Opinion: (Jim Rogers, CEO and chairman Rogers Holdings): “The world is definitely going to face another financial crisis stemming from problems in Europe.

“‘We’re certainly going to have more crises coming out of Europe and America; the world is in trouble. The world has been spending staggering amounts of money that it doesn’t have for a few decades now, and it’s all coming home to roost.’

“He added that the crisis would be much worse than the one markets saw in 2008 because the debt is much higher now.

“‘Last time, America quadrupled its debt. The system is much more extended now, and America cannot quadruple its debt again. Greece cannot double its debt again. The next time around is going to be much worse’…

“‘It would be better off if we can hold the euro together and we reorganize. People are bankrupt and when people are bankrupt you might as well face reality. Reorganize the assets, competent people (will) come in and you start over from a sound base'”…

My Comment: The world needs to reorganize not the assets, but thinking. It has to make it integral and use it to build a new integral society connected by integral economic relations. This is the future, whether we want it or not, and we will have to understand, accept, and build it.
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Opinion: (Vladislav Belov, Head of The Institute of Europe, The Russian Academy of Sciences, from vedomosti.ee): “Grandiose events in Europe related to the crisis in the eurozone will begin in the nearest future. In my opinion, we will witness them right away, by the end of the year. Europe doesn’t have time any more. …Primarily, it will be about the attitude towards the euro and the eurozone.

“Let’s look at the root of the problem: Eurozone’s economy consists of 17 countries that vary not only in size, but also in labor productivity and economic competitiveness. In fact, this arrangement is destroying the union. For the North, it is important to export goods with a high surplus value, whereas the South is all about exporting food and agricultural produce, maintaining tourism, and keeping their real estate bubble afloat.”

My Comment: The only solution is to combine all European economies and create one economy that is not about surplus value, but rather about satisfaction of the basic needs of the European population and later of the whole world. Unless and until we start viewing ourselves as one family rather than competitors, we won’t endure the crisis and will move toward the next world war.
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Opinion: (Paul Krugman, professor of Economics and International Affairs at Princeton University, the recipient of the 2008 Nobel Prize in Economics): “When David Cameron became Britain’s Prime Minister last year, he immediately embarked on a program of spending cuts in the belief that this would actually boost the economy — a decision that was greeted with fawning praise by many American pundits.

“Now, however, the results are in, and the picture isn’t pretty. Greece has been pushed by its austerity measures into an ever-deepening slump — and that slump, not lack of effort on the part of the Greek government, was the reason a classified report to European leaders concluded last week that the existing program there was unworkable. Britain’s economy has stalled under the impact of austerity, and confidence from both businesses and consumers has slumped, not soared.

“So bailing out the banks while punishing workers is not, in fact, a recipe for prosperity.

“If you’ve been reading accounts of the financial crisis, or watching film treatments like the excellent “Inside Job,” you know that Iceland was supposed to be the ultimate economic disaster story: its runaway bankers saddled the country with huge debts and seemed to leave the nation in a hopeless position.

“But a funny thing happened on the way to economic Armageddon: Iceland’s very desperation made conventional behavior impossible, freeing the nation to break the rules. Where everyone else bailed out the bankers and made the public pay the price, Iceland let the banks go bust and actually expanded its social safety net. Where everyone else was fixated on trying to placate international investors, Iceland imposed temporary controls on the movement of capital to give itself room to maneuver.

“So how’s it going? Iceland hasn’t avoided major economic damage or a significant drop in living standards. But it has managed to limit both the rise in unemployment and the suffering of the most vulnerable; the social safety net has survived intact, as has the basic decency of its society. ‘Things could have been a lot worse’ may not be the most stirring of slogans, but when everyone expected utter disaster, it amounts to a policy triumph.

“And there’s a lesson here for the rest of us: The suffering that so many of our citizens are facing is unnecessary. If this is a time of incredible pain and a much harsher society, that was a choice. It didn’t and doesn’t have to be this way.”
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In the News (from Global Research): “A series of reports over the past ten days—on poverty, wages, income inequality and social mobility—have painted a portrait of America starkly at odds with the official mythology of the United States as the land of unlimited economic opportunity, the country with the world’s highest standard of living.

“Even agencies controlled by political representatives of the financial aristocracy are compelled to admit that the conditions of life for the vast majority of the American people are disastrous.

“These figures demonstrate that America is a country of mounting social disparities, in which those who labor and produce all the wealth have less and less to show for it, while those who collect the profits of this labor, while playing a parasitic, destructive, and thoroughly reactionary role, see their wealth accumulate to astonishing levels.

“Two reports frame the dramatic social polarization in America, not so much between the rich and the poor, as between the rich and the entire rest of society.

