Ironies Too

General Strike in Belgium greets Bemused and Befuddled EU Leaders

2012-01-30T13:38:00.000Z

A country in shut down is perhaps the most appeopriate place for a meeting of the muddled morons who guide the EU.

Der Spiegel contemplating their next steps describes them as losing touch with reality, a charitable suggestion given their performance over the past couple of years, where what is happening today was always predicted and solely due to their own actions and decisions against a cacophony of contrary but sane advice, such as that from this blog.

In the UK the man who should still be leading the Conservative Party has been put down on live television by the Prime Minister, in a rebuke delivered by a Liberal Democrat peer on a live poltical broadcast aired this lunchtime.

Will Conservative backbenchers allow such an affront and backtrack on blocking the Fiscal Comapct Treaty to occur on the same day. Douglas Carswell MP sat and watched as it took place, and he one of the supposed leaders of resistance to the takeover of the country by the EU?

German control of Greece to be extended to Ireland and Portugal

2012-01-30T07:08:00.000Z

The German proposal to take control of the policies of the once sovereign country of Greece is also to be applied to Ireland and Portugal as confirmed in this report in the Irish Times this morning.

So the mainland bombings, Northern Ireland unrest, and years of disputation borne by Britain in the cause of Irish independence has all been thrown away for the sake of a decade long spending splurge in the Irish Republic, now brought to an abrupt halt by a cunning and devious Continental conspiracy..

Britain has loaned money to Ireland in this recent crisis and in view of our shared history and heritage, not to mention security considerations, should thus be reluctant to see Ireland fall under total German control.

David Cameron's trip to Brussels for another pointless summit would be best cancelled in favour of an early meeting with the Irish Taoiseach, Enda Kenny to see if there is any help Britain can provide at this moment of great peril for our close island neighbour!

Papademos says Greek Party Leaders have backed him.

2012-01-29T15:53:00.000Z

Ekathimerini reports that EX ECB Vice President and EU Placeman at the head of the Greek government has obtained the agreement of the three party leaders in Greece to his proposed next steps in Brussels tomorrow. Read here.

Reuters report, linked here, seems less sure of that outcome and shows the Finance Minister leaving for Brussels, rather than Papademos as indicated in the other report. Perhaps there is a time difference or the talks are not completely finalised.

Whatever the truth, and that will probably not be known for some considerable time, this certainly seems like being a momentous day for Greece and the death of democracy once again in Europe!

Irish attempts to avoid another EU referendum!

2012-01-29T14:31:00.000Z

The Fiscal Compact is a huge sacrifice of sovereignty. No matter the Irish Government plans to sign-up anyway, perhaps as they long ago sold their souls to the Troika.

What is astounding are the lengths they seem prepared to go to in avoiding the referendum which any reading of their constitution would make clear they are obligated to hold.

A report in today's Irish Independent, linked here, details all this, for which thanks goes to a regular reader and comment provider on this blog, for bringing the article to my attention.

Why Britain no longer cares when Continental democracy is crushed?

2012-01-29T08:57:00.001Z

The question in this blog's headline, if it is really a question rather than a bold statement that quite inexplicably has a question mark at the end, is beyond the ability of this blogger to even begin to address. I have perhaps lived too long beyond the borders of the UK to have any grasp of what has happened.

The best I can offer is this linked posting from The Slog, posted last evening, which I have quoted in part with the items that struck home with me:

today marks something of a turning point for me. A real Buddhist truth is that good comes from bad. The good for me today has been to realise that no good at all is going to come from me wittering on about how terrible something is any more because, as a form of civilisation, the West has lost the ability to feel what one means by 'terrible'. All those precepts with which I was raised about justice, equality of opportunity, national self-determination and liberty have fallen down the crevasse that yawns between "Yeh...whatever" and "The markets must decide". It takes me back to a great Shavian quote from Pygmalion, where Liza's feckless Dad says, "Morals sir? I can't afford 'em".

Two things are obvious from the non-reportage of today's massively significant European developments:

1. Lone bloggers aren't going to have any effect on these deeply disturbed people we call our leaders. I've been saying this for over a year now, so it's about time I took my own advice: only concerted and mutual efforts by influential writers - in a collective, a virtual haven, a cloud or whatever the bloody hell else one chooses to call it - can ever act as a bulwark against this witches' coven of sociopathic belief in the idea that money is the object, and the human race the subject.

German annexation of Greece

2012-01-29T08:40:00.000Z

Many thanks to a reader who has forwarded me this posting from Zero Hedge, only a part of which is posted below albeit the entire posting being of huge importance:

Greece Politely Declines German Annexation Demands
Tyler Durden's picture
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/28/2012 12:29 -0500

Following yesterday's frankly stunning news that the Troika politely requests that Greece hand over its first fiscal, then pretty much all other, sovereignty to "Europe", here is the Greek just as polite response to the Troika's foray into outright colonialism:

GREEK GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN DECLARES THAT THE BUDGET IS SOLELY ITS RESPONSIBILITY - DJ

What is interesting here is that unlike the highly irrelevant IIF negotiations which will end in a Greek default one way or another, the real plotline that should be followed is this one: because unless Germany, pardon the Troika, gets the one condition it demands, namely "absolute priority to debt service" and "transfer of national budgetary sovereignty", as well as a "constitutional amendment" thereto. there is no Troika funding deal. Furthermore, since as a reminder the PSI talks are just the beginning, the next step is ensuring compliance, as was noted yesterday ("[ceding sovereignty] will reassure public and private creditors that the Hellenic Republic will honour its comittments after PSI and will positively influence market access"), any refusal to implement such demands is an automatic dealbreaker. Which means anything Dallara and the IIF say, as representatives of a steering committee that at this point probably constitutes of one bondholder, with the bulk having shifted to the ad hoc committee, is irrelevant. Germany just got its answer. And the next step is, as Zero Hedge first suggested, an epic LTRO in precisely one month, whose sole purpose will be to prefund European banks ahead of the Greek default with enough cash to withstand Europe's Bear Stearns. Although as a reminder, in the US, Bear Stearns only led to Lehman and the global "all in" gambit to preserve the financial system by shifting bank insolvency risk to the sovereigns (a chart showing bank assets as a percentage of host countries' GDP can be found here). But who will bailout the world's central banks which already collectively hold over 30% of global GDP in the form of "assets", or as this term is better known these days, debt?

Nothing on Monday EU Summit agenda addresses Euro Crisis

2012-01-29T08:23:00.000Z

Here is the published agenda for tomorrow:

January 30 - Summit of EU heads of state and government in Brussels, expected to discuss "fiscal compact" on tighter budgetary controls and other measures to deal with the sovereign debt crisis in Europe, including the euro zone's European Stability Mechanism (ESM) permanent bailout fund. Also to discuss ways to boost growth and jobs in the European Union.

Linked here is a thoughtful article by David McHugh which appeared in various publications across the USA yesterday, titled "Deficit focus questioned as answer to euro crisis". Reading it and considering the implications one must despair over what the EU's leaders will spend their time discussing tomorrow!

Possible immediate oil sanctions against EU follow from an infantile foreign policy!

2012-01-29T08:12:00.001Z

The Parliament in Tehran is today debating whether to impose immediate oil sanctions against Europe. Details in a report from the Chicago Tribune, linked here.

Is this not ironic. Apparently the combined supposed abilities of the EU Foreign Ministers who met to discuss oil sanctions against Iran over its nuclear policies, could not foresee that deferring the effective date to July, as an earlier commencement might inconvenience some of their number, did not leave them all wide open to such a stunning riposte?

Such kindergarten stupidity infects everything the EU undertakes, see the posting below on the internet. Had we mature national leaders they would take this on board and remove their nations from this ever deepening disaster!

EU Internet Clampdown - Senior official responsible resigns!

2012-01-29T07:57:00.000Z

Talk about ba resignation coming too late, this surely must be a prime example. The complaints about how the new conrols were eneacted without parliamentary input, consultation nor any thought for the citizens who will be affected, all that is typical of almost all the EU undertakes, it is the fact that the official responsible only resigned AFTER the provision was signed into effect by all the member states, including Britain, as may be read here, amazingly enough from the EU controlled BBC itself!

In his resignation statement Mr Arif stated the following:

"I condemn the whole process which led to the signature of this agreement: no consultation of the civil society, lack of transparency since the beginning of negotiations, repeated delays of the signature of the text without any explanation given, reject of Parliament's recommendations as given in several resolutions of our assembly."

Protests have been taking place in Poland, elsewhere there seems to have been little publicity on the new rules, as in so much of what the EU steadily undertakes top make the lives of its citizens tightly controlled and effectively pointless.

Osborne and Lagarde lead push for more cash for the Euro Zone

2012-01-28T20:36:00.000Z

Quite incredibly this year's Davos meeting is being brought to a close by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, leading the rallying call, alongside former French Finance Minister and now IMF head Christine Lagarde, for more money to be poured into the pit that is a doomed Euro Currency. The report in the Irish Times is linked here.

Such calls came when even at the same meeting others were predicting the almost certain end of the currency, the article's conclusion being as follows:

However, economist Nouriel Roubini was more downbeat and described the euro zone as a “slow-motion train wreck”.
Mr Roubini said he expected Greece, and possibly Portugal, to exit the euro zone within the next 12 months and believed there is a 50 per cent chance of it breaking up completely in the next 3-5 years.

Portugal next to buckle - NASDAQ report

2012-01-28T20:21:00.000Z

The report from Nasdaq just re-posted from Emerging Money, confirms what this blog has been pointing out repeatedly for a long time, but most particularly these past few days, when most attention has been turned upon Greece.

