Thursday, June 24, 2010

We Don't Want to Work!

The problem with Europe is far from over. What's the main problem? They refuse to work very hard or very long and believe it is their right to be well cared for by taxing or borrowing someone else's money.

We know Greece had gotten to the point where the retirement age was 53 when the IMF suggested they better start working to age 60 or their socialist platform was going to collapse in financial ruin.....they all went on strike and threw some firebombs through windows to show how serious they were about not working past age 53.

Now today the same struggle continues in France.

Of course they work much harder than their Grecian contemporaries....managing to stay at the grindstone until the decrepit age of 60.

But when President Sarchozy suggested that workers may have to work a few more years to help relieve the stress on all the pension plans....many of them went on strike.

PARIS (AP) — Many French trains stood still, schoolchildren played instead of studied and post offices were shuttered as workers nationwide went on strike Thursday to protest President Nicolas Sarkozy's plans to raise the retirement age to 62.

You gotta love this part;

France has one of Europe's lowest retirement ages, allowing workers to retire at 60 in most sectors. The government says the reform to the money-losing pension system is an "obligation," given France's burgeoning deficit and its aging population.

Unions say money for the pension system should come from higher taxes or charges on those who are still working, and see cost-cutting in the pension system as an attack on a hard-fought way of life.

See it here; http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/06/24/french-train-drivers-teachers-strike-protest-sarkozys-plans-raise-retirement/

Did you catch that? The unions say France should just raise taxes to protect the attack on their hard-fought way of life. Incredible.

Again, what do you think is going to be the outcome when our own state and federal governments need to cut Section 8 housing, food stamps, welfare, free medical care, Social Security, etc...to millions and millions of folks who will see it as a systematic attack on their hard-fought way of life?....a life which consists of living on welfare collected from those folks who do work and/or from a Government intent on borrowing money it can't pay back?

I hope I am wrong but let's remember that Europe was the scene of constant warfare for many centuries. They have calmed down since WWII because we took away all their armies and basically told them they couldn't play with sticks and stones anymore. (probably one reason they don't like the USA too much) That and generous pensions and public programs have tamed their warring ways for the past 60 years. After all, who really wants to fight when you can retire at 55 and sit on the beach in Greece or France and have the government take care of you til death?...and the US Government protecting you from that nasty Soviet Union?

BUT....when their unsustainable social programs come to a screeching halt...Europe may quickly fall back into it's clans and countries and they WILL start pointing fingers at who is to blame for crashing their 40-50 years of generous benefits, vacations and beach sitting. And once the rhetoric heats up to a fevered enough pitch....they may start rebuilding their armies (National Guards) to protect their own pieces of turf.

Jesus said, "There will be wars...."

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