UK, Ireland /
Brits to protest against foreigners in the workforce, including Poles. [289]
If a company, by it's own actions, goes under nothing happens but Banks are treated differently, why?
Mainly cos the government owes the banks so much in turn. By bailing them out, they eventually own the fixed assets (property, land ect) via the banks debts. Unlike money, these assets follow a trend of becoming more valuable over time, while cash, exchange rates, shares ect can be influenced from forces outside governmental control. That's the theory anyway.
In laymen terms.
People of the country become richer (When labour came into power).
They buy houses and borrow large amounts of cash.
Banks lend cash that they "don't have" but borrow from other sources due to the fact people can afford to pay back loans ect.
Suddenly the bubble bursts, stock markets crash, banks go into debt due to their heavy lending and borrowing.
Banks put interest rates higher to get back more money, people cant afford to pay, so banks repossess their assets.
Government floods the economy by bailing out debts, Bank of England being a private institution recovers the "first" assets - property, land, ect. These are the only assets that stably increase through time.
They sell them again to get a return....next punters step up to buy them. And the cycle begins all over again.
Each time this cycle repeats, about 5% of borrowers have their assets seized either fully, or via re-mortgaging or other debt recovery services. This cycle can repeat in 5 years, 25 years or even 50 years, but each time a proportion of the countries assets are bought and re-sold again, but not by the people themselves, but by the banks.
In effect if you bought a house in the last financial boom, you have probably paid for it twice already, but you will continue to pay for many more times over with interest rates, re-mortgages and via tax bail outs to the banks.
Debt to us just mean owing money, debt to the means people owing them money, and that my friend is why the government is prepared to lend and borrow from the banks, cos they will get their cut;)
Sorry if I have bored anyone with my ranting :D
