Ah January, a new month, a new year, and a very happy month it's going to be for the bondholders of Anglo Irish Bank (and let's not any of us, please, start using its new nom-de-plume). A dead bank, a zombie bank, a bank with now just a single reason for its own continued existence - to pay Irish taxpayers' money on its own failed bonds.
It started on Tuesday of this week, a mere €2,000,0000 paid out to a lucky US$ Bondholder, it continues for the rest of this month, five Anglo bonds in total including a €1bn 'covered' (by us) bond on Jan 22nd but culminating surely in the unsecured €1.25bn bond on Jan 25th.
We've had so many months of national shame since the original sell-out to the ECB by our own government on Nov 2010, that sell-out now being continued by this new government, so what's one more? Still though, over €3bn in bank bonds this month - at what stage do we, the people, shout stop?
Hi Diarmuid
ReplyDeleteScary scary stuff. The question I keep coming up against is 'when are we the people going to shout stop?'
The thing I can't pull together in my mind is a practical and effective strategy - a cohesive set of actions that can be taken collectively by the people to put a stop to the madness. The Occupy movement seems to be a start,and your Ballyhea march brought a smile to my face.
I am curious what you would propose. I quite frankly haven't a clue where to even start.
Never was an answer to a question more obvious:labour strikes, mortgage strikes, commercial rent srikes, marches, etc etc - bring the country to a halt until this rape of our country is stopped. It won't stop because of polite requests, twitter and facebook protest or reasoned argument on blog posts.
ReplyDeleteExactly, we need mass strikes! Just look at the French they would never stand for this.
ReplyDeleteGiven that these repayments are continuing despite the opposition of many, I assume that all remaining bondholders will be repaid.
ReplyDeleteSo, when does it end - how many more years, how many more billions do we need to pay? I'd rather know that, so that the repayment news next month and next month is no longer a depressing surprise.
When they are all paid, do we then finally see the end of this failed institution, Bank of Dukes of Hazzard of whatever its called this week.
Other positive options are to join and get involved in your local occupy movement, and/or your local household charge campaign group.
ReplyDeleteHelp in starting to "occupying neighbourhoods" and creating public assemblies there to meet weekly or biweekly. This would create a mass democratic counter power to the dail.
Such a mass, federated movement, expressing its democratic preferences in this manner, is something very hard for the elected dictatorship of a parliament to handle.