As the earthquake of economic crisis sweeps across the globe, the political establishment in country after country is being shaken to the core. “Strong” governments have been exposed as, in fact, being extremely weak, both at the ballot box and on the streets. The ruling class is beginning to lose its political grip on society and people are beginning to question the traditional pillars that society has rested upon for centuries.

We provide a few reports from our comrades in several European countries, Greece, Austria, Sweden and Italy. In Sweden May Day coincided with the launch of the new Swedish Marxist journal, Avanti.

Greek debt is endangering the euro as a viable currency. EU officials are in a dilemma: step in with financial backing to hold up Greece in order to protect the euro as a whole or let Greece go and thus provoke an immediate crisis. Whatever they decide one thing is clear: they are going to impose draconian cuts in Greek public spending, which means making the Greek workers pay!

When the economy was booming the euro was seen as a source of strength for those countries that had adopted the new currency. Now it is transforming into its opposite, as the crisis in Greece demonstrates. The Marxists warned about this long ago.

In both Hungary and the Czech Republic we have seen recently so-called “technocrats”, ex-bankers and so on, being called to form governments, which the main political parties apparently have nothing to do with. It is a fig leaf behind which they are trying to hide their complete capitulation to the capitalists, and thus hopefully save them from the wrath of the people. How long can this last?

We recently received this interesting article that gives the facts and figures about the economic nightmare that is about to hit Eastern Europe. Twenty years after the disastrous collapse of Stalinism these countries now face an even bigger collapse, this time of the capitalist type.