This concerns a Nation, not only a political party

It is incomprehensible that in order to save a few hundred thousand euros, budget cuts are being made in R+D+i, subsidies for dependent persons, and the salaries of university professors... while transferring thousands of millions to the banks. What happened to the more than 300,000 million euros that banking institutions have consumed at the BCE’s “bar”? Where are the thousands of millions that are “missing” from so many banks and savings institutions? 

Reduce the deficit and provide incentives without increasing unemployment and producing irreversible stress in Spain’s social fabric. 

We need a project for the future to provide us with the strength to endure progressively difficult conditions. I like to repeat that the future has yet to be written. But to do so, to build a future of solidarity that protects all human beings, without exceptions, we need to know the truth, see transparency in the behavior of public officials, and be informed of the diagnoses and the reasons for the treatments prescribed. 

Without health, education and knowledge there can be no encouraging plans for the future. 

Without explanations, without prior consultation, without flexibility, without the capacity to reconsider... the social environment will become progressively strained. Production models must be changed so as not to repeat the conduct that has led to “bubbles”, speculation, delocalization and exaggerated investments in security. 

Automatization and robotization cut jobs and manpower requirements while, at the same time, increasing the possibility for employment within a new context created by the new information and communications technologies. 

A country’s stability largely depends on its ability to “reestablish the balance”, which is typical of the middle classes that are capable of acting with generosity toward those below them and with firmness toward those above. It would truly be detrimental to threaten such a relevant social function in order to prevent greater inequalities and evils. 

Don’t fall in the “European trap” of stubbornly reducing the deficit, while only taking into account risk premiums and the “markets”. For a long time Stiglitz and Krugman have been warning us that budget cuts alone will never stimulate growth. 

Yesterday I promised to offer a series of “ideas” for change (the majority of them are obvious):

-Progressively raise income taxes, particularly with respect to high net worth individuals. 

-Radical transformation of SICAV variable capital investment companies, rapidly implementing control mechanisms, granting them tax breaks only when warranted, and preventing their funds from migrating to European tax havens. 

-Generalized and proportional wealth taxes, monitoring all deposits in Spain and abroad. -Ban short-selling on stock markets. -Immediate rectification of the fiscal amnesty measures that are counterproductive, unethical, and discouraging to honest taxpayers. 

-Energetic action on the part of the tax authorities against tax fraud. 

-Tax on financial transactions. 

-Reactivation of activities within the scope of R+D+i, education and healthcare. 

The destiny of the citizens of this nation is at stake and –forgetting the lack of solidarity during our immediate past- must be the result of the concerted action of everyone to put the markets in their place, put an end to the monumental fraud that the European Union has allowed rather than promoting correct action on the part of the European Central Bank and a rapid fiscal federation, in order to invent the future that we all desire. 

Yes: This concerns the interests of a nation, not of a political party. 

An entire nation can face the present challenges, within the European framework. A political party alone, no matter how strong its majority, cannot.

Incredible... but true!

1. Incredible lack of solidarity of the Republican Party in the US 

2. Incredible applause for budget cuts in Spain 

3. Incredible “conditions” imposed by Europe... with no growth incentives 

1) When informed that the US Supreme Court had ruled in favor of the Affordable Healthcare Act, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney stated that if elected next November he will repeal the law as soon as the is inaugurated as President of the United States. Incredible. 

Gabriel Jackson expressed it clearly in "El País" (11 July 12): "A Republican majority could repeal the Obamacare Law passed by Congress". 

Shame on him! Since Harry Truman in 1945, Democrat party presidents have tried unsuccessfully to implement medical care for all citizens, without exceptions. 

Unexpectedly and with much skill, Obama was able to get the law passed, which has now been upheld by a five-to-four vote of the US Supreme Court. This is not an “excess of the federal government”, as the more right-wing justices maintain, but rather Medicaid represents a means for providing the US’s most neglected citizens (30-50 million of them) access to healthcare. 

The Republican Party’s lack of solidarity is incredible. 

2) When the Spanish Prime Minister announced on the floor of Parliament that he regrets having to adopt economic measures that place Spain on the verge of intervention... it was inappropriate and shameful for many Popular Party deputies to act as “cheerleaders”, applauding the announcement of each budget cut and adjustment, some of which due to their nature and social consequences should certainly never been proposed. 

If they had remained silent during the Prime Minister’s speech, they would have been more coherent with their own beliefs. 

But there’s no stopping these “cheerleaders”, perhaps because they don’t know how to do anything else. Incredible. 

3) The European Union –whose difference with the US increase daily- continues with its budget-cutting scissors in hand, continually postponing measures to stimulate growth (issue of Eurobonds, economic incentives for SMEs, R+D+I, scholarships, etc.) despite President Hollande’s efforts. 

