Welcome: Valsaín Foundation

Photo By: Iannis Giakoumopoulos

March 2012
Spring promises

It's true, spring is coming. But unfortunately it is only a change of season. In the political and social we are always the hardest winter.

The joys and economic excesses of the past, and the consequences of criminal actions of financial speculators, still unpunished, continue to cause devastating effects on our social model of charity built so painstakingly over the past decades.

The European Commission and the Council are embroiled in a heated discussion on the way out of economic crisis, apparently dominated by the opinion of the fittest, who persist in wanting to impose austerity policies in spending, and to against any other criterion for application of additional measures of development and the risk that many countries of the European Union, in particular the euro area, falling into a deep depression for years.

In this debate between Governments several things are lacking. Firstly the fact that we have not heard or seen an opinion clearly and strongly expressed the European Parliament. It is in his chamber that should be held a major debate on the future of Europe, setting out guidelines under which it should be built, and that should be imposed on other bodies and in particular States and Governments which until now are pressuring and imposing their criteria as if there were no other political will in Europe than their own.

We are not only facing an economic crisis but a crisis of European institutions.
Moreover, in this bitter debate between governments and Commission, it appears that the values ​​that led to the creation of the European Union have vanished or at least have been shelved, as the principles in which we remember times of prosperity and not those of scarcity and crisis, then they should have been in our minds not to direct the European institutions and governments.

Among others and in the foreground the principle of solidarity. His forgetfulness is obvious when we observe how and how cruelly they had lent assistance to countries like Greece or Portugal, among others, submitting to their citizens intolerable sacrifices probably victims of incompetence and errors or lies of their leaders probably known and admitted by the authorities in Brussels and the same countries who claim today to be advocates of the purity of the financial and budgetary Europe.

Throughout the treatment of this crisis, decisive for the future of Europe, it seems that the institutions that govern it and its constituent States speak only on economic criteria, as if defending the economic and social model that characterizes Europe had no interest, thereby effecting a dramatic regression of the defense-oriented capitalism.

Of course the immediate consequence is the loss of millions of jobs across Europe, the destruction of the industrial sources and thus generating wealth, needed to overcome the crisis. The politically disarmed Europe, made to financial speculators, accepting that they themselves dictate the rules of social life and progress. It is a suicidal policy and inconsistent with the values ​​that gave birth to Europe today we do not know or they will not stand.

But if we want to look around us we see a crisis not only humanitarian but also economic.  The criminal war by the Government of Syria against its own people, committing real crimes against humanity, has found support from both countries, yet very close to the Cold War tactics, such as China and Russia, blind and deaf at the violations of human rights perpetrated against the Syrian people.

Spring Arabic countries face immense difficulties in order to build a truly democratic system that consolidates the newly won freedom. Religious fundamentalism in Iran reasserts itself, where the opposition is systematically persecuted dissidents and sentenced to death.

In the vast Russian Federation were held presidential election marred by electoral fraud that aims to consolidate personal power indisputable leaders. The civic consciousness of the new middle class is growing but still cannot overcome the fear and the spirit of some of the other communist priority.
In this context worrying and despairing, there are at least a positive sign. North Korea shows signs of wanting to abandon the winter of the Cold War and the arms race to feed its starving citizens, by creating an opening to the West. Great news for the Korean people and for everyone, hope it fully confirmed and that spring is coming so far.

He will arrive in the spring but we still have a long way to go slow and to overcome the current devastating waters that threaten the identity of Europe with which we are identified.
As our anonymous walker photo, cross the bridge over the waters and go on our way.

March 1, 2012