in een verkiezingsnacht doen we het wat kalmer aan. Blijkbaar heeft
rooie Caroline onze hint rond de Olllandse verkiezingen ter harte
genomen. Ze verklaart dus met enig enthousiasme dat de SP-a de grootste
partij op de linkerkant blijft. Wat had ze dan gevreesd?
Voorbijgestoken te worden door de SLP en de LSP? O0f verpletterd worden
door de PVDA+ en CAP?
Rechts wint dus alhoewel we met blijdschap de uitslagen van het Vlaams
Belang bekijken....eindelijk! Goed de NVA wint en de Groen doen het in
Vlaanderen bijlange niet zo goed als in Wallonie. LDD wint, maar minder
dan verwacht. Het had groter onheil kunnen zijn.
Wij zijn benieuwd wat de impact zal zijn van deze regionale
verkiezingen op de federale regering en dus op het dossier van de
staatshervorming.
Hopelijk trekt verstandig links nu de conclusies en stelt eindelijk een
echt links programma op. Anders zal de afkalving blijven doorgaan...15%
is geen cijfer om trots op te zijn!
En hier hoiuden we het bij voor vandaag want jullie kijken vast en
zeker naar de televisie om daar allerlei onbenullige commentareb te
beluisteren van onze grote Vlaamse polletiekers! Veel pret ermee! Wij
rollen onze mouwen op want het wordt weer erg boeiend om te zien hoe
sommige problemen als armoede en werkloosheid zullen aangepakt worden.
Werk aan de winkel ....vanaf morgen !
en we doen nog even verder met een andere hele mooie speech van de
zelfde woordkunstenaar. Het was al lang geleden dat de wereld nog zulke
redenaar heeft gezien op dergelijke positie die dus iedereen kan
duidelijk maken hoe krachtig woorden en ideeën kunnen zijn We laten Obama aan het woord op een wel zeer geladen plaats voor Europa namelijk BUCHENWALD. De inleidende woorden van Merkel en de beklijvende eindwoorden van Elie Wiesel zijn er eveneens bij. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/05/obama-buchenwald-speech-t_n_211898.html
CHANCELLOR MERKEL: (As translated.) Mr. President, ladies and
gentlemen. Here in this place a concentration camp was established in
1937. Not far from here lies Weimar, a place where Germans created
wonderful works of art, thereby contributing to European culture and
civilization. Not far from that place where once artists, poets, and
great minds met, terror, violence, and tyranny reigned over this camp.
At the beginning of our joint visit to the Buchenwald memorial the
American President and I stood in front of a plaque commemorating all
the victims. When you put your hand on the memorial you can feel that
it has warmed up -- it is kept at a temperature of 37 degrees, the body
temperature of a living human being. This, however, was not a place for
living, but a place for dying.
Unimaginable horror, shock -- there are no words to adequately
describe what we feel when we look at the suffering inflicted so
cruelly upon so many people here and in other concentration and
extermination camps under National Socialist terror. I bow my head
before the victims.
We, the Germans, are faced with the agonizing question how and why
-- how could this happen? How could Germany wreak such havoc in Europe
and the world? It is therefore incumbent upon us Germans to show an
unshakeable resolve to do everything we can so that something like this
never happens again.
On the 25th of January, the presidents of the associations of former
inmates at the concentration camps presented their request to the
public, and this request closes with the following words: "The last
eyewitness appeal to Germany, to all European states, and to the
international community to continue preserving and honoring the human
gift of remembrance and commemoration into the future. We ask young
people to carry on our struggle against Nazi ideology, and for a just,
peaceful and tolerant world; a world that has no place for
anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, and right-wing extremism."
This appeal of the survivors clearly defines the very special
responsibility we Germans have to shoulder with regard to our history.
And for me, therefore, there are three messages that are important
today. First, let me emphasize, we Germans see it as past of our
country's raison d'être to keep the everlasting memory alive of the
break with civilization that was the Shoah. Only in this way will we be
able to shape our future.
I am therefore very grateful that the Buchenwald memorial has always
placed great emphasis on the dialogue with younger people, to
conversations with eyewitnesses, to documentation, and a broad-based
educational program.
Second, it is most important to keep the memory of the great
sacrifices alive that had to be made to put an end to the terror of
National Socialism and to liberate its victims and to rid all people of
its yoke.
This is why I want to say a particular word of gratitude to the
President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, for visiting
this particular memorial. It gives me an opportunity to align yet again
that we Germans shall never forget, and we owe the fact that we were
given the opportunity after the war to start anew, to enjoy peace and
freedom to the resolve, the strenuous efforts, and indeed to a
sacrifice made in blood of the United States of America and of all
those who stood by your side as allies or fighters in the resistance.
We were able to find our place again as members of the international
community through a forward-looking partnership. And this partnership
was finally key to enabling us to overcome the painful division of our
country in 1989, and the division also of our continent. Today we
remember the victims of this place. This includes remembering the
victims of the so-called Special Camp 2, a detention camp run by the
Soviet military administration from 1945 to 1950. Thousands of people
perished due to the inhumane conditions of their detention.
Third, here in Buchenwald I would like to highlight an obligation
placed on us Germans as a consequence of our past: to stand up for
human rights, to stand up for rule of law, and for democracy. We shall
fight against terror, extremism, and anti-Semitism. And in the
awareness of our responsibility we shall strive for peace and freedom,
together with our friends and partners in the United States and all
over the world.
Thank you.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Chancellor Merkel and I have just finished our tour
here at Buchenwald. I want to thank Dr. Volkhard Knigge, who gave an
outstanding account of what we were witnessing. I am particularly
grateful to be accompanied by my friend Elie Wiesel, as well as Mr.
Bertrand Herz, both of whom are survivors of this place.
We saw the area known as Little Camp where Elie and Bertrand were
sent as boys. In fact, at the place that commemorates this camp, there
is a photograph in which we can see a 16-year-old Elie in one of the
bunks along with the others. We saw the ovens of the crematorium, the
guard towers, the barbed wire fences, the foundations of barracks that
once held people in the most unimaginable conditions.
We saw the memorial to all the survivors -- a steel plate, as
Chancellor Merkel said, that is heated to 37 degrees Celsius, the
temperature of the human body; a reminder -- where people were deemed
inhuman because of their differences -- of the mark that we all share.
Now these sights have not lost their horror with the passage of
time. As we were walking up, Elie said, "if these trees could talk."
And there's a certain irony about the beauty of the landscape and the
horror that took place here.
More than half a century later, our grief and our outrage over what
happened have not diminished. I will not forget what I've seen here
today.
I've known about this place since I was a boy, hearing stories about
my great uncle, who was a very young man serving in World War II. He
was part of the 89th Infantry Division, the first Americans to reach a
concentration camp. They liberated Ohrdruf, one of Buchenwald's
sub-camps.
And I told this story, he returned from his service in a state of
shock saying little and isolating himself for months on end from family
and friends, alone with the painful memories that would not leave his
head. And as we see -- as we saw some of the images here, it's
understandable that someone who witnessed what had taken place here
would be in a state of shock.
My great uncle's commander, General Eisenhower, understood this
impulse to silence. He had seen the piles of bodies and starving
survivors and deplorable conditions that the American soldiers found
when they arrived, and he knew that those who witnessed these things
might be too stunned to speak about them or be able -- be unable to
find the words to describe them; that they might be rendered mute in
the way my great uncle had. And he knew that what had happened here was
so unthinkable that after the bodies had been taken away, that perhaps
no one would believe it.
And that's why he ordered American troops and Germans from the
nearby town to tour the camp. He invited congressmen and journalists to
bear witness and ordered photographs and films to be made. And he
insisted on viewing every corner of these camps so that -- and I quote
-- he could "be in a position to give first-hand evidence of these
things if ever in the future there develops a tendency to charge these
allegations merely to propaganda."
We are here today because we know this work is not yet finished. To
this day, there are those who insist that the Holocaust never happened
-- a denial of fact and truth that is baseless and ignorant and
hateful. This place is the ultimate rebuke to such thoughts; a reminder
of our duty to confront those who would tell lies about our history.
Also to this day, there are those who perpetuate every form of
intolerance -- racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, xenophobia, sexism,
and more -- hatred that degrades its victims and diminishes us all. In
this century, we've seen genocide. We've seen mass graves and the ashes
of villages burned to the ground; children used as soldiers and rape
used as a weapon of war. This places teaches us that we must be ever
vigilant about the spread of evil in our own time, that we must reject
the false comfort that others' suffering is not our problem and commit
ourselves to resisting those who would subjugate others to serve their
own interests.
But as we reflect today on the human capacity for evil and our
shared obligation to defy it, we're also reminded of the human capacity
for good. For amidst the countless acts of cruelty that took place
here, we know that there were many acts of courage and kindness, as
well. The Jews who insisted on fasting on Yom Kippur. The camp cook who
hid potatoes in the lining of his prison uniform and distributed them
to his fellow inmates, risking his own life to help save theirs. The
prisoners who organized a special effort to protect the children here,
sheltering them from work and giving them extra food. They set up
secret classrooms, some of the inmates, and taught history and math and
urged the children to think about their future professions. And we were
just hearing about the resistance that formed and the irony that the
base for the resistance was in the latrine areas because the guards
found it so offensive that they wouldn't go there. And so out of the
filth, that became a space in which small freedoms could thrive.
When the American GIs arrived they were astonished to find more than
900 children still alive, and the youngest was just three years old.
And I'm told that a couple of the prisoners even wrote a Buchenwald
song that many here sang. Among the lyrics were these: "...whatever our
fate, we will say yes to life, for the day will come when we are
free...in our blood we carry the will to live and in our hearts, in our
hearts -- faith."
These individuals never could have known the world would one day
speak of this place. They could not have known that some of them would
live to have children and grandchildren who would grow up hearing their
stories and would return here so many years later to find a museum and
memorials and the clock tower set permanently to 3:15, the moment of
liberation.
