Declining Wages

There is a maxim often espoused by apologists of Capitalism - that a rising tide lifts all boats , meaning that a bountiful capitalism will benefit all sectors of society , not just the capitalist class .

But where is the proof of the pudding.

Profits at British companies are growing at their fastest pace in nearly 13 years while wages of ordinary workers are rising at their slowest pace since 2002, official data showed today.

Office for National Statistics said profits increased by 16.2% in the second quarter of the year compared with a year earlier. That was the best figure since the final quarter of 1994, the profit rise was widespread across different types of company.

Meantime

Wages rose by a meagre 3.6%, the worst pace of growth since the first quarter of 2002.

And inflation - rose to 3.8%, the highest in more than a decade .

So in real terms we are 0.2% worse off

Darren Winder, chief economist at stockbrokers Cazenove said that the cash position and balance sheet of British business was stronger than ever.

"But with household debt now higher than annual GDP, workers may be showing more flexibility over pay rises because they need to keep their job and pay the mortgage."

ARE WORKERS STUPID?

Make up your own mind. Here is a recent reply to a criticism of capitalism on our website. Have a look and make up your own mind. "It's not necessary to understand Marx in order to be a socialist. In other words, you can want to see an end to capitalism without having studied Marx. However, Marx did analyse for us the economics of capitalism, in the same way that Darwin analysed evolution. There are lots of 'intellectuals' out there, who think that they understand Marx, or Darwin, but they don't really. I think it's a good thing if people look at these ideas for themselves, reach an understanding, and are then in a position to rebut the 'intellectuals'.
That was a worker speaking on our website. Let’s hear from you. RD

you bet !

Labour's gambling reforms - which come into effect next week - will make it easier for children to bet online, experts warned . The Royal College of Psychiatrists issued a last-minute plea for ministers to reconsider letting foreign gambling websites advertise on television here.
Addiction experts fear the supposedly tight restrictions on such sites will be "unenforceable". They say children will take advantage of security loopholes to pose as adults and bet on-line. Hundreds of foreign-based gaming websites are expected to start advertising on British TV and radio channels from next Saturday - even though they are not regulated in the UK . With online casinos mostly based in places such as Gibraltar, critics fear many will perform only the most cursory checks on players' ages and identities - making it far too easy for UK children to gamble illegally on-line.

He who pays the piper calls the tune !

Labour has accepted a donation of £150,000 from the online betting company Bet 365

someone with too much to even care much

It emerged that a 39-year-old hedge-fund tycoon took three months to collect his £80,000 Maserati Cambiocorsa after it was towed away for not having a valid tax disc.

Despite repeated calls from the DVLA to reach him Mr Des Pallieres said that he was "too busy" setting up a new business to fetch his car. " ..I only ever use the car in the summer and this summer I have hardly been in London."

Mr Des Pallieres left Deutsche Bank with two colleagues in April to set up his own company, the SPQR hedge fund. Now worth £170 million, his fund manages investments in debt markets. Yesterday, he claimed that the stress and workload involved in setting up his own firm were to blame for his forgetfulness.

Uh-huh , and i wonder how many of us could let our £80,000 car slip our mind - if of course we had such a car , in the first place .

The trickle-down theory

The Crystal nightclub in London's West End made the news recently when one businessmen spent £105,000 in one night. The club's general manager says it is becoming more common for bills to reach these eye-watering figures. Many of Crystal's party-goers can be found in their suits and at their desks inside the glass skyscrapers of Canary Wharf. But is it actually good for London? "Yes," says Howard Wheeldon, a city analyst with BGC Partners based in Canary Wharf, "there's a massive trickle-down effect."


In the shadow of Canary Wharf's towers, a charity called Toynbee Hall is holding an open day for under-privileged East End kids. The children here - often from Somali or Bengali families - are among the poorest in the country.

Toynbee Hall's director, believes there is not much evidence of the "trickle-down effect" for them. I ask him if the rich and poor in the area ever mix. He tells me to go and sit in the designer shopping mall underneath Canary Wharf. "No matter how long sit there, you never see anybody from the Bengali community..."

