Never Mind The Bankers – What About The People?
Even in the idyllic island of Majorca (Mallorca) the ‘small man’ – the local shop keeper, small business owner and the self-employed – always seems to get the rough end of the stick.
REGULAR READERS of this web-site will know that the National Liberal Party has recently launched the second phase of its Shop Local campaign. As we’ve already noted (1)
our educational and outreach material carries a dual message:
• The first message is that we need to keep supporting local shops, small businesses and the self-employed.
• The second message draws attention – in very simple and basic terms – as to how the banks rip us off by creating ‘credit’ out of nothing and then charging interest on it. The new NLP leaflet notes that “Years ago Highwaymen robbed you – today the banks do it instead!” To further reinforce this message, our literature features a picture of a highwayman with the slogan Stand And Deliver!
Our leaflets are obviously directed towards a British audience. However, Britain is not the only place in the world where ordinary working people and their families have been hit hard. The failure of ‘casino capitalism’ – a mixture of greed and mistakes made by the bankers, ‘fat cats’ and speculators – has had a global impact.
Take, for instance, the idyllic island of Majorca (Mallorca).
Towards the end of last month, Spanish Industry Minister Jose Manuel Soria declared “that 2013 will be the best year historically for tourism.” However, (and leaving aside the fact that the Balearic Islands – Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera – are Catalan and not Spanish!) not everyone is jumping up and down with joy at this news.
According to the English-language Majorca Daily Bulletin (2) of September 24, there are two sides to this story:
“The official figures paint a rosy picture in Spain but for bars and restaurants in some of Majorca’s principal resorts it has been a season to forget. Takings are down as more and more hotels offer all inclusive packages. One restaurant owner forecast that in ten years time there will only be a handful of bars and restaurants left in the resorts as a direct result of the all inclusive boom. Some bar owners were asking yesterday what tourists had spent the 40 billion euros on, while they were away on holiday.”
Now, don’t get us wrong. We’re not saying that all inclusive package deals should be banned out of hand. Far from it.
However, what we are doing is highlighting the fact that, under the current system, the ‘big boys’ – the politicians, bankers and corporate bosses – always seem to come up on top. In sharp contrast, the ‘small man’ – the local shop keeper, small business owner and the self-employed – always seems to get the rough end of the stick.
Clearly we need to replace the current system – which benefits a very tiny minority – with one that benefits the vast majority. Until this is done, ordinary working folks are going to lose out every day.
Date: October 7, 2013
Categories: Articles