They could not have known how the nation of Israel would rise out of
the destruction of the Holocaust and the strong, enduring bonds between
that great nation and my own. And they could not have known that one
day an American President would visit this place and speak of them and
that he would do so standing side by side with the German Chancellor in
a Germany that is now a vibrant democracy and a valued American ally.
They could not have known these things. But still surrounded by
death they willed themselves to hold fast to life. In their hearts they
still had faith that evil would not triumph in the end, that while
history is unknowable it arches towards progress, and that the world
would one day remember them. And it is now up to us, the living, in our
work, wherever we are, to resist injustice and intolerance and
indifference in whatever forms they may take, and ensure that those who
were lost here did not go in vain. It is up to us to redeem that faith.
It is up to us to bear witness; to ensure that the world continues to
note what happened here; to remember all those who survived and all
those who perished, and to remember them not just as victims, but also
as individuals who hoped and loved and dreamed just like us.
And just as we identify with the victims, it's also important for us
I think to remember that the perpetrators of such evil were human, as
well, and that we have to guard against cruelty in ourselves. And I
want to express particular thanks to Chancellor Merkel and the German
people, because it's not easy to look into the past in this way and
acknowledge it and make something of it, make a determination that they
will stand guard against acts like this happening again.
Rather than have me end with my remarks I thought it was appropriate
to have Elie Wiesel provide some reflection and some thought as he
returns here so many years later to the place where his father died.
MR. WIESEL: Mr. President, Chancellor Merkel, Bertrand, ladies and
gentlemen. As I came here today it was actually a way of coming and
visit my father's grave -- but he had no grave. His grave is somewhere
in the sky. This has become in those years the largest cemetery of the
Jewish people.
The day he died was one of the darkest in my life. He became sick,
weak, and I was there. I was there when he suffered. I was there when
he asked for help, for water. I was there to receive his last words.
But I was not there when he called for me, although we were in the same
block; he on the upper bed and I on the lower bed. He called my name,
and I was too afraid to move. All of us were. And then he died. I was
there, but I was not there.
And I thought one day I will come back and speak to him, and tell
him of the world that has become mine. I speak to him of times in which
memory has become a sacred duty of all people of good will -- in
America, where I live, or in Europe or in Germany, where you,
Chancellor Merkel, are a leader with great courage and moral
aspirations.
What can I tell him that the world has learned? I am not so sure.
Mr. President, we have such high hopes for you because you, with your
moral vision of history, will be able and compelled to change this
world into a better place, where people will stop waging war -- every
war is absurd and meaningless; where people will stop hating one
another; where people will hate the otherness of the other rather than
respect it.
But the world hasn't learned. When I was liberated in 1945, April
11, by the American army, somehow many of us were convinced that at
least one lesson will have been learned -- that never again will there
be war; that hatred is not an option, that racism is stupid; and the
will to conquer other people's minds or territories or aspirations,
that will is meaningless.
I was so hopeful. Paradoxically, I was so hopeful then. Many of us
were, although we had the right to give up on humanity, to give up on
culture, to give up on education, to give up on the possibility of
living one's life with dignity in a world that has no place for dignity.
We rejected that possibility and we said, no, we must continue
believing in a future, because the world has learned. But again, the
world hasn't. Had the world learned, there would have been no Cambodia
and no Rwanda and no Darfur and no Bosnia.
Will the world ever learn? I think that is why Buchenwald is so
important -- as important, of course, but differently as Auschwitz.
It's important because here the large -- the big camp was a kind of
international community. People came there from all horizons --
political, economic, culture. The first globalization essay,
experiment, were made in Buchenwald. And all that was meant to diminish
the humanity of human beings.
You spoke of humanity, Mr. President. Though unto us, in those
times, it was human to be inhuman. And now the world has learned, I
hope. And of course this hope includes so many of what now would be
your vision for the future, Mr. President. A sense of security for
Israel, a sense of security for its neighbors, to bring peace in that
place. The time must come. It's enough -- enough to go to cemeteries,
enough to weep for oceans. It's enough. There must come a moment -- a
moment of bringing people together.
And therefore we say anyone who comes here should go back with that
resolution. Memory must bring people together rather than set them
apart. Memories here not to sow anger in our hearts, but on the
contrary, a sense of solidarity that all those who need us. What else
can we do except invoke that memory so that people everywhere who say
the 21st century is a century of new beginnings, filled with promise
and infinite hope, and at times profound gratitude to all those who
believe in our task, which is to improve the human condition.
A great man, Camus, wrote at the end of his marvelous novel, The
Plague: "After all," he said, "after the tragedy, never the
rest...there is more in the human being to celebrate than to
denigrate." Even that can be found as truth -- painful as it is -- in
Buchenwald.
Thank you, Mr. President, for allowing me to come back to my father's grave, which is still in my heart.
Na jààààààren van onzin over assen van het kwaad, nieuwe kruisvaarders
en meer van dat soort kattepis kregen we nu een nieuwe wind vanuit
Amerika. We zijn er intussen nog niet helemaal uit of Obama nu Ierse of
Duitse roots heeft. Het is in elk geval een geluk geweest voor zijn
Duitse voorouders uit de jaren dertig dat ze toen niet ergens in het
groot-germaanse idiotenrijk rondliepen met de zelfde huidpigmenten als
de huidige president. We' hebben hier altijd beweerd dat we wel zouden
zien wat er zou veranderen en we geven toe dat deze man in elk geval al
heel wat veranderd heeft ten goede. Gunstig afsteken tegen de vorige
schlemiel is natuurlijk niet zo moeilijk zal menigeen denken. Dat klopt
maar is niet het hele plaatje. Gisteren hoorden we een speech die
inderdaad historich te noemen is. Jullie weten dat we hier altijd een
sterk zwak hebben gehad voor mooie verklaringen. Op verschillende
momenten hebben we hier mooie politieke verklaringen afgedrukt.
Realiseerbaar of niet. Het moet de toehoorders hoop geven op een betere
toekomst en het mag geen mensen tegen elkaar opzetten dat zijn onze
twee criteria. De speech die Obama in Cairo hield voldoet volledig
aan deze twee vereisten en we vinden het dan ook niet meer dan normaal
om hem hier integraal ter beschikking te stellen, volledig
uitgeschreven. Het is inderdaad een historische speech en een volledige
ommezwaai van de Amerikaanse buitenlandse politiek. Toch niet minnetjes
dachten we zo. Zeker niet na de maffieuse bende rond Georgeke B. Na de
door het congres gesaboteerde poging tot opruiming van dat ander
schandaal en etterbuil van de vorige buitenlandse politiek namelijk
Guantanamo heeft deze man ons respect verdient. Iets wat we niet gunnen
aan de kwallen die hier rond onze Vlaamse kerktorens meenden te moeten
komen uitleggen dat België geen twee gevangenen uit Guantanamo mocht
opnemen...met alle mogelijke walgelijke argumenten die niks ter zake
deden. We geven tot onze eigen verbazing zelfs toe dat De Gucht, je
weet wel, het hier bij het rechte eind had en we zeggen dat niet graag
want hij zit bij een partij die we niet in het hart dragen. Maar de
waarheid heeft zo haar rechten zoals we steeds herhalen en we hebben
vanuit de zogenaamde linkse hoek weer veel te veel onnozelheden
hierover gehoord. Maar we wijken af. Hieronder dus de speech en we wenjsen jullie veel leesplezier! http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/06/20096410251287187.html
Full text: Obama's Cairo speech
Obama's speech in Egypt aimed at healing a rift with the Muslim world [AFP]
I am honoured to be in the timeless
city of Cairo, and to be hosted by two remarkable institutions. For
over 1,000 years, Al-Azhar has stood as a beacon of Islamic learning,
and for over a century, Cairo University has been a source of Egypt's
advancement. Together, you represent the harmony between tradition and
progress. I am grateful for your hospitality, and the hospitality of
the people of Egypt. I am also proud to carry with me the goodwill of
the American people, and a greeting of peace from Muslim communities in
my country: assalaamu alaykum.
"We meet at a time of tension
between the United States and Muslims around the world, tension rooted
in historical forces that go beyond any current policy debate.
"The
relationship between Islam and the West includes centuries of
co-existence and co-operation, but also conflict and religious wars.
More recently, tension has been fed by colonialism that denied rights
and opportunities to many Muslims, and a Cold War in which
Muslim-majority countries were too often treated as proxies without
regard to their own aspirations. Moreover, the sweeping change brought
by modernity and globalisation led many Muslims to view the West as
hostile to the traditions of Islam.
Violent extremists have exploited these
tensions in a small but potent minority of Muslims. The attacks of
September 11th, 2001, and the continued efforts of these extremists to
engage in violence against civilians has led some in my country to view
Islam as inevitably hostile not only to
America and Western countries, but also to human rights. This has bred
more fear and mistrust.
So long as our relationship is
defined by our differences, we will empower those who sow hatred rather
than peace, and who promote conflict rather than the co-operation that
can help all of our people achieve justice and prosperity. This cycle
of suspicion and discord must end.
I have come here to seek a
new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world;
one based upon mutual interest and mutual respect; and one based upon
the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive, and need not be in
competition. Instead, they overlap, and share common principles of
justice and progress; tolerance and the dignity of all human beings.
I do so recognising that change
cannot happen overnight. No single speech can eradicate years of
mistrust, nor can I answer in the time that I have all the complex
questions that brought us to this point. But I am convinced that in
order to move forward, we must say openly the things we hold in our
hearts, and that too often are said only behind closed doors. There
must be a sustained effort to listen to each other; to learn from each
other; to respect one another; and to seek common ground.
As
the Holy Quran tells us: "Be conscious of God and speak always the
truth." That is what I will try to do, to speak the truth as best I
can, humbled by the task before us, and firm in my belief that the
interests we share as human beings are far more powerful than the
forces that drive us apart.
