Portugal and the Portuguese: hostages from capitalism without ethics, hostages from international financial speculation – or The Death of Europe and the Idea of Europe

Years ago I thought the next military bomb would be a DNA bomb, one that kill certain types of people, differentiate by others by the specifics of their DNA. I was thinking in the Holocaust and segregation of Palestinians by Israel. Dropping this type of bomb in the Middle East should exterminate Arab traces and leave untouchable Israeli (this wouldn’t happen this way, I know today, because, like any evolve country, Israel needs their cheap work labour; or both israeli and palestinians share the same DNA).

But the example I’ve used was the Iberian Peninsula. Dropping this bomb in its centre, in Madrid, should kill al the Portuguese in a 300 Km ratio. If military design this DNA bomb as a virus, to kill all the Portuguese, they just drop it in Tejo River and wait for its results in a few hours or days.

Well, that was me, years ago, and I was wrong. There is no need to spent money in a design bomb if [they] use their money to taking over a country. Capitalism without ethics (and faces) and international financial speculation needs the Portuguese to get richer and to kill Europe and the idea of Europe (with the help of some European countries). It’s better than a design bomb because this economic power, acting without any laws or regulation, decide how the Portuguese should live by the decades to come. Portugal are now transformed in the luxury backyard of the rich of the world, with the cheapest golf courts in Europe, the cheapest and top quality wines that mankind ever built (we make quality wines for over 900 years, even if the international taste just discover it now), the cheapest beaches and resorts of Western Europe, our cheap top quality national food, our cheapest and beautiful girls and people friendly, low crime rates, ancient monuments, sun, nice weather…

PHOTO FROM ALMOUROL CASTLE

We are hostages!

Today I wake up with the news: the IMF, EU and ECB Troika is visiting the parties that sold us out since 1976 (they alternate political power since 1974 democratic revolution) to discuss the new politics to implement so they can give us a loan; Meanwhile, international financial speculation answers with another pike in our public rate interests. We are hostages! Even if we do what they want, they want more.

I feel like we, Portuguese People, are the Palestinians of Europe. And our country is taking over by an alien invisible force. I believe that in a newer future we are throwing rocks at the enemy. Without seeing (or knowing) their faces.

Check this out, “Portugal’s unnecessary bail out”, New York Times, by Robert Fisher:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/13/opinion/13fishman.html?_r=1

Picture from Almourol Castle taken from  http://www.flickr.com/photos/dj_edob/3285757318/lightbox/

I'm an Icelander!

I’m an Icelander!

Why private banking losses and bad management should be paid by the citizens?

!Shouldn’t!

If there’re winnings in those private banks, should it be redistributed by the citizens?

?No?

So, why should citizens pay the private banking losses and bad management?

I’m an Icelander!

And I’m not paying! And I want to hear Bjork singing the Fado!

[ouvindo “os vampiros”, josé afonso, 1963]

Economists wants investigation against Moody's, Fitch and Standard & Poor's for "crime of market manipulation"

Economists group wants an investigation in Attorney-General of the Portuguese Republic against Moody's, Fitch and Standard & Poor's by the "crime of market manipulation."  

7 April 2011

A group of economists wants an opening of an investigation against the rating agencies for the "crime of market manipulation," said the Agency's Lusa’s subscribers, José Reis. 

Moody's, Fitch and Standard and Poor's are the agencies covered by the action, which will provide input into next week in Attorney-General of the Republic. 

The document is signed by four economists: José Reis and José Manuel Pureza, from University of Coimbra, and Manuel Brandão and Maria Manuela Silva, from Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão (ISEG).  "You need to know if the laws of competition are respected" said in statements to Lusa, José Reis that stresses that agencies "operating in the Portuguese market," the three named in the complaint, "dominate more than 90 percent of the international market".

Two of these agencies – Moody's and Standard & Poor's – have the "same owner investment fund", warns an economist, and the decisions we take, "entities that influence the rate of interest", have a significant impact on countries indebtedness, "which may affect its financial and economic stability".  In the document to be delivered on Monday at the Attorney-General of the Republic, which Lusa had access, it is said that "the higher the risk inherent in a debt issuance, the greater the return required by investors, i.e. the greater the interest" imposed by them. 

"We understand the great importance ratings made by these agencies: they serve as reference for investors, issuers and public administrators for their investment decisions and financing," says the note. Being this role has been assigned to these three agencies, "cannot allow itself to acting to change the price of interest, directing the market for situations in which they own or your customers have an interest and withdraw benefits", declares the group of economists. 

The investigation that subscribers want that document to be opened should establish the practice of abusive acts that are allocated to the three agencies, the existence of serious damage produced in the interests of the Portuguese State and people and identification of Executive Boards of these agencies and the perpetrators of acts of the complaint. 

Economists also want to know if the "benefits obtained by the agencies and their clients" were remarkable importance, apart from wanting to have access to all internal communications of the rating agencies relating to classifications for Portugal "since the year 2010”.

Read the news in portuguese here and here