The Poverty of the Greek people

[C. Flower]

The principle reason for suicide is that people dont see light at the end of the tunnel. Often that is seen as being a way out of a situation and is a signature of how desperate people are. Things are significantly worse when we look at the patterns and where as male suicide is par for the norm in terms of patterns of suicide,female suicide at such a high rate is not, this happening in Greece is indicitave I believe that things are getting much worse and that austerity measures are not working (which was quite obvious from that start). High rates of suicide have always been linked to those whom have found themselves in poverty as they tend to worry a lot more and also tend to turn to substance abuse which increases the likeliehood of a mental illness (http://psychcentral.com/news/2011/04...ked/25013.html). The government of Greece must accept responsibility for this.

The main reason for suicide in these cases is lack of food. See post 502. But there are other reports to confirm this.

[fluffybiscuits]

The main reason for suicide in these cases is lack of food. See post 502. But there are other reports to confirm this.

The lack of food is caused by the inflation and economic austerity measures placed on the people. The cost of living goes up for people as their incomes are reduced. On reading up a little more, this result stood out and underlines the issue with Greek society, its been mentioned Im sure on here before though. It concerns the case of Antonis Perris , whom tragically with his mother threw himself off a building in an apartment block in Greece. More info here: http://www.wsws.org/articles/2012/ma...gree-m29.shtml

Before he killed himself though he wrote some poetry which details how he must have felt at the time. A translation below from the link above:

Without mercy then, without compassion,

Strike them before you’re wiped out

Or else you’ll live in misery and injustice.

If something like this does not motivate people I dont know what else will.

[C. Flower]

The lack of food is caused by the inflation and economic austerity measures placed on the people. The cost of living goes up for people as their incomes are reduced. On reading up a little more, this result stood out and underlines the issue with Greek society, its been mentioned Im sure on here before though. It concerns the case of Antonis Perris , whom tragically with his mother threw himself off a building in an apartment block in Greece. More info here: http://www.wsws.org/articles/2012/ma...gree-m29.shtml

Before he killed himself though he wrote some poetry which details how he must have felt at the time. A translation below from the link above:

If something like this does not motivate people I dont know what else will.

Not depression, as the poems are lively and angry - but lack of food and no access to medical care. A rational choice to avoid starving. This is a man who says he owns property assets, but can't sell them easily and has nothing to live on.

and we can no longer eat. I borrow money from my credit card with 22% interest even though the banks themselves borrow with 1%. I have other running costs.
“Unfortunately, I have also developed serious health problems lately. I have no solution in front of me. I can no longer live this drama. There’s no solution. Does anyone have a solution?”

[Ephilant]

SCANDALOUS is being very mild about this.
3 suicides a day, people finding it impossible to put a decent meal on the table, the country is losing 1000 jobs a week, 30% of retail outlets is gone, the people of this country are being nailed to the wall by both their own government and the Troika, and today we hear that

Greece unblocked a subsidy of 28.9 million euros ($37.2 million) for the construction of an international-standard racetrack that can be used for staging Formula One car racing, the Ministry of Development said.

The track, which will be designed to host other events as well, including world championship motorbike racing and go-kart racing, will be built in Xalandritsa near the western port city of Patras at a total cost of 94.6 million euros, the Athens- based ministry said in an e-mailed statement late yesterday. Racetrack Patras SA, a private investment company, will oversee the project.”

The total cost of this madness is estimated to cost 96 million €, and the idiots in our government are subsidizing this with 28.9 million or 30%!

It sure does show the people of Greece who's side their government is one. If they hadn't realized yet...

[C. Flower]

http://youtu.be/w-kzFNLfAUg

250 Greek shipyard workers, not paid in over 6 months, storm the Ministry of Defence.

[Ephilant]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=J8b6eeW6tsE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=Vt9GNphXXXc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=4J3Z-Lv3XrY

["/CENTER]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=nJLIpZZ8BQI[/CENTER]

The shipyard workers stormed the ministry of Defense, and were eventually addressed by the Chief of Staff who basically told them the same BS they have been hearing for the last 6 months, as has everybody else in this country.
Despite being inside the Ministry of Defense, the military police has no authority to deal with civilians, and did not interfere. It took ar rather lack luster squad of the riot police to come in and clear the place. Many protester were arrested, and taken to the police headquarters. Which were promptly stormed by the other protesters, and this is where things got a little heavy handed.

