http://inthesenewtimes.com/2009/02/05/the-european-revolution-begins/

We can see now that without this leadership this movement would not have happened, at least, not so soon, and there wouldn’t have been such a coherent and focused expression of popular feeling.
It goes without saying that the results achieved are not the end but the beginning and I’m afraid, Hordur, you’re going to have to reconsider your decision not to stand at the election- it is absolutely necessary the you, or someone else from the protest movement stand. Yes, I know you’re not an apparatchik and that you are an artist and a human being- I know you want a world of love, beauty and happiness, but you can’t have it if you leave power to the apparatchiks. I know there is something tragic in this dilemma- you weren’t born for politics as you understand it. but perhaps you can humanize politics. By all means rest now as much as you can but then reconsider; perhaps someone else can do it, bouyed up by the support of all of you. But, it may have to be you. At all events, someone must stand, someone must bridge the gap between the street and the institutions.

My best wishes to you all.

http://inthesenewtimes.com

Businesses have depended on (debt) banks for finance far too long without turning a profit. They depend on borrowing, cheap labor, and most you’ll find have no long term/permanent workers, opting to employ long-term unemployed who (in some/most cases) come with a government subsidy. These businesses are really – useless contributors to society – operating to make a comfortable living for themselves, like investors with no social conscience.
A good example of this can be seen in a district in Washington DC (only five miles from the political hub) Ward 8 where 90% of the poor have jobs. They just don’t earn enough to pay their bills.

Hey has anyone heard: what’s the difference between Ireland, and Iceland?
One letter, and any day now. Ha, now that’s a good one”

I’ll be back again if I may?
Paddy in exile.

Yes. Given that protests had been going on for four months at that point, I’m not instantly inclined to connect the two. There’s a reasonable argument that if protest was going to change things, it would have done so long before then.

I suspect it’s political. If they were still in power, people who absolutely vote to get them out; they would have nothing, come the elections. By leaving early, they neutralise the widely felt need to get them out. They’ll still do badly, of course, but perhaps not as badly. Also, I suspect the replacement coalition is going to be unstable – I also suspect it’s going to be rather socialist, which is going to screw both the economy and liberty.

dave

What was different about the protests in the final week or two that made them change their mind after ignoring months of peaceful demonstrations?

Thomas Jefferson had something to say about this.

The economy imploded and there’s basically nothing the State can do to help. There were protests every weekend for some months. The Government resigned.

What makes you assume that the protests *caused* the Government to resign?

Certainly you can say the protests occurred and certainly you can say the Government resigned; but elections are coming up, there is (IMHO) nothing the current Government could have done to help the economy (we will see if the new Government can, and if they too cannot, it will tend to support that view). It may be that the Government resigned because it was the best political move for them at that point and that the protests had no significant effect.

Consider; it was over four months of protests. You might have expected them to have had an impact sooner, no, if they were going to?