Part of this conviction is rooted in my
own experience. I am a Christian, but my father came from a Kenyan
family that includes generations of Muslims. As a boy, I spent several
years in Indonesia and heard the call of the azaan at the break of dawn
and the fall of dusk. As a young man, I worked in Chicago communities
where many found dignity and peace in their Muslim faith.
As a student of history, I also know
civilization's debt to Islam. It was Islam at places like Al-Azhar
University that carried the light of learning through so many
centuries, paving the way for Europe's Renaissance and Enlightenment.
It was innovation in Muslim communities that developed the order of
algebra; our magnetic compass and tools of navigation; our mastery of
pens and printing; our understanding of how disease spreads and how it
can be healed.
Islamic culture has given us majestic arches and
soaring spires; timeless poetry and cherished music; elegant
calligraphy and places of peaceful contemplation. And throughout
history, Islam has demonstrated through words and deeds the
possibilities of religious tolerance and racial equality.
I know, too, that Islam has always been
a part of America's story. The first nation to recognise my country was
Morocco. In signing the Treaty of Tripoli in 1796, our second President
John Adams wrote: "The United States has in itself no character of
enmity against the laws, religion or tranquility of Muslims."
And
since our founding, American Muslims have enriched the United States.
They have fought in our wars, served in government, stood for civil
rights, started businesses, taught at our universities, excelled in our
sports arenas, won Nobel Prizes, built our tallest building, and lit
the Olympic Torch. And when the first Muslim-American was recently
elected to Congress, he took the oath to defend our Constitution using
the same Holy Quran that one of our Founding Fathers Thomas Jefferson
kept in his personal library.
So I have known Islam on three
continents before coming to the region where it was first revealed.
That experience guides my conviction that partnership between America
and Islam must be based on what Islam is, not what it isn't. And I
consider it part of my responsibility as president of the United States
to fight against negative stereotypes of Islam wherever they appear.
But that same principle must apply to
Muslim perceptions of America. Just as Muslims do not fit a crude
stereotype, America is not the crude stereotype of a self-interested
empire. The United States has been one of the greatest sources of
progress that the world has ever known. We were born out of revolution
against an empire. We were founded upon the ideal that all are created
equal, and we have shed blood and struggled for centuries to give
meaning to those words within our borders, and around the world. We are
shaped by every culture, drawn from every end of the Earth, and
dedicated to a simple concept: Epluribus unum: "Out of many, one."
Much
has been made of the fact that an African-American with the name Barack
Hussein Obama could be elected president. But my personal story is not
so unique. The dream of opportunity for all people has not come true
for everyone in America, but its promise exists for all who come to our
shores - that includes nearly seven million American Muslims in our
country today who enjoy incomes and education that are higher than
average.
Moreover, freedom in America is
indivisible from the freedom to practice one's religion. That is why
there is a mosque in every state of our union, and over 1,200 mosques
within our borders. That is why the US government has gone to court to
protect the right of women and girls to wear the hijab, and to punish
those who would deny it.
So let there be no doubt: Islam is a
part of America. And I believe that America holds within her the truth
that regardless of race, religion, or station in life, all of us share
common aspirations to live in peace and security; to get an education
and to work with dignity; to love our families, our communities, and
our God. These things we share. This is the hope of all humanity.
Of course, recognising our common
humanity is only the beginning of our task. Words alone cannot meet the
needs of our people. These needs will be met only if we act boldly in
the years ahead; and if we understand that the challenges we face are
shared, and our failure to meet them will hurt us all.
For we have learned from recent
experience that when a financial system weakens in one country,
prosperity is hurt everywhere. When a new flu infects one human being,
all are at risk. When one nation pursues a nuclear weapon, the risk of
nuclear attack rises for all nations. When violent extremists operate
in one stretch of mountains, people are endangered across an ocean. And
when innocents in Bosnia and Darfur are slaughtered, that is a stain on
our collective conscience. That is what it means to share this world in
the 21st century. That is the responsibility we have to one another as
human beings.
This is a difficult responsibility to
embrace. For human history has often been a record of nations and
tribes subjugating one another to serve their own interests. Yet in
this new age, such attitudes are self-defeating. Given our
interdependence, any world order that elevates one nation or group of
people over another will inevitably fail. So whatever we think of the
past, we must not be prisoners of it. Our problems must be dealt with
through partnership; progress must be shared.
That does not mean we should ignore
sources of tension. Indeed, it suggests the opposite: we must face
these tensions squarely. And so in that spirit, let me speak as clearly
and plainly as I can about some specific issues that I believe we must
finally confront together.
The first issue that we have to confront is violent extremism in all of its forms.
In Ankara, I made clear that America is
not and never will be at war with Islam. We will, however, relentlessly
confront violent extremists who pose a grave threat to our security.
Because
we reject the same thing that people of all faiths reject: the killing
of innocent men, women, and children. And it is my first duty as
president to protect the American people.
The situation in
Afghanistan demonstrates America's goals, and our need to work
together. Over seven years ago, the United States pursued al-Qaeda and
the Taliban with broad international support. We did not go by choice,
we went because of necessity.
I am aware that some question or
justify the events of 9/11. But let us be clear: al-Qaeda killed nearly
3,000 people on that day. The victims were innocent men, women and
children from America and many other nations who had done nothing to
harm anybody. And yet al-Qaeda chose to ruthlessly murder these people,
claimed credit for the attack, and even now states their determination
to kill on a massive scale. They have affiliates in many countries and
are trying to expand their reach. These are not opinions to be debated;
these are facts to be dealt with.
Make no mistake: We do not want to keep
our troops in Afghanistan. We seek no military bases there. It is
agonising for America to lose our young men and women. It is costly and
politically difficult to continue this conflict. We would gladly bring
every single one of our troops home if we could be confident that there
were not violent extremists in Afghanistan and Pakistan determined to
kill as many Americans as they possibly can. But that is not yet the
case.
That's why we're partnering with a
coalition of 46 countries. And despite the costs involved, America's
commitment will not weaken. Indeed, none of us should tolerate these
extremists. They have killed in many countries. They have killed people
of different faiths more than any other, they have killed Muslims.
Their actions are irreconcilable with the rights of human beings, the
progress of nations, and with Islam.
The Holy Quran teaches
that whoever kills an innocent, it is as if he has killed all mankind;
and whoever saves a person, it is as if he has saved all mankind. The
enduring faith of over a billion people is so much bigger than the
narrow hatred of a few. Islam is not part of the problem in combating
violent extremism it is an important part of promoting peace. We also
know that military power alone is not going to solve the problems in
Afghanistan and Pakistan. That is why we plan to invest $1.5 billion
each year over the next five years to partner with Pakistanis to build
schools and hospitals, roads and businesses, and hundreds of millions
to help those who have been displaced. And that is why we are providing
more than $2.8 billion to help Afghans develop their economy and
deliver services that people depend upon.
Let me also address
the issue of Iraq. Unlike Afghanistan, Iraq was a war of choice that
provoked strong differences in my country and around the world.
Although I believe that the Iraqi people are ultimately better off
without the tyranny of Saddam Hussein, I also believe that events in
Iraq have reminded America of the need to use diplomacy and build
international consensus to resolve our problems whenever possible.
Indeed, we can recall the words of Thomas Jefferson, who said: "I hope
that our wisdom will grow with our power, and teach us that the less we
use our power the greater it will be."
Today, America has a dual
responsibility: to help Iraq forge a better future - and to leave Iraq
to Iraqis. I have made it clear to the Iraqi people that we pursue no
bases, and no claim on their territory or resources. Iraq's sovereignty
is its own.
That is why I ordered the removal of
our combat brigades by next August. That is why we will honour our
agreement with Iraq's democratically elected government to remove
combat troops from Iraqi cities by July, and to remove all our troops
from Iraq by 2012. We will help Iraq train its security forces and
develop its economy. But we will support a secure and united Iraq as a
partner, and never as a patron.
And finally, just as America can never
tolerate violence by extremists, we must never alter our principles.
9/11 was an enormous trauma to our country. The fear and anger that it
provoked was understandable, but in some cases, it led us to act
contrary to our ideals. We are taking concrete actions to change
course. I have unequivocally prohibited the use of torture by the
United States, and I have ordered the prison at Guantanamo Bay closed
by early next year.
So America will defend itself
respectful of the sovereignty of nations and the rule of law. And we
will do so in partnership with Muslim communities which are also
threatened. The sooner the extremists are isolated and unwelcome in
Muslim communities, the sooner we will all be safer.
The second major source of tension that we need to discuss is the situation between Israelis, Palestinians and the Arab world.
America's strong bonds with Israel are
well known. This bond is unbreakable. It is based upon cultural and
historical ties, and the recognition that the aspiration for a Jewish
homeland is rooted in a tragic history that cannot be denied.
Around
the world, the Jewish people were persecuted for centuries, and
anti-Semitism in Europe culminated in an unprecedented Holocaust.
Tomorrow, I will visit Buchenwald, which was part of a network of camps
where Jews were enslaved, tortured, shot and gassed to death by the
Third Reich. Six million Jews were killed more than the entire Jewish
population of Israel today. Denying that fact is baseless, ignorant,
and hateful. Threatening Israel with destruction or repeating vile
stereotypes about Jews is deeply wrong, and only serves to evoke in the
minds of Israelis this most painful of memories while preventing the
peace that the people of this region deserve.
On the other hand, it is also
undeniable that the Palestinian people, Muslims and Christians, have
suffered in pursuit of a homeland. For more than 60 years they have
endured the pain of dislocation. Many wait in refugee camps in the West
Bank, Gaza, and neighbouring lands for a life of peace and security
that they have never been able to lead. They endure the daily
humiliations large and small that come with occupation. So let there be
no doubt: the situation for the Palestinian people is intolerable.
America will not turn our backs on the legitimate Palestinian
aspiration for dignity, opportunity, and a state of their own.