People who have not been paid for 6 months and more were labeled as "thugs" by the very same politician responsible for not paying them....

[gerard25]

It is very sad to see this happen to the Spartan descendent.

I struggle to understand the game of economy:
- some people simplify the crisis in Spain and Greece as a society refusing to lower their standards of living and spending only what they earn
- some blame the high number of illegal immigrants in these numbers
- some blame the expensive Euro making Spanish or Greece exports too expensive in the global market
- some blame the corruption of the government..

Greece and Spain are both peaceful and stable countries... they aren't fucked up like any third world country. It astonishes me to see their economies struggle, well, wait... looks like the whole 1st world is struggling... while the 3rd world countires seem to be soaring with growth.. what is going on?

[C. Flower]

It is very sad to see this happen to the Spartan descendent.

I struggle to understand the game of economy:
- some people simplify the crisis in Spain and Greece as a society refusing to lower their standards of living and spending only what they earn
- some blame the high number of illegal immigrants in these numbers
- some blame the expensive Euro making Spanish or Greece exports too expensive in the global market
- some blame the corruption of the government..

Greece and Spain are both peaceful and stable countries... they aren't fucked up like any third world country. It astonishes me to see their economies struggle, well, wait... looks like the whole 1st world is struggling... while the 3rd world countires seem to be soaring with growth.. what is going on?

I read an article on Zerohedge today that suggested that the suppression of the price of the Yuan had resulted in an enormous expansion in China that destabilised first SE Asia and then the Western economy.

That is one half of the story I think. The other is the sheer volume of production world wide, and the increasing amount of expensive technology used in production, that pushed average profit margins down.

In the absence of genuine profits, interest rates were held down in the West and the system flushed full of funny money, that created first speculative tech bubbles and then property bubbles.

There has also been an increase in the gulf between rich and poor, with more and more of the world's wealth concentrated into a few hands - which reduces the efficiency of reinvestment.

There is now a huge population of young people across the world for whom there is under the present system no prospect of work.

There are clearly solutions to all these things, but they go against the interests of oligarchs and corporate giants, so can't be achieved without a mass counter offensive by the rest of us.

[fluffybiscuits]

http://networkedblogs.com/D2enT

Occupation of Heraklion Airport

[eamo]

There has also been an increase in the gulf between rich and poor, with more and more of the world's wealth concentrated into a few hands - which reduces the efficiency of reinvestment.

There is now a huge population of young people across the world for whom there is under the present system no prospect of work.

There are clearly solutions to all these things, but they go against the interests of oligarchs and corporate giants, so can't be achieved without a mass counter offensive by the rest of us.

A modern and succinct manifesto.

U got class, cass

[Ephilant]

It seems like plans are in a very far advanced stage regarding an international general strike in Portugal, Spain, Greece and possibly Italy on 14/10/2012.

http://networkedblogs.com/D2enT

Unconfirmed reports in Greece state that ALL trade unions will part take in this. Same unconfirmed reports say that this happens to be date that the TROIKA has decided to come and pay us a visit again.....
Is there any possibility of maybe a little action and solidarity in Ireland? Or are you guys just going to sit back and wait for the next round of "Paddy-kicking"?

Meanwhile, Drama (What's in a name?), Northern Greece, tax officials have been left bewildered when dozens of parents dropped their kids in to the tax office instead of school, with the message

Here, you look after them. We can't any longer

[MPB]

It seems like plans are in a very far advanced stage regarding an international general strike in Portugal, Spain, Greece and possibly Italy on 14/10/2012.

http://networkedblogs.com/D2enT

Unconfirmed reports in Greece state that ALL trade unions will part take in this. Same unconfirmed reports say that this happens to be date that the TROIKA has decided to come and pay us a visit again.....
Is there any possibility of maybe a little action and solidarity in Ireland? Or are you guys just going to sit back and wait for the next round of "Paddy-kicking"?

Meanwhile, Drama (What's in a name?), Northern Greece, tax officials have been left bewildered when dozens of parents dropped their kids in to the tax office instead of school, with the message

Any of your Union Leaders on 130k a year?

