Slovakia Split Over Eurozone Bailout Fund

Ironically, the party who gained seats in government as part of the coalition by targetting the young vote, specifically on the legalisation of marijuana (which they dropped as soon as they were in power, thus losing support and crediility from the very people who voted for them) are now collapsing the Slovak coalition government by standing by the people's wish to NOT give any more money to Greece.
Slovakia is the only country in Europe which disagress with borrowing a huge amount of money, putting itself into massive debt, in order to pay the debts of a third world economy which has been living in fantasy land.

Slovakia Split Over Eurozone Bailout Fund

Hooray for Slovakia for AGAIN standing up to German pressure (third time in a century...)

While I applaud the stance.. the rush to get this done and dusted will I am sure lead to steam rolling the whole deal through, regardless of dissenting voices/nations..

I wonder what *cough* incentives your gov will get for changing it's mind? I hope the terms are favourable enough to balance out any payments you'll end up making.

However, it is not that aspect that I would personally be worried about, it would be the push for deeper union and the loss of sovereignty that entails, as in my opinion there are only few real avenues left open to the Eurozone, much deeper union with more lost sovereignty, 2 speed EU or full breakup..

Whatever happens I really hope your gov does the right thing for you, the people.

To give you an idea of just how ludicrous it is to pay off Greece, they have had the ulimate Welfare State for decades. Their pensioners earn 1200 Euros per month. In Slovakia pensioners get between 300 and 400 Euros per month.
Have a look at Greek unemployment percentages - HERE

There are 5.5 million people in Slovakia, including a huge gypsy population which is bankrupting the country, and also a massive population of pensioners. 6 Billion Euros is a ridiculous amount - it's extortion. Literal robbery.

Europe's plan is to bankrupt all of its members?

reply to post by thoughtsfull


Living here, I get to see how countries are run up close and personal greed, power and corruption seem to be the driving force. There isn't a Civil Service, per se, so every time there's a national election (every 4 or 5 years, I can't remember which) all positions such as school principal, hospital director, roads inspector, etc are filled with political cronies. Knowing that they only have 4 or 5 years in their job, these people spend their entire time filling their pockets for the future and do nothing for the institutions they're supposed to be managing - this goes from the village up to the national scale.
I also get to see how the EU applies pressure. For example, British kids won't be allowed to blow up balloons this year because of the EU. The British people will kick up a fuss (like they did with the straight bananas and cucumbers law) but will eventually accept it as law. What they should be doing is asking why EU parliament members (and their army or translators, secretaries, assistants and lawyers) are wasting EU member funds on creating such pointless laws.
A case in point - recently we had an investigative journalist go to Brussels to find out just how many EU politicians were sitting each day to discuss these laws. An EU politician gets 300 Euros per day expenses just to sit in parliament but only if they sign their names in in the morning. So the journalist followed them. The EMPs basically go to work in the morning, sign in, and then go home. When the journalist confronted several EUMPs, in the parliament building as they were leaving, about this he wa forcefully ejected by security.
Do you know the name of your EUMP? Did you vote for him/her/it?
Do yourself a favour and do a little research into just when the EU started (its first incarnation) and who its member countries were. Keep in mind that in school we were told that WW2 ended in 1945 and that we (the British) won. We were lied to. Big style.

reply to post by Aestheteka


I do understand where you are coming from.. but I believe the current levels of greed is reflective of what our society has become, and with some nations it is more in the open and evident than others.. the recent phone hacking scandal proved that in Britain. This is a sad testament to how far we have not progressed as a society.

As for the EU, I believe it is out to become top dog, some suggest it is a poodle of the USA, but I have grave doubts about that, I lean towards feeling a economic war i currently under-way between the EU, US and China..

The problem for the EU is that it is not a fully formed superstate and it's main weakness is it's disunity, so deeper integration seems to me almost assured (regardless of what the people want) and if that means bankrupting the poorer nations of the EU then I sure they will follow through with their plans and not bat an eyelid at the misery they are causing.

but that is true of any state with empirical intentions.. (and why I wish to see Britain withdraw from the EU, as we have been on the world stage for too long and need to focus on ourselves and our friends)

As for Britain losing WW2, my opinion on that is that we lost to the Americans, hence why there was an occupational force left in Britain.. tho the whole "special relationship" did save another battle erupting there, so in some ways that was a better outcome than it might have been, and given what it could have been I harbour no ill feelings..