There is in fact not that much difference in CDS consequences of default between the two EU crippled countries, Reuters this evening reminding us, link here, as follows:

The current average market value of a portfolio of Portugal's bonds, weighted for the different amounts it has issued, is about 63 percent of face value, and an event which triggered a payout on credit default swaps would cost the sellers of protection about 1.4 billion euros.

On a similar basis the market value of Greek debt at the moment is about 28 percent of face value and if a CDS payout were triggered it would cost sellers about 1.7 billion euros.

Greece - Party Leaders meeting deferred from Saturday to Sunday

2012-01-28T16:45:00.001Z

Ekathimerini has the report, linked here.

A meeting between Prime Minister Lucas Papademos and the leaders of the three parties that make up his coalition government has been moved from Saturday to Sunday, a few hours before the Greek premier is due to meet his European Union counterparts in Brussels.

Elsewhere several reports from the USA state that the EU has rejected the German proposal to take over the running of Greece, for example this report from the Atlanta Journal Constitution, linked here. However the source appears to be Olli Rehn the EU Commissioner for the economy and monetary affairs, who has proved consistently behind the curve and ill informed on developments in the EU's ever growing financial crisis.

If the proposal has been tabled by Germany, the harsh reality of the EU today is that it can only be amended or withdrawn by Germany!

Update 1650 GMT Talks on the Haircut and Bond Rollover broke up without agreement read here.

Canada's Globe and Mail recognises Greek Sovereignty is at risk

2012-01-28T15:38:00.000Z

The newspaper just issued from Canada is linked here. The following is a small portion of their report:

The unprecedented and sweeping powers for creditors would indeed deal a huge blow to Greece's sovereignty, but they could help mobilize more support for the government in Athens from its European partners.

Except in the EU, the shock of the nature of the proposal to neuter a supposed independent and once sovereign state is at last receiving proper attention

Britain's Daily Mail gets the story on German threat to the Greeks

2012-01-28T14:35:00.002Z

The article put out by the Daily Mail some quarter of an hour ago is linked here.

BBC World News, as it laughingly describes itself, remains obsessed by the salary and bonuses of the heads of a broken bank called RBS. Truly lamentable and pathetic.

US Media learning of the Troika ultimatum to Greece

2012-01-28T14:27:00.001Z

The Washington Post has an exceedingly brief report, linked here, appearing thirty odd minutes ago.

CNN cariies a longer report, linked here, with the headline "Call for EU to control Greek budget" if only that were all! More detail of the list of "prior actions" mentioned in my earlier postings of today comes the following from the CNN report:

Even before Germany circulated its proposal, the EU and International Monetary Fund had presented a 10-page list of "prior actions" Athens must implement before the new bail-out is agreed. According to a copy of the document, also obtained by the FT, Greece must cut an additional 150,000 government jobs within three years.

The document, dated Monday, also calls for major budget cuts in defence, healthcare and "entity closures" to bring down this year's budget deficit. The document said the preliminary estimate for the 2012 deficit target is about 1 per cent of economic output -- implying swinging cuts, since previous estimates by lenders put this year's budget deficit at 7 per cent.

Troika's Terror for Greece

2012-01-28T13:46:00.001Z

The leaders of the three political parties that allowed ECB plant Lucas Papademos to be installed as Prime Minister of their country by the Troika are being subjected to pressure this afternoon to sign away the remains of their country's independence and sovereignty without time limit. Read the report in "ekathimerini" linked here. The following are extracts from that report:

Papademos will attempt to obtain a clear commitment from PASOK’s George Papandreou, New Democracy’s Antonis Samaras and Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS) chief Giorgos Karatzaferis on the measures requested by the troika.....

There are signs that Papademos could face a tough task in extracting support from all three party leaders. Speaking in Parliament, Karatzaferis made it clear that he would not sign any written commitments if they were requested.

Germany's ultimatum to Greece

2012-01-28T10:25:00.001Z

This is taken direct from the comments section of the post linked below on The Slog:
§§§

The content of the German ultimatum to Greece:
Assurance of Compliance in the 2nd GRC Programme
I. Background
According to information from the Troika, Greece has most likely missed key programme objectives again in 2011. In particular, the budget deficit has not decreased compared to the previous year. Therefore Greece will have to significantly improve programme compliance in the future to honour its commitments to lenders. Otherwise the Eurozone will not be able to approve guarantees for GRC II.
II. Proposal for the improvement of compliance
To improve compliance in the 2nd programme, the new MoU will have to contain two innovative institutional elements on which Greece will have to commit itself. They will become further prior actions for the second programme. Only if and when they are implemented, the new programme can commence:
1. Absolute priority to debt service
Greece has to legally commit itself to giving absolute priority to future debt service. This commitment has to be legally enshrined by the Greek Parliament. State revenues are to be used first and foremost for debt service, only any remaining revenue may be used to finance primary expenditure. This will reassure public and private creditors that the Hellenic Republic will honour its comittments after PSI and will positively influence market access. De facto elimination of the possibility of a default would make the threat of a non-disbursement of a GRC II tranche much more credible. If a future tranche is not disbursed, Greece can not threaten its lenders with a default, but will instead have to accept further cuts in primary expenditures as the only possible consequence of any non-disbursement.
2. Transfer of national budgetary sovereignty
Budget consolidation has to be put under a strict steering and control system. Given the disappointing compliance so far, Greece has to accept shifting budgetary sovereignty to the European level for a certain period of time. A budget commissioner has to be appointed by the Eurogroup with the task of ensuring budgetary control. He must have the power a) to implement a centralized reporting and surveillance system covering all major blocks of expenditure in the Greek budget, b) to veto decisions not in line with the budgetary targets set by the Troika and c) will be tasked to ensure compliance with the above mentioned rule to prioritize debt service.
The new surveillance and institutional approach should be formulated in the MoU as follows: “In the case of non-compliance, confirmed by the ECB, IMF and EU COM, a new budget commissioner appointed by the Eurogroup would help implementing reforms. The commissioner will have broad surveillance competences over public expenditure and a veto right against budget decisions not in line with the set budgetary targets and the rule giving priority to debt service.” Greece has to ensure that the new surveillance mechanism is fully enshrined in national law, preferably through constitutional amendment.
In answer to a question to the editors about why it is in English -
28.01.12 at 03:41
editor says:
This is the draft which is before us – it is in English only. Presumably, if it is really adopted on Monday, it will be translated into all EU languages. The editor
§§§

The real face of the EU cospiracy has now been revealed as this blog and blogger have continually warned!

The Slog reports Troika have taken over Greece

2012-01-28T10:13:00.000Z

The post referred to in the headline above is linked here. My first post of today referred to this same grave circumstance but presumed it remained as a proposal. If the linked report is correct in its essential details, then Greece's democracy, under threat for the past two years and steadily being eroded, has now been totally destroyed by the EU/IMF/ECB Troika and an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council should be called to condemn what has occurred!

Surely Budget Commissioners are a giant step too far for Sovereign States

2012-01-28T08:52:00.002Z

The following is from an article in the Daily Telegraph this morning:

It was also being reported last night that the German government wants Greece to hand over control of tax and spending decisions to a 'budget commissioner' appointed by the rest of the eurozone, before the country gets its second bail-out.

The budget commissioner would have to power to veto decisions made by the Greek government, according to a proposal seen by the Financial Times, marking a significant step-up in the EU's powers over the sovereign governments of member states.

The leaders of Britain and other countries wishing to remain democracies, where there citizens can retain the powers to change their rulers, should ACT NOW to prevent this evil developing in the heart of the European Continent!

Update 0945 GMT - More on this from Ben Chu in The Independent linked here.

Fitch downgrades Spain, Italy, Belgium, Cyprus and Slovenia

2012-01-27T18:15:00.000Z

The Bloomberg report is linked here and is interesting as Fitch was quite recently very positive on France! We must watch developments on their rating of that country with particular interest.

The EU - destroying democracy on funding from the USA and IMF

2012-01-27T17:16:00.002Z

The following came in a speech from John Redwood MP in the same Parliament where onceWestern Europe's last bastion of democracy was based. Today that same democracy is under threat from the EU whilst being financed from the IMF and the USA:

"This is not only an economic crisis, this is not only a banking crisis, this is not only a currency crisis, but it is also now a crisis of democracy ... We see in some of these countries now that the electorates do not choose the Government; the European Union’s senior players choose the Government. We see in some of these countries that the electorate change the Government but they do not change the policy. The new Government have to pledge to follow exactly the same policy, which does not work, in order to get elected and to be acceptable to the European Union, in order to carry on drawing down the subsidies and loans from within the European Union that have to be on offer to try to make the system operate to some extent."

Link to report of debate.

While they dine in Davos several EU countries fall apart!

2012-01-27T15:29:00.001Z

Italy is variously described in its press today as paralysed, split in two and subject to a pitchfork revolution. Ten days of petrol station stoppages will follow the virtual general strike of public transport taking place today.

Greece of course is in a similar situation. Portugal is following and Ireland whose future generations have been placed in massive debt for decades ahead is suffering a large exodus of skilled workers.

This is the real EU, by which tranquil, prosperous and democratic Switzerland is surrounded, in which lies Davos, all very happily well outside the EU.

The picture of the EU appointed Ruler of Italy below is in La Repubblica, linked here and the striking image is from ansa.

Whatever happens in Greece may now be a credit event!

2012-01-27T13:42:00.001Z

Well round and round it goes! It now appears from this report in the San Francisco Chronicle, just updated, that while only 50% of private participation in the bond roll-over might be voluntary, the "authorities" are no longer so concerned about it being a credit event and thus triggering a pay off on outstanding Credit Default Swaps.

