CAPITALISM WILL NOT DIE PEACEFULLY.

       I keep saying we should be looking at Greece to see what is coming our way and to prepare the appropriate action to turn the situation to our advantage. Europe's problem is not the Greek "crisis", Europe's problem is the inevitability of capitalist "crisis". As far as the living standards of the ordinary people are concerned, capitalism is the "crisis". Until we resolve that problem, our lives will always be a struggle for survival while the parasites live in the lap of luxury. There is an alternative, there is a need, to start to create that society based on the needs of all our people. Any attempt at moderating capitalism is simply more of the same, just different degrees.

Taken from International Journal of Socialist Renewal:

        Speech given by Eric Toussaint at the SYRIZA youth festival in Athens on October 6, 2012 More than 3000 people were present to listen to four speakers: Marisa Matias, EU deputy, member of the Left Bloc (Portugal); Lisaro Fernandez, miners’ union leader (Asturias, Spain); Alexis Tsipras, president of SYRIZA (Greece); Eric Toussaint, president of Committee for the Abolition of the Third World Debt (CADTM, Belgium). 

 
       My dear friends, history is not written in advance. Several scenarios remain open to us. We can continue within the current chaotic situation, with more and more authoritarianism on the part of governments who are at the service of the banks. This can continue for years. Another scenario is possible, and is even worse – an authoritarian, neo-fascist scenario. That is a grave danger and a very present threat.
         But there are two other scenarios: under popular pressure, there can be a regulated capitalism, a capitalism of the type that was practiced in the 1950s and 1960s, a capitalism of the Keynesian type. That is a possible solution. But the fact that there are so many of us gathered here this evening shows that we feel that there is no point in limiting our struggle to an attempt to discipline capitalism. We want to go beyond capitalism. We want a democratic, self-managed socialism of the 21st century.
      Long live international socialism. Long live self-managed socialism. Long live SYRIZA. Long live the Greek people. Long live popular resistance. Long live the revolution, comrades!

Read the full speech HERE:

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GREECE TODAY-- SPAIN, PORTUGAL TOMORROW??

 

      The following is a report from OCCUPIED LONDON-- FROM THE GREEK STREETS. Where are the British people in this corporate plunder of all our public assets and the slashing of our standard of living? Are we going to be limited to 50 or so people at a time running round pointing out the tax dodgers, or are we going to organise and mobilise to change this corrupt and exploitive system once and for all?
      All the media is spouting about the "Arab Spring" where is the "Pan-European Spring"?
   

     REPORT STARTS HERE: Athens sees its biggest gathering in years, more than 150,000 at Syntagma square as the build-up for the General Strike of June 15th begins

A crowd whose size is difficult to even estimate gathered in central Athens to protest against the crisis and the Memorandum tonight. The call to a pan-european call of action saw more than 100,000 (some estimates give much higher numbers) flooding Syntagma square and many central nearby avenues. In contrast to previous gatherings, police presence was much higher, with fencing erected around the parliament building and double, or triple rows of riot police around it.

The city is now building up for the General Strike of June 15th, which is also the next date of action announced at Syntagma square. Both mobilisations are aimed against the new agreement between the government and the troika (IMF/EU/ECB) which is planned to be voted at parliament on the morning of the 15th. The general assembly of Syntagma square has already called for a blocking of the parliament from the night of the 14th. In addition to the fencing installed around the parliament (see below), a police water canon has also appeared nearby.

Similar demonstrations took place in Thessaloniki, Patras, Heraklion, Larisa, Volos and many other Greek cities. In the Cretan city of Chania, fascists bearing arms appeared in the gathering, in a failed attempt to provoke the gathered crowd.

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