"These are two worlds that occupy the same space, but never actually intersect."

The very rich and the very poor living together in the centre of the capital. Side by side - yet still in their own very separate worlds. The trickle-down theory is a euphemism for being pissed on by the rich .

Scotland's Slaves

Some migrant workers in Scotland are being treated like "modern day slaves", according to campaigners being reported by the BBC . Promises of good accommodation and pay quickly disappear when they arrive in Scotland.

Two Polish workers told BBC Scotland that after two weeks of labour they actually owed the farmer money.

The Prague Post reports that the life many migrant workers find in Scotland is not what they had envisioned. They are frequently abused and coerced into accepting illegal working conditions, said Beth Herzfeld of Anti-Slavery International.

The most common form of abuse is debt-bondage. This is the illegal practice of paying an employer up-front for work, rent and food . Sometimes said, it takes workers six weeks to repay these debts, and then they are fired. This is a common “trick” employers use to leech money from vulnerable workers explains Paul Millar , the Czech honorary consul in Scotland .

According to Herzfeld, debt-bondage is one of the tactics used to traffic people. Trafficking is when someone is taken to, or freely goes, from one place to another by means of deception, coercion or violence. Often, as in the case of many Czech workers in Scotland, their passports are confiscated, they have a debt to repay and, being unsure of their legal right to work, they are controlled by threats.

Dangerous housing and miserable pay are often the hallmarks of foreign workers’ lives in Scotland, according to Ian Tusker, assistant secretary of the Scottish Trade Union Congress .
“You could work all day for a pittance, basically... " Tusker said.

See a related article , Borders Crossed , in this month's Socialist Standard

WAR ZONE VICTIMS

We are all aware of the horrors of modern war with its suicide bombers and roadside booby traps, but there is another horror that is less well publicised. "Active-duty soldiers committed suicide last year at the highest rate in 26 years, with nearly one-third of those taking their lives doing so while deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, the Pentagon said Thursday. ...Critics said the report underscored the military's failure to meet the mental health needs of soldiers who are serving multiple and longer deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, often with shorter breaks. ... In all, the report said that there had been 99 suicides confirmed among active-duty soldiers during 2006, up from 88 in 2005. Of those, 70 percent were under the age of 25, and 51 percent were never married. Another 948 attempted suicide in 2006, the report found. ...In May, the Pentagon released a study that found that one-third of soldiers and Marines had reported mental health problems, including anxiety and depression, after returning from combat." (Yahoo News, 16 August) This is the sad reality behind all that army machismo bullshit that recruits are fed. RD

CHILD ABUSE

Revelations about child abuse by priests may have shocked the faithful, but now comes evidence that it is not just in Christian places of worship that this occurs. "Ali Khan was sitting at a meeting in a Glasgow mosque, discussing a paedophile assault in a house of God, when he realised he had to take matters into his own hands. A Koranic teacher had been accused of sexually assaulting a young girl under his charge, and Khan, a 47-year-old property tycoon, was sitting alongside a handful of other senior Muslim figures in the community discussing what should or should not be done with the man."Horror of horrors," says Khan, ... "what was suggested was that the alleged abuser should be allowed to remain in the mosque." ...Proof of this "hushing up" of the alleged abuse of children from ethnic backgrounds was what prompted Khan to set up Roshni, a new charity based in Glasgow. The word Roshni means light in Urdu, and the charity has as its motto the phrase No More Secrets. ...To compound Khan's belief that ethnic communities needed a wake-up call on child protection issues, a child abuse scandal broke at Glasgow's central mosque. Taher Din was jailed for a year after sexually molesting two young boys at the iconic building near the Clyde. ..During the trial, there were suggestions that officials from the mosque may have tried to cover up the attacks." (Sunday Herald, 19 August) RD

