globalcrisis/globalchange NEWS
Martin Zeis, 29.06.2016
We continue the debate on BREXIT with Michael Hudson’s piece “The Silence of the Left: Brexit, Euro-Austerity and the T-TIP” (see: www.counterpunch.org/2016/07/01/the-silence-of-the-left-brexit-euro-austerity-and-the-ttip )
Key Points:
– Every party that identified with the left in the Progressive Era – the Labour and Socialists parties of Europe, and the progressive Democrats in the United States – have now moved to the neoliberal right as it has become part of “the establishment.” It is as if left and right parties have switched positions politically.
– Europe’s political system offers a way out: New parties can be formed to replace the old, and parliamentary representation reflects approximately the public vote. That is what enabled Italy’s Five Star movement, Spain’s Podemos and even Greece’s Syriza to organize and win parliamentary seats. Their program is to restore a left-wing, pro-labor government regulating the economy to raise wages and living standards, not siphon off income to pay the financial centers and the One Percent.
– The EU is non-reformable under the Lisbon and Maastricht treaties. Therefore it is necessary to break up the eurozone to rebuild a pro-labor Europe.