Any of your Public Sector Workers accepting pay reductions for new entrants rather than themselves?

In Ireland only the leaderless two thirds are suffering, which is why we can,t organise a p1ss up in a brewery at the moment.

[fluffybiscuits]

It seems like plans are in a very far advanced stage regarding an international general strike in Portugal, Spain, Greece and possibly Italy on 14/10/2012.

http://networkedblogs.com/D2enT

Unconfirmed reports in Greece state that ALL trade unions will part take in this. Same unconfirmed reports say that this happens to be date that the TROIKA has decided to come and pay us a visit again.....
Is there any possibility of maybe a little action and solidarity in Ireland? Or are you guys just going to sit back and wait for the next round of "Paddy-kicking"?

Meanwhile, Drama (What's in a name?), Northern Greece, tax officials have been left bewildered when dozens of parents dropped their kids in to the tax office instead of school, with the message

Indifferent unions here will continue to wallow and be beligerent rather than doing anything. MPB is right when you are earning hundreds of thousands of years why go rock the boat? Some unions are too ineffective pandering to the needs of the employers rather than developing a backbone. Newspapers like the Indo would add fuel to the flames if we were to go on strike. This is a workforce united through struggle in the classic sense that could paralyse four countries and Ireland being the whipping boy and ridden by Europe for all it has is looking on being the odd one out.

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

It seems like plans are in a very far advanced stage regarding an international general strike in Portugal, Spain, Greece and possibly Italy on 14/10/2012.

http://networkedblogs.com/D2enT

Unconfirmed reports in Greece state that ALL trade unions will part take in this. Same unconfirmed reports say that this happens to be date that the TROIKA has decided to come and pay us a visit again.....
Is there any possibility of maybe a little action and solidarity in Ireland? Or are you guys just going to sit back and wait for the next round of "Paddy-kicking"?

Meanwhile, Drama (What's in a name?), Northern Greece, tax officials have been left bewildered when dozens of parents dropped their kids in to the tax office instead of school, with the message

Paddy will wait to be kicked. Those with enough action about them have traditionally got up and left which is the usual reason why nothing ever changes in Ireland.

Bear in mind also that in most countries one would expect the 'left' and unions to lead resistance. In Ireland the 'left' are mostly posture characters from the University system and they are not from street level and are more interested in debating dialectic than any civil action.

Union leaders in Ireland have been bribed long ago to keep their members under control.

Also, it must be said that Ireland is a socially conservative backward island and it would take an attack on the farming interest before you will see any civil resistance in Ireland.

The only resistance we've ever seen on any mass scale is over Land Rights in the country.

Paddy-at-home is either a trained colonial, bribed or oblivious politically. We have no democratic tradition to defend because we've never had one in the first place. It is a peasant mentality and hierarchy.

Just thought you deserved an explanation. If I advocated the necessary violence here I would be banned, for example, from this forum.

[fluffybiscuits]

Paddy will wait to be kicked. Those with enough action about them have traditionally got up and left which is the usual reason why nothing ever changes in Ireland.

Bear in mind also that in most countries one would expect the 'left' and unions to lead resistance. In Ireland the 'left' are mostly posture characters from the University system and they are not from street level and are more interested in debating dialectic than any civil action.

Union leaders in Ireland have been bribed long ago to keep their members under control.

Also, it must be said that Ireland is a socially conservative backward island and it would take an attack on the farming interest before you will see any civil resistance in Ireland.The only resistance we've ever seen on any mass scale is over Land Rights in the country.

Paddy-at-home is either a trained colonial, bribed or oblivious politically. We have no democratic tradition to defend because we've never had one in the first place. It is a peasant mentality and hierarchy.

Just thought you deserved an explanation. If I advocated the necessary violence here I would be banned, for example, from this forum.

Are they the key to getting a better deal for ourselves? Encourage a farmers revolt and we have everyone on board. IBOA should encourage the bank staff to go on strike and then this would have the whole benefit of crushing the whole bank system with all the banks suffering and the country brought to a standstill. If no bills can be paid and no money can be paid this is a win win for a day or two. Everyone would then follow suit but before we do it there is too much of a public sector private divide, how to solve that, now that is the 64 million Euro question.