Leaving it up to fate to decide for us is a very old and widely used practice, just like manipulating the instruments we choose in order to decide the fate of others.
The economic and financial crisis we have been going through for several years had raised a veil of hope among the many concerning a fair reorganisation of economic practices and the elimination of favouritism offered to the „over night” sources of riches. Finding pseudo-scientific justifications and reasons, for over three years we have been sinking in the slums of lies, according to which by pumping money in consumption (banks, maintaining production units that had been financially supported since the end of the ’90s), we will save the economy and boost our social and spiritual evolution. Using the same arguments, the liberalisation of monopoles that are vital to the social-economic progress is avoided. Based on these monopoles, European countries place great hopes on identifying and attracting budget funds to cover the gaps in sectors driven by mercantile interests. The railways and the energy sector continue to be at the top of these double-standard practices. As they are still state property (if we were to go into details, based on the turnover obtained by the companies that activate in this field, we would notice that, in 2010, in all EU member states, over 50% of the railways are owned by the central national authorities), because no one has the courage to give up something that brings many side benefits, railway companies are either deprived of the necessary investment funds (one of the political decisions made by European governments in order to fight against the effects of the crisis is to transfer a substantial percentage from the railway industry’s profits to the national budget – isn’t that why the state is proprietor?) or they have to deal with a drop in funds allocated for major construction and acquisition projects that were meant to put in motion a large number of suppliers. While the modernisation of the railway sector is being dragged on, the acquisition of new locomotives, wagons and modern trains has been postponed. The automotive industry benefits from state subsidies in order to maintain over-production, the banking industry receives subsidies to maintain high financing costs, the experimentation of a new and more expensive system of mega-trucks for the road infrastructure receives the support of the governments etc.
In the beginning of the 21st century, in the context of globalisation, the old military strategy mentality concerning the limitation of territory invasion routes condemns the most efficient and less polluting mode of transport to degradation and investors to bankruptcy.
by Ştefan Roşeanu
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