In the News (from Spiegel Online): “China’s leaders are currently contending with declining demand, rising debt, and a real estate bubble. Some factories are laying off workers, suffering financial losses, or even closing as orders from crisis-plagued Europe dry up. The economic strains are frustrating workers and consumers in the country, threatening the political establishment and Beijing’s economic miracle.

“The new global crisis has reached China. Debt problems in Europe, the country’s most important trading partner, are starting to dim prospects here in the nation that has effectively become the world’s factory, as well. The unstable United States economy and threat of a trade war between the two superpowers make the situation even more uncertain.

“This October was the third straight month Chinese exports decreased. Along with it, the hopes of German manufacturers that Asia’s growth market might help lift them out of the global crisis as it did in 2008 are also evaporating.

“Many of those development projects, often megalomaniac undertakings from the start, are now ghost towns.

“While many in the West hold out hope that China can solve the euro and dollar debt crisis with its foreign currency holdings, the rift between rich and poor within the country is growing.

“This time China faces enormous challenges of its own — a real estate market bubble and local government debt — that could even pose a risk to the global economy.

“Now China’s state-run banks are paying their customers negative interest and Shanghai’s stock market is considered a high-risk casino, where a few major governmental investors are believed to manipulate exchange rates at will.

“As long as the one-party dictatorship kept growth in the double digits, most people accepted their lack of freedom. Now, though, Beijing is facing a dilemma. Tough police crackdowns will hardly get the consequences of the stagnating economy under control in the long term. But nor are government subsidies enough to stimulate the economy. It seems neither money nor force will help.”

My Comment: Nature directs us to an entirely new state in which we will have to change ourselves rather than anything outside. Humanity must become like the compelling forces of nature: integrally connected in general design, care, compliance, and mutual guarantee in reducing growth to the level of reasonable consumption and striving for universal fair distribution.

This can be achieved only through universal education, by transforming an egoistic human being into an altruistic one. Even if it may sound like a fantasy, suffering will force us to accept these conditions as binding. Not forced but conscious communism is a bright future for the entire humanity.
[64356]

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Opinion (Joseph Stigliz, a professor at Columbia University, a Nobel laureate in economics): “Someone recently quipped that the best thing about 2011 was that it was likely better than 2012.

“European leaders repeatedly proclaim their commitment to saving the euro, but those who could have repeatedly said that they are committed to not doing what is needed. They have recognized that austerity will mean slower growth – indeed, a recession is increasingly likely – and that, without growth, the eurozone’s distressed countries will not be able to manage their debts. But they have done nothing to promote growth. They are on a death spiral.

“Two more positive notes for 2011: The US seems finally to have awakened to the yawning gap between the rich and the rest – between the top 1 percent and everyone else. And youth-led protest movements, from the “Arab Spring” to the Spanish indignados and the Occupy Wall Streeters, have made clear that something is very wrong with the capitalist system.

“The US had hoped for an export-led recovery, but, with economic growth slowing in Europe, its largest customer (and impeding growth in much of the rest of the world), that is unlikely. And, with the worst effects of spending cuts potentially still to come, gridlock – and Republican spite – may mean that the Barack Obama administration’s payroll-tax cut will not be extended, weakening household consumption.

“2012 may mark the beginning of a new and more frightening phase of the world’s worst economic calamity in three-quarters of a century.”
[64252]

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In the News (from Bloomberg): “‘New Jersey’s Hunterdon County, the hilly region of horse farms and weekend retreats where last year’s median household income was almost $100,000, is a surprising new face of federal food aid.

“The percentage of U.S. households using food stamps has more than doubled in six of the 10 wealthiest counties in the nation as more residents find themselves out of work and unable to sell their homes. The increase among counties with more than 65,000 people was greatest in Hunterdon County, according to Census Bureau data compiled by Bloomberg.

‘“Sometimes people will come in a Mercedes,’ said Gina Davio, 41, program director of social services at Fisherman’s Mark, a non-profit social-services center in Lambertville, a city of 3,900 on the Delaware River. ‘Sometimes they come in nothing but Ralph Lauren, but you never know: That may be all they have left.’

‘“We see a lot of families who used to make a lot of money and are in a transition mode — whether it’s due to a divorce, loss of a job, or medical bills — that don’t have the ability to put the reins on the way they were living,’ Davio said.”

My Comment: The crisis is created to force all of us to feel helpless and to compel us to evaluate the cause: our egoism and resistance to unity. Of course, this is not the realization of evil yet, but we are on the way to it.

After having realized that egoism is the cause of all our suffering, people will quickly find the way to rise above it. Many intuitively find our materials and see the causes of the crisis, its necessity and purpose.
[64010]

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In the News (from News Junkie Post): “Various prophecies of doom and gloom or even of an Apocalypse have been linked to calendar year 2012. An Apocalypse (Greek etymology: ‘lifting the veil’ or ‘revelation’) is often wrongly viewed as the end of all things, but of course the very etymology of the word contradicts this notion. As a powerful revelation, an Apocalypse is a universal moment of truth, a quantum leap into uncharted territories. It appears that the world at large has already entered this unique phase in human history.

