Wednesday, October 1, 2008

And now, a word from my soap box

I don't normally comment on world events here. Or anywhere else for that matter. And I'm unlikely to do it again any time soon. Had I started this blog a few years ago, that would have been very different. I used to scour news stories, trying to find alternative versions (as there always are and the media simply can't be trusted), seeing what seemed verifiable and what didn't, and basically trying to find out just how messed up this world is.

I had to give that up and go on a media blackout for my own sanity. It was fuelling my depression. I still don't think that was a good thing because, if we're living in ignorance, how can we make the world a better place?

I think I've mentioned all that before.

Well, the whole bank fiasco is like Big Brother over here. Even if you're trying to avoid it, you can't. Everyone is talking about it. So I guess I felt I had to look into it and see what was going on. Yesterday morning, where I am, the local banks almost collapsed. Completely. That would have left most of the people in the country with little to no money. Even if they'd had loads to start with. Many people here don't seem to have realised how close that was to happening yesterday. The Government intervened and guaranteed everything sitting in those banks (although now a whole bunch of hard working average Joes don't realise that many of the banks here are actually owned by foreign banks and those aren't guaranteed in the slightest).

Had it happened, it's hard to know what the fallout would have been. Rioting? Looting? Quite possibly. It effectively would have been the collapse of society here. At least for a time.

So is it self-destructive for me to sit here laughing my ass off at the whole thing?

Yeah, I guess it is. But then I think - this world is completely messed up. We live in a sham of a democracy that only serves the interests of big business, driven by greed and nothing but greed. A huge percentage of everyday people here know it's messed up and yet they are too busy living their lives, paying their mortgages, trying to keep their jobs, raising their children, worrying about the next paycheck or just watching reality tv shows to be able to do anything about it. But they know. So many people know, even as they sleep through their day, that the way things are run right now just isn't working.

And that leaves me thinking that maybe a complete collapse would have woken people up. Maybe it would have led to a fresh start. A new society.

By getting bailed out, it only serves to maintain the status quo and there is a powerful minority that wants nothing more than for us to all stay asleep.

5 comments:

Toole said...

If you have time watch this video:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9050474362583451279

This system of money is completely insane.

Andy Latham said...

I must say I have been more than a little ignorant of this whole situation. I don't know what has caused it and I am only beginning to realise how bad it has got. As for what needs to be done about it, I'm clueless. It's odd that I usually stay abreast of big things like this, but this one has somehow passed me by. Mind you if all the banks collapsed, I wouldn't lose much as I have no savings!

Toole said...

So in the UK there is no government insurance of bank deposits? In the US we had a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation so it's more an issue that if a bank fails the economy is just generally screwed. They'll print the money to get your deposit back and everyone has more inflated currency. That would keep people from killing each other as you say.

Bitter Animator said...

Where I am, no, initially there was no security on the money at all. Then in an attempt to discourage people from just whipping their money out of the banks, they secured it up to 10 grand. Of course, a hell of a lot of people here have more than 10 grand in the bank (not animators of course).

And then, at the last minute, they went from something like 50 grand to the whole lot. But it's not like we can just print the money over here. Effectively, if it came down to it, the government couldn't raise the cash to secure all the banks. But they could secure maybe one in reality and that alone (so far) has been enough to stop the entire country pulling their money from banks.

Irreligious said...

Screw the banks, let'em collapse.

Sure, it will be though for a while, but i mean, imagine those poor people in Africa, they live ALOT worse than we would live if suddently all of the banks collapsed - Sure there would be economic chaos for a while, but we would manage.

And the same morons wouldn't laugh, just as they are laughing now, at the expense of the taxpayer.

Ahh what am i saying, im gonna go watch a soap opera now