For decades, there has been a
stalemate: two peoples with legitimate aspirations, each with a painful
history that makes compromise elusive. It is easy to point fingers for
Palestinians to point to the displacement brought by Israel's founding,
and for Israelis to point to the constant hostility and attacks
throughout its history from within its borders as well as beyond. But
if we see this conflict only from one side or the other, then we will
be blind to the truth: the only resolution is for the aspirations of
both sides to be met through two states, where Israelis and
Palestinians each live in peace and security.
That is in Israel's interest,
Palestine's interest, America's interest, and the world's interest.
That is why I intend to personally pursue this outcome with all the
patience that the task requires. The obligations that the parties have
agreed to under the road map are clear. For peace to come, it is time
for them and all of us to live up to our responsibilities.
Palestinians must abandon violence.
Resistance through violence and killing is wrong and does not succeed.
For centuries, black people in America suffered the lash of the whip as
slaves and the humiliation of segregation. But it was not violence that
won full and equal rights. It was a peaceful and determined insistence
upon the ideals at the centre of America's founding.
This same story can be told by people
from South Africa to South Asia; from Eastern Europe to Indonesia. It's
a story with a simple truth: that violence is a dead end. It is a sign
of neither courage nor power to shoot rockets at sleeping children, or
to blow up old women on a bus. That is not how moral authority is
claimed; that is how it is surrendered. Now is the time for
Palestinians to focus on what they can build. The Palestinian Authority
must develop its capacity to govern, with institutions that serve the
needs of its people.
Hamas does have support among some
Palestinians, but they also have responsibilities. To play a role in
fulfilling Palestinian aspirations, and to unify the Palestinian
people, Hamas must put an end to violence, recognise past agreements,
and recognise Israel's right to exist.
At the same time, Israelis must
acknowledge that just as Israel's right to exist cannot be denied,
neither can Palestine's. The United States does not accept the
legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements. This construction violates
previous agreements and undermines efforts to achieve peace. It is time
for these settlements to stop.
Israel must also live up to its
obligations to ensure that Palestinians can live, and work, and develop
their society. And just as it devastates Palestinian families, the
continuing humanitarian crisis in Gaza does not serve Israel's
security; neither does the continuing lack of opportunity in the West
Bank. Progress in the daily lives of the Palestinian people must be
part of a road to peace, and Israel must take concrete steps to enable
such progress.
Finally, the Arab states must recognise
that the Arab Peace Initiative was an important beginning, but not the
end of their responsibilities. The Arab-Israeli conflict should no
longer be used to distract the people of Arab nations from other
problems.
Instead, it must be a cause for action
to help the Palestinian people develop the institutions that will
sustain their state; to recognise Israel's legitimacy; and to choose
progress over a self-defeating focus on the past.
America will align our policies with
those who pursue peace, and say in public what we say in private to
Israelis and Palestinians and Arabs. We cannot impose peace. But
privately, many Muslims recognise that Israel will not go away.
Likewise, many Israelis recognise the need for a Palestinian state. It
is time for us to act on what everyone knows to be true.
Too
many tears have flowed. Too much blood has been shed. All of us have a
responsibility to work for the day when the mothers of Israelis and
Palestinians can see their children grow up without fear; when the Holy
Land of three great faiths is the place of peace that God intended it
to be; when Jerusalem is a secure and lasting home for Jews and
Christians and Muslims, and a place for all of the children of Abraham
to mingle peacefully together as in the story of Isra, when Moses,
Jesus, and Muhammad (peace be upon them) joined in prayer.
The third source of tension is our
shared interest in the rights and responsibilities of nations on
nuclear weapons. This issue has been a source of tension between the
United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. For many years, Iran
has defined itself in part by its opposition to my country, and there
is indeed a tumultuous history between us. In the middle of the Cold
War, the United States played a role in the overthrow of a
democratically elected Iranian government. Since the Islamic
Revolution, Iran has played a role in acts of hostage-taking and
violence against US troops and civilians.
This history is well known. Rather than
remain trapped in the past, I have made it clear to Iran's leaders and
people that my country is prepared to move forward. The question, now,
is not what Iran is against, but rather what future it wants to build.
It will be hard to overcome decades of
mistrust, but we will proceed with courage, rectitude and resolve.
There will be many issues to discuss between our two countries, and we
are willing to move forward without preconditions on the basis of
mutual respect. But it is clear to all concerned that when it comes to
nuclear weapons, we have reached a decisive point. This is not simply
about America's interests. It is about preventing a nuclear arms race
in the Middle East that could lead this region and the world down a
hugely dangerous path.
I understand those who protest that
some countries have weapons that others do not. No single nation should
pick and choose which nations hold nuclear weapons. That is why I
strongly reaffirmed America's commitment to seek a world in which no
nations hold nuclear weapons. And any nation - including Iran - should
have the right to access peaceful nuclear power if it complies with its
responsibilities under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. That
commitment is at the core of the treaty, and it must be kept for all
who fully abide by it. And I am hopeful that all countries in the
region can share in this goal.
The fourth issue that I will address is
democracy. I know there has been controversy about the promotion of
democracy in recent years, and much of this controversy is connected to
the war in Iraq. So let me be clear: no system of government can or
should be imposed upon one nation by any other.
That does not lessen my commitment,
however, to governments that reflect the will of the people. Each
nation gives life to this principle in its own way, grounded in the
traditions of its own people. America does not presume to know what is
best for everyone, just as we would not presume to pick the outcome of
a peaceful election. But I do have an unyielding belief that all people
yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say
in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal
administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn't
steal from the people; the freedom to live as you choose. Those are not
just American ideas, they are human rights, and that is why we will
support them everywhere.
There is no straight line to realise
this promise. But this much is clear: governments that protect these
rights are ultimately more stable, successful and secure. Suppressing
ideas never succeeds in making them go away. America respects the right
of all peaceful and law-abiding voices to be heard around the world,
even if we disagree with them. And we will welcome all elected,
peaceful governments provided they govern with respect for all their
people.
This last point is important because
there are some who advocate for democracy only when they are out of
power; once in power, they are ruthless in suppressing the rights of
others. No matter where it takes hold, government of the people and by
the people sets a single standard for all who hold power: you must
maintain your power through consent, not coercion; you must respect the
rights of minorities, and participate with a spirit of tolerance and
compromise; you must place the interests of your people and the
legitimate workings of the political process above your party. Without
these ingredients, elections alone do not make true democracy.
The fifth issue that we must address together is religious freedom.
Islam has a proud tradition of
tolerance. We see it in the history of Andalusia and Cordoba during the
Inquisition. I saw it firsthand as a child in Indonesia, where devout
Christians worshipped freely in an overwhelmingly Muslim country. That
is the spirit we need today.
People in every country should be free
to choose and live their faith based upon the persuasion of the mind,
heart, and soul. This tolerance is essential for religion to thrive,
but it is being challenged in many different ways.
Among some Muslims, there is a
disturbing tendency to measure one's own faith by the rejection of
another's. The richness of religious diversity must be upheld whether
it is for Maronites in Lebanon or the Copts in Egypt. And faultlines
must be closed among Muslims as well, as the divisions between Sunni
and Shia have led to tragic violence, particularly in Iraq.
Freedom of religion is central to the
ability of peoples to live together. We must always examine the ways in
which we protect it. For instance, in the United States, rules on
charitable giving have made it harder for Muslims to fulfil their
religious obligation. That is why I am committed to working with
American Muslims to ensure that they can fulfil zakat.
Likewise, it is important for Western
countries to avoid impeding Muslim citizens from practicing religion as
they see fit for instance, by dictating what clothes a Muslim woman
should wear. We cannot disguise hostility towards any religion behind
the pretence of liberalism. Indeed, faith should bring us together.
That is why we are forging service projects in America that bring
together Christians, Muslims, and Jews. That is why we welcome efforts
like Saudi Arabian King Abdullah's interfaith dialogue and Turkey's
leadership in the Alliance of Civilisations. Around the world, we can
turn dialogue into interfaith service, so bridges between peoples lead
to action whether it is combating malaria in Africa, or providing
relief after a natural disaster.
The sixth issue that I want to address
is women's rights. I know there is debate about this issue. I reject
the view of some in the West that a woman who chooses to cover her hair
is somehow less equal, but I do believe that a woman who is denied an
education is denied equality. And it is no coincidence that countries
where women are well-educated are far more likely to be prosperous.
Now let me be clear: issues of women's
equality are by no means simply an issue for Islam. In Turkey,
Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia, we have seen Muslim-majority
countries elect a woman to lead. Meanwhile, the struggle for women's
equality continues in many aspects of American life, and in countries
around the world.
Our daughters can contribute just as
much to society as our sons, and our common prosperity will be advanced
by allowing all humanity, men and women, to reach their full potential.
I do not believe that women must make the same choices as men in order
to be equal, and I respect those women who choose to live their lives
in traditional roles. But it should be their choice. That is why the
United States will partner with any Muslim-majority country to support
expanded literacy for girls, and to help young women pursue employment
through micro-financing that helps people live their dreams.
Finally, I want to discuss economic
development and opportunity. I know that for many, the face of
globalisation is contradictory. The internet and television can bring
knowledge and information, but also offensive sexuality and mindless
violence. Trade can bring new wealth and opportunities, but also huge
disruptions and changing communities. In all nations, including my own,
this change can bring fear. Fear that because of modernity we will lose
control over our economic choices, our politics, and most importantly
our identities - those things we most cherish about our communities,
our families, our traditions, and our faith.
But I also know that human progress
cannot be denied. There need not be contradiction between development
and tradition. Countries like Japan and South Korea grew their
economies while maintaining distinct cultures. The same is true for the
astonishing progress within Muslim-majority countries from Kuala Lumpur
to Dubai. In ancient times and in our times, Muslim communities have
been at the forefront of innovation and education.