The suppositions continue, even while now apparently reversing direction!

Spectator editor rightly attacks Tory leadership!

2012-01-27T10:05:00.001Z

Cameron must follow his Davos speech of yesterday by adopting an alternative to his present lame "stay in the EU and suffer" stance. Simultaneously he must order a radical tax and spend reform from his Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne.

The urgent need for both may be seen from attacks from one of his backbenchers, Douglas Carswell, here and from the Speccie editor, Fraser Nelson, here.

IMF's Lagarde says policy over EU CRISIS is her business not ours

2012-01-27T09:53:00.006Z

Bloomberg have just concluded an extraordinary interview with the featherweight head of the IMF Christine Lagarde. It is now (11:15 GMT) available on their website here:

VIDEO Removed due to constant replay on this blog!

A feel of the depth and nature of the problems could be gained earlier when Spanish unemployment for the fourth quarter of last year came in at 22.9% with youth unemployment now touching half of the nation's under 25 year olds.

The utter pointlessness of the Fiscal Compact, which is the main emphasis of EU leaders for their coming summit next Monday, can be seen when recalling that Spain is one of the few member states who in the past has adhered to the old Growth and Stability pact limits for deficits and spending, which will become the new norm (with similar weak constraints) in the new fiscal compact.

Treasures from the threads - Number 71 "Spanish debts in Portugal".

2012-01-27T07:05:00.000Z

The following comment was to an article in this morning's Daily Telegraph, by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, on the impossibility of Portugal surviving its present debt position, linked here:
§§§§§

Titus__Pullo
Today 04:20 AM

Portugal has a population of 10.6 million people (of which probably only about half are economically active) and owes Euro 286 billion. There's simply no way they can trade themselves out of that position, sell assets or write more debt. Defaulting is inevitable. Currently nearly one third of that debt is owed to Spain.

The unemployment rate is Spain is over 21% and there has to be serious doubts they could sustain a Portugese default to them of Euro 100 billion. The whole pack of cards is destined to come down. It's not if, it's when.
§§§§§

FTT Madness - Cameron in Davos

2012-01-26T20:33:00.002Z

Early video of Cameron's blistering attack against the FTT is below. As more of his speech is available it will be posted on this blog:

Merkel removes the mask and reaches for a new Reich

2012-01-26T18:17:00.002Z

The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, in an interview with six of Europe's newspapers, has revealed her plans to unite Europe under Germany's leadership. How can this be considered anything other than a bid to re-install a new Reich, or even modern day Holy Roman Empire, I do not know!

The report on the interview may be read from EurActiv's article, linked here, from which come the following exact quotes:

"My vision is political union, because Europe has to follow its own path. We need to get closer step by step, in all policy areas," Merkel said.
The chancellor's European vision was made public ahead of an summit on Monday where EU leaders are expected to finalise a new treaty aimed at tightening fiscal discipline and deepening economic integration in the eurozone.
Without mentioning federalism, Merkel described a new architecture for Europe where EU institutions have the last word over member states, placing her on a collision course with British Prime Minister David Cameron, who has vetoed attempts to transfer more power to Brussels.
"In the course a long process, we will transfer more powers to the Commission, which will then work as a European government for European competencies," Merkel said.

The reaction from France, where sitting President Sarkozy faces a re-election test in mere months, and has pitched his call to the electorate as based on a merger with Germany, should be most interesting.

I will try to record on this blog the manner in which this proposal is reported by the various newspapers as and when it is possible to do so.

Portugal to require second bailout - 50 Economists

2012-01-26T17:12:00.001Z

Reuters pours some realism over those wishing the Eurozone's woes might just vanish, a quote is here:

A separate poll of 50 economists suggested there is a 70 percent chance that Portugal will require a second EU/IMF bailout at some point.

One is tempted to question what a private haircut on Purtuguese bonds might be called when recalling that Merkozy promised Greece would be a unique and one off case. Maybe they could get Greece to buy the bonds and cough up the 30 billion, Antonio Saraiva, head of Portugal’s main industry confederation, said yesterday was needed “I’ll dare to say we have a credit crunch...What is lacking is €30bn.” (As reported by Open Europe today) and the whole lot can now be included with the Greek haircut, (negotiations upon which are seemingly endlessly continuing) thus maintaining the pretence that things are developing as Merkozy wished!

Remember in all this, it was the dreaded two headed Merkozy which made the early error by not just accepting a Greek default and a Euro exit! They would never allow it, seemed to be one of the early statements if memory serves.

Olli Rehn - Extra cash needed for 2nd Greek Bail Out

2012-01-26T14:50:00.000Z

Reuters report is from here. Yes folks, it's Olli at it AGAIN:

PM Cameron presents unarguable case for Britain's EU withdrawal!

2012-01-26T13:41:00.000Z

The speech at Davos left no room for misunderstanding nor indeed for argument, let alone further dithering and prevarication. The best course for Britain is to remove itself from the EU as presently undemocratically and economically constructed!

The following paragraphs, taken directly from the speech highlight that point:

While China grows at 8%, India at 7% and Africa at 5.5%, the European Commission forecasts the EU will grow by just 0.6 per cent in the whole of 2012 – and even that is assuming the problems in the Eurozone get better not worse.
Yesterday in Britain we had the official figures for the final quarter of last year – and they were negative.
Other large economies of Europe are forecast to have a similar outcome.
In just four years Government debt per EU citizen has risen by 4,500 euros. Foreign direct investment has fallen by around two-thirds.
And in more than half of EU Member States, a fifth of all young people are now out of work. So this is not a moment to try and pretend there isn’t a problem.
Nor is it a moment to allow the fear of failure to hold us back. This is a time to show the leadership our people are demanding.
Tinkering here and there and hoping we’ll drift to a solution simply won’t cut it any more. This is a time for boldness not caution.

The entire speech is linked here. The speech later continued after some mention of Britain:

Europe’s lack of competitiveness remains its Achilles Heel.
For all the talk, the Lisbon Strategy has failed to deliver the structural reforms we need.
The statistics are staggering. As measured by the World Economic Forum, more than half of EU Member States are now less competitive than they were this time last year while five EU Member States are now less competitive than even sclerotic Iran.
For every Euro invested in venture capital in the EU, five times as much is being invested in the US.
The Single Market remains incomplete. And there are still a colossal 4,700 professions across the EU to which access is regulated by government.
And that’s not all. In spite of the economic challenge, we are still doing things to make life even harder.
In the name of social protection, the EU has promoted unnecessary measures that impose burdens on businesses and governments, and can destroy jobs.
The Agency Workers Directive, the Pregnant Workers Directive, the Working Time Directive.
The list goes on and on. And then there’s the proposal for a Financial Transactions Tax.

Of course it’s right that the financial sector should pay their share. In the UK we are doing exactly that through our bank levies and stamp duty on shares. And these are options which other countries can adopt.
But look at the European Commission’s own original analysis.
That showed a Financial Transactions Tax could reduce the GDP of the EU by 200 billion euros cost nearly 500 thousand jobs and force as much as 90 per cent of some markets away from the EU.

Even to be considering this at a time when we are struggling to get our economies growing is quite simply madness.
We can’t go on like this

And eventually concluded:

But there a number of features common to all successful currency unions.

A central bank that can comprehensively stand behind the currency and financial system.

The deepest possible economic integration with the flexibility to deal with economic shocks.

And a system of fiscal transfers and collective debt issuance that can deal with the tensions and imbalances between different countries and regions within the union.

Currently it’s not that the Eurozone doesn’t have all of these it’s that it doesn’t really have any of these.

Unions begin to protest the Fiscal Compact Treaty

2012-01-26T11:16:00.001Z

EurActiv has a report on a protest in Brussels yesterday which is linked from here.

The significance is that on the one hand the measures are being visibly watered down to provide the same avoidance procedures as was successfully accomplished by France and Germany with the original Growth and Stability Pact, while on the streets, resistance is mounting (particularly in Greece with health sector protests).

The causes of all this misery meeting in Davos are particularly sickening this year. One such,the CEO of Citigroup, Vikram Pandit's words this morning on Bloomberg, to defend what the EU was about and his talk of the work upon and progress of the fiscal compact provided a welcome moment of hysteria inducing relief. A text report of the TV interview is here.

Two's company, Troika's a crowd.

2012-01-26T07:56:00.001Z

Knowing the power of money to cause conflict the widespread reports yesterday that the EU/ECB/IMF Troika were in open dispute over who owes and must pay what, came as no surprise. The Irish Times, who let's face it has more than a little interest in this matter, reports on the difficulties from here. (Also visit their front page for an amusing photo on piggy bankers!)

The next phase of the breakdown will be amongst the shareholders of the ECB over exactly which former nation states must meet the costs of all the worthless pieces of paper and meaningless promissory notes and commitments the ECB has accepted in its hopeless attempt to save the doomed Euro.

As this blog has warned again and again for what has now become years, that is when the EU will split apart, that is when the recriminations could get very nasty and that is where Europe's present national leaders are leading us, such is the depth and grave nature of the real problem which they should address on Monday, if not before.

The question of the Euro currency and EMU has already become an irrelevance through neglect!

Airbus owns up to A380 wing cracks - Is EU safe to fly?

2012-01-25T20:50:00.001Z

As we posted earlier this month on the Airbus wings' cracking up as being a suitable emblem for the EU, read here, the EADS announcement this evening was as follows:

Airbus blamed a recent series of A380 wing cracks on a combination of design and manufacturing flaws and said it had worked out a two-stage solution, while stressing the superjumbo was in the meantime safe to fly.