I should mention here the “time ethic”, applicable to potentially irreversible processes that require that we take timely action. 

In 1987 I wrote, “tomorrow is always too late". And I’m repeating that today. 

32(!) conditions have been imposed for rescuing the Spanish banks... without a single measure to stimulate growth. Incredible...

Budget Cuts in Education, Science and Healthcare

Don’t do it. You would be making a serious mistake. 

-With our best efforts to understand the consequences of the “real estate bubble” and having lived beyond our means, we can accept that its’ time for all of us to “lend a hand”. But not to give in to the “great (military, energy, financial and media) domain’s” hounding of the euro zone, which has lost its sails and is off course, because it continues to operate as an Economic Community rather than a European Union, without an autonomous security system, without fiscal federation, without the capacity to define economic stimulation policies with incentives for growth and the creation of employment. 

-Obsessed with complying with the 32 conditions imposed by the European Union in exchange for “rescuing” Spain’s banks (that “unconditional line of credit” announced by the government!), they haven’t hesitated to include measures that will have profound repercussions in our nation’s near future: 

• Reduction in healthcare personnel and resources, that great pillar of the social welfare we’ve achieved. For example, it is ludicrous to cut subsidies for dependant persons to save 250 million euros when only one shameless Galician bank needs 5,000 million euros to pay off its debts... 

• Dismissal of 800-1,000 university professors in the Autonomous Community of Madrid and reduction of professors at other academic levels. Once again, the savings realized with this budget cut equals less than 18% of the money needed as a result of the total mismanagement (public funds included) of one of the middle-sized financial institutions that will now be rescued from the brink. 

•  Don’t do it. This is a serious error. Reducing the number of scientists, teachers and healthcare personnel will darken our future. Don’t do it. It is in no way proportional and contradicts the invariable truism that in a system based on speculation, delocalization of production and war, the creation of employment depends on knowledge, competition, imagination and the capacity of citizens to commence a new era... 

-An editorial in El País on 14.07.12 warned that “although our solvency abroad is a priority, these new budget cuts will increase the recession”. 

"The Government has blocked tenure exams for professors in public universities". Don’t do it. They’re making a mistake. "Surviving the crisis" depends on educating citizens, preparing them for maintaining what should be maintained and changing what should be changed. 

The Ministry of Education has stated that "the brain drain isn’t a negative phenomenon". Especially (remember Dr. Severo Ochoa, Professor Joan Massagué, etc., etc.) for the recipient countries. But for Spain, it’s an enormous loss. Mobility, yes. But so that all of them can return (especially the best of them). 

Now that funds are being made available to compensate for the huge deficits incurred by certain banks, savings institutions, city governments and autonomous communities (without any punitive measures, to-date), is it so difficult to identify those who are really responsible and reconsider the allusions to the “legacy received”, thus revising some of the decisions being announced? 

-"Spain’s R&D system has regressed at least a decade", announced a full-page headline in ABC on July 13. The number of patents, so important for economic recovery, will decline. 

Don’t they realize that these crucial aspects for the present and future of our citizens cost less than half of the rescue funds for Bankia? 

The silence of those who are somewhat or largely responsible for the excesses of those “happy years” is unfortunately understandable. But I can’t understand the silence of businessmen, and especially of the SMEs, who should clearly and serenely raise their voices in dissent. 

They, better than anyone else, understand that in addition to the present economic situation, progressive automatization and robotization have reduced the number of jobs available, and now it is work rather than employment that we have to find... 

Rectify. This would be a serious mistake. 

Tomorrow I will offer some concrete proposals to seek greater coherence in the package of measures that would warrant all of us “lending a hand ".

Network Revolution

It can’t be expressed better or more clearly: a peaceful but firm (r)evolution will be brought about via the social networks by people, by “the Peoples” who have ceased to feel intimidated or threatened. 

Obedient, silenced, silent. In the words of Martin Luther King, “History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people”. 

In cyberspace, thanks to distance participation, there will be a huge popular mobilization. 

At last human beings will hold the reins of their own destiny. 

At last, that great turning point. 

At last, words and not force. 

The Network Revolution!

And now? Spend some time thinking, determining what is most important and urgent, proposing, demanding...

It was true: Where there are two, there are three. This was a great victory. I am very happy about it. 

But now this magical time has passed. For three months we have lived immersed in an unprecedented media campaign, in our own country and in the other teams’ countries. Impassioned crowds fascinated and captivated by so many communications media, until this has become a genuine obsession. 

But now it’s over. Now while basking in the glow of this well-deserved resounding football victory, it is also time to cease to act like dazed and impassive spectators to assume the role of citizens who are aware of the present situation both locally and globally, and act in consequence. The time has arrived to face the essential challenges and our intergenerational responsibilities. 

The circus is over. Now, the bread... 