THE WOMAN WHO HAD EVERYTHING

We are often led to believe that there is something admirable about the extremely rich, the following obituary makes that highly debateable. "Leona Helmsley, who died yesterday aged 87, was popularly known as the "Queen of Mean" and famous for her dictum that "only little people pay taxes". ...In the 1980s she was as much of a celebrity as Donald Trump. However, stories about her private life began to surface. She was cast as a spiteful woman who, after her only son died intestate in 1982 sued to claim most of his estate, leaving her four grandchildren with just $432 apiece. ...On her husband's death in 1997 she inherited $1.7 billion and a property empire that still controlled much of the Manhattan skyline." (Daily Telegraph,21 August) RD

THE PRICE OF COAL

The emergence of China as a modern capitalist nation competing against more established nations has filled the media recently, but what is not so widely publicised is the cost levied on the Chinese working class. Most of the electricity produced there is from coal and the Chinese coal mines are amongst the most dangerous in the world. Production has more than doubled since 2000, but it has cost thousands of lives. This year alone we have 29 miners killed in Inner Mongolia, 24 killed in a fire in Henan and 26 killed in an explosion in the Yujialing coal mine. Now we have an even worse disaster. "Frantic relatives of 181 Chinese miners trapped by flash floods hundreds of metres underground scuffled with security force yesterday as they criticised rescue efforts.... Earlier, the chief rescue officer, Zhu Wenyu, was reported by state media as saying; "I'd guess that the miners down the shaft have no hope of survival." (Times, 20 August) RD

For those who have too much

Royal Bank of Scotland has awarded millions of potentially lucrative share options to top executives under a controversial new bonus plan a report in The Herald says .

Chief executive Sir Fred Goodwin, head of corporate markets Johnny Cameron, and Larry Fish, head of US subsidiary Citizens, are among the major beneficiaries. The scheme could see executives including Goodwin gain three times their basic salary - which in his case would amount to £3.6 million. Goodwin was granted options over nearly 700,000 shares. Cameron was granted options over 374,332 shares and Fish over 523,640 shares. Finance director Guy Whittaker and retail markets chief Gordon Pell also received big awards.

RBS announced to the stock market yesterday that it had granted options to 15 senior executives which will vest between 2010 and 2017 at an exercise price of 561p, a level which some might view as low by recent standards. RBS shares closed up 1.5p at 577p last night, but were until recently trading well above £6. RBS did not respond to a request for comment on how it had arrived at the apparently low exercise price.

AND THOSE WHO HAVE NOTHING

The contrast between those who have everything and those who have nothing is summed up by this news item. "For 15-year-old Issa, days of summer start when the sun rises over a northern Israeli hill, shining on a garbage dump, a thorny field and then the dirty mattress that is his bed. Issa is among hundreds of Palestinian child labourers who sneak into Israel from the West Bank, hawking or begging at traffic junctions. Israel's massive barrier of walls and fences separating it from the West Bank has made it harder for adult labourers to enter Israel, so families wracked by poverty are increasingly sending their children instead. Children as young as 3 stand at traffic lights for hours, in rain or baking sun. They beg for change or sell cigarette lighters and batteries. At night, they sleep in fields, cemeteries, mosques, drainage canals or on streets. Their earnings are often taken by thieves or shady middlemen, and some are sexually abused or forced to sell drugs." (Yahoo News, 18 August) RD

FOR THE MAN WHO HAS EVERYTHING (2)

Another example of how the rich indulge themelves. "A classic Ferrari once owned by Steve McQueen sold for $2.31 million Thursday night at auction. An anonymous car collector who placed a bid by phone bought the 1963 Ferrari Berlinetta Lusso during an auction that drew 800 people to the Monterey Jet Center and attracted spirited bidding, said Christie's spokesman Rik Pike. The sale price was greater than the estimated pre-sale price of $800,000 to $1.2 million, Pike said. (Yahoo News, 17 August) RD