Following developments on the EU's second most important prestige project, the Airbus, is becoming as tortuous and fraught as following that of its first such, the Euro, one such most recent comment is here.

If Scotland and England cannot stay together, what hope for the EU?

2012-01-25T18:21:00.001Z

Some news reports on the coming bid for independence by the Scots are Reuters here and the BBC from here.

As an Englishman I view what we have done for the Scots as a neighbourly act of charity over a long period of time. It was essentially a union of the two crowns, cemented to aid the Scots who had virtually bankrupted themselves through stupidity, an earlier version of the more recent stupidity of the Bank of Scotland and RBS.

Having said that, Britain has gained some benefit from the arrangement but has suffered long periods of appalling Labour Government as a result, which probably would not have been the case had we remained as England and Wales.

The EU is the main complicating factor, as in all things for Britain in this 21st century. We entered the EU as Britain and before any referendum we should first leave as such. What arrangements we make thereafter regarding the EU should be decided by our islands resultant constituent nations, England should, however, first make it absolutely clear that it will remain outside the EU and will not tolerate, under any circumstances, a land border with that non-democratic entity!

Iran warns against buying US$ for hoarding, hikes own rates to 21%.

2012-01-25T14:06:00.000Z

Reuters has the full report, linked here, on the growing tensions in the Gulf, this time concentrating on the financial implications.

Ashton throws away €55.4 Billion more on Gaza.

2012-01-25T13:38:00.001Z

The EU has poured Billions of EU taxpayers funds into the Middle East mess down the years with nothing whatever to show for it. That policy continued today as may be read in this press release from Brussels linked here.

Note the proud assertion at the end:

The European Union is the largest multilateral provider of international assistance to Palestine refugees. Over the period 2000 to 2011, the EU, excluding EU member states alone, has provided approximately €1.2 billion of support to the Agency. This funding has enabled human development for the most vulnerable Palestine refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

How much of that we must merely wonder, went on activities that caused pain, injuries, misery and even death to others?

EU Parliament President Schultz refutes sole explanation for EU's Sickness!

2012-01-25T10:22:00.000Z

The BBC reports the following, as may be read in full from this link:

"Prime Minister Orban is an efficient man," Mr Schulz, flanked by Mr Orban, told reporters in English.
"He is an efficient man by taking on board in Brussels the European rhetoric and to blame the same rhetoric when he is in Budapest as a kind of inadmissible approach.

"So the Europeans should take into account that he is a clever man as a party leader but he should take into account that the European leaders are not stupid."

What? If we rule out stupidity as an excuse for the actions of those in charge of the EU, the present mess must surely be only down to their own greed or downright mendacity!

A "Davos Avalanche" is worth pondering!

2012-01-25T08:12:00.002Z

There has been a week of snow in Davos ahead of the meeting of the World Economic Forum. Public Trust of those gathering must be at an all time low, therefore it is worth pondering on what thes people's replacements might decide to do, were there to be huge avalanches, at the high point of the meeting, burying the lot of them!

You can bet your life it would be far different from what will actually emerge. The main problem facing the world, is that those who caused this mess are still the ones in charge and they dare not begin to give a glimpse of the extent to which they have been completely and utterly wrong!

Update: 0955 GMT 25/1/12 Study this and begin to understand why their brains appear to have ceased to function properly!

ECHR - A malignant tumour that must be cut out.

2012-01-25T07:36:00.003Z

PM Cameron travelling to Strasbourg today to hector the ECHR Judges and officials will achieve nothing. A terminal illness has the Western part of the Continent of Europe in its grip, evidence of the disgusting nature of the sickness can be seen in the work of the ECHR, but more significantly every moment of every day in the activities of all the institutions of the European Union.

Like a terminal cancer tumour in the brain or other essential organ of the human body, removal is the only possibility for the patient's survival. Britain must remove itself from the sick organs of the potential corpse. If we go, others may see the light and follow, but that is for them.The warped and flawed thinking evidenced by the Judges of the ECHR is pandemic throughout Europe's common institutions. It cannot be changed by argument or reason, we have tried that, only by an example being set where the folly can thereafter be clearly seen.

We will not solve Britain's problems as one of twenty-seven within the EU, nor one of twenty within the G20, nor one of 193 within the UN. Removing ourselves from the Council of Europe and from the scope of the ECHR will disqualify us from continuing within the EU, a highly desirable aim.

Our Ministers, whom the country can presently ill afford to remain essentially idle or pointlessly attending expensive international talking shops, should be concentrating on the task at hand, curing Britain's ills.

David Cameron's trip to Strasbourg today is a perfect illustration of the utter pointlessness of his present activities.

Updat 1000 GMT 25/1/12 For once a vaguely sensible BBC report on the same topic.

EU wreckers and incompetents again warned by the IMF

2012-01-24T20:44:00.001Z

If Europe quickly follows IMF recommendations, the fund expects the euro area to face a 0.5% contraction this year. The fund shaved off 1.6 percentage points from its last forecast for 2012 in September—reflecting its worst-case scenario—after risks escalated sharply in the last quarter of the year, when the debt crisis "entered a perilous new phase." Under its optimistic scenario, the IMF expects growth to return to the region next year.

Economists increasingly expect Greece to default within weeks. Even more worryingly, Spain and Italy are now in the market's targets, pushing up the cost for Madrid and Rome to borrow to cover the risk of default. The IMF slashed its 2012 forecasts for both countries, saying Italy faces a 2.2% contraction and Spain, a 1.7% fall. Both are expected to continue to be in recession through 2013.

The above is taken from a WSJ report on the latest IMF warnings about the consequences for the world of the ongoing disregard of all prudent financial management and prudent government by those who run the disaster that is the European Union, read it in full from here.

Britain's 2012 growth forecast, due to the gross incompetence of those in charge on the Continent of Europe and its own politician's subservience to their commands and objectives, was cut by a full 1% from 1.6% to 0.6%.

Update 2049 GMT - The WSJ also now has a report on the full Ecofin meeting held today which has previously been strangely unreported, read here.

EU Derivatives regulating to go to EU Parliament!

2012-01-24T18:32:00.000Z

It appeared tonight as if Britain has once again been edged in a direction it solemnly swore it would never go as the Finance Ministers sent their Derivative Regulation regime to the EU parliament for their approval. Reuters report is here.

We must now await George Osborne's explanation to Britain's own neutered Parliament, a familiar and depressing wait.

FTT - The Tax that could free Britain from the EU

2012-01-24T18:20:00.000Z

Barmy Barnier did nothing yesterday to convince the City of London that he is not both slightly loopy, out of control and almost certainly their and the nation's present major threat. Good

The likes of Clegg and Cameron need the incentive of an opinionated and out of control French Commissioner to perhaps wake them from their stupor and recognise the true nature of the dreadful threat their country faces from the EU. Maggie only woke up when confronted by Delors,can Barnier perform a similar service now?

On the financial transaction tax itself, EurActiv has a report on how it is today being pushed at the top of the EU, where any potential source of new funds are desperately required, linked here. A more impartial view with questions and answers on the possible working of the tax is in Al Arabiyah, linked here.

ESM Treaty - no approval until next week!

2012-01-24T17:08:00.001Z

Finland, as always with these special financing packages, has proved the sole realist among the Euro Group it seems, read here. They wanted a veto on loans and it presently looks as if they have got it. Next Monday is now the latest deadline, but never forget with credit ratings and contributing countries sliding lower, it gets ever less likely that the thing will ever get enough support to be up and running by July!

Britain's £1,000,000,000,000 Debt

2012-01-24T14:35:00.000Z

One trillion pounds, wasted by our politicians of the three main parties, to buy themselves power.

They know they could not raise such monies in taxes, yet they spent it anyway.
Still they promise to spend ever more and greater sums - £127 Billion extra this year alone!

Merely, it would seem, so that they might enjoy all the benefits and pensions of holding power together with whatever other obscene gratification they gain from its oh so obvious and blatant misuse. Real authority meanwhile has passed to Brussels without our consent!

Orphans of Liberty is proposing a sweeping campaign to expose the real natures of all those who have crawled their way to the top of the the festering remains of our three, one time respectable, main political parties. One suggested emblem is here:

Once a suitable logo is selected, it will be placed on this blog, give your input through this link.

An awful alliteration on neutered non-nations for Euro Euthanasia

2012-01-24T08:25:00.002Z

The Euro, a corrupted coin, has assaulted Austria, besmirched Belgium, crippled Cyprus, eschewed Estonia, fiddled Finland and F****d France, gouged Germany, garrotted gasping Greece, immolated Ireland, imprisoned Italy, laid lower little Luxembourg and minor miniscule Malta. It has neutered the Netherlands (hobbling Holland, eh!), pissed 'pon Portugal, stained Slovakia, sacrificed Slovenia and surely screwed Spain!

The Euro is a currency corrupting countries and destroying democracies, for the personal pleasures and political power plays of professional politicians.

Euthansia for the Euro, NOW!

Euro Group Finance Ministers reject Greek Private Haircut Final Offer.

2012-01-24T07:43:00.001Z

The BBC is reporting, (Radio 4 O8OO am news bulletin,) that the best and final offer made by private bondholders of a haircut and rollover into new debt has been rejected by the Euro Group Finance Minister meeting last night in Brussels.

Update: A report on this from the Telegraph is here.

Invest in the EU and voluntarily be forced to lose 70% and CDS costs against such loss.

2012-01-23T21:01:00.000Z

The insane world of the European Union tonight appears to deliver investors to the nightmare world described in this posting's headline. Forbes describes the process in an article linked here.