This is important because no
development strategy can be based only upon what comes out of the
ground, nor can it be sustained while young people are out of work.
Many Gulf states have enjoyed great wealth as a consequence of oil, and
some are beginning to focus it on broader development. But all of us
must recognise that education and innovation will be the currency of
the 21st century, and in too many Muslim communities there remains
under-investment in these areas. I am emphasising such investments
within my country. And while America in the past has focused on oil and
gas in this part of the world, we now seek a broader engagement.
On education, we will expand exchange
programmes, and increase scholarships, like the one that brought my
father to America, while encouraging more Americans to study in Muslim
communities. And we will match promising Muslim students with
internships in America; invest in online learning for teachers and
children around the world; and create a new online network, so a
teenager in Kansas can communicate instantly with a teenager in Cairo.
On economic development, we will create a new corps of business
volunteers to partner with counterparts in Muslim-majority countries.
And I will host a Summit on Entrepreneurship this year to identify how
we can deepen ties between business leaders, foundations and social
entrepreneurs in the United States and Muslim communities around the
world.
On science and technology, we will
launch a new fund to support technological development in
Muslim-majority countries, and to help transfer ideas to the
marketplace so they can create jobs. We will open centres of scientific
excellence in Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia, and appoint
new Science Envoys to collaborate on programmes that develop new
sources of energy, create green jobs, digitise records, clean water,
and grow new crops. And today I am announcing a new global effort with
the Organisation of the Islamic Conference to eradicate polio. And we
will also expand partnerships with Muslim communities to promote child
and maternal health.
All these things must be done in
partnership. Americans are ready to join with citizens and governments;
community organisations, religious leaders, and businesses in Muslim
communities around the world to help our people pursue a better life.
The issues that I have described will
not be easy to address. But we have a responsibility to join together
on behalf of the world we seek - a world where extremists no longer
threaten our people, and American troops have come home; a world where
Israelis and Palestinians are each secure in a state of their own, and
nuclear energy is used for peaceful purposes; a world where governments
serve their citizens, and the rights of all God's children are
respected. Those are mutual interests.
That is the world we seek. But we can
only achieve it together. I know there are many, Muslim and non-Muslim,
who question whether we can forge this new beginning. Some are eager to
stoke the flames of division, and to stand in the way of progress. Some
suggest that it isn't worth the effort that we are fated to disagree,
and civilisations are doomed to clash. Many more are simply sceptical
that real change can occur. There is so much fear, so much mistrust.
But if we choose to be bound by the past, we will never move forward.
And I want to particularly say this to young people of every faith, in
every country, you, more than anyone, have the ability to remake this
world. All of us share this world for but a brief moment in time.
The question is whether we spend that
time focused on what pushes us apart, or whether we commit ourselves to
an effort, a sustained effort, to find common ground, to focus on the
future we seek for our children, and to respect the dignity of all
human beings.
It is easier to start wars than to end
them. It is easier to blame others than to look inward; to see what is
different about someone than to find the things we share. But we should
choose the right path, not just the easy path. There is also one rule
that lies at the heart of every religion that we do unto others as we
would have them do unto us. This truth transcends nations and peoples a
belief that isn't new; that isn't black or white or brown; that isn't
Christian, or Muslim or Jew. It's a belief that pulsed in the cradle of
civilisation, and that still beats in the heart of billions. It's a
faith in other people, and it's what brought me here today.
We have the power to make the world we
seek, but only if we have the courage to make a new beginning, keeping
in mind what has been written.
The Holy Quran tells us, "O mankind! We
have created you male and a female; and we have made you into nations
and tribes so that you may know one another." The Talmud tells us: "The
whole of the Torah is for the purpose of promoting peace."
The Holy Bible tells us, "Blessed are
the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God." The people of
the world can live together in peace. We know that is God's vision.
Now, that must be our work here on Earth.
we vonden een niet meer zo kraakvers artikel uit Le Soir van 27/5 op de
website van het Brussels ACOD. Het mag dan de versheidsdatum iets of
wat overschreden hebben, de actualiteitswaarde is in elk geval nog niet
verstreken en we publiceren het in beide landstalen voilà!
Plus de 300.000 manifestants à travers lEurope. Et alors ? Meer dan 300.000 betogers doorheen Europa. En dan ?
Le Soir (27/05/2009)
Ils
étaient 50.000 manifestants à Bruxelles, 150.000 à Madrid, 100.000 à
Berlin et 30.000 à Prague pour dire que ce nest pas à eux de payer une
crise dont ils ne sont pas responsables et pour réclamer une Europe
sociale.
Et alors ? Rien.
Avons-nous reçu une réponse à cette mobilisation massive née des forces progressistes et sociales de ce pays ? Rien.
Aux chefs dÉtat, au monde politique, au président de la Commission
européenne, nous souhaitons rappeler que le front syndical belge est
plus uni que jamais pour redire que ce nest pas aux travailleurs et
aux allocataires sociaux de payer la crise, pour lancer aussi un
avertissement : nous aurons une autre Europe, parce que nous
nacceptons pas la suprématie de léconomique et de léconomie casino
sur le social.
Et si nous ne sommes pas entendus, nous passerons à la vitesse supérieure.
Parce que face à lindifférence dans laquelle le monde du travail est
manifestement plongé, nous comptons bien nous faire entendre et peser
de tout notre poids dans les futures politiques qui seront menées.
Rappelons que depuis septembre dernier, les licenciements annoncés concernent plus de 25.000 travailleurs.
Que le Conseil supérieur de lemploi prévoit quelque 60.000 pertes
demploi dici à la fin de lannée, auxquelles viendront dajouter
40.000 jeunes nouveaux demandeurs demploi.
Les travailleurs ont peur. Peur pour
leur emploi. Peur de ne plus pouvoir rembourser lemprunt de leur
maison, peur de ne plus pouvoir payer leurs factures ou encore les
études de leurs enfants. Mais tout le monde nest pas logé à la même
enseigne Un revenu du travail mensuel imposable de 1.700 euros est
frappé dun taux moyen denviron 25 %, alors que les bénéfices dune
multinationale comme Electrabel-Suez (2,3 milliards en 2006)
bénéficient dun taux de taxation implicite de moins de 25 % à la suite
du recours aux intérêts notionnels et autres constructions fiscales.
Et les inégalités de revenus augmentent : 30 % des Belges détiennent 70 % de la richesse du pays.
Et la fraude fiscale est estimée à 30 milliards par an. La banqueroute
du néolibéralisme provoque une terrible récession, laugmentation du
chômage, une forte augmentation du déficit budgétaire et un
accroissement du taux dendettement (qui évolue de nouveau vers les 100
% du PIB). Les résultats des efforts budgétaires imposés aux
travailleurs salariés dans le passé sont aujourdhui annihilés par les
adeptes de la dérégulation.
Les travailleurs payent la crise au
prix fort : sauvetage des banques, plans de relance Pacte des
générations bis ? Pour le front commun syndical, il est hors de
question que les travailleurs et les allocataires sociaux passent une
nouvelle fois à la caisse en subissant une politique daustérité qui
les sanctionnerait à nouveau pour les politiques capitaliste et
néolibérale irresponsables qui les ont menés dans le mur.
Cest la raison pour
laquelle, forts des 50.000 manifestants présents dans les rues de
Bruxelles le 15 mai, nous exigeons que change le climat de la campagne
électorale belge !
Les
travailleurs attendent une chose essentielle du politique : quil
sexprime clairement dans ses réponses aux revendications du monde du
travail. Les capitalistes se cachent et ninvestissent plus. Ce sont
les travailleurs qui colmatent les brèches et sont, de fait, les
premiers investisseurs du pays. À ce titre, ils ont le droit dobtenir
des retours (tant au niveau national quau niveau européen) sur les
investissements quils ont consentis à lÉtat.
Ainsi, les travailleurs
réclament le maintien de services publics de qualité, des
investissements massifs dans la création demplois durables dans des
filières davenir, le maintien dun pouvoir dachat suffisant pour
pouvoir faire face à la crise (cela signifie le maintien de
lindexation des salaires et de la liaison automatique des allocations
sociales au bien-être) ainsi quune autre fiscalité. Par autre
fiscalité, nous entendons une meilleure répartition des richesses. Et cette fiscalité plus juste, qui doit aller de pair avec
la suppression du secret bancaire pour tous et la fin des paradis
fiscaux, devra trouver une harmonisation au niveau européen. Le front
commun syndical ne laissera pas tomber les travailleurs et les
allocataires sociaux.
Rudy
de Leeuw Président de la FGTB - Luc Cortebeeck Président de la CSC -
Anne Demelenne Secrétaire générale de la FGTB - Claude Rolin Secrétaire
général de la CSC - Jan Vercamst Président de la CGSLB - Bernard Noël
Secrétaire général de la CGSLB
50.000
betogers in Brussel, 150.000 in Madrid, 100.000 in Berlijn en 30.000 in
Praag, met de duidelijke boodschap dat niet zij moeten betalen voor de
crisis, waarvoor ze niet verantwoordelijk zijn, en om een sociaal
Europa te eisen.
En dan? Niets.
Is er een antwoord gekomen op deze massale betoging van de progressieve
en sociale krachten van dit land? Helemaal geen.
Wij willen de staatshoofden, de
politieke wereld en de voorzitter van de Europese Commissie eraan
herinneren dat het Belgische vakbondsfront meer dan ooit verenigd is om
te herhalen dat niet de werknemers en uitkeringsgerechtigden moeten
opdraaien voor de crisis en ook om een waarschuwing te lanceren: er
komt een ander Europa, omdat we de suprematie van de economie - en van
de casino-economie - op het sociale niet aanvaarden.
En als we geen gehoor
vinden, zullen we een versnelling hoger schakelen. Omdat nu de werkende
wereld blijkbaar op een muur van onverschilligheid botst, willen wij
duidelijk van ons laten horen en ons volledige gewicht in de schaal
gooien voor het beleid dat in de toekomst zal worden gevoerd.