“The Mayans did not see the fateful date of December 21, 2012 as ‘the end of the world,’ but instead, they perceived it as a time of transition from one world age into another. The core message of the Mayans concerned our ability to make a choice, and either embrace bravely this new future or try to hold on to the past and face potential dreadful consequences. According to the Mayans, our resistance or acceptance of this paradigm shift could determine if the transition happens with chaos and violent cataclysmic changes or instead with peace and tranquility.

“‘Many people have an intuitive sense that the end of the Mayan calendar will bring a shift in consciousness. Yet, it is rarely clearly stated or explained exactly what is the source of such a shift, how it will happen or what would be its nature,’ Wrote Carl Johan Calleman in March 2010.

“‘Initially, there will be a great need for people to take initiatives to disseminate the call for the Conscious Convergence around the world,’ wrote Calleman.

“The paradigm shift described by Calleman as either shift of consciousness or Conscious Convergence is already on its way. The train of history has ‘left the station,’ and as a matter of fact, it is a bullet train. This paradigm shift of global human history started in the Spring of 2011 in the Arab word. …However, the chain of events of the Arab revolution was highly predictable without referring to either the Mayan prophecy or other crystal balls.

“Since the Arab Spring, the Occupy movement has shown a remarkable adaptability and resilience, and it is now becoming viral. It has caught on in Western Europe, in Greece, the UK, Spain, Italy, France and Germany. But more importantly, it is now a force to be reckoned with in the bastion of imperialism: the United States of America. The main reason why the Occupy movement is getting so much traction in the United States is that nearly one in two Americans-according to new US Census Bureau figures – have fallen into poverty or are struggling to live on low income.

“The Occupy paradigm shift is not a supernatural ‘meant to happen’ force or strange astrological phenomenon, but instead it is a prosaic movement grounded in some simple principles such as fairness, equality and social justice. It has its foundation in the conviction that 99 percent of the world population should be controlling resources and managing their own affairs instead of letting 1 percent of it run the world in such an unsustainable way that they are joyfully taking us to an abyss.

“The tyrants, the dictators, the oligarchs, and the ‘masters of the universe’ of the financial world have been put on notice by the 99 percent. If they resist, the Tsunami wave of the Occupy movement will eventually topple them or fully degrade their power and wealth. It is just a question of time, and after all there is a full year left before the end of the Mayan calendar. The Global Occupy movement is probably our best hope, not as the 99 percent but as human beings, to resolutely change our course and promote a world where a ‘Dog eat Dog’ culture does not prevail. A way of life that is based on fairness, justice and on the respect of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
[64007]

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Opinion: (Dmitry Vydrin, political analyst): “Not all European politicians understand the routes of today’s economic crisis, advisor to the Ukrainian president Dmitry Vydrin told the international conference ‘20 years without the USSR –CIS – Eurasian Union’…

“‘I have recently been to the European Parliament, to Bundestag… I got an impression that a huge number of adult men confront the crisis using toy-like Jedi swords without understanding the reasons, the basics, or the foundation. Maybe, we will help Europe handle it. They have money, we have experience,’ Dmitry Vydrin said.

“He also noted the Ukrainian government sent him and other specialists to France to study some materials in order to draft a constitution using the French model. Back then the Ukrainians got a lot of recommendations from their French counterparts. ‘MPs, senators, and the Mayor of Paris gave us wonderful recommendations, great tips: what to do and how to do. Now, all our questions face grim silence or formal replies,’ Dmitry Vydrin said.

“‘Unfortunately, Europe (I like it very much and wish it well) is making the same mistakes that [brought to the collapse of the USSR] 20 years ago,’ he said.”

My Comment: The collapse of the EU will have much more dramatic consequences and possibly lead to a world war.
[64016]

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In the news (from rusoch.fr): “Social inequality in France is growing incessantly, and the difference between the wealthy and the poor has become extreme.

“The French National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) reports that 10% of the wealthiest Frenchmen own 550,000 Euro per person, and the 10% of the poorest Frenchmen 2,700 Euro per person, which is 205 times less.

“A high level professional is worth 35 times more than a regular employee.

“Joint ownership of all the French, which apart from bank savings includes real estate, art, and so on, is 10,000 million Euro. ‘The problem is not in wealth accumulated in the country, but in its distribution’…

“Another questions is not less interesting: Why do people … continue to accumulate their wealth? Why don’t they stop, catch a breath, take advantage of this transient life, and think about other – eternal – values?”
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In the News (from RUNY.web): “Early last year, 75% of American unemployed received unemployment benefits. But the period of assistance, extended by the federal government up to 99 weeks, ended in the fall of this year for many of them.

“Consequently, the number of recipients dropped to 48%. Having exhausted their 99 weeks, two million cannot find a steady income still. By February, 2.2 million more may be left without the benefits. The average unemployed person receives $300 a week.

“A third of those who lost their jobs, and there are 14 million of them, did not have a permanent job for a year or more. As known, the more time a person spends without work, the less likely he finds something similar. This is due to the loss of skills, age, and the increase of applicants for the same place.