Greece uncertainty killing Portuguese bonds and stifling CDS activity

2012-01-23T18:28:00.001Z

Tha Wall Street Journal carries a report on the horror now facing Portugal, linked here. The closing paragraphs are as follows:

Another trader noted the risks involved in trading in such conditions, because it can be difficult to offload bonds when nobody wants to buy them. "Most traders now only deal with Portuguese bonds on a order-only basis; otherwise it's just too risky," he said.

Portugal's 10-year government bond is yielding 13.78%, according to Tradeweb data.

The market for insuring the country's debt with credit default swaps has been slightly more active, as a different investor base helped push Portugal's five-year CDS to fresh records Monday.

With CDS, if a borrower defaults, sellers compensate buyers. However, participation of banks in the proposed Greek write-down are intended to be voluntary, a fact that left the industry body to say Greek CDS probably wouldn't pay out under such terms.

This means many market participants are more willing to sell Portugal's CDS, under the reasoning that should Portugal find itself in a similar situation as Greece, the Portuguese contracts wouldn't pay out either.

"Relative to holding (Portuguese) bonds, you'd be much happier selling CDS," a CDS trader said.

Portugal's five-year CDS earlier hit a record of 1,280 basis points, according to Markit.

Barmy Barnier unveils his bonkers plans

2012-01-23T18:13:00.001Z

Limiting top bankers salaries to a multiple of that of junior staff is one guranteed to get Capital fleeing from the EU! Many more will be found in this link from India, where they must be drooling in anticipation of an influx of high paid financial services middlemen, the bosses being in some luxurious tax haven elsewhere!

In the EU, once the bankers have left, perhaps we can use the precedent to cut the pay and perks of EU Commissioners, preferably together with any accrued pensions to zero!

Update 24/1/12 1405 Here is an actual report of Barnier's speech: LINK
It's a Financial World Blog.

What Euro Group Finance Ministers are deciding tonight.

2012-01-23T17:12:00.000Z

The following is from Acting Man blog, which I have found extremely accurate over the past weeks, the full report is linked here:

It is clear that the private sector creditors have now arrived at the 'take it or leave it' point. If their most recent offer is again rejected, then there won't be a 'voluntary' deal. This would put Greece into default (instead of a merely 'temporary' default) and this is the crux of the whole song and dance over pretending that the debt exchange is 'voluntary'. Once Greece is officially in default, the public sector lenders such as the ECB and the IMF can no longer credibly maintain that the Greek debt they hold is worth its face value.

Economist on CNBC says Greece and Portugal to leave the Euro Currency

2012-01-23T11:57:00.000Z

The report from the business news broadcaster is here.

The absolute impossibility of these two countries, Greece and Portugal, staying within the euro currency, barring an almost total depopulation and redistribution of the workforce in the richer EU countries, as is serrupticiously underway for the Irish, leaves this observer bemused that such an obvious statement really warrants such attention.

Have Ecofin Finance Ministers more cash to waste on Greece?

2012-01-23T11:37:00.000Z

The Finance Ministers of the Euro Group, who have been collectively regularly gathering since May 2009, with their own agent now assisting at the head of the IMF acrossd the pond, meet today to witter about the waste they have already caused and attempt to defer proper action even further. One report is here.

Other problems than Greece also loom as this quote from the linked report makes clear:

Greek debt is not the only tough issue EU officials need to tackle with at the meeting. The Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Research team outline the difficulties connected with the revised blueprint of the fiscal pact: “While the new fiscal proposals seek to avoid potential problems, it cannot address the current financing needs of some of the euro area’s most fiscally vulnerable countries” as well as with the ESM fund: “Standard & Poor’s downgraded the EFSF last week from AAA to AA+, which raises concerns around the potential credit rating that will be associated with the new fund and the capacity to increase its size if needed.”

Barmy Barnier in Britain today.

2012-01-23T08:05:00.001Z

EU Commissioner Barnier, upon whom this blog has been posting for some considerable time, initially refused to communicate in English in his new post, read here; subsequently called for population progroms across the EU, then set to his main task of destroying the City of London, presumably not solely for the pure pleasure of doing down the English and revenge for what many French see as centuries of injustices from our islands, but for the commercial benefit of France.

Thereafter he called for World Governance at Humboldt University, read his speech and my critique from here, and so on and so on.

Today he comes to London again, the creepy crawling EU fanatical Financial Times considers his visit from here, apparently joining the call for Britain to play the "euopean game" and accept self destruction just because Barnier has demanded it.

The Indian edition of the Wall Street Journal, appears to have recognised the deluded rantings of this extremely dangerous man, when he asserts that the steps taken by the EU over the euro crisis will somehow, almost magically, resolve matters. Read that from here.

US Nuclear Carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, HMS Argyll and a French vessel enter Hormuz

2012-01-23T07:33:00.001Z

Quoin Island received a large naval bypass yesterday to demonstrate the West's determination to ensure freedom of navigation as their Foreign Ministers are set to meet today to define oil sanctions against Iran.

Only 42% of Croatia's voters turn out to say yes to the EU by a two third majority

2012-01-22T20:21:00.001Z

In Finland the next President appears almost certain to be a pro-EU Conservative. Timo Soini gaining just under 10% in early results.

Monti & Draghi propose lumping unused EFSF funds with ESM

2012-01-22T16:03:00.000Z

The two Italians, whose country of birth faces a debt mountain of indescribable proportions and a system of economic governance akin to some of the worst economies of the third world, have this afternoon come up with a new cracking idea to get their hands on outside cash, according to the Telegraph, linked here. A quote:

Doubling the European Stability Mechanism's (ESM) firepower would reassure markets while driving down borrowing costs for the debt-wracked countries of the eurozone, Mr Monti is said to have argued.

Mr Monti had won backing for the proposal from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, who proposed using unused money from the EFSF to boost the size of the new fund to about €750bn, according to reports in German weekly Der Spiegel, which cited unnamed sources.

How Costa Concordia hit the rocks in video!

2012-01-22T14:14:00.000Z

Reconstruction of the Costa Concordia Tragedy, Narration by John Konrad from gCaptain.com on Vimeo.

Croatia and Finland, two tests for the EU today!

2012-01-22T12:08:00.002Z

We must hope that South Carolina was not an isolated victory against big money sleaze politics, for today, Finland, read here, and Croatia, link here, both have the chance to record utter disgust at the recent activities of those who hold all the power in the non-democratic EU.

Oh Glorious Sunday Morn! - Newt trashes Romney

2012-01-22T07:46:00.000Z

Newt Gingrich gets 40% to Romney's 28%. Can these figures be believed?

Reuters report on the shock result is here.

The set back for slimeball politics epitomised in Britain by Cameron, Clegg and the Labour Party Leaders and in the USA by Mitt Romney is enormous. Oh Happy Day!

When soulless and evil men, driven by numbers, dine together.

2012-01-21T21:01:00.000Z

Credit to Der Spiegel for noting the gruesome 70th anniversary that passed yesterday. Credit also to Richard North for also marking the anniversary.

All praise to The Boiling Frog for posting the video on this linked post, to mark the event AND for once, an oh so rare word of praise to the BBC, who apparently produced the production, Conspiracy, from which the horror can be witnessed,see here:

Greek talks collapse - Portugal next in EU line of defence against defaults?

2012-01-21T20:35:00.000Z

Well my earlier post that the IIF negotiators had left Athens has proved correct and recriminations are starting all around, here, here and here.

The Economist suggests we must now turn our attention to Portugal, after the Greek farce, can we really be bothered, when the outcome seems so inevitable and the reactions so tardy? Deja EU!

Greek farce continues IIF negotiator Dallara leaves Athens

2012-01-21T16:37:00.001Z

CNN has the latest non-report on the Greek "haircut" debt non-deal! Link The crux for me is here:

Dallara and Lemierre left Athens Saturday but a team of experts and Greek government representatives continued to hold discussions, IIF spokesman Vogl said.

Oak Tree Lament (Stop the EU's HS2)

2012-01-21T16:27:00.000Z

Berlusconi "ready to return to power soon"

2012-01-21T14:55:00.001Z

Monti's emergency measures, mostly of concern to vested interests such as lawyers and taxi drivers, have been passed by his "technocratic" cabinet, but once signed off by the President, have to be approved in Parliament within two months!

Such parliamentary approval requires the endorsement and support of Silvio Berlusconi, the ousted elected Prime Minister, who in this report states "that measures adopted so far by the new government had 'produced no results' and that he was ready to return to power soon. - Reuters"

Croatia prepares to vote on EU Membership - A Fitting Photo!

2012-01-21T14:24:00.001Z

An unarmed anti-EU protester is pictured by a Canadian broadcaster being manacled by riot gear clad and armed police, at a protest rally ahead of tomorrows referendum on EU membership: CLICK HERE! Background, here and here.

UPDATE Video now available on YouTube:

Debate on extra funding for the IMF

2012-01-21T12:21:00.000Z

The debate on IMF EU funding, which was broadcast on the Radio 4 Today programme this morning, may be listened to from the attached link here.

4th Draft Non-EU Treaty continues with the same Preamble Lie!

2012-01-21T08:29:00.002Z

The lie in the Treaty Preamble timed at 1600 on 19-1- 2012 (4th draft of the Fiscal Compact) needs to be legally challenged by Britain as it has been carried forward from the third draft. The draft provided by EurActiv, is linked here, the offending untrue statement of fact is as follows:

BEARING IN MIND that the Heads of State or Governments of the Euro Area Member States and of other Member States of the European Union is to incorporate the provisions of this Treaty as soon as possible into the Treaties on which the European Union is founded,

To make this statement factually accurate, (which should surely be the aim if it is not shortly to be totally disregarded as was its forerunner the Growth and Stability Pact, by its same two driving founding members, France and Germany,) the word either "several" or "various" should be included between the word "of" and the word "other" in the statement of intent.

