blog: whatever next for europe? [politics]

[dunno]

To understand modern politics and power I suggest a book by Jack London - The Iron heel, published in 1908.

[Tuxman]

To understand modern politics and power I suggest a rifle.

[neko]

The Greeks got a large increase in value added tax. But I understand that this has to be done. Money does not grow on trees.

We in Finland have been years value-added tax 24 %, and we pay high taxes for everything. Paying taxes is not nice, but it finances the common good! So the Finnish pay their taxes without complaint. Very few people evade taxes, and it's really not a source of pride. Such people are ashamed of and are silently.

I really hope everything going well in Greece, I like Greek people, I have spent many a summer holiday in Greece, and I love to Karpathos in particular. But I have heard that finnish people are not so welcome anymore

[dunno]

To understand modern politics and power I suggest a rifle.

that has been tried several times and each time a failure with great loss of life, remember that they have many more rifles which are well trained, they have tanks, planes, ships, canons, drones, mercenaries, zillions of government spy organisations, etc...

[Tuxman]

They also have books by Jack London.

[Kilmatead]

So the Finnish pay their taxes without complaint. Very few people evade taxes, and it's really not a source of pride.

So the Finnish government never did anything to inspire civil disobedience by blatantly wasting those taxes?

Have you gotten your "extra" 1.7 billion euros-worth out of Olkiluoto 3 yet?

[neko]

So the Finnish government never did anything to inspire civil disobedience by blatantly wasting those taxes?

Sorry, my english is quite poor and I do not understand what you like to say with that link

Have you gotten your "extra" 1.7 billion euros-worth out of Olkiluoto 3 yet?

The Olkiluoto 3 project ridiculous, I can not say more

[Kilmatead]

Just saying that when you have a government (such as the Irish one) that "throws away" 55 million euros on scrap-metal, you begin to question just how paying taxes "finances the public good". (And, as they say, your English is a heck of a lot better than my Finnish, so you win. )

they have tanks, planes, ships, canons, drones...

And now that civilians have learned to combine your rifles with your drones it just gives everyone a nice warm feeling of friendliness inside. You gotta love the attention to detail like automatic recoil stabilisation.

[nikos]

I don't know why everyone is fussing about taxes. Yes, in greece we don't pay taxes but we don't expect (and we seldom get) any public services. Public health, schooling, roads, administration, police, all are rubbish. But that doesn't cost anything to the europeans. For example if you get unemployed in greece, you get a little money for 6 months and that's it. In the UK I know many people who have a "job" signing on as unemployed for life

the real problem with greece that makes any long term solution unsustainable, is that politicians fill up the public sector with their friends and relatives paying them money (job for life) doing nothing or nothing that is productive. Other political favors include early pensions. Vote me and I will sort you out. And since there is no functioning justice in greece, politicians and all the rest of it go about it without fear. Further taxes will destroy whatever is left of the ailing private sector economy and then we'll see what the politicians will do to pay the public sector workers...

[dunno]

the real problem with greece that makes any long term solution unsustainable, is that politicians fill up the public sector with their friends and relatives paying them money (job for life) doing nothing or nothing that is productive. Other political favors include early pensions. Vote me and I will sort you out. And since there is no functioning justice in greece, politicians and all the rest of it go about it without fear. Further taxes will destroy whatever is left of the ailing private sector economy and then we'll see what the politicians will do to pay the public sector workers...

Can you recall a single instance of Greece prosecuting a aristocrat for tax evasion, The corporate tax evaders ?.

All countries have corruption, nepotism, and croynism, it's just the degree of corruption that varies. Human nature hasn't changed one iota since our humanoid ancestors learned to speak, in fact corruption started right then when the lead ape with a twinkle in his eye, pointed at the sky and said, "HE said you must give me half".

Rich people employ the smartest minds available to create and implement ways with which to control their kingdom. they create the illusion of, "We your leaders (lords and masters) will always ensure that you the people (slaves and serfs) are always free and prosperous (enslaved)".
The modern tool of warfare with which to control allies and friends is "Finance", see how exceptionally well its working in Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Eastern Europe. Italy had better watch out as the manna from heaven will cease very soon, the Italians have the same attitude to taxes as the folks in any other third world country do, along with a huge national debt that can never be repaid with current tax revenues, the debt can be serviced by looting the pension funds, sorry I meant privatisation of pension funds.