Wednesday, February 18, 2009

A cold wind from the banks

In most countries worldwide the recession is blowing its icy winds into emptying bank accounts.
More people getting unemployed.
More businesses closing down.
Everybody depressed and without hope.

This man was found on the beach last night.
He was trying to sleep there in a cold breeze with one thin blanket only.
About 2 miles from the rancho some building activity is going on and the man is temporarily working there.
He comes to the Gonzalez to buy himself an evening meal.
Having no car and being from the mainland far away from his home, he sleeps wherever he can.
Over here it is the beach where at night the temperature goes down to 13º C (55º F.)

Logical to invite the man to sleep on the folding camping bed next to the Fuso Szulc where is no wind.
He accepted immediately and this morning he went back to work at daybreak.

This experience triggered memories of the pictures made for the Farm Security by Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange in the 30’s.
People having hardly anything anymore because of the economic circumstances.
Travelling to where was work.
They were desperate.
Without hope.
John Steinbeck wrote a fabulous book called “The grapes of wrath” where he describes how life was for the poor during the Big Recession.

It seems these days are returning.
Poverty is coming to people who used to make a decent living.
While we are only at the beginning of a degrading economic situation that might take over one year.

Suddenly Governments that have been practicing capitalism, leaving the markets free to do what they wanted without hardly any regulations, turn to a more socialistic approach.
Nationalizing companies or borrowing money in return for shares.
Making more strict regulations and increasing monitoring.
Controlling society more and more now while before they were just a service institute for business.

We see now that Governments are investing billions of Euros and Dollars in their societies.
The remarkable thing though is that those Governments do not have that money that they have start spending now.
They borrow it and it needs to be repaid in the years to come.
How?
By raising taxes.

The truth is that the next two generations will live on a lower level of wealth.
Because taxes will be higher than we were used to, as they have to repay what we are now borrowing and needing to get the economy going again.

This is the devastation that the Bush regime leaves the coming generations and us.
He created in the USA paradise for business putting the people in hell.
Sleeping in a cold wind on the beach.

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