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Occupy France: Calling for Change at the G20 Summit
This week marks the beginning of the G20 summit in Cannes, where representatives from the 20 richest countries will gather to discuss global economic policy. The G20 has been meeting since the late 1990s to respond to global financial crises. But the policies they espouse—from cutting back on government spending to deregulation—have only led to more poverty, inequality and instability.
Ahead of this week’s meetings, MADRE, an international women’s human rights organization, calls on the G20 states to take effective action to address financial crisis. One important step is to stabilize the market by creating a ‘Robin Hood’ tax on currency exchanges and financial transactions. MADRE stands with economic justice advocates worldwide in endorsing the call for such a tax.
In a global economy wracked by speculation and rapid-fire trading, the ‘Robin Hood’ tax would tame the profit-driven speculation that has made our world financial markets so volatile. It would curb short-sighted trading practices that move trillions of dollars each day, generating huge profits for a tiny few without reinvestment in social services, infrastructure and other necessities for the global 99 percent. By taxing these financial transactions, money could be funneled into critical social services such as health care and education.
The practices of traders and speculators in global markets have also turned basic rights like food, water, health care and education into commodities, pushing these resources out of reach for many of the world’s people. For example, this year’s famine in the Horn of Africa is in part the result of rampant speculation on grains—the world’s staple food.
Today, grassroots protests against economic injustice are growing around the world. The Occupy Wall Street movement was born in downtown New York City, but it has links that span geographies and time.
MADRE joins our allies worldwide in calling on the G20 to recognize the fundamental and unjust imbalances of the global economic system and endorse the creation of a ‘Robin Hood’ Tax.
Correction: This post was updated on 11/3 to reflect that the G20 meeting is being held in Cannes, not Paris.
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10 Comments so far
Show AllI always wonder why they can't just meet in a private setting instead of making it such a big deal and the host country spending billions for security?
Any nation that invites international criminals in deserves to pay the costs.
What we need is a WEALTH Tax - I'd call for a 10% tax on any wealth over 10 million per person for 10 years and then see where the federal debt is.
10-10-10 ia a hellava lot better than 9-9-9.
Taxes of any kind are comparable to the rear view mirror on a car, while the structure of the global financial industry is comparable to the car's engine.
The global financial industry is broken for 99% of the world's population. Until it is restructured to work for the 99%, no form of taxation will accomplish anything.
Restoring FDR's New Deal financial industry regulations is the first and biggest step to restructuring. It could be accomplished in one week since the regulations are already completed and were tested for 75 years.
Just as you will need a rear view mirror on a car once you fix the engine and start driving it, you will need to start taxing the financial industry once it is restructured.
You are correct. However is must noted that many seeds do not sprout, but this one has. Furthermore, generally it takes years for trees to bear fruit. So perhaps the world will be a little fairer in 10 years?
But for real peace to happen on Earth, religions need to become extinct, especially the violent Abrahamic religions. No one talks for God! The real word of god is simply the innate knowledge that we should love each other, which when pressed to explain itself with reason, manifests itself as do unto others as you would have done unto to you.
But self-righteous, delusional, conceited people keep insisting they speak for god in order to obtain power and profit. Or they claim to have the word of other people that spoke to God. Charlatans all. As if they have some access we don’t. “Love each other!” That’s all there is to real religion. Jesus didn't invent it either. He was a mere man who realized the authority of the idea like a multitude of others before and since. The idea carries it’s own authority and anyone claiming more than love is required is very dangerous to the happiness of mankind.
The Robin Hood Tax used to be called the Tobin Tax. It would be an international tax and would be used to create a global central bank. The original stated purpose of the global central bank and the Tobin Tax when it was discussed a couple years ago was that it would be used to bail out TBTF banks. Recently, they've rebranded this tax idea as a Robin Hood Tax and the declared purpose has now suddenly changed to helping the poor. What a surprise! Same old scam to fool the suckers out there! It seems obvious based on recent history of both the IMF and the Fed that the main purpose of bankers is to enrich other bankers. Again, what a big surprise! Bankers like money and they don't help the poor, they help each other! They do often claim to be trying to help the poor but they usually seem to rob the poor instead. This Robin Hood Tax is a scam.
I agree, Will C.. I have commented on this same thing so many times, almost to the point of spamming. I feel like shouting at this people:
Please stop being MORONS and use a different name for this tax, and reserve the "Robin Hood" name for a genuinely progressive tax system that genuinely brings about some wealth redistribution.
You are most likely right, and I feel the same suspicion - that this is a bloody scam to call this proposed tax by this name, because the effects of this tax on the accumulated wealth will be next to ZERO, and practically zero for all those wealthy people who do not trade routinely. Such as Bill Gates, who, incidentally, is supporting this tax!
well, i'm still lost. i read about the robin hood tax here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Hood_tax#Evaluation_and_reception_of_the_Robin_Hood_tax
and it didnt seem exactly like the tobin tax.[ well, ok, i just barely skimmed the article] the tobin tax was to stabilize financial markets [which i guess means to bail out the tbtf banks-i had to look up tbtf, and this tax seems like it would generate money to help the poor.
well, i'll just leave it to u financial geniuses to debate over. i'm suddenly glad to be getting old. the world has turned into sh!t and ppl into dung beetles.
A problem cannot be solved by applying more of the same reasoning and principles that created it.
The for-profit, kapitalist paradigm is an unsustainable, criminal enterprise. Unless and until it is completely exterminated, what we'll get is what we've got and have had for centuries.
Attempting to put out a fire by adding fuel to it is clearly an exercise in futility.
The existing system cannot be fixed. The reason for that is quite simple; it's not broken! It is functioning exactly as desired for the tiny minority of parasites that control it.
The food source of the parasites, kapitalism and the for-profit concept, must be completely eliminated. The parasites will die.
Life is ultimately a symbiotic process. Given a chance to evolve within the constraints of natural law, the human species could become a symbiotic partner in that Life.
The Universe is yet emergent and humanity a nascent possibility.
If a tiny minority of us are allowed push the rest down what is clearly a suicidal path, our species will never attain its full potential.
The creatures we named dinosaurs dominated Life on Earth for over 200 million years before being destroyed by forces beyond their comprehension. After a paltry 200 thousand years, Homo sapiens teeters on the brink of extinction as a result of its own arrogant recklessness.
We are a global family, community, tribe, clan; whatever descriptor you pick, we are all fundamentally bound together. It's time to recognise this fact as an asset to be utilised for the benefit of all. As long as we are tricked by the few into focusing on our petty, superficial differences, the parasites will continue to drain the Life from Earth until they consume even themselves.