Sinds september 2008 zijn reeds meer dan 25.000 mensen hun job kwijt
En tegen het einde van dit jaar verdwijnen volgens de Hoge Raad voor de
Werkgelegenheid nog eens ongeveer 60.000 arbeidsplaatsen en zullen er
40.000 nieuwe jonge werkzoekenden bijkomen.
De werknemers zijn bang. Om hun job te
verliezen. Dat ze de lening van hun woning niet meer zullen kunnen
afbetalen , hun facturen niet langer zullen kunnen betalen of de
studies van hun kinderen niet zullen kunnen bekostigen. Maar niet
iedereen zit in hetzelfde schuitje Een belastbaar maandelijks inkomen
uit arbeid van 1.700 euro wordt gemiddeld 25% belast, terwijl op de
winsten van een multinational, zoals Electrabel-Suez (2,3 miljard in
2006), een belastingtarief van minder dan 25% wordt toegepast ingevolge
de notionele interestaftrek en andere fiscale constructies.
En de ongelijkheden op het vlak van
inkomen worden alsmaar groter: 30% van de Belgen bezit 70% van de
rijkdom van het land.
En de fiscale fraude wordt op 30
miljard per jaar geschat. Het bankroet van het neoliberalisme
veroorzaakt een verschrikkelijke recessie, toenemende werkloosheid, een
sterke stijging van het begrotingstekort en een groeiende schuldenlast
( die opnieuw naar 100% van het BNP evolueert). De resultaten van de
financiële inspanningen, die in het verleden aan de werknemers werden
opgelegd, worden vandaag teniet gedaan door de aanhangers van de
deregulering.
Voor de werknemers draait de crisis
erg duur uit: redding van banken, herstelplannen Een generatiepact
bis? Voor het gemeenschappelijk vakbondsfront kan er geen sprake van
zijn dat de werknemers en de uitkeringsgerechtigden er alweer moeten
voor opdraaien en een saneringsbeleid moeten ondergaan, dat hen opnieuw
afstraft voor het onverantwoorde kapitalistische en neoliberale beleid,
dat alles heeft doen mislopen voor hen.
Daarom eisen wij samen met
de 50.000 mensen ,die op 15 mei in de straten van Brussel hebben
betoogd, dat de sfeer van de Belgische verkiezingscampagne verandert!
De werknemers verwachten een essentiële zaak van de politieke wereld:
dat de politici een duidelijk antwoord bieden op de eisen van de
werkende wereld. De kapitalisten verschuilen zich en investeren niet
langer. Het zijn de werknemers die de gaten moeten opvullen en dus de
eerste investeerders van het land worden. In dat opzicht hebben ze
recht op een wederdienst (zowel op nationaal als op Europees niveau)
voor de investeringen die ze voor de staat hebben gedaan.
Zo eisen de werknemers dat
kwalitatieve openbare diensten in stand worden gehouden, massaal wordt
geïnvesteerd in nieuwe duurzame arbeidsplaatsen en voldoende koopkracht
wordt geboden om het hoofd te kunnen bieden aan de crisis ( dit
betekent het behoud van de loonindexering en van de automatische
koppeling van de sociale uitkeringen aan de welvaart), evenals een
andere fiscaliteit. Onder andere fiscaliteit verstaan we een betere verdeling
van de rijkdom. En deze rechtvaardigere fiscaliteit, die moet gepaard
gaat met de opheffing van het bankgeheim voor iedereen en het
verdwijnen van de fiscale paradijzen, dient op Europees niveau te
worden geharmoniseerd. Het gemeenschappelijk vakbondsfront zal de
werknemers en de uitkeringsgerechtigden niet in de steek laten.
Rudy
de Leeuw Voorzitter ABVV - Luc Cortebeeck Voorzitter ACV - Anne
Demelenne Algemeen secretaris ABVV - Claude Rolin Algemeen secretaris
ACV- Jan Vercamst Voorzitter ACLVB - Bernard Noël Algemeen secretaris
ACLVB
27/05/2009
In "Le Soir" - 27/5/2009
Bovendien
hebben we hier zo net vernomen dat onze Unoxmutsjes reeds naar hun
stemhokjes zijn getrokken om hun Europese burgerplichten te vervullen.
We zullen er dik van profiteren dat we vanuit de zuidelijke provincies
nog een paar dagen schamper kunnen doen over het feit dat Wilders daar
als grote overwinnaar uit de bus is gekomen. Vogende zondag valt er
voor te vrezen dat onze ollandse bovenburen met onze resultaten nog
veel schamperder zullen kunnen uit de hoek komen. Maar laat ons dus
allen grinikkend onderstaande artikels lezen tot lering en vermaak en
tot nut van 't algemeen : Een deelname van 40% is nu niet meteen
denderend te noemen. Maar je merkt dus ook maar mooi dat de aanhangers
van de afschaffing van de kiesplicht omdat dit zogezegd het aantal
foertstemmers drastisch zou naar beneden halen hun mening stilaan mogen
herzien. Hier is meteen het bewijs van het tegendeel geleverd! http://www.standaard.be/Artikel/Detail.aspx?artikelId=DMF20090604_082
Partij Geert Wilders wint Europese verkiezingen in Nederland
donderdag 04 juni 2009
Bron: anp
Auteur:
kld, ch
Partij Geert Wilders wint Europese verkiezingen in Nederland
afp
De rechtspopulistische
Partij Voor de Vrijheid (PVV) van Geert Wilders heeft in Nederland de
Europese verkiezingen gewonnen. Wilders rijft vanuit het niets 4 van de
25 zetels binnen. Het christendemocratische CDA van premier Jan-Peter
Balkenende blijft de grootste partij.
Dat blijkt uit een eerste prognose van de uitslag, in opdracht van de Nederlandse openbare omroep NOS en het persbureau ANP.
De PVV wordt even groot als de sociaal-democratische PvdA van Wouter
Bos, die zwaar verlies lijdt. De PvdA moet van haar zeven zetels drie
inleveren.
D66 is de tweede grote overwinnaar, de links-liberale partij heeft drie zetels behaald, dat is twee meer dan in 2004.
GroenLinks en de Socialistische Partij hebben ook een lichte
vooruitgang geboekt tegenover 2004, maar dat vertaalt zich niet in
meer zetels. Zij behouden alle twee hun twee zetels.
De liberale VVD zou één zetel verliezen en nog drie Europarlementsleden kunnen afvaardigen.
De PVV van Wilders heeft een anti-Europese campagne gevoerd. Hij
heeft eerder aangekondigd dat zijn partij zich niet zal aansluiten bij
de grote Europese fractie. Hij wil als onafhankelijke partij in het
parlement zetelen.
Nederland krijgt in totaal 25 zetels in het Europees Parlement. Vijf
jaar geleden waren dat er nog 27, maar door de komst van de nieuwe
lidstaten werden de zetels opnieuw tussen de landen herverdeeld.
Veertig procent van de Nederlanders hebben gestemd voor de Europese verkiezingen. In 2004 was dat 39,3 procent.
Gepubliceerd:
4 juni 2009 21:13
| Gewijzigd:
4 juni 2009 22:37
Door een onzer redacteuren
Rotterdam, 4 juni. De Partij voor de Vrijheid (PVV) van Geert Wilders heeft
vanuit het niets vier zetels voor het Europees Parlement bemachtigd. Dat
blijkt uit prognoses en de eerste uitslagen van gemeenten, nadat de
stembussen vanavond om 21.00 uur sloten.
Wilders brengt zijn stem uit voor de Europese Verkiezingen 2009. Foto WFA
De tweede winnaar is D66, die van de huidige één zetel naar drie zetels
stijgt.
PVV
Wilders reageerde op televisie bij de NOS verheugd op zijn overwinning. Dit
is een fantastisch resultaat, mensen hebben hiermee duidelijk aangegeven
dat we een ander Nederland in Europa tegemoet gaan. Nederlanders hebben
volgens Wilders niet alleen genoeg van de manier waarop Nederland en de
Europese Unie werken, maar ook van het Nederlandse kabinet van Balkenende
en Bos.
D66
D66-leider Alexander Pechtold zei in een reactie op zijn waarschijnlijke drie
zetels: We beschouwen dit als een succes dat mensen niet bang zijn voor
Europa. D66 had vooraf als doelstelling twee zetels.
PvdA
De Partij van de Arbeid (PvdA) is de grootste verliezer, volgens de prognose:
die zakt van de huidige zeven zetels naar vier. Lijsttrekker Thijs Berman
reageerde teleurgesteld: Je wilt niet de grootste verliezer zijn. Maar we
hebben ons gehandhaafd ten opzichte van de peilingen en we zijn de grootste
linkse partij gebleven.
CDA
Het CDA zakt waarschijnlijk van zeven naar vijf zetels, maar blijft de
grootste Nederlandse partij in het parlement, nu dus met de PVV in plaats
van de PvdA als tweede. De VVD verliest één zetel, Groenlinks blijft op twee
zetels staan, evenals de SP. De kleinere Partij voor de Dieren heeft geen
zetel weten te bemachtigen.
Opkomst
De opkomst wordt rond 40 procent geschat, iets hoger dan bij de Europese
verkiezingen in 2004. Toen was de opkomst 39 procent.
Nederland is samen met Groot- Brittannië de eerste EU-lidstaat die naar de
stembus ging voor het Europees parlement. Bij de Europese verkiezingen in
2004 lag het gemiddelde opkomstpercentage in de gehele EU op ruim 44
procent.
De uitslagen uit Groot-Brittannië komen overigens pas zondagavond binnen,
nadat de stembussen in alle lidstaten zijn gesloten. Dat schrijft Europese
regelgeving ook voor. Uitslagen uit andere lidstaten het stemgedrag zouden
kunnen beïnvloeden, is de redenering.
