Austerity
Thomas Fazi: The left’s Stockholm syndrome
Why it’s an illusion to believe that the European Union can be democratised Read here
Link
Corruption
Corporate Europe Observatory – Copyright Directive: how competing big business lobbies drowned out critical voices
This is without a doubt a brilliant piece of research. Unfortunately it is also extremely long. Do have a go at it. After five minutes of reading you will have the gist of it and […]
Finance
Ken Boyd: Tax Avoidance By The Numbers: The Paradise Papers
This an excellent, easy to understand, somewhat long explanation of the Paradise Papers. So if you feel you did not really understand what the fuss was about, you can catch up here. A great weekend […]
EU politics
cnet: Facebook fined $11.4M in Italy over data misuse
After a year of woe, the social network’s data-related troubles aren’t yet over. Read here After a year of woe, the social network’s data-related troubles aren’t yet over.
Corruption
The Guardian: Car lobby opposes EU safety bid that ‘would save 1,300 lives a year’
What is another 1,300 lives? Car manufacturers already send hundreds of thousands of Europeans to early deaths with their cheating devices in diesel cars. This will end with Germany intervening and telling the EU they […]
Climate Change
Yanis Varoufakis: My plan to revive Europe can succeed where Macron and Piketty failed
Under my Green New Deal, €500bn a year can be created without raising taxes – and it may tempt Britain back to the fold. Read here
Corruption
Kyiv Post – Cost of corruption: Ukraine loses $8.6 billion annually to poor management, graft, study finds
This is the democracy for which the EU and IMF are giving billions of euros? At least we now know where the money is going. The real question is, how much is going back to […]
EU politics
insider: EU Parliament ratifies trade agreement with Japan
This event has gone almost unreported in state and orporate media – and unnoticed. No lessons have been learnt from TTIP – except how to further reduce democracy in the EU. Unlike the Canadian-European trade […]
Corruption
The Guardian: EU relaxation of diesel emission limits was illegal, court rules
Once again the undemocratic European Commission had set the interests of coporations above those of its citizens. Neo-liberalism and regulatory capture march on in Europe. Read here
Economics
Bill Mitchell: When two original MMT developers get together to discuss their work
Bill Mitchell/Warren Mosler provide a great primer on Modern Monetary Theory, and a reminder of 25 years of thinking/observation that’s gone into what’s become a precise body of work. Read here