Will Britain now contribute for Oil for Greece?

2012-01-20T18:25:00.001Z

The weak-willed Coalition Government of Cameron and Clegg could next be about to concede further aid to Greece disguised as mitigation of the consequences of imposing an oil embargo against Iran.

A report in Reuters, linked here, suggests nothing will be agreed until Monday, but it should be recalled that most commitments by our treacherous politicians to continue to provide aid, usually in the form of cash or cash guarantees for the Euro Group, have been entered into during the weekends. Language such as the following should by now be taken as a clear warning sign of extra commitments ahead:

Jan 20 (Reuters) - EU foreign ministers will assure Greece on Monday that it will still be able to buy oil on reasonable terms after the introduction of a planned EU ban on Iranian crude, a senior Brussels official said.But he added that ministers, who plan to announce the embargo at a meeting on Monday, will not come out with a detailed plan that same day on how to maintain supplies to Greece, which sources around 23 percent of crude imports from Iran.

Sacrificing our Sovereignty - HS2 and TEN-T

2012-01-20T17:17:00.002Z

Research by Anne Palmer

The Coalition’s Program for Government?

The linked research paper has been prepared by Anne Palmer and is too long to include in full as a posting on this blog. I have therefore posted it on a little used but relevant sister blog linked here. I quote merely the first few papragraphs and omit all the hugely important links. Please read it in full when your time allows, it is immensely important for Britain.

These two paragraphs below are acknowledged as Crown Copyright from the Coalition’s program for Government. Chapter 13: Europe.

“The Government believes that Britain should play a leading role in an enlarged European Union, but that no further powers should be transferred to Brussels without a referendum. This approach strikes the right balance between constructive engagement with the EU to deal with the issues that affect us all, and protecting our national sovereignty”.

“We will ensure that there is no further transfer of sovereignty or powers over the course of the next Parliament. We will examine the balance of the EU’s existing competences and will, in particular, work to limit the application of the Working Time Directive in the United Kingdom”. End of quotes.

We have read recently of the Government’s acceptance of a full speed ahead with HS2. Yet, not one word from our Government or explanation that the HS2 is part of the EU’s Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) Policy. Although I have written about this before, I did not emphasize just how, in accepting this EU project, it is transferring ever more masses of UK Sovereignty to the European Union. In the acceptance of this EU Legislation our politicians are allowing the European Union to dictate what we must do on our land, sea, and air. All of which so many people fought so very hard to prevent in the 1939-1945 war, when the people of every age-yes even children- fought so hard for this once sovereign Country to remain forever FREE FROM FOREIGN RULE.

British Establishment Figures Alone to consider the West Lothian Question!

2012-01-20T14:05:00.001Z

Please visit the web site linked here to read about the latest affront to all the people of England. The detail will shock and fully justifies the dire warning from the Chairman of the English Democrats, with which the post concludes which is as follows:

"....I have a message for Ministers and for their West Lothian Commission – the English are awakening and when fully roused they will not be happy with Westminster or Whitehall which have betrayed the trust placed in them to be fair to England and to the English Nation! And this McKay Commission will not appease us one bit!"

EU and Britain are drifting apart.

2012-01-20T08:25:00.003Z

Mario Monti, always a powerful figure in the development of the EU as it presently exists, has solidified his power base since trashing his commitment to the democracy of the country of his birth. There is now no going back for Monti!

Feeling in Italy against the EU will inevitably become increasingly anti-EU as austerity mounts and the realisation grows that domestic corruption has been replaced rather than removed by the centralised trans-national socialist conglomeration the EU has become. The fact that this is also incompetently led and grossly mismanaged is well captured by this cartoon from Italy, yesterday re-published in Der Spiegel in Germany, linked here.

Mario Monti has therefore burnt his lifeboats for a return to respectability amongst his countrymen, his words in a report in City AM yesterday, linked here, should therefore be considered as well considered and likely to be accurate - “The possibility of the UK subscribing to the new fiscal compact [EU treaty]... is water under the bridge. Pity, but this seems to be the case.”

The meeting between another very powerful and dangerous anti-democratic EU fanatic, Michel Barnier, and Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, next Monday will therefore be very important, read here. These are dangerous times for our country, England, and for the Corporation of the City of London, under attack from the Continent, both from Scotland backed as so many times in history by our enemies on the Continent and directly from France and our commercial rivals to its East.

Monti has chosen to meet other traitors within our ranks after his visit to 11 Downing Street, this quote comes from the Reuters report linked above, "Barnier will also visit the City to meet senior bankers, some of whom are uneasy about Britain's stand last year."

George Osborne, would appear to have faint-hearted friends enough in the figure of the proud and boasting Scots' blood bearing Prime Minister and his EU fanatical Deputy Clegg, surely the City could now manage to present a united front?

Hungarian uprising 2012 - Video from UKIP

2012-01-19T18:20:00.000Z

I posted yesterday morning on the nature of the assault by the EU against Hungary being like a re-run of 1956. Ukip have placed a video on this same topic on the internet which is here:

Greece and our money

2012-01-19T07:57:00.004Z

John Redwood MP, one of the few astute spokesmen in Westminster on the EU, chooses to write on the traffic light situation in and around Parliament on his blog this morning, this follows yesterday's offering on roads and before that on yachts. Prior to that post we did have something on Greece, but that was long before yesterday's harrowing IMF proposal.

For detail on that we must rely on the Wall Street Journal who fifteen minutes ago updated this comment, from Washington, where it remains the dead of night. This article presently concludes as follows:

Some experts and policy makers maintain the world needs far more money than even the IMF is seeking in order to contain the growing crisis. The $500 billion proposed by the IMF "is not nearly sufficient to provide bailouts for Italy and Spain," said Desmond Lachman, an economist at the American Enterprise Institute and former IMF official. He estimates that Italy could need $750 billion and Spain could need $450 billion for bailouts. "Additional money would have to be ponied up by the Europeans."
Those and other nations in the euro zone also face growing economic strains, raising the risk that they will need more than outside loans to recover.

It was 30th May 2010 that I appear to have first headlined a posting stating "Greece must exit the Euro and Default" concluding it as follows:

This blog has been stating this obvious fact as it appears in this posting's headline for some considerable time, in fact ever since the so-called Greek crisis first hit the headlines! Other common sense on the present terrible situation is in other postings below this.

Time and again since then I have blogged on the futility of pouring money into Greece, with no Euro exit nor devaluation possible and that it would would surely bring the world to its present point.

Little could I ever have guessed, however, that when we finally arrived at the crunch, even our brightest MPs would seek distraction with topics such as traffic lights, roads and yachts. At least Douglas Carswell MP yesterday recognised the acute danger the country faces, his Party leadership, in thrall to Clegg, clearly do not!

Has IMF lost $100 billion from Congress?

2012-01-18T18:23:00.001Z

Careful readers may have noted in my earlier posting about the IMF this afternoon, the first paragraph of my quote from Bloomberg referred to $500 Billion while the second paragraph and the postings headline mentioned $600 Billion.

Researching the discrepancy I came across this report of yesterday in the Daily Caller, linked here "As the Eurozone takes a turn for the worse and chatter heats up about more European Union and IMF bailouts across the continent, Republicans in Congress are pushing to rescind the $100 billion set-aside."

A report, linked here, in the Irish Echo, also has interesting detail on Tim Geitner and the first Irish bail out with the risk of default or potential non-repayment of an IMF advance having been considered a possibility worthy of discussion.

Steve Liesman has been tweeting on the same topic from CNBC as may be seen from here.

IMF seeks another $600 Billion for the Euro

2012-01-18T15:08:00.004Z

The Euro is DOOMED! Throw no more $$$$$s or £££££s in that direction!

Greek default cannot be prevented only POSTPONED!

The € is a currency fronting what decency and democracy exists to oppose!

Link to the Bloomberg report on the latest request for extra cash which includes this:
The International Monetary Fund is proposing to raise its lending capacity by $500 billion to insulate the global economy against any worsening of Europe’s debt crisis, according to a person familiar with the talks.
The Washington-based lender currently has about $385 billion available to lend and wants to lift that to $885 billion after identifying the potential for a $1 trillion global financing gap in the next two years, the person said. To incorporate a cash buffer, that means asking its membership for $600 billion.

UPDATE at 1630 GMT. Douglas Carswell has blogged on this disastrous proposal, linked here
to which Denis Cooper has added the following sensible suggestion and protest:

As I've argued before, MPs should not permit the government to use an Order, secondary legislation, to authorise payments to the IMF when it's clear that the money would be destined for eurozone bailouts which are illegal under the EU treaties and therefore under UK primary legislation approving those treaties.
If the government insists on doing this it should only be done through primary legislation, an Act of Parliament which expressly stated that the payments were being authorised "notwithstanding the European Communities Act 1972".

Posted on 18 January 2012 14:17 by Denis Cooper

Sun editorial exposes how European Human Rights Court renders us defenceless!

2012-01-18T11:58:00.000Z

Human rights have destroyed the fabric of our nation, as I discussed yesterday morning, both on this blog and on Orphans of Liberty. Today The Sun newspaper, in an editorial, linked here, continues with the same theme and describes our resulting defencelessness as a nation.

When Human Rights trash Common Sense, society is left valueless, and the trash rises to the top!

EU legal action against Hungary demonstrates the neutering of its nation states.

