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More fun than a concert
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
About 10,000 protesters clashed with police earlier today as anti-capitalist demonstrators attempted to block roads leading to the G8 (Group of Eight) summit in Germany.
Water cannons were used after protesters hurled rocks and stones at police vehicles - eight officers were injured and 15 demonstrators were arrested.
Save for the stone throwing, water cannons, riot gear, and general confrontational mood, it looked much like a 1960s era mid-summer gathering of concert-goers - as if they were about to join hands and sing about Coca-Cola.
The German news weekly der Spiegel provided these photos:
In the Speigel Online report as well as in this account from Reuters, there was no word on what the demonstrators were protesting - "anti-capitalism" seems have been sufficient explanation in the Reuters report.
Poor Akie Abe, wife of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe - as a result of the demonstrations, she was forced to cancel a planned sightseeing tour of the nearby resort town of Kuehlungsborn.
6 comments:
I'm sick of this terrible journalism and its refusal to explain anything--like, for instance, WHAT these protestors are protesting. This is outrageous and inexcusable, not to mention pathetic. It makes me wonder if these news networks are getting paid off and/or threatened with closure for telling the real story....
I think they're all just looking for a party. Either that or they're pissed because the only jobs they can get are at McDonalds.
This is what happens when all you have left in your economy are service jobs. There's nothing for these kids to do!
My son's friends are here gaming tonight. One just had to leave to prepare for his exciting job unloading the new shipment of stuff to Big 5 sporting goods tomorrow. Another one is manager of an IHOP. One cuts meat. Wow. Such exciting choices these kids have. When I was their age, I was an engineer.
Donna,
I always enjoy your comments, but in this case let's not blame our service economy, Greenspan, or globalization for the fact that some young adults are slackers. This is not so much about the choices they have, as the choices they make. It sounds like your kids come from an educated upper-middle class family, and so there is no reason why they could not go to, say, MIT or, aiming lower, Cal Poly Pomona, and work as engineers. I am a young engineer myself and I know that if you are good, there are still plenty of options open, despite outsourcing and other problems.
Engineering jobs are low-tier now. If you want to get ahead, you need to flip houses, flog marginal loans, or be a middle manager for a defense contractor.
I know a lot of people that are doing OK as engineers in the M-I complex, but they're really barely staying ahead relative to the management and ownership of these companies.
If you aren't willing to work for the war machine, well, God help you.
Oh, and to get the requisite degrees, even at "low-cost" state schools, you'll have to put yourself into debt that will cripple you probably for most of your young adulthood (unless you're lucky enough to have a family that can afford to pay for college).
Aaron,
You are making some valid points but are over-dramatizing the situation.
University of California (Berkely, UCLA), for example, is more expensive than before, but certainly will not put you in "crippling debt." For graduate school in engineering you can get research or teaching assistantship that will pay a stipend (~$1.5K) and cover all tuition.
With a graduate degree, you can reach a 6-digit salary pretty fast. Certainly not as lucrative as finance or law, but not that low-tier...
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