Students and families join French pension protests [European economies are still in a mess.]

PARIS (Reuters) – French families, students and private sector workers joined mass demonstrations on Saturday as trade unions ramped up pressure on the government to drop pension reforms.

Opposition to President Nicolas Sarkozy's plan to raise the retirement age to 62 from 60 showed no signs of abating and hundreds of thousands across the country marched in the fourth round of rallies in as many months

Unions said that about 2.9 million had marched, while police said the crowds numbered 899,000. The union figure was about the same as at the last demonstrations on September 23. The police figure was slightly lower.

About 230 protests took place across the country with a bigger turnout of families, who are less likely to protest on weekdays, and students as concerns about pension reform highlight a deeper anxiety about their future.

“Trade unions across Europe are seeking to rally opposition as governments slash spending to dig their way out of debts run up during the global financial crisis.”

The ‘global financial crisis’ is far from over. As long as we’re boxed into the debt based money trap, the bankers will continue to control our lives and well beings. There ARE alternatives.

http://economicedge.blogspot.com/2010/02/face-of-freedoms-vision.html

1. End the practice of debt backed money at the federal level, returning the power of money creation to the people via Congress as the U.S. Constitution dictates.

2. Clear out excessive debt and derivatives from the entire financial system, thus repairing balance sheets and producing workable debt to income ratios. The following will be accomplished:

a. People’s balance sheets will be repaired by returning tax dollars to the people to be used to directly pay down existing debt.

b. All banks and financial businesses are run through a special bankruptcy procedure to cleanse away unserviceable debt and derivatives. All banks will survive this process and will exit with 10 to 1 fractional reserve ability, a level of leverage that is safe and will be capped by law.

c. State balance sheets will be repaired and all states will create State Chartered Banks based on the successful model of the Bank of North Dakota. Additionally, these banks will assume the roles and functions formerly held by the 12 “Federal” Reserve banks, thus decentralizing control but in a coordinated manner where all states are benefitting equally.

3. Ensure the quantity of money remains under control in the long term by:

a. Ensuring accurate and unbiased economic measurements and reporting. This is easily achieved with 100% transparency in all data gathering and statistical methods, allowing the market to ‘police’ the government.

b. Create controls that tie overall money quantity to PRICE of ALL asset classes. Target ZERO price inflation and adjust quantity of money spent into existence without debt. Interest rates are set by the free market. This means no more long term inflation or deflation.

c. Separate special interest money from politics. This targeted political reform is necessary to keep the political system functioning for those who it is supposed to serve. Without this piece history proves that the other pieces will not last long, as those with large reservoirs of money will eventually co-opt the system for themselves.

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