Central banks create part of the money in circulation. They lend them to private banks, who also create “their own” money via loans and other financial services, those private institutions buy public debts and that is how states can intervene in societies and money is distributed. Hello world. We are told we live in a capitalistic one, where only the fittest survive. Business wise however, state aids are massive and they are justified “by reasons of general economic development”.
So if “the state” decides that AI is the way to go, then that industry will receive massive public investments and can continue to invest even without profits. Do I think it is fair? No. Not with my debt.
I wish I could decide, directly, how to invest my portion of the public debt, since I’ve to pay for it with my taxes, my work, my time, ultimately a big portion of my life. So, the rules of raw competition only apply to slaves/workers, not big companies and industries in general and here I have a couple of local examples.
Recently, I was told a couple of info that really shocked me and I thought that perhaps my contribution to society could be to let those news out. I have finally found one of my purposes in life: allow true stories to find their way out to the public. Good, you see how the world treats these people.
So, a steelwork company in the city center of Verona, a highly visited, touristic city in the norther part of Italy, is about to close. Finally, one would immediately think. A multinational company would like to buy it though and continue its “business operations” right there. That will save 300 people’s jobs. They also received political backups and permissions for the transit of heavy vehicles on ancient bridges. In exchange, the company will buy electric bicycles for the city and perhaps build a new bridge. It sounds like a deal but I genuinely hope you read this in a sarcastic way.
You would assume a motorway exit, or a secondary train station, to be more appropriate places to move an industry that fuses and works with heavy metals, considering the massive cargoes that need to be transported, but no. That factory had been one kilometer away from ancient roman artifacts the whole world admires, for a 100 years and there will continue to stay despite the fact the economy of the city has developed enormously in the meantime and despite the health consequences linked to steel micro powders and dioxin. I am always so happy when I see how the smartest people rule society overall, while the dumb ones lie on its sides. It is the survival of the fittest law, like we saw before.
The other piece of info that reached me is the following. You know when (old) cruises tilt and get stuck and insurance companies pay for their dismissal? Oh, you didn’t know that. Now you do. Apparently it is a standard practice for multinational companies as a way to avoid paying the dismantling of these gigantic old coffeepots, which are objectively massive and problematic to deal with. It seems that 99.9% of the times there are no consequences for passengers who walk safely on land, like Jesus on the Sea of Galilee.
It appears to the general opinion that insurance companies are nasty bitches only for small, economically insignificant people, but for multinationals, they close one eye and pretend not to know. Did you know the Mediterranean sea is one of the graveyards for big ships? That is because it is the mildest of the seas. Even old couches with just a bit of make up on so to look smart, without the most advanced forms of security systems or warn frames, can seal it.
Of course, in general terms, and as it always happens, it is a single person’s fault. Do not ever doubt that or you might develop a CD, a conspiracy disorder. In case you do, stay calm and have faith. There’s a pill for that too, so that you can be cured and return to believe we live in a fair world.