World Job Crisis Is A Threat To Democracy, Says Imf Head

[interestrateripoff]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/oct/10/imf-us-jobs-currency

The International Monetary Fund was seeking to defuse growing tensions over global currencies yesterday amid fears that the US will respond to its stubbornly high unemployment figures by slapping tariffs on Chinese goods.

With China refusing to bow to pressure from the US and Europe to revalue its currency, the annual meeting of the IMF was dominated by concerns that Washington is on the point of losing patience with Beijing. Finance ministers and central bank governors gathered in a gloomy mood, expecting no quick fix to the problem – despite a warning from the IMF that failure to tackle the global jobs crisis could threaten democracy.

Latest figures for the American labour market, released on Friday, showed 95,000 jobs were shed in September, adding to the problems of the Obama administration ahead of next month's mid-term elections.

The poor outlook for jobs in the US has alarmed the Federal Reserve, which is expected to announce a fresh wave of quantitative easing next month, and added extra spice to the row between Washington and Beijing.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the IMF's managing director, warned that "we face the risk of a lost generation", adding: "When you lose your job, your health is likely to be worse. When you lose your job, the education of your children is likely to be worse. When you lose your job, social stability is likely to be worse – which threatens democracy and even peace. So we shouldn't fool ourselves. We are not out of the woods yet. And for the man in the street, a recovery without jobs doesn't mean much."

Tim Geithner, Obama's treasury secretary, said: "The United States believes that global rebalancing is not progressing as well as needed to avoid threats to the global economic recovery.

"Our initial achievements are at risk of being undermined by the limited extent of progress toward more domestic demand-led growth in countries running external surpluses and by the extent of foreign exchange intervention as countries with undervalued currencies lean against appreciation."

One eye on the French Presidency?

Are the elites starting to panic that if they don't deliver results the people may be a little bit miffed that the bankers got all the money and all they got was the bill?

Just think how bad it would be if it wasn't contained..

From some of the messages coming out from the IMF it would appear they are fearing the sticking plaster of 2008 is about to come off.

[HPC001]

If they can manage that lot to raid a few mobile phone shops in N. London, and 50,000 to kettle the G20 crowds, it doesn't look like the British state has much to worry about...

Edited October 10, 2010 by HPC001

[interestrateripoff]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/imf-warns-countries-to-work-together-or-face-wars-2102446.html

In a sharp escalation of the rhetoric that Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the IMF's managing director, has used to try to persuade the US, China and other economic powers to work together, he declared: "During this crisis, the global economy lost about 30 million jobs. On top of that, in the coming decades, 450 million people are going to enter the labour market, so we really face the risk of a lost generation.

"When you lose your job, your health is likely to be worse. When you lose your job, the education of your children is likely to be worse. When you lose your job, social stability is likely to be worse, with a threat to democracy and even peace."

With talk of "currency wars" heatting up, the fund failed to reach agreement on the most fundamental currency misalignment, that between the undervalued Chinese yuan and the US dollar. Defying calls from America to allow the yuan to be moved up to help US exporters, the governor of the People's Bank of China, Zhou Xiaochuan, said that it was not prepared to risk "disaster" by revaluing the currency. "China's exchange-rate policy is based on the market supply and demand relation to move gradually to the equilibrium point. We do that in a gradual way, rather than a shock therapy," he said.

Mr Zhou said policymakers will conduct a "careful review". But few in the West place much hope on the Chinese altering their policy substantially, and fears are growing that the US response to such intransigence will be tariffs, which in turn could trigger a renewed wave of global protectionism. The US House of Representatives has already passed laws to allow firms to impose import duties.

At least we've found the easy solution just print free money for the bankers.

[payback period]

If they can manage that lot to raid a few mobile phone shops in N. London

please elaborate...haven't heard this one

[HPC001]

please elaborate...haven't heard this one

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/mar/28/ukcrime2

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-547671/Operation-overkill-Hundreds-police-officers-cram-street-swoop--mobile-phone-thieves.html

Targets included an internet cafe, a butcher and a greengrocer.

Something to do with kooky brown businesspeople I think

In all seriousness though, the sense of proportion has been all but lost so I expect a strong response should the predicted unrest emerge.

[hilltop]

Gosh, how clever of the IMF!

Cut and cut again may bring a negative response from those affected!

I just wish that the Tories would take some notice of the warning, but their doctrinaire slashing of services and jobs will continue whatever the consequences. Democracy, after all, denied them absolute power, so it must be wrong.

