Archive for November, 2009

A few weeks back, president Calderón shut down one of the two state run electricity companies in Mexico, Luz y Fuerza del Centro. It was shut down because of its inefficiency. More than 40% of the electricity sold by this company was never paid for by its customers. Yearly subsidies reach some 4 billion USD/year and still they lose money.

One of the answers to its poor efficiency rate is the worker’s union. All workers have the right to free electricity for himself and family, school allowance, rent allowance, etc. At 55 years of age, a worker has the right to retire with 100% of his salary until the day he dies. When Calderón shut it down, 44 000 people were employed. Another 20 000 were retired (but with worker’s benefits, e.g. employed). Service has always been dismal. Corruption incredible. It’s a good thing that moneyhole was shut down.

Today a huge demonstration took place in downtown Mexico City. The worker’s union marched together with the telephone company worker’s union and the state university worker’s union. They call for a general strike. A general strike? For cutting off a cancer that is eating the society from within? Problem is, in Mexico nobody really wants to work. People want it all and want the government to pay for it. Recently, in a measure to save state finances, the government proposed a 1% hike to the VAT. From 15% to 16%. An additional 3% to telecommunications (except Internet). People are going crazy over this now. But what they don’t think about is that only 20% of the economically active Mexicans actually pay any kind of income tax. Incidentally, the people that complain the most about these tax hikes are the ones that don’t pay income tax.

At least something good came out of the demonstration today. AMLO wasn’t allowed (by the union workers) to speak to the people. That’s a victory for all of Mexico.