2012-01-18T07:52:00.002Z

The Hungarian uprising against communist oppression was one of my earliest recognitions of the nature of the world in which I lived. In 1956, I was just starting my second year at grammar school and becoming politically aware, as the soviet tanks stormed into Budapest to suppress any signs of national self-determination by the Hungarians. The teaching staff were thus pelted with angry questions at morning assembly over Britain's inaction, which sat uncomfortably with all else we were then being taught.

Now we are ruled by the EU and almost every aspect of our national life is determined by foreigners, just as for Hungary in 1956, the main difference being that the steel fist is still within a velvet glove and that our population is so far unaware of these facts while our leaders make no protest for they are within the pay of the usurpers.

Yet the casual manner in which the EU announces its legal action against a new Hungarian elected government, which holds more than two thirds of the seats in its own parliament and is thus constitutionally empowered to make what changes it chooses to its own constitution, seems to pass without note nor adverse comment, all across a once free and democratic bloc of 26 other once independent states.

Read the Wall Street Journal report from here, that in EU Observer here.

Danger of Capital Flight from Eastern Europe

2012-01-17T20:07:00.000Z

EurActiv has a startling report this evening which partly explains some of the recent EU hysteria over Hungary, linked here. The following briuef quote provides an idea of the seriousness of the problem which appears to have been discussed yesterday in Vienna:

Up to 12 of the 16 key western banks in Eastern Europe, under pressure from regulators to recapitalise, have resorted to shrinking outside their home markets to beef up capital levels, the EurActiv network recently reported.
Many of the foreign banks that dominate the region – including UniCredit of Italy, KBC of Belgium, Commerzbank of Germany and Raiffeisen of Austria – have suffered as a result of the eurozone debt crisis. Several are reportedly limiting credit availability for Eastern Europe in an effort to recapitalise their home bases.
After the downgrading of Austria's AAA rating by Standard & Poor's - in part due to its banks' exposure abroad - Berglöf said banks could be posed to more swiftly reduce their exposure in Central and Eastern Europe.

Schultz, new President of the European Parliament, in action

2012-01-17T18:19:00.002Z

Martin Schultz MEP performing in the EU Parliament in the past:

Nigel Farage MEP on his appointment:

Thanks for both videos to Muffled Vociferation and Captain Ranty.

English Democrats call for simultaneous referendum with Scots

2012-01-17T17:05:00.000Z

The press release, impossible to ignore, is as follows:

UK break-up? - England Must be heard!

The English Democrats support the democratic right of the Scottish Parliament to hold a referendum on the question of Scottish Independence. The timing of this ballot, and the questions to be asked, are matters for the people of Scotland. If, however, there is a 'Yes' vote, then only properly constituted National Governments, and Parliaments, of the former UK's constituent nations of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will have the democratic and national legitimacy to negotiate any new constitutional arrangements, after such an historic decision to break up the UK.

Therefore, in preparation for this momentous Scottish vote, the English Democrats now formally call upon the United Kingdom's Government to hold a referendum in England, within the same timescale of that in Scotland. This referendum should ask the people of England whether they either:-

a) Want to have their own Parliament and Government with the same powers as exist in Scotland currently or would do so if a form of devolution ‘max’ were established there; or

b) Wish to remain part of a political Union with the people of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

In the event of a break up of the UK, the English Democrats insist on the right of the Sovereign People of England to be consulted on any treaties, through a referendum, on whether, or not, we are prepared to accept them. If not, then they will have to be renegotiated.

Robin Tilbrook, the Chairman of the English Democrats said:- "We demand the same rights for the Sovereign People of England as for the Peoples of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Only with an English Parliament and Government can the interests of the People of England be protected in any future negotiations regarding either the break-up of the United Kingdom or the creation of any new constitutional arrangements within the British Isles.

Contact:-

Robin Tilbrook,

Chairman,

The English Democrats,

Link

Bundesbank Board Member Thiele states ECB bond buying is illegal.

2012-01-17T13:51:00.000Z

The report is linked here, and the following are significant quotes regarding the first public admission that this blog's assertion over many months that the ECB is at risk of incurring huge unplaceable debts have been fully justified:

Thiele recalled that the decision to buy Greek government bonds had found no support from German ECB Governing Council members. "Germany was over-ruled on the Council," Thiele said.
"These buys were a violation against the prohibition of monetary financing, that is the basic principle that a central bank should not give credit to a state," Thiele said in a speech text provided by the Bundesbank.
Thiele also appeared to argue that the ECB does not actually buy government bonds of Spain and Italy to ensure the monetary transmission mechanism, as the bank always asserts, but simply to lower the borrowing costs for Madrid and Rome.
The decision to buy Italian and Spanish bonds "in my view, was taken because the majority of the ECB [Council] thought interest rates of these countries too high," Thiele said.

These complaints, raised in Open Europe's daily news email today, add to the disquiet arising from the letter written by the ECB's former Chief Economist, Juergen Stark, and revealed in Der Spiegel yesterday, linked here.

If the German member of the ECB Board and other officials opposed against the bond buying programmes and have all subsequently resigned as appears to be the case, where does the liability for the amounts on the face values of these bond purchases fall as one by one the issuers, led by Greece, begin to default? I suggest that Germany will argue it is not with them, what will that do for the credit ratings of the remaining members?

Ian Hislop live at Leveson

2012-01-17T10:22:00.001Z

Private Eye is one of the only decent investigative journals in the British media, it was they who uncovered Brown's sale of the Income Tax offices up and down the country to a tax avoidance scheme centred across the Atlantic. He will be, IMHO, one of the few individuals worth listening to or reading his evidence thereafter, link here.

Monti's threats to Germany of Italian political backlash

2012-01-17T10:12:00.000Z

There are some interesting comments on the thread to this report of Monti's typical EU Commissioner, spoilt brat outburst, linked here. See the utter hopelessness of the Italian situation on debt in the posting on this blog of last evening, beneath this.

In losing its Common Law, England has lost its Common Sense

2012-01-17T08:28:00.001Z

The hearing, before the abomination which is known as the "Supreme Court", in England, scheduled for today, on the question of a legally set retirement age, highlights another area of severe damage inflicted upon the country by the obscene, malfunctioning and hopefully soon to be abandoned European Union, by its treacherous supporters buried deep and furtively within the nation's body politic.

Read some background from the FT here (£) with broadcast reports no doubt widely spread and normally ill-informed elsewhere.

Common sense does not function with a Constitutional legal system which defines what is legal. Under Common Law everything is legal bar what is specifically prohibited; that is why the European Human Rights stipulations, with which we are now so stuck, the common sense English should normally not need.

But are there now enough of us left even to grasp this point?

Rights, some of which jar so violently with our history, too often, as in this case, become themselves great infringements on the past reasonable and agreed civilised interactions between individuals!

Many over sixty five worked on to the delight and benefit of their employers in the past, obviously perfectly voluntarily. Now thousands must retire before they might wish through covert systems designed to apply old limits and employers are compelled to employ worthless timewasters until they are on the verge of death.

Sarkozy does not understand the question in French

2012-01-16T20:17:00.001Z

Agence de notation : le triple tacle de Sarkozy à un journaliste Vidéo LCIWAT sélectionnée dans Actualité

Euro's emergency fund now downgraded!

2012-01-16T19:44:00.000Z

"The EFSF's obligations are no longer fully supported either by guarantees from EFSF members rated AAA by S&P, or by AAA rated securities," the company said. "Credit enhancements sufficient to offset what we view as the reduced creditworthiness of guarantors are currently not in place."

S&P removed the ratings on the facility from CreditWatch with negative implications, it also said.

Sarkozy arranges a summit with the unions at the Elysee!

2012-01-16T18:11:00.000Z

Maybe the French President has decided something must be done ahead of the elections, the twitter announcement is as follows:

Mercredi 18/01,le sommet sur la crise organisé par N #Sarkozy @Elysee commencera à 9h00 avec CGT, CFDT, FO, CFTC, CFE-CGC, MEDEF, CGPME, UPA

Who will be allowed to lend to Italy?

2012-01-16T17:14:00.001Z

Acting Man blog points out the following:

As one analyst interviewed by Reuters perceptively remarked, Italy remains the elephant in the room. It is now rated BBB+, but it remains on 'negative watch' at Fitch and Moody's, which makes further downgrades likely. The big problem is of course that Italy's debt represents the third biggest sovereign bond issuance extant in the world and that it needs to refinance a hefty chunk of this debt this year. Fewer and fewer institutions can effectively hold on to Italy's debt as it receives further downgrades, as all have to follow their internal rules on what grades of debt they can hold in what quantities. So this is likely going to become a major focus.

Meantime in Rome the appointed President of the EU Council Herman Van Rompuy had this to say to the appointed apparatchik Signor Monti, presently running Italy:

...today marks your first 60 days in office and what you and Italy have already accomplished is impressive. I'm sure you will be able to present your "first 100 days" achievements with even more extraordinary results. The Italian agenda is the European agenda. There is no distinction or tension between what is pursued here in Rome and what we are pursuing in Brussels. Italy - a founding member of the Union - is acting in the right direction and making once more its contribution for a better and more prosperous Europe....

Which comment will history prove the most perceptive?

EU Parliament lives down to its sullied cesspit reputation

2012-01-16T12:10:00.001Z

The expense fiddling, pension and perks maximising mess that is the European Parliament is again living down to all that has made it the object of utter contempt that it has become down the years, with the procedure for appointing its latest President, Martin Schultz, read here. A quote:

German Socialist member Martin Schulz has been roundly condemned after it emerged he had already started forming his cabinet ahead of Tuesday's vote to elect parliament's next president.