Openbaar
In Nederland is het stemproces echter openbaar. De Kiesraad is daarom ook van
mening dat de uitslag ook meteen openbaar moet zijn, aldus een
woordvoerder. En dus komen de uitslagen nu al per gemeente binnen. Overigens
maakt de Kiesraad ook pas volgende week, dus na zondag, de officiële
uitslagen bekend.
Morgen stemmen Ierland en Tsjechië, waarna de rest van de lidstaten zaterdag
en voornamelijk zondag volgt.
en zoals we stilaan gewoon worden van de socialisten die boven de grote
rivieren al even erg excelleren in fantastische uitspraken hebben ze
ook hier weer een verwoestende uitleg voor hun toch wel erg slechte
resultaat en we citeren in vetjes :
Je wilt niet de grootste verliezer zijn. Maar we
hebben ons gehandhaafd ten opzichte van de peilingen en we zijn de grootste
linkse partij gebleven.
Meteen een leuke hint voor Gennez zondagavond ...????
Terwijl we meemaken dat het vel van de beer door onze Vlaamse
politiekers al wordt verkocht op de openbare markt, wat zeg ik? HET vel
van de beer? Maar dat beestje moet wel een ganse bontwinkel aan zijn
lijf hebben want elke partij verkoopt zo een vel. Ze willen wel
allemaal in de regering maar dan niet met diegene die chaos zal
brengen. En vermits er nogal wat chaoten blijken rond te huppelen in de
Vlaamse politiek zal de volgende regeringsvorming veel gelijkenis
vertonen met een partijtje cluedo een (volgens ons) ergerlijk
gezelschapsspel. We laten ze dus maar naar de eindstreep hossen en
vanaf hier en nu lassen we een spertijd in over de politiek in
Belgistan en Vlamistan. We geven enkel de goede raad mee : stem links
want van rechts moet je niks anders verwachten dan ellende en kommer
tenzij je er erg warmpjes inzit. Van hieruit hebben wij daar weinig
zicht op maar we twijfelen of de geldelite dit blogje massaal leest. In
elk geval zullen wij hier niet zeggen voor wie je moet stemmen en
vanaf dit punt (.) zijn alle linksen, ook diegenen die we beschimpt en
bespot hebben onze vriendjes. We wensen ze allemaal veel succes en
meer bepaald onze rooie voorzitter Eric De Bruyn. Allez hop naar de kop!
Maar even goed onze rodeneuzenbende want ze waren in elk geval erg
zichtbaar als pvda+ en ook de kameraden van de LSP die we iets minder
duidelijk in de mot hadden. Waarschijnlijk omwille van de karige
middelen en last but not least de mensen, van CAP. We blijven wel hopen
op een iets wat intiemere samenwerking, beste kameraden. Want dit soort
verspreide slagorde leidt tot niks. Maar we wensen jullie toch allemaal
mooie resultaten toe. Op de SP-a-lijsten staan er ook een paar die we
best kunnen pruimen bovenop de hier reeds geciteerde rooie voorzitter.
We zullen ze hier niet citeren want ze dreigen meteen in de ban
geslagen te worden door sommige medekameraden waarmee we niet eens te
samen de straat willen oversteken en die we evenmin zullen citeren. Wij
gaan nu over naar de belangrijkere zaken van de dag en dat is een
verjaardag! Het is immers net 20 jaar geleden dat de hemelse vrede erg
gewelddadig werd verstoord. We hebben het dus inderdaad over Tienanmen
in Peking. We maken jullie eventjes deelgenoot van een aantal
herdenkingsplechtigheden en we beginnen eerst bij de daders die er niet
erg gerust in blijken te zijn dat Ying en Yang netjes in evenwicht
zullen blijven tijdens de volgende dagen:
China Censors: The Tiananmen Square Anniversary Will Not Be Tweeted
Chinese authorities have instituted censoring measures to block
access to several internet sites and services in anticipation of
Thursdays 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protest and
massacre.
The censoring began at 5 p.m. local time on Tuesday as access to sites was blocked, though users could still reportedly reach some of them through proxies, VPNs and third-party desktop clients.
The blocked sites include Twitter, Flickr and Microsofts Hotmail, according to the Telegraph. FoxNews added The Huffington Post, Life Journal and the MSN Spaces blogging tool to the list.
BBC viewers in China also saw their screens black out when the news
service broadcast stories about the anniversary, and foreign news crews
have been barred from filming in the square. Readers of the Financial Times and Economist
magazine found stories about Tiananmen ripped from their pages.
Authorities also plan to begin cracking down on unapproved internet
cafes, according to reports from state media.
The blocked sites are just a few among thousands that Chinas
censors have targeted since the beginning of last year as a string of
anniversaries is marked, including the 50th anniversary of the Tibet
uprising. In April, access to YouTube was blocked after someone posted
images of Chinas military police beating Tibetan monks.
Twitter became popular in China after last years earthquake in
Sichuan when people used it to get out reports of the devastation and
signal news of their safety to friends and family members. The Times of London recently noted
that Chinese users of Twitter can write terms that are normally blocked
if they type them on other websites, such as 6/4″ for the date of the
Tiananmen massacre or Charter 08, referring to a document published
online last year by a group of intellectuals that calls for greater
freedom and democracy.
As a result, the Times says, bloggers have been anticipating the blocking of Twitter.
Twitter is a new thing in China. The censors need time to figure
out what it is, blogger Michael Anti told the China-based blog
Danwei.org. So enjoy the last happy days of twittering before the fate
of YouTube descends on it one day.
He noted that given the nature of the Chinese language, a Chinese
tweet could crowd in much more meaning in the 140 characters allowed by
Twitter per message, than can English users. 140 Chinese characters
can make up all the full elements of a news piece with the 5 Ws (Who,
What, Where, When and HoW), he said. But the joy of the Chinese
Twitterland is more fragile, and I hope that it will live longer in
this country.
Photo: A Chinese policeman grabs a protester in Beijings
Tiananmen Square on the 15th anniversary of a bloody military crackdown
on democracy protesters, Friday, June 4, 2004. (AP Photo/Greg Baker)
Danwei: In terms of new media, do you still feel that in
China censors could control everything that's happening in this area -
you once said that if they shut off twitter, for example, it would be
very easy, and information will just not get out. Michael Anti: Twitter is a new thing in China. The censors need time to figure out what it is. So enjoy the last happy days of twittering before the fate of Youtube descends on it one day. [Emphasis added]
By the way, I want to point out that the Chinese Twitterland is
funnier than the English one, for a Chinese tweet can have three times
the volume of an English tweet, thanks to the high information
intensity of the Chinese language. 140 Chinese characters can make up
all the full elements of a news piece with the "5 Ws" (Who, What,
Where, When and HoW). But the joy of the Chinese Twitterland is more
fragile, and I hope that it will live longer in this country.
The block seems to be a URL keyword filter. Googling for
"twitter.com" resets the connection, as does including the string
"twitter.com" in any other URL. Access to the service is fine through
proxy or VPN.
Update: It seems that photo sharing website Flickr.com has been blocked.
Update 2: Bing.com (the new Microsoft search engine) is gone
too, probably for autoplaying Youtube videos when you put your mouse
over them.
Update 3: Live.com and Hotmail.com have gone under. But MSN messenger seems fine.
Blogspot and Youtube remain blocked.
Update 03.06.09: Hotmail.com is back, but Live.com is still be having problems loading.
As Im sure many of you know, June 3-4, 2009 marks the 20th
anniversary of the 1989 military crackdown on pro-democracy
demonstrations in Tiananmen Square.
Two decades after the crackdown, about 50 people who were involved
in the demonstrations are believed to remain in prison. The Chinese
authorities continue to refuse to carry out an open, independent and
impartial inquiry into the events of 1989, and no one has been brought
to justice for their role in the crackdown. Attempts to mark the anniversary of the crackdown have been suppressed, and public debate or discussion of the events is banned.
This Thursday, Amnesty International is co-sponsoring an event on
Capitol Hill to commemorate the 20th anniversary. Speakers will include
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as survivors of the Tiananmen
crackdown and other prominent faith, government and human rights
leaders, as well as Amnestys own T. Kumar.
China
is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown with
another crackdown -- a massive block on Twitter and all those social
media sites that pose a threat to China's government this week. The
Chinese media site Danwei reported early
Tuesday morning that Twitter, the popular microblogging site, has been
disabled in mainland China. Thursday, June 4th marks the 20th
anniversary of the pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square and the
brutal response by the Chinese government that left hundreds dead.
As the morning moved on, China-based bloggers realized that YouTube,
Flickr and Bing, Microsoft's new search engine, had also been blocked.
Reuters reported this morning that China even blocked Hotmail and Windows Live, both sites owned by Microsoft. As the Shanghaiist put it, "Microsoft can't catch a break here, can they?
While it is common for the Chinese government to block websites
deemed controversial before major events, like Thursday's Tiananmen
anniversary, the massive block today is the first widespread censorship
of social media -- a tacit acknowledgment of two things: Twitter's new
power in mainland China, and how valuable Twitter would be as platform
to publish original news out of mainland China on the Tiananmen
anniversary. Now, or at least until the protests and noise surrounding
the anniversary subside, Twitterers in China will not be able to tweet.
Other than Twitter, the list of sites currently blocked in mainland
China includes YouTube, Blogspot, Tumblr, Livejournal, Flickr,
Microsoft's Live.com and this one, the Huffington Post.
In Poland, voters went to the polls to give the anti-communist
opposition a sweeping victory in the country's first, partially free
elections in ages. It was the first sign of the revolutionary changes
that would sweep through Eastern Europe that year, knocking down the
Berlin Wall and changing the face of the continent. On the other side
of the world, on that same day, the Chinese government sent tanks and
troops into Tiananmen Square and crushed the student-worker
demonstrations. This was the anti-revolution of 1989. Communism
collapsed in one place; communism continued in the other.