“In 2010, unemployment insurance prevented 3.2 million Americans from falling into poverty (annual income below $22,314 for a family of four). Those without benefits can expect to get food stamps. Nearly 46 million people receive food stamps now.”

My Comment: In a short time, there will be tens of millions of unemployed people. Governments must involve them in integral education and upbringing. This will lead to a healthier society and the restructuring of the entire social and economic system.
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Opinion: (Philip Stephens, Financial Times columnist): “The story of 2011 has been of the advance of democracy and the failure of democracies. In the Arab world, tyrants have fallen on the region’s political awakening. In rich nations, elected leaders have been frozen in crisis. Welcome to another of the paradoxes of the new global disorder.

“I do not recall the advance predictions that the good news this year would come from the Arab street; nor that the bad news would see a Greek debt crisis turn into an existential threat to half a century of European integration. We are in an age that habitually defies the easy assumptions of the old order. The passing of two centuries of western hegemony will be an unpredictable and uncomfortable experience.

“The road to democracy will be uneven. Americans and Europeans will not like some of the choices made by newly-emancipated citizens. But then the west still clings to its own double standards, cheering the uprisings in the Maghreb while hoping the autocrats cling on in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.

“I have lost count of the number of summits called to save the euro.

“Some blame the system. The single currency was always flawed; Washington has been paralysed by congressional gerrymandering. But you cannot leave out the personalities. Europe is governed by followers. Barack Obama once looked different. In the event, a big orator has turned out a small president.

“The thread that runs across the Atlantic is one of popular disenchantment with political establishments. Whether it is fear of the bond markets or competition from rising economies, governments are trapped between global economics and local politics.

“It is no good blaming democracy. As the well-worn saying goes, it is the worst of political systems save for all the others. If there is a bright spot in the sea of bleakness it is that autocrats everywhere have even more to fear from 2012.”

My Comment: The fears of the poor and rich, ordinary people and autocrats, together with hesitation and a lack of decisions will lead to despair, or a world war, or the opportunity to hear a “ridiculous” solution: to strive for integration based on general integral education and upbringing. The method and materials, teachers and educators are ready!
[63858]

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Opinion: (German Gref, President of Sberbank of Russia): “President of Sberbank, German Gref has pointed out he thinks the European Union has two ways to remedy the current financial and economic situation; they are – either to seek closer integration or to default. Closer integration means ‘the formation of, say, a kind of United States of Europe’ Gref said. ‘But it will need a long time to reach the target,’ he added.

“The other option, the disintegration of the euro, which means some of its member countries will go back to their former currencies ‘is fraught with disintegration of the entire European Union.’ Although this scenario gives more options to get over the crisis, ‘This is a much more honest policy that gives hope for regaining competitive abilities of peripheral countries and their re-entry to the currency orbit of the European Union.’ Gref added.”

My Comment: Mr. Gref does not see an optimistic option because there is no way he can see it. After all, it is only described in Kabbalah, and economists do not study it. The change in the common worldview is the foundation of the understanding of the world’s development. Instead of inventing theories and making mistakes in practice, we must copy everything from nature and follow it. Its demand for an integrated connection, for a universal mutual guarantee, is a mandatory requirement, and failing to carry it out will cost us dearly!
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Opinion: (from Die Zeit): “The politicians of Europe love to flourish the flag of Community togetherness. But in their day-to-day politicking they give the lie to their supposed virtues. Die Zeit has compiled a cheat-sheet of national egotisms that are harming the Community.

Sloth – Greece

“Angela Merkel is to blame, they say. German hard-heartedness is wrecking Europe, they say. That’s how the Greek tabloids are explaining the crisis, and that’s what populist politicians and demonstrators are shouting too. It’s not their debts that the Greeks are bothered by, but the dunning and crowding and lecturing from the rest of Europe. In blaming others, they’re lying to themselves and to Europe.

“In Athens, what astonishes one is the incredible self-indulgence. Who is actually grappling with the cause of the misery that is the debt-ridden society of Greece itself? Those who always thought there would be money enough in Europe for them. Guilds that cling on to their privileges. State railway workers who pocketed exorbitant salaries during chaotic wage hikes. Families that continued to rake in pensions for their dead relatives. Politicians who hired their voters’ nephews and nieces, and nephews and nieces who let themselves be hired. The Athens media are reporting on this, for sure. But what’s missing is any cathartic Greek anger at their fellow-citizens.

“The Athens populists talk tough about Merkel, but go easy on the guilty in their own country. They prefer raging at a distant bugbear, it turns out, to looking themselves in the eye. This weakness, this lack of talent for self-criticism, is the real Greek crisis.

Dealing in stolen goods – Switzerland

“The sums are huge. It’s enough to make the eyes of Europe’s politicians gape wide with cupidity. In Switzerland alone, foreigners, most of them EU citizens, have 1,560 billion euros tucked away. In Britain, and mainly in the Channel Islands, about 1,400 billion; in Luxembourg, 440 billion, and in Liechtenstein, 78 billion. All these states hold out a helping hand to tax evasion. They sponge up the national wealth of other countries and live off the interest.

[Read more →]

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