Surviving Capitalism (Not) : IMF Unleashes 18 Billion on Ukraine’s Economy and People

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Thursday, March 27, 2014

IMF Unleashes 18 Billion on Ukraine’s Economy and People

Click here to access article by Christof Lehmann from nsnbc.

The measures expected by the IMF include drastic austerity measures which will drastically increase already rampant poverty in the country. Analysts warn that the IMF package that was unleashed on the Ukraine and measures, expected to be taken by the government, will result in a new wave of social unrest.

Compare this report with those of mainstream capitalist media such as from the liberal Guardian and Reuters which celebrate the IMF loan program as a "bailout" and "lifeline".

The end result will be the neoliberal agenda we've seen elsewhere: Ukraine's economy will be open to Western corporate takeover by such firms as Cargill and Monsanto, the IMF loan will go to pay off the loans of oligarchs and banks, and the Ukrainian people will experience even more austerity to pay off the IMF.