“While the income of this layer [the richest 1 percent of US households] nearly tripled, the income of the middle 60 percent of the population rose only 40 percent over 28 years, and the income of the poorest 20 percent rose by only 18 percent.

“Geographical mobility in America has fallen to the lowest level reported since 1948, one reflection of the loss of opportunity particularly for the young. People cannot sell their homes or buy new ones, and the majority of young college graduates are being compelled to move back in with their parents because they cannot find work that pays enough to set up on their own.

“What these figures demonstrate is both a profound social crisis, and an immense historical transformation. The United States has gone from leading the world in most social indices, including working-class living standards, to a new status as the leader, at least among the industrialized countries, in condemning the majority of its population to conditions of deprivation and misery.

“The decline of American capitalism is shown in the decay of its once powerful industrial base, the crumbling of roads, bridges and other social infrastructure, and the closing of schools, libraries, hospitals and other public services. It is no wonder that more than 80 percent of the American people, according to most recent polls, feel that the country is on the wrong track.

“The overriding political necessity is for the working class to grasp the source of the social and economic decline. It is capitalism that has failed in the United States, and on a world scale.”

My Comment: The solution to the problem is to create a new state, financial, and industrial leadership that understands the essence of the changes taking place in humanity.
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Opinion: (Vasily Koltashov, Head of the Economic research center, Institute of Globalization and Social Movement, from vz.ru): “Cutting one country’s debt will become a form of debt pressure on other European countries.

“The attempts of the Greek government to save at the expense of the citizens caused a strong protest. But this hasn’t made the authorities look for a compromise. Under the impression of these heavy social protests, the EU made the decision to write off the debt because they were afraid of the development of a sociopolitical crisis in Greece.

“The writing off of the Greek debt will take place not as a sign of a new course, but to keep the stability of other debts and of the whole system of financial capital.”

My Comment: The stupid penguin cowardly hides blubber in the rocks… (“The Song of the Stormy Petrel” by M.Gorky)
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Opinion (Michael Khazin, an economist, from odnako.org): “The result was so insignificant that I don’t really know what to write. First of all, no specific measures to save Greece were announced; the scandalous referendum that might have led to Greek exit from the eurozone was cancelled.

“Actually, the fact that the media devoted more time to this cancellation than to the summit is very significant. How Greece can pay even the reduced debt is still a question. After debt relief, the debt level will still be same as in the beginning of the Greece “rescue” operation.

“The media reported that at the summit meeting, which lasted two days, the countries devoted more time to the issue of stimulating economic growth on a global scale, rather than specific problems. But from the summit conclusions it is not obvious how to keep aggregate demand from falling and whether it can be done at all.

“How can one talk about stimulating the economy without formulating the reason for this stimulation, what the effect of the stimulation will be, what the cost of this stimulation is, and finally, when this will be complete? But these issues are a complete mystery for those who follow the world’s political leaders.

“The host of the summit, Sarkozy, announced an increase in the IMF resources to assist with the debt crisis. But the amount of money needed to address all the issues was not specified. And here we are talking about trillions per year, which are non-existent, and thus there is nothing to rejoice in yet. But since the representatives of G20 did not discuss this topic, there is no one to argue with.

“Another significant statement was made by Obama who said that he was able to negotiate yuan flexibility with China. Whether it is good or bad is the question because China is usually not inclined to compromise, and such concession could mean that China’s economy might not be doing too well, and yuan may start depreciating.

“It is important to note that in addition to Greece, the summit also discussed the issue of Italian public debt, which exceeded 120 percent of its GDP, and the fact that the situation in Italy is quickly slipping to the one of Greece. Actually, I do not really know what else to write.

“The crisis is developing quietly, aggregate demand is falling, the risks in the financial sector are growing, unemployment is rising, and social unrest is escalating. And G20 behaves as if everything is quiet and calm, and only some minor blots on the general background of the global economy require little effort to correct them.

“The spectacle is rather pathetic and sad. It is not interesting to discuss it. I have repeatedly written that these guys cannot be reformed: Not only they do not want, they cannot do anything; they have no control levers, even the language that can describe the current problems. Science does not know what to do with them. But while they are in power, we will see nothing but demagoguery. And the crisis will continue.”
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Opinion: (Alan Greenspan, a former Chairman of the U.S. Fed): “The euro zone is doomed to fail because the divide between the northern and southern countries is just too great, former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan told CNBC in a recent interview.

‘“At the outset of the creation of the euro in 1999, it was expected that the southern eurozone economies would behave like those in the north; the Italians would behave like Germans. They didn’t…’ ‘Instead, northern Europe fell into subsidizing southern Europe’s excess consumption, that is, its current account deficits.’

‘“The only way to have several currencies from divergent nations lumped together is if they are culturally close, such as Germany, the Netherlands, and Austria. If they aren’t, it simply can’t continue to work.’”

My Comment: This will happen under pressure and only if we reach mutual guarantee, when all will receive education about and the understanding of how dependent we are on each other, and public opinion will keep everyone in this sensation. Nature will force us to it through suffering, but it is desirable to strive for this earlier by a good way.
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In the News (from Xinhuanet): “Thousands of Americans pledged to switch their money from bank accounts to credit unions for Saturday’ s Bank Transfer Day, a protest against perceived corporate interests in the American banking system.

“Over 84,000 people signed up to join the protest on the event’s Facebook page, and across the United States participants gathered to celebrate their mass departure from the world of corporate banking.

“Many Americans have recently voiced frustration against the policies of the country’s large banks, who despite accepting bailout money from the American taxpayers continue to impose high transaction fees that some customers feel is just too much.

“The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) estimated that since Bank of America introduced their plans for debit card fees on September 29, over 650,000 Americans have joined credit unions, an alternative to banks.

“In today’ s environment largely critical of corporate interests that some say empower a few at the expense of many, [CUNA Communications Senior Vice President Mark] Wolff believes Americans will be attracted to credit unions specifically because they embody the democratic principles of equal ownership and representation.

“‘Credit unions are Main Street financial institutions,’ he said, contrasting them to Wall Street and the big banks. ‘In fact, you can’t really get more mainstream than a credit union, because credit unions are owned by the members that it serves and is a cooperative financial institution.’

“Although Bank Transfer Day is technically unaffiliated with the larger Occupy Wall Street movement, it voices many of the same sentiments against corporate greed and is supported by most of the Occupy groups around the country.

“Unlike the Occupy Wall Street protests that sometimes involve extensive time commitments and political activism, [Occupy Chicago organizer Sam] Abrahamson believes that Bank Transfer Day is something all Americans can easily participate in to voice their grievances.”

My Comment: We witness new forms of revolution. Increasing the awareness of the population regarding the current situation in the world will eventually lead us to the realization of the true cause of the crisis: It is in everyone, and it is namely we who have to change, to become corrected. For the time being, we observe egoism in others, but soon we will see that it is universal, and we will have to get rid of it.
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Opinion: (Michel Camdessus, former chairman of the IMF, from themarker.co.il): “The world today suffers from two major crises: ecological and financial, and both are caused by one reason: greed for unlimited consumption that destroys the world.

“Financial errors and ecological mistakes happen because of the same reasons…. and impose an enormous debt burden on future generations, which will make their lives more difficult than ours….”
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In the News (from Daily Mail UK): “A top British businessman is offering a £250,000 reward for an individual to come up a plan for how the euro could be safely dismantled.

“The one-off prize is sponsored by Lord Wolfson, chief executive of High Street clothing chain Next and a Conservative party donor, and organised by the Policy Exchange, a think-tank.

“‘The prize will help answer some of the many important – yet unanswered – questions from over a decade ago when the EMU (European Monetary Union) was first set up. While there’s been a lot of speculation about countries leaving the euro, there has been too little detailed research on the many complex questions this would raise.’

“Lord Wolfson said: ‘This prize aims to ensure that high quality economic thought is given to how the euro might be restructured into more stable currencies. Consideration will need to be given to what a post-euro eurozone would look like, how transition could be achieved and how the interests of employment, savers, and debtors would be balanced. Importantly, careful consideration must also be given to managing the potential impact on the international banking system.’

“Lord Wolfson added: ‘The stakes are enormous. The future of the world economy will, in large part, be governed by what happens over the next few years in Europe…. This prize aims to incentivise the world’s brightest economic minds to help fill that policy void: their endeavours may well prevent Europe from descending into a financial chaos that would destroy savings, jobs, and social cohesion.’

“The Wolfson Economics Prize, which is a one-off prize, will be the second biggest cash prize to be awarded to an academic economist after the Nobel Prize.

“Economists have until January 31 to submit proposals.”

My Comment: Certainly no one will be able to create such a plan because for that it is necessary to understand the complexity of our world and its total interdependence in a unified system of global relations.

Science does not have such an approach because science is based on human egoistic qualities and is generated by their egoistic protectionist view of the world. The root of the problem of today’s economic science is an egoistic approach to dealing with our world, while it is turning into the world of complete mutual dependence (guarantee).

Karl Marx saw it and warned us about this future (communism). However, to this day, no one understands the essence of his teaching. Using the language of economics, he described the future of humanity, a society of mutual guarantee, and its unification as being programmed in our relationships by nature.
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