MEPs will vote in a secret ballot to elect a successor to Jerzy Buzek, the outgoing president, during the parliamentary plenary in Strasbourg.

All important votes are a sham in the EU Parliament, everything of substance is always done in backrooms and in secret, one of many reasons why the European Union is now on its knees, AND will pass unmourned by the majority of thinking people in Europe!

Details of years of abuse are on our sister blog, The Strasbourg Cesspit, linked here.

Sarkozy heads for Spain

2012-01-16T10:47:00.005Z

President Sarkozy has been little in evidence since Friday's announcement that the country he has run for the past several years has lost its triple A credit rating. News now comes he is off to Spain, read here.

Why Spain one may wonder? This quote from the linked report for me provides a clue:

Spain -- where on Saturday Rajoy announced an "astronomical" figure of 5.4 million jobless -- now has one of the eurozone's weakest credit ratings, with S&P bumping it from AA minus to A.
"The government I lead knows perfectly well what must be done to improve Spain's reputation and to create growth and jobs and we are going to do it," Rajoy told a rally of his Popular Party on Saturday.

Which is more than the reported comment from the Clueless French EU Commissioner Barnier in Hong Kong, also quoted in the same report as follows:

"Let there be no mistake: this is not a crisis of the euro as a currency," the European Union's internal market commissioner Michel Barnier told delegates to the Asian Financial Forum on Monday in Hong Kong.

"The euro is here to stay. In the last 10 years the euro has proven itself as a true world currency ... And despite the difficulties, it remains strong.

"The real crisis the eurozone faces right now is a crisis of confidence. Our political unity and our determination and our ability to rectify what is wrong ... are being tested," he said.

The latter from the man trying to impose his will on the Cty of London and impose a Tobin Tax across the EU. Frightening it really is!

Costa Concordia wreckage symbolises the EU

2012-01-16T08:01:00.003Z

"Costa Concordia" even the name summons thoughts of the false hopes on which the confidence trick that is the European Union has been built!

The stories emerging of the actions of the Captain in this morning's press, one example here, also typify the attitudes of those who have so recklessly run the EU for their own main (perhaps even sole) benefit for decades.

Reports that the ship was deliberately piloted dangerously close to the rocks is key in any such comparison!

Other reports that there was no co-ordination or training amongst the crew, that none seemed to know what they were doing, that the Captain left the ship before many of his passengers, that burly men (possibly even crew members) pushed women and children aside for places on the lifeboats - all this vividly brings to mind the administration and lack of management or conscience in the running of the giant ponzi scheme that is the European Union.

If only it had been the EU that so spectacularly hit the rocks and sank on the evening of last Friday 13th January 2012!

Baroin - France needs no new cuts, will continue building unwanted railways for the EU

2012-01-15T17:12:00.000Z

Reuters has this really quite astounding report, on the words of the French Finance Minister, François Baroin, to a German newspaper this Sunday, linked here.

German Foreign Minister in Greece this afternoon

2012-01-15T14:07:00.000Z

A full report of Guido Westerwelle, the German Foreign Minister's Sunday afernoon visit to the failed country, is in the Athens paper ekathimerini, linked here.

Troika makes new punitive strike on Greece

2012-01-15T08:18:00.002Z

As Ireland is also subject to the variable whims and arbitrary decisions of the EU/ECB/IMF Troika it is usually worthwhile to get english language news from their media on that secretive grouping. The Irish Independent this morning has a report on their latest visit to Greece, starting today, linked here.

It is ironic that the Greek, who undertook the manipulations that the EU/ECB now use as justification for the punitive measures they are combining with the IMF to infict upon that ex-sovereign nation, Lucas Papademos, has now been placed in charge of the country, perhaps as a reward for his services as head of the Bank of Greece and Vice President of the ECB, in delivering the country of his birth, helpless to the larger nations of the EU, to despoil and ravage in this way, whilst protecting their national banks from the consequences of their own blind stupidity and greed.

Booker on HS2

2012-01-14T20:41:00.000Z

Re-stating the obvious as we all must, Christopher Booker linked here, concludes:

HS2 is a political project, inspired by Delors’ dream of an integrated Europe. And that is why our politicians and officials, under its spell, press on with it, regardless of common sense.

But why can’t they just tell us this? Why does the driving force behind this insane project have to be a state secret? Not the least price we pay for being part of the “European project” is how it makes those who rule over us so routinely deceitful about almost everything they do.

How French banks now print their own money

2012-01-14T17:00:00.000Z

The article Seeking Alpha article, here, by Kevin McElroy is best read in full, from here. If not note this extract:

I won't get into the boring details, but thanks to a new loophole, French banks are now being allowed to print money into existence. It's a new regulation for 2012 that comes direct from the ECB. Remember - the ECB is supposed to be the steward of the Euro. It was the ECB that demanded Greece get its house in order. It's the ECB that cracks the whip over every Euro-zone member to try to keep them all in line.

BUT do visit the infographic linked to the article and here:

EU Policy Chiefs wrong on every aspect of S&P Downgrade.

2012-01-14T13:39:00.002Z

First thing this morning I quoted the reasons S&P gave for the nine downgrades and continuing negative outlook for fourteen of the seventeen Euro Group countries. Such reasons I also heard repeated by broadcasters? Yet we are presented with the following fatuous statements:

Quoted by Reuters!

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday."We are now challenged to implement the fiscal compact even quicker ... and to do it resolutely, not to try to soften it," she said at a meeting of conservatives in the northern city of Kiel.

"We will also work particularly to implement the permanent stability mechanism, the ESM, so soon as possible -- this is important regarding investor trust."

(EU) Economic Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn quoted in The Economic Times

The commissioner Friday said he regretted the S&P's "inconsistent" decision which came at a time "when the euro area is taking decisive action in all fronts of its crisis response".

European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny quoted in Bloomberg.

.....ratings cuts are a “serious issue” for Europe because they “disturb” the positive development in recent weeks.

“I am concerned that this decision could upset the positive developments we’ve seen in Europe in the last few weeks,” Nowotny said in a live interview broadcast by Austrian state TV ORF. “That’s the most dangerous thing in my view.”

“The development on Europe’s capital markets has improved, that’s why it is so hard to understand why this is coming right now,” he said. “Of course there are many reasons to be unsatisfied with the progress in Europe, but what happened will make it even more difficult, because we had positive developments in recent time.”

These people seem totally divorced from all reality. Will the UN have to send in humanitarian aid and emergency medecines to Greece before the EU wakes up to the fact that they are creating a disaster. Not that things are much better when it comes to blind stupidity in the UK and USA when it comes to Low interest rates as supposed solutions for the economic malaise, as Douglas Carswell MP makes clear on his blog today, linked here.

Present ECB risks from the coming Greek default.

2012-01-14T11:16:00.000Z

Der Spiegel has a good analysis of the unfolding problems this weekend for the ECB, linked here, of which this is a small quote:

Since May 2010, the ECB has purchased sovereign bonds from crisis-stricken euro-zone member states worth €213 billion. An estimated €55 billion of that are Greek bonds. Such widespread bond purchases have resulted in sharp critique from financial experts.

But the ECB is also carrying much higher risks. They stem from the collateral that banks must post when they borrow money from the ECB. Often, that collateral consists of sovereign bonds from the countries where the banks are located. As such, when Greek banks borrow from the ECB, they post Greek sovereign bonds as collateral. Increasingly, however, they are taking advantage of the ability to issue bonds themselves, which are then guaranteed by the Greek state. Those bonds too are accepted by the ECB as collateral.

In the last three-and-a-half years, financial institutions from debt-stricken euro-zone countries such as Greece, Portugal and Ireland have borrowed extensively from the ECB. Since the peak of the financial crisis in 2008, the ECB has provided euro-zone banks with unprecedented amounts of liquidity. In December, the ECB flooded European banks with additional capital with unusually long loan periods of three years -- an influx of fully €500 billion. The loans were processed by national central banks in the euro zone.

The ECB does not publicize official numbers regarding which bank borrowed money, nor do they make amounts public. But Greek banks currently have few options when it comes to accessing fresh liquidity. Other banks have simply stopped lending them money. And Greeks have likewise begun pulling their capital out of Greek banks to deposit it in more secure accounts abroad.

'Immeasurably Large' (read on from the link for worse news)

S&P mass downgrading of NINE of the Economically Ugly Eurozone.

2012-01-14T06:37:00.004Z

Lucas Papademos,Vice President of the ECB and head of the Greek Central Bank when Greece joined the Euro and fellow culprit Jean-Claude Trichet, former head of the ECB.

The Standard and Poor's report is quoted here, the reality could not be more stark:

We have lowered the long-term ratings on Cyprus, Italy, Portugal, and Spain by two notches; lowered the long-term ratings on Austria, France, Malta, Slovakia, and Slovenia, by one notch; and affirmed the long-term ratings on Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.

All ratings have been removed from CreditWatch, where they were placed with negative implications on Dec. 5, 2011 (except for Cyprus, which was first placed on CreditWatch on Aug. 12, 2011).

The outlooks on the long-term ratings on Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, and Spain are negative, indicating that we believe that there is at least a one-in-three chance that the rating will be lowered in 2012 or 2013.

Where the depths of crisis first became clear more than two years ago, in Greece, the BBC News this morning is also reporting that the talks regarding a resolution of what is increasingly taking on the characteristics of a humanitarian disaster, have collapsed, as admitted by the appointed EU Governor of Greece Lucas Papademos at a televised dinner last evening, also reports here.

The incompetence of the leaders of the EU clearly places the entire economy of the world at risk, see this video report from India: