ATTAC - Theme economy & finance

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The way in which the economy and finance works creates its own crises and changes societes deeply. They can only lose and forever more. It is increasingly difficult for populations to have the means to aspire to democratic principles or equal access to essential services. The economy itself is subject to the dominant ideology and is gradually becoming nothing more than a tool in the hands of a market dictatureship that each day redefines laws and customs for no other reason than its own profit. "Almost 1.3 billion people live with less than a dollar a day and nearly a billion people are incapable of satisfying their basic consumer requirements. The income gap between the world's richest fifth and its poorest fifth has more than doubled, to 74 to 1" (UNDP Human development report 1999).

Economic Crisis

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The financial crises are not unfortunate accidents. In fact their number and their frequency have increased in the past years. These crises put industrial and banking structures in peril, worse, they allow attacks on the founding structures of nations and cultures, of the right of the people to rule themselves. In a world of industrial over-production and financial speculation , the dictate of the markets is not a game where there are only winners, rather the contrary. “The gap between the rich and the poor has been deepening since the start of the 19th century. (…) the distribution of the world revenue between countries shows the gap between the richest and poorest nations : 3:1 in 1820 had risen to 72:1 in 1992” ( World report on Human Development. PNUD 1999)

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Financial system crisis

1- The End of the Asian Miracle
2- Heading for deflation?

The Debt

1- The Development and Historical Context of the Debt Crisis
2- Beginner's guide to Debt Crisis

Functionning

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The function of the economy and finance to-day is limited to those of the markets and different financial products allowing speculators to make money with money, restraining investment and the real economy to their dictate. The fact that they function is also evidence of the dysfunction of the international institutions which are becoming less and less democratic and more and more controlled by the ideology imposed by the few. In this generalised “everyone for himself “ , the few speculate against the well being and wealth of the mass of others. “ Between 1994 and 1998 the net personal wealth of the 200 richest people in the world rose from 440 billion dollars to 1042 billion, i.e. a progression of 500 dollars per second” (World report on Human Development. PNUD 1999 )

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1- The economy of production and the regulation of finance
2- What I learned at the world economic crisis.

Society

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Society is subjugated to the ideology of the market : egoism and the law of the strongest. Democracy wilts : “ Liberte ,Egalite ,Fraternite “, “ E pluribus unum”, are not just vain statements engraved in silver, and brandied by communication agencies to supplement statements by politicians and CEO’s that need an image boost. The weakest remain more subdued than ever and solidarity is nothing more than a surrealist utopia according to the diatribe of kingfinance. “ How is human development built : private revenues + public services + non-remunerated work + natural resources” (World report on Human Development. PNUD 1999)

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1- Finance against old age pension