Twenty years later, it seems as though both countries took different
paths to the same economic endpoint. Poland has become a member of the
European Union (EU) and NATO. And China, after its own long march to
capitalism, has become the largest holder of U.S. treasury securities.
In both countries, the populations live better on average today than
20 years ago. But increasing inequality suggests that the two movements
-- the Solidarity trade union in Poland and the Communist party in
China -- ultimately betrayed their core constituencies of workers and
peasants. At the same time, the fervor for democracy that animated
Polish voters and Chinese protestors in 1989 has subsided as corruption
and commercialism has driven people away from politics and into IKEA.
Nationalism has become more important as a unifying ideology in both
countries, expressed either in the form of the clericalism and
anti-German sentiments of the Kaczynski twins in Poland or the Han
chauvinism and anti-Japanese sentiments so prevalent in Chinese chat
rooms.
We don't, of course, live in a flat world leveled by technology and
driven by the market. There are still important differences between the
paths taken by Poland and China, between the social market of the EU
and the market socialism of the "Beijing consensus," between the
corrupt but functioning democracy in Poland and the corrupt but
functioning oligarchy in China.
The sharpest contrast between the two countries, however, lies
beneath their routine proclamations of a desire to improve relations
with Washington. The Polish government has campaigned hard for a U.S.
military base that would be part of the missile defense network.
Fearful that the Obama administration might change its mind, Poland is lobbying
for Patriot missiles stationed outside Warsaw by the end of the year.
China, on the other hand, is distressed about U.S. missile defense
plans, so much so that it is reportedly undertaking the largest increase in its nuclear-tipped ballistic missile program since the late 1980s.
So, in 20 years, we really haven't fully escaped the shadow of the
Cold War. Poles and Chinese can suck down frappuccinos as they trade
funny videos on Facebook. But nuclear weapons still hang over us all
like a guillotine blade. And we have yet to escape, fully, our global
bipolar disorder. "Even if China and the United States make nice in
bilateral meetings, they are spending as if a new Cold War is just
around the corner," I write in The G-2 Paradox.
There will be many commemorations of June 4, some joyous, some
sorrowful. Many courageous people sacrificed so much to change the
world. And much did change. But 20 years later, I'm still waiting for
my invitation to the Cold War's funeral.
BEIJING Chinas government censors have begun to block access to the Internet services Twitter, Flickr, Hotmail and Microsofts live.com,
broadening an already extraordinary effort to shield its citizens from
any hint of Thursdays 20th anniversary of the military crackdown that
ended the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy movement.
People
in China who tried to gain access to the blocked Web sites on Tuesday
instead encountered an error message saying the sites servers had
unexpectedly dropped the Internet connection a standard indicator
that access has been blocked.
Weeks earlier, censors blocked
Chinese users from viewing all videos on YouTube, and in recent days
some television viewers have reported that BBC World News reports related to the Tiananmen anniversary were being selectively blacked out of broadcast programs.
Government censorship of political material on Internet
bulletin boards and Web sites is common in China, but this is the first
time Twitter has been blocked. Some well-known political activists,
unable to post comments on Chinese blogs or chat sites, had switched to
Twitter in recent months as an uncensored outlet for their views.
A number of foreign-based sites that have hosted Chinese bloggers, including blogspot.com and the Chinese-language version of wordpress.com, have also been blocked in recent weeks.
The South China Morning Post, an English-language newspaper
based in Hong Kong that has frequently featured articles on Tiananmen
and other sensitive issues, has also seen its distribution on the
Chinese mainland curbed in advance of the anniversary on Thursday. And
some Beijing readers of last weekends edition of The International
Herald Tribune discovered that an inside page of the newspaper with an
article on the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan religious leader, was missing.
The
anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown, in which army troops killed
hundreds of student demonstrators, workers and ordinary citizens, is
one of a series of politically sensitive dates this year that have
provoked sweeping security measures by Chinese officials.
In
recent days, the government has detained a number of political
dissidents seen as threats to public order during the anniversary
period, including one who had released an open letter complaining about
economic hardship visited on former Tiananmen demonstrators who were
jailed after the crackdown.
The dissident, Wu Gaoxing, was
seized Saturday at his home in Taizhou, a coastal city south of
Shanghai, according to the New York advocacy group Human Rights in
China. Mr. Wu was among five men, all once jailed for their roles in
the Tiananmen movement, who released a letter last weekend charging
that former prisoners have been singled out for economic hardship long
after their prison terms ended.
Human Rights in China said Mr.
Wu was taken away and his computer confiscated about an hour after the
letter, addressed to President Hu Jintao and other senior leaders, became public.
Mr. Wu, a writer and former educator, was taken into custody in 1989
and imprisoned for two years after he joined protests in his home
province of Zhejiang against the military crackdown on Tiananmen
demonstrators. In this society that claims to be harmonious, we have
become citizens of the three have-nots waiting to die: we have no
regular jobs, no pensions, and no health insurance; if we get sick, we
can only wait to die, and all this just because 20 years ago we were
sentenced for political reasons, the letter says.
The
men, among them a former Communist Party member and a factory worker,
said they had been denied pensions, health care and regular employment
since taking part in local rallies that were inspired by the protests
in Beijing. One of the signers, Mao Guoliang, said he had been fired
from 17 schools since he served a four-year term for
counterrevolutionary activities.
sorry beste lezertjes, we hebben een paar dagen blogverlof genomen. Net
zoals jullie trouwens want we zagen maar een fractie van onze dichte
drommen dagelijkse lezertjes opdagen dit Pinksterweekend. Jullie aten
allemaal leckmansen op de sinksenfoor of lagen op jullie luie krent aan
te branden in de ligstoelen "bij Nancy" in Blankenberge. Hier zit nu
een geradbraakt redactielid die vurige tongen heeft gezien bij het
schilderen van de kinderkamer die spijtig genoeg bijna de ganse
bovenverdieping inneemt en in drie verschillende kleurtjes moest
opgefrist worden. Geef mij dus maar een leckmans of een pomme d'amour
beste lezertjes. En wat is er intussen voor ergerlijks gebeurd? Een
Airbus van onze Franse zuiderburen uit de lucht gevallen en in zee
geploft, elke verkiezingskandidaat op één of ander rommel-, vogeltjes-
groentemarkt op zoek naar kiezers en het grote nieuws voor de trotse
Opelbezitters...Opel wordt overgenomen door Volga. Kijk eens aan! Want
iedereen heeft het over het Oostenrijkse Magna maar verzwijgt zedig dat
ook het Russische Gaz tot de overnemers behoort en Gaz staat voor Volga
en wie ons niet gelooft moet maar eens gaan kijken op :http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/8166/ Ons
kan het geen barst schelen maar voor de talrijke Opelbezitters die nog
niet eens willen gefotografeerd worden op 3 kilometer afstand van een
Volga is dit geen prettig nieuws. Wij stellen ook maar vast dat Volga
het dus beter doet dan Opel....Het wordt ons allemaal een beetje
onduidelijk. We zijn natuurlijk geen erg fervente lezertjes van de
autokrant of -gids dus weinig op de hoogte van het reilen en zeilen op
deze momenteel erg boeiende markten
Maar
zo op het eerste zicht lijkt ons de ineenstorting van het kommunisme
Rusland geen windeieren gelegd te hebben. Zij nemen doodgemoederd
autofabrieken over, op een haar na hadden ze bijna Distrigas
binnegerijfd hier in ons eigen Belgistan, ze draaien gaskranen open en
dicht en iedereen bibbert en beeft. Wij vermoeden stilaan dat ze reeds
eerder het kommunisme hadden afgezworen als ze dat allemaal eerder
hadden geweten. En hoe staat het intussen met de laatste rechte lijn
voor de verkiezingen? Wel, we onthouden ons van commentaar want ofwel
is het net zoals bij de autofabrikanten en snappen we d'r niks meer van
ofwel wordt het gewoon te gek voor woorden. We lezen dat de Vlaamse
regering liefst zou verder gaan in de huidige samenstelling. Ons niet
gelaten hoor maar we koesteren zo een licht voorgevoelen dat er bij de
huidige coalitie er wel eens een zware verliezer of verliezers kunnen
zitten...en dan? En zo lief ze in Vlaanderen tegen elkaar zijn binnen
de regeringskringen, zo hatelijk zijn ze in Wallonië tegen elkaar. Dat
ligt aan die vreselijk lastige karaktertrek anders gezegd: de
querulerende Waal. Het cliché zo hoog als de Signal de Botrange en in
Vlaanderen verspreid en geloofd tot in het kleinste pietjesbakclubje.
De
toename van de werkloosheid in Vlaanderen versnelt nog. Dat blijkt uit
de maandelijkse cijfers die de Vlaamse minister van Werk, Frank
Vandenbroucke, dinsdag bekend maakte. In mei waren er 23,2 procent meer
werklozen dan in mei vorig jaar. Het gaat om een stijging met 35.000
werklozen.
Sinds
november vorig jaar neemt het aantal werklozen in Vlaanderen toe:
aanvankelijk voorzichtig (+0,2 procent in november en +3,9 procent in
december) tot +15 procent in februari en +23 procent in mei. Vooral
jongeren zijn het slachtoffer van de economische recessie. Bij de min
25-jarigen zijn er ruim 44 procent meer werkloos. De
werkloosheidsgraad, dat is het aantal werkzoekenden op de totale
bevolking op actieve leeftijd, bedraagt nu 6,49 procent.
Hoe zo, we vergissen ons? U bedoelt is dit slecht nieuws? Nee hoor, al
die politiekers die ik dit weekend op de markt ben tegen gekomen hebben
mij daar niks over verteld en dus is daar niks van waar. Zolang ze hier
maar geen Guantanamokkes komen droppen! Ondertussen geven we jullie al een scoop. Het volgende Opelmodel dat in Antwerpen van de band zal rollen met een echte Rovermotor. Dat wordt één grote smulpot aan Vlaamse subsidies....