A demonstration by a collection of unions turned into full scale rioting Wednesday in Athens, Greece, marking the seventh such incident to take place there this year. Rioters threw paving stones and Molotov cocktails at police. A former Greek Minister, Kostis Hatzidakis, was beaten about the head and shoulders. He escaped the rioters with the help of his body guards but was left bloodied.
The unions are protesting new labor laws which they say will give employers powers over them not seen since the Middle Ages. They further state that the new laws are directly connected to a 110 billion Euro international bail-out package which their government accepted in their name. They went on to say that the acceptance of the bail-out is leaving them utterly enslaved to the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
All those who have watched the recent rioting in Europe will know that the Greeks bring the street battles to new heights. As the riot police attack with batons and shields, the Greeks seem able to retaliate in kind by making sure the sticks their signs are attached to are one inch dowels and the signs themselves detach and become shields. This coupled with the Molotov cocktails makes them a formable foe in the street battles.
Many are speculating that with our thirteen trillion dollar debt and calls to eliminate it, the massive cuts that would be necessary to do so will result in riots in the United States. Personally I do not see it. Americans have become so complacent that when the boot falls on their neck the best they can come up with is a candlelight vigil.
The Greeks are throwing Molotov cocktails, the British are shouting, “Off with their heads,” and the Americans are holding candles and singing Kumbaya. Is it any wonder that our government doesn’t take us seriously anymore?
It would seem that Europe and the United States have been made the victims of an international scam, wherein all wealth is being transferred to China, India, and South Korea. I think the time to protest should have been twenty years ago when the theft began. I think if I am forced to participate in protests in the streets of America I will leave my candle at home and build my protest sign out of a one inch dowel and a riot shield, as candles seem to be virtually ineffectual against billy clubs and tear gas. I guess a person might want to invest in a gas mask also. Let us hope it doesn’t come to that.
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