does not give us such a device, in best case it leads to social democratic reformism. It is a poor thinking just because it can hardly explain complex phenomena beyond everyday observations. Dialectic is thoroughly rational in general and in detail. If peace was not contained in war we could hardly aim at peace, if to be healthy was not contained in illness we could hardly cure from our illness. So without a dialectical outlook the nothing in the world would make any sense. To accept any system contrary to dialectic is irrational because in the last resort it hast to refer to supernatural forces to explain phenomena in our life. --- Dogan Göcmen (http://dogangocmen.wordpress.com/) Author of The Adam Smith Problem: Reconciling Human Nature and Society in The Theory of Moral Sentiments and Wealth of Nations, I. B. Tauris, LondonNew York 2007 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Woodstock, or how art lasts longer than politics
well, some of us knew him as Tricky Dick BTW, asked for it, I would have answered that Lyndon B. Johnson had been POTUS during the time of the Woodstock festival. I would have to research papers to verify... But if it shall be Richard Nixon, so be it. It is not important. BTW, I could not recognize POTUS Nixon behind Dick Nixon. I knew him as Richard. Cheers, Lüko Willms Frankfurt, Germany YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/tcod%40hotmail.com _ Windows Live: Keep your friends up to date with what you do online. http://windowslive.com/Campaign/SocialNetworking?ocid=PID23285::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:SI_SB_online:082009 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] District 9
The Bourne Supremacy drove me insane with it, but it didn't too bother me during District 9. On Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 3:02 PM, Louis Proyect l...@panix.com wrote: gregoryabut...@aol.com wrote: Apparently, I saw a different District 9 than Prarie Miller and Armond White did! After seeing Simon Abrams's reference (http://extendedcut.blogspot.com/2009/08/255-district-9-2009.html)to the faux-doc style shaky cam in this film, I decided to pass on it. Furthermore, the directors responsible for foisting this horrible technique on the world should all be taken out and horsewhipped. It is the most annoying thing in movies next to product placements. It seems to be much more egregious in action movies but who knows. YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Woodstock, or how art lasts longer than politics
and you've got to be a devotee of 'post-modern' dime novels to use CIA like lingolike POTUS. _ Windows Live: Make it easier for your friends to see what you’re up to on Facebook. http://windowslive.com/Campaign/SocialNetworking?ocid=PID23285::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:SI_SB_facebook:082009 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Woodstock, or how art lasts longer than politics
Tom Cod wrote: and you've got to be a devotee of 'post-modern' dime novels to use CIA like lingolike POTUS. No, I'm just copying the abbreviation used by several other posters here because I didn't want to waste time writing it out in full. If the CIA use such terms it's news to me! My point is that outside the US not that many people are aware of the names of most US presidents other than the present one and perhaps his two predecessors. Einde O'Callaghan YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Woodstock, or how art lasts longer than politics
Néstor Gorojovsky wrote: Well, there are some 5.7 billion people outside USofAm. Maybe a few won´t remember that Nixon ruled in 1969, or a few may even ignore who was Nixon. But more than you can guess will find Santana´s solos a masterpiece, etc. i know i do how did his collaboration with John McLaughlin and The Mahavishnu Orchestra get received down your way? Les YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Alexander Cockburn RIP
This is not an easy post for me to write. I have been reading Alexander Cockburn for over two decades. He was unlike most progressive writers in that he took the time to critique American liberalism, although always with a tint of a European leftover from the '68 siege on Paris. And like in the US, upon losing their revolution many of these white leftists across the pond devolved into skepticism, self-hatred, and over time admitted their defeat by slouching themselves to the right. Christopher Hitchens, David Horowitz, John Dos Passos, Dennis Miller, Joshua Muravchik, et al. The list of white ex-lefties over 50 is long as it is instructive to the inquisitive mind in what happens to people when they begin to lose their values and beliefs. full: http://the-discourses.blogspot.com/2009/08/alexander-cockburn-rip.html YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] District 9
Behold, you anti-shaky camera fucks, and weep: http://www.strimoo.com/video/15601236/Chimes-at-Midnight-1965-by-Orson-Welles-Veoh.html YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] District 9
David McDonald wrote: Behold, you anti-shaky camera fucks, and weep: http://www.strimoo.com/video/15601236/Chimes-at-Midnight-1965-by-Orson-Welles-Veoh.html big deal, so Orson Welles watched Eisenstein's Alexander Nevsky one day and decided to try a battle scene himself (a guess)... Best sequence ever as if Les, who watched The Third Man today and who's hair stands on end watching Citizen Kane YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] District 9
Personally, I'm afraid I'll never see another medieval battle scene without waiting to see Peter Cook as Richard III wandering around like he did in Black Adder. ML YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
