On “Banks demand austerity measures against ‘profligate’ countries”

Certainly my life has been one big locust-feed these past thirty years. I went from making $8.10/hr sacking groceries in a union store in high school at age 18 in 1978, to making $12/hr now as a college grad with 18 hours of graduate coursework. My bootstraps have been getting a true workout.

My only mistake in life was probably going to college and not getting into the pyramid scheme known as Wall Street.

PK
25 February 2010

On “Australian government sets new precedent in Aboriginal land grab”

It's just the prime minister’s way of saying “sorry” to the indigenous people.

Jason
25 February 2010

On “Pentagon chief condemns European ‘pacifism’”

Well, who didn't see that one coming? “We can’t afford public healthcare, but you expect us to defend you?” The threat of a good example syndrome again. Not only will they not countenance a public option in the USA, but they won’t countenance it, or any of the other trappings of social democracy, anywhere.

Jim L
London, UK
26 February 2010

On “A turning point in Europe”

There is one huge difference between the emerging struggles in Europe and any other in my life time (including 1968). These struggles are the result of the collapse of capitalism as a direct result of the behavior of capitalists. The crisis has resulted in a complete ideological collapse of the theories of the bourgeois. And more importantly, this collapse has been publicly recognized. When the president of France speaks of the need for a new form of capitalism, it tells everyone there is something fundamentally wrong with capitalism. But the trade union bureaucrats rely on the acceptance of bourgeois ideology by the working class to manipulate, to constrain their activity. What happens when these ideas have been shown to be rubbish? Well, nature abhors a vacuum. Other ideas will fill the gap. I hope everyone at WSWS has been getting a lot of rest because you are going to be very busy for the rest of the year.

P.S. You are entirely accurate about the official leadership of the Irish trade union movement. They will call off all the strikes and work to rule if a single crumb from the table falls close by.

Chris
Ireland
26 February 2010

On “California town to charge residents for 911 emergency calls”

Up here in mild mannered Canada I was charged $1 whenever I called 911 to advise the emergency services of a problem. Because they never responded to the drunk or dangerous drivers that I reported, I don’t bother calling anymore and I save a few bucks.

B F
Canada
24 February 2010

***

This fee makes no sense. If I witness a car accident hit-and-run where the victim cannot call for help, why would I pay $300-$400 out of my own pocket to call 911 to help the stranger, especially if, say, I’ve been as affected by the economy as many others who’ve lost their jobs and homes. What this law does is just force many people who witness something (like, say, a car accident or, I don’t know, a suspicious, possibly terrorist act in the making) to not call 911. (I don't know the direct number to the police station, and neither do most people, and who can take time to try to look it up in an emergency?)

Dawn
24 February 2010