In the European Union we can no longer allow the markets to impose their laws and to appoint prime ministers who they, in fact, govern. 

We can no longer allow banking institutions to produce deficits of thousands of millions of euros, and which are rescued with no sanctions whatsoever. 7

While budget cuts are being made in education, healthcare and R+D+i... 

Mindful only of the gale winds of the risk premiums, they impose upon us inadmissible autocratic measures: suppression of education for citizenship; dictatorial appointment of the new directors of TVE1, one of the best and most well-balanced services currently existing in Spain; and fiscal amnesty measures that don’t exactly foment solidarity in the future. 

Thank goodness for the freedom of expression that cyberspace affords us; thank goodness that some of the communications media, rowing against the tide, continue to reflect balanced opinions. 

An authentic entertainment “bubble” is being promoted at the global level, and it will soon burst, because sooner or later, after having paid their homage to Spain’s football success, many citizens will start to address the relevant questions of the present and future. And they will mobilize and propose solutions and demand changes. 

From now on and after the Olympic Games, how can Spaniards be motivated or distracted? 

I wish to underscore that this victory was a good thing. It had become a supreme requisite for our national pride. It’s true that we have an exceptional team, with players and a coach that are not only good on the playing field, but in their attitudes, statements and style. Viva! 

But now the time has come to cross our “T’s”, the time has come to “make history” in a different way. To build a united Europe, to forge special contacts with Latin America... The time has come to create a world, to care for the earth, to remake a strong and democratic multilateral system and put an end to the unfortunate intentions of the plutocrats. 

The solution is democracy, more and better democracy on all levels: personal, local global. 

The time has come for reaching important agreements on education, health and science. The time has come to prevent the discriminatory and arbitrary measures that characterize parliamentary majorities. They may be legal, but they are not democratic. 

The dense fog of this national distraction has dissipated. Satisfied, filled with pride... 

But I must now insist that the present popular commotion and excitement must now give way to daily action in defense of principles and values (that have erroneously been replaced by those of the marketplace), in defense of equal dignity without exception; in defense of full citizenship!

Intergenerational Solidarity – the Results of Rio + 20 are Unacceptable

It is with much consternation that I wish to address 15M movement and all social movements that have expressed themselves so appropriately through the networks, in view of the lack of global reaction from today’s youth, expressing their total disagreement with those who have failed to face the great challenges of the present and who, moreover, are maintaining immense media pressure on citizens to reduce them to mere spectators. 

The current predictions concerning the “Anthropocene” –because for the first time in history mankind can influence conditions on earth- may be irreversible and may prompt dramatic situations for human habitability. A collective outcry is essential to urgently demand democratic multilateralism and democratic systems at the regional and local levels that take into account the interests of the people, and to once and for all reject the manipulation emanating from the great (military, energy, financial and media) domain and groups of oligarchs.

We have to look our children and grandchildren in the eyes and not allow a few irresponsible people to prevent us from duly facing the great challenges of achieving a life of dignity for all, without exclusion, and a sustainable environment. 

Intergenerational solidarity: let there be hundreds in cyberspace demanding support for these protests and proposals. 

Not long ago I read the following in Leonardo Padura’s “The Man Who Loved Dogs”: ..."History will have conquered Tolstoi, but not broken him. Until his dying days that genius knew how to maintain the precious gift of moral indignation, punishing autocracy with his battle cry of “I can’t remain silent!” 

Let us all take example from Tolstoi.

Intergenerational Solidarity – the Results of Rio + 20 are Unacceptable

It is with much consternation that I wish to address 15M movement and all social movements that have expressed themselves so appropriately through the networks, in view of the lack of global reaction from today’s youth, expressing their total disagreement with those who have failed to face the great challenges of the present and who, moreover, are maintaining immense media pressure on citizens to reduce them to mere spectators.

The current predictions concerning the “Anthropocene” –because for the first time in history mankind can influence conditions on earth- may be irreversible and may prompt dramatic situations for human habitability. A collective outcry is essential to urgently demand democratic multilateralism and democratic systems at the regional and local levels that take into account the interests of the people, and to once and for all reject the manipulation emanating from the great (military, energy, financial and media) domain and groups of oligarchs.

We have to look our children and grandchildren in the eyes and not allow a few irresponsible people to prevent us from duly facing the great challenges of achieving a life of dignity for all, without exclusion, and a sustainable environment.

Intergenerational solidarity: let there be hundreds in cyberspace demanding support for these protests and proposals.

Not long ago I read the following in Leonardo Padura’s “The Man Who Loved Dogs”: ..."History will have conquered Tolstoy, but not broken him. Until his dying days that genius knew how to maintain the precious gift of moral indignation, punishing autocracy with his battle cry of “I can’t remain silent!”

Let us all take example from Tolstoy.