FOR THE MAN WHO HAS EVERYTHING

"Want the right wristwatch to go with that new $88,000 Vertu phone on your belt? Check out this platinum watch from Swiss timepiece-maker Ulysse Nardin, a one of a kind (or rather, 99 of a kind) gem that gives you a UFO's-eye view of the Earth—all for the bargain price of $100,000. No, it's not encrusted with jewels and it doesn't do Bluetooth, but the Tellurium J. Kepler Limited Edition watch (only 99 were made) has something you won't find on your everyday Timex: a rotating representation of the globe as it might be seen from above the North Pole, complete with a flexible spring representing the terminator between day and night, plus a perpetual calendar that makes a complete rotation once a year." (Yahoo Tech, 17 August) There is surely something sick about a society that cannot even provide food and clean water for millions of people yet can indulge the rich with such nonsense. RD

THE CORRUPT SOCIETY

Capitalism tarnishes everything it touches. Recently we have had the sporting world shocked with tales of cycling drug cheats, football managers and "bungs" and now we have basketball entering the rogues’ gallery. "American sport was rocked yesterday when a leading basketball referee pleaded guilty to passing betting tips to professional gamblers, after an FBI operation linked to the Gambino Mafia family. Tim Donaghy also admitted placing bets on games over which he officiated, in what the head of the National Basketball Association (NBA) described as the the "worst situation" he had ever experienced for the sport." (Times, 17 August) RD

Keeping up with the Joneskys

A new conservatory ...some decking in the back garden ...perhaps an attic conversion to have an extra room for the kids ...well for some of us that will be a worth-while achievement , but for the capitalist class , its underground tennis courts and three story car parks .

The Times reports that with 15 bedrooms, vast entertaining suites and exquisite plasterwork, 15 Kensington Palace Gardens was one of the most expensive – and exclusive – houses ever to have changed hands in London when it was bought by Leonard Blavatnik, a Russian-born oil tycoon, for £41m in 2004. Yet all that opulence is clearly not enough for Blavatnik . According to plans submitted this summer to Kensington and Chelsea council, the tycoon, who has relocated to London, is seeking permission to excavate under the garden, to the front and rear of the sprawling pile, making space for a three-storey garage with car stacker, a swimming pool, a gym and a private home cinema.

Russian oligarchs, private-equity traders and hedge-fund managers are engaged in a multimillion-pound game of one-upmanship as they vie with each other to dig ever bigger, wider and deeper extensions. Behind the white stucco fronts and redbrick exteriors of Belgravia and Chelsea, London’s super-rich are digging down and building outwards and upwards .

The latest must-have feature is an adjustable-height swimming pool. At the flick of a button – because everything is remote-controlled – the bottom can be raised or lowered by a giant hydraulic jack, forming a deep swimming pool for the heavyweight millionaire or a toddler-friendly paddling pool for his offspring. Optional extras include a retractable glass roof or a discreet cover that will slide over the pool, creating a ballroom or banqueting hall. It doesn’t have to be modern or minimal – one house in Mayfair has a Roman-style pool, complete with columns.

“London is awash with money,” says Robin Ellis , known in the trade as “London’s poshest builder”, “Vast tracts of London are being dug up to create sub-basements,” he adds. “My clients are prepared to pay to create houses that push all the boundaries of luxury and technology. I’ve put in a swimming pool with a cover that rose, concertina-style, up and over the water to convert the space into a private concert hall, with seating for 100.”

It is all reminiscent of the mercantile extravagance of 15th-century Venice or the wild opulence of the reign of Louis XIV. London now has more billionaires then anywhere else in the world after New York and Moscow .

Few can compete with Chris Rokos, a secretive hedge-fund tycoon. The lavish plans for his eight-bedroom house in Notting Hill, submitted to the planners this month, include a gym, a home cinema, library, a third-floor open-air pool, an internal climbing wall, a subterranean garage with motorised lift for two cars and an 80ft-tall glass atrium. As if that’s not enough, Rokos, 36, plans to dig four storeys below ground to create a 16ft-deep swimming pool with high board.