But I suspect the upper echelons in Britain don't quite feel that way and I have always wondered how that resentment might surface and how this might end.

Sorry for the long winded reply..

Yay, my country!
Anyways, regarding subject. Slovakia is very poor country, Greece on other hand... Greeks were living like kings, until they ended where they ended. I see no reason why should we support much richer country which was spending a lot of money for themselves and then ran out of them. We do not have enough money for ourselves.

reply to post by thoughtsfull


Whilst I might bitch about the US and EU, I'm quite happy to be living under their regimes (as opposed to Chinese or Sharia Law, etc). I just wish we could cleanse the bloated ticks.
Do you know anything about how the vikings ran their countries? Absolutely stunning. That is what we should all aspire to. Every man was basically his own king.

I'm watching the parliamentary debate on it now on TA3 (Slovak news channel).
This smacks of engineering....

Originally posted by Farnhold
Yay, my country!
Anyways, regarding subject. Slovakia is very poor country, Greece on other hand... Greeks were living like kings, until they ended where they ended. I see no reason why should we support much richer country which was spending a lot of money for themselves and then ran out of them. We do not have enough money for ourselves.

edit on 11-10-2011 by Farnhold because: (no reason given)

Hi Farnhold. I find it ironic, Slovakia holds the economic future of the world in her hands. I completely understand your position on Greece. I think a lot of Europe feels the same. Greece has benefited, and abused the generosity of others for far too long. In talking with friends here, some are saying that if Slovakia votes no, it will be the beginning of the end. A ripple that will travel around the globe.

So much at stake for so many. How do you think the vote will go today? I'm watching CNBC, they are waiting for the vote results to announce the outcome.

Des

I dont support the EU bailout, it is not logical for less wealthy countries to bail out those better off, not to mention that we already pumped enough money into Greece, IMHO. But I hope this will not bring down the government, if the motion fails. That would be unfortunate.

reply to post by Aestheteka


I just want to share this oppinion:

The game is up for this total nonsense, once one country cant pay the debts and they get let off, you can bet the rest of them will also do it, the whole purpose of this is to save the Banks, its the biggest SCAM in history..and what Slovakia must think of all this, also a not well off country and they also have to use their money to bail out the Greeks, and they are just not going to accept any fiscial policy that the Greek people just wont want. its crazy to keep these countries going, but its not the people the IMF and the EU worry about, its the BANKS. after this is all over,the only people who will come out of it smelling of roses, will be the Banks.

..and i totally agree with that.

reply to post by Destinyone


I've just read this -

Greece likely to get bailout loans after review

It appears unlikely that Slovakia's stand-off will have any effect on the bail out.
This seems to be something else. I have the feeling that France and Germany have paid for this little diversion - Slovakia is the only Eastern European country to have the Euro (Slovenia is Balkans) and this bail out war is between the richer northern countries and the poorer southern ones (plus Ireland).
Slovakia can't outright refuse Europe but by causing a coalition split it throws a spanner in the works and buys someone time. Someone has paid for this fiasco.
I sincerely hope that Slovakia does take a stand and refuses - everyone I know here thinks likewise. Why the hell should we pay for Greece or Spain when they've been living like Kings on borrowed money? We've already bailed them out once and bailing them out again will have the same effect - nada.
There's a bigger picture at play - Greece is being armed with 400 US tanks and the EU has just slapped sanctions on Syria and Iran. Turkey's close to opposing Greece and Israel. Someone )apologies, I forget who) mentioned the Legatus conference finishing on the 24th and the EU will hold crisis talks on the 23rd. Germany and France have already met and decided on the future of the EuroReich. Britain will vote whether to hold a referendum, which would lead to a aunanimous withdrawal from the EU if they do. We have an entire season of protests, major strkes, etc coming up (not like the stand around pointlessly and leave when the police ask you type like in the US) and the Euro is living on borroweed time.
Can anyone say dominoes?
I am proud to cal myself an adopted Slovak today

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a non-corrupt, financially solvent EU.

reply to post by greenCo


I completely agree
We are all being robbed blind and the people elected to represent us and to protect our interests are selling us out.
The nonsense distraction about the 99% doesn't change the fact that it is the elected governments who are destroying us and using the police as mafia bodyguards to enforce their banditry

For those of you who don't know anything about Slovakia, here's don LaFontaine's advert for it.
This is the place I call home, in the Carpathians.
I've travelled a lot and can honestly say Slovakia has stunning scenery, is filled with castles and ancient sites, it has THE best beer in the world (even better than Pilseneer) and has the most beautiful women. Shame it's poor, ridiculously expensive, corrupt and full of gyspies, but hey, you can't win 'em all...

reply to post by Aestheteka


Thank You for your concise and accurate reply

Slovakians did the right thing - NOT to support the bailout.

This is what the Greek citizens wanted as well - NO to bailouts, thus the massive protests.

The banksters and their sycophants will put the blame on the greeks - that they were rich, lazy, overspend on social welfare, building useless 'white elephants', etc.

But the truth of the matter is that the our fellow human brothers and sisters of the greek nations are just like you and me - with only common aspirations in life - to live in peace, prosperity, equality and progress.

No doubt there were some whom milked the system for their own benefits, it is the same everywhere in every nation when one gets the opportunity for priviledges. They are the greek elites.

The greek leaders had failed their nation by not rectifying the errors. They are not brainless clods, and being in a leadership position with resources to see the bigger picture, should have seen it comming long ago, but did not. AND it was certainly NOT helped by the banks whom continually push loans to these errant leaders, in the beliefs that nation will not fail, for if they fail, other nations will own that default land, resources and the citizens turned slaves.

The Greek masses had woke up and know now where the fault lays in - their leaders, bankers, and elites, many whom like rats had most probably fled the sinking ship. The Greeks DO NOT WANT the bailout any further, for it will not only hurt fellow europeans whom are suffering now and may lead to war, it will only further enslave the greeks.

The Greeks are prepared to live without further bailouts. They still have an economy going on - trade and commerce, with revenue comming in. It is only that if every cent goes to servicing loans, there will not be enough for social expenditure. its current and future citizens turned into slaves to serve foreign corporations at a pittance, its resources priced at the whims and fancies of their overlords who through the disbursement of funds as a means of control.

The only true solution left now is for Euro to disband. One day it will become united, but that day is not now, for the flaws are clearly evident. A mistake, a costly one, had been made. We cannot allow the mistake to grow and fester larger, so large that ultimately, the sacrifice of precious human lives will become necessary to resolve disputes.

END THE EURO NOW!!!!

Here's the new advert.
Truly beautiful country and still so wild

Originally posted by Destinyone

Originally posted by Farnhold
Yay, my country!
Anyways, regarding subject. Slovakia is very poor country, Greece on other hand... Greeks were living like kings, until they ended where they ended. I see no reason why should we support much richer country which was spending a lot of money for themselves and then ran out of them. We do not have enough money for ourselves.

edit on 11-10-2011 by Farnhold because: (no reason given)

Hi Farnhold. I find it ironic, Slovakia holds the economic future of the world in her hands. I completely understand your position on Greece. I think a lot of Europe feels the same. Greece has benefited, and abused the generosity of others for far too long. In talking with friends here, some are saying that if Slovakia votes no, it will be the beginning of the end. A ripple that will travel around the globe.

So much at stake for so many. How do you think the vote will go today? I'm watching CNBC, they are waiting for the vote results to announce the outcome.

Des

edit on 11-10-2011 by Destinyone because: (no reason given)

Hi my friend ,
it is hard to say. My opinion is that they will say no (its just an opinion). I wish there was some compromise. But on the other hand, we really do not have enough money to take care even of our own citizens, and Greece makes it much harder for us. Greece is not only thing to blame, I blame our politicians as well, we could live better if they made right decisions, and thought of citizens as well, but they are j*rks,and think of themselves. But I guess it's same in (almost) every country.

One last video...
This is the other side to the Slovak spectrum. You've seen the beautiful world of the whites, now see the poverty and talent of the gypsies (no, they're not white pikeys in caravans). This village makes Borat's hometown look like a metropolis....
Damned good music.

Smer are just using this to get back in power. Fico has been blackmailing Radicova from the beginning of the coalition. They are going to use this against SDKU who want to sign it. What they don't get is that Slovakia will soon need to be bailed out too and the Eurozone funds can be used for recoveries from catastrophes like the floods that hit most of Slovakia last year. I don't agree with bailing out Greece as they had their chance but it would be a good move for Slovakia to just sign it.