[aa3]

One of the striking things is the inability of democratic governments to take definitive action. The special interests are so powerful virtually nothing can get done, and in addition western democracies seem unable to deal with excessive bureaucracy so that action can be taken.

In China in late 2008, 30-40 million people lost their jobs, working in the factories and related industry supplying goods to the first world! But within 2 months the Chinese had started a huge stimulus building program, amounting to 20% of gdp. Shovels were hitting the dirt within months, and this building created about 40 million new jobs.

From a macro economic perspective, ok your society now has 40 million jobless, use their labour for something else then! But in the UK as an example it was said it would be ten years after a project was approved, before shovels hit the dirt. As they worked through the bureaucracy and the courts!

Imo we need to move to a dictatorship where control is centralized(not a parliament where 250 different voices have to agree to get something done), stop the ability of the courts to interfere with the government orders, allow prime ministerial orders to overide any bureaucratic roadblocks.

[South Lorne]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/oct/10/imf-us-jobs-currency

From some of the messages coming out from the IMF it would appear they are fearing the sticking plaster of 2008 is about to come off.

...thought Nulabour were a threat to democracy in this country .....and at least some of the people came to their senses ...and they went....

[wonderpup]

In all seriousness though, the sense of proportion has been all but lost so I expect a strong response should the predicted unrest emerge.

Which feeds back into the sense of injustice that created the unrest. Lincoln should have said; you can screw some of the people all of the time, all of the people some of the time, but you can't screw all of the people all of the time.

I think the banksters have made the mistake of pissing off too many people at the same time with their antics for this to blow over without some serious payback one way or another.

[South Lorne]

I think the banksters have made the mistake of pissing off too many people at the same time with their antics for this to blow over without some serious payback one way or another.

...from the UK point of view ...it was Gordo and the Clowns who did us in ....the bankers were in their pockets and they were in the bankers pockets ....and according to Chief Clown ....'it all started in America'.....

Edited October 10, 2010 by South Lorne

[aa3]

Lets be honest here, if a potential dictator came along and made a credible promise of good jobs for everyone and sharing the wealth.. about 95% of the British and US populations would willingly vote for them. And if they actually delivered, the people would gladly vote them president for life.

Especially the under 40 population who has generally been so marginalized. Think those growing millions who are left out or in marginal jobs care less about high minded ideals like 'democracy'? What they want is a good job, that they can support a family with.

[Bloo Loo]

Which feeds back into the sense of injustice that created the unrest. Lincoln should have said; you can screw some of the people all of the time, all of the people some of the time, but you can't screw all of the people all of the time.

I think the banksters have made the mistake of pissing off too many people at the same time with their antics for this to blow over without some serious payback one way or another.

Bankers may have pissed many off, but whats really pissed them off is that Governments have given them all, and theyve given frack all back...

Then of course, people are going to bleat about losing £15 a week for their sprogs care...rightly so. They see one person keeping their 300K job...AT TAXPAYER EXPENSE, then see themselves losing a benefit that quite frankly, may keep many families going.

Im afraid Government has made its bed...now it has to sleep in it.

Cant remember the Tories Opposing the voracity of the Bank Bail outs.

[aa3]

Bankers may have pissed many off, but whats really pissed them off is that Governments have given them all, and theyve given frack all back...

Then of course, people are going to bleat about losing £15 a week for their sprogs care...rightly so. They see one person keeping their 300K job...AT TAXPAYER EXPENSE, then see themselves losing a benefit that quite frankly, may keep many families going.

Im afraid Government has made its bed...now it has to sleep in it.

Cant remember the Tories Opposing the voracity of the Bank Bail outs.

Ironically in modern western democracies that one person on their 300k tax payer supported job, seems more powerful than the masses fighting for their £15 a week benefit.

[IMHAL]

Ironically in modern western democracies that one person on their 300k tax payer supported job, seems more powerful than the masses fighting for their £15 a week benefit.

Let me guess - the answer is to make you the dictator then you can kill all the jewish bankers and we can happily carry on shopping with our whellbarrows of your freshly printed money.

Where have I seen this played out before? Hmmm! wait- its coming to me.

[Bloo Loo]

Let me guess - the answer is to make you the dictator then you can kill all the jewish bankers and we can happily carry on shopping with our whellbarrows of your freshly printed money.

Where have I seen this played out before? Hmmm! wait- its coming to me.

better to make the many bankers ( scottish I seem to recall)..bankrupt...as they, in reality, are.

[IMHAL]

better to make the many bankers ( scottish I seem to recall)..bankrupt...as they, in reality, are.

Agreed.

[Scott Sando]

No, the IMF is a threat to democracy.