“When they go round the houses of all of their mates who have done something, they want to do it better – money is no object,” says Jonathan Hewlett, head of London sales at Savills estate agency.

For example, Gibson Music, multi-audio specialists who have been hard-wiring homes for more than 20 years, have just put in £250,000 worth of technology by Creston, which specialises in top-of-the-range control systems. Other extravagant features recently demanded by clients include a vanity unit for 2,100 lipsticks; a glass-fronted, temperature-controlled wine cellar, complete with fibreoptic lighting and carved macassar ebony shelves, to hold 4,000 bottles; walk-in showers with waterproof television screens and glass walls that turn opaque with the press of a button, and cost £1,000 per square metre.

And there was some of us thinking we would be the bees knees with a 42-inch plasma screen tv , too

YOUR FUTURE

All those workers who claim that capitalism is not only the only possible society but also a wonderful one should pay attention to a recent government report. "Vulnerable elderly people are being subjected to neglect, abuse, discrimination and ill-treatment in the hospitals and care homes that should be looking after them, according to a report published today by a parliamentary committee. The study by the joint committee on human rights warns that many older people are facing maltreatment ranging from physical neglect so severe they are left lying in their own faeces or urine to malnutrition and dehydration through lack of help with eating. Lack of dignity, especially for personal care needs, inappropriate medication designed more to subdue patients than treat them, and over-hasty discharge from hospital are also causing suffering for many older people, the MPs and peers conclude." (Guardian, 15 August) You have a nice future inside capitalism, don't you? RD

ILLUSION AND REALITY

Many people imagine that with retirement comes a pleasant period in a hard-working life. Alas, the reality is far from idyllic for many workers. "Pensioners are burdened with debts of £57 billion from mortgages and credit cards, new figures show. One fifth of retired people are still paying off a mortgage and a third owes an average of £5,900 on credit cards and loans, says Scottish Widows, the insurer. The 11 million pensioners who are still making repayments owe an average of £38,000 on their homes, compared with £35,000 last year. One in eight owes more than £50,000." (Times, 13 August) RD

Scotland's poor , again

The Daily Record carries a report from the children's charity NCH Scotland on Scotland's poor .

More than 100,000 lone parent families in Scotland are trying to live on less than £15,000 a year, and more than 50,000 have to scrape by on less than £10,000.
162,000 lone parents in Scotland, bringing up around 280,000 children. Two thirds of all teenage mums are lone parents.

Lone parents are more likely to fall ill, and a quarter of them - more than 40,000 - admit they are struggling to cope with emotional problems.

Crime is a growing problem among poor kids from all family backgrounds. A record-breaking 53,883 youngsters were reported to the Children's Panel in 2005-6. The number of pre-school children in Scotland requiring "care and protection" has increased four-fold in the past decade - up from 2995 in 1996 to 11,975 last year. Almost half of the children included in the 2006 figures lived in lone parent families.
Scottish girls are among the most violent on Earth. They came sixth in an international league table of violence, with almost a third of 11-15-year-olds involved in at least one fight in the past year.
And the lives of no fewer than 100,000 Scottish children are blighted by their parents' abuse of alcohol. Scotland has one of the highest youth unemployment rates in the developed world.

Director of children's services for NCH Scotland, said : "Having a poor start in life is condemning far too many of our young people to a life of difficulty and disadvantage."

What a waste and what a depressing life youth of to-day have . Imagine if all that energy and creativity of young people was not bent on self-destruction , if all those single parents were not exiled to a life of alienated isolation and lonliness on council schemes , and all had their attentions turned to solving the World's desperate problems.

Migrants ‘go home for medical needs’

One of the myths about the arrival of foreign workers is that they are a drain on the British Welfare State .

However when it comes to using the NHS , according to this report , a study reveals that the majority of migrant workers who have experienced health care systems in Scotland perceive the medical services in their own countries to be generally of better quality. Most migrants from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia preferred to return home for treatment of non-acute medical problems, as well as dental care and visits to opticians.