I'll start this week's topic off.

No demonstrations, no protests. This is because private funds don't exist longer than ten years here and don't account for large part of expected pension. Before we had, and still have, state guaranteed (it sounds like a poor joke, doesn't it?) pension fund. Besides, up to this confiscation, roughly two thirds of your pension contribution were directed to the state owned fund, so the confiscated part is not that much.

But of course It still sucks, as money in private pension funds can be inherited while state owned not. However, the situation is more complex than ZH might have explained in the article.
Public pension fund works pretty much the same as it used to do when it was introduced by Bismarck in 19th century, which means that currently paid pensions are financed by present contributions deducted from our salaries. It made sense when birth rate was positive, but now it is not, so they introduced private funds. What's interesting they managed to introduce such systems only in young, weak democracies of Eastern Europe - despite huge propaganda they didn't make it in Germany for example.

Once part of the contributions has been directed to private funds the state had to issue more debt to finance pensions. Who will finally pay for this debt? Taxpayers of course. So in fact it doesn't really matter where your money is, unless the state owned fund is completely liquidated and everyone pays for themselves. Otherwise, you will be robbed anyway.

What private funds do with your money? First of all they invest over half of them in government bonds issued to finance current pensions (Catch 22 situation) and the rest of them in stocks quoted on local stock exchange. Remarkably, in a recent year or two all of the funds (all literally or on average as a whole group, capital weighted) underperformed stock exchange index, in their equity part. But still they take almost 6% commission, which is a ceiling allowed by the law, for their extraordinary performance.

ZH is right that this is an introduction to something bigger. Our government is the first in 24 years (the whole democratic period) that rules for the second term of office. Imagine how main stream media had to back them. There was only one situation, about two years ago, in which they had problems with the largest TV stations and newspapers, when they wanted to direct larger part of contribution to the state fund. At least this is what they said on TV... After two weeks they had all propaganda supporting them again, although they did what they planned with contribution. How was it possible? Because at the same time they wanted to cut off maximal allowed commission rate for fund management to 3%. Finally they left 6% untouched and media left them alone. If someone had any doubts regarding ownership of the media, he should get rid of it now.

Now, when the government virtually liquidates private pension fund system, there is almost no reaction on TVs, newspapers and so on. There are a lot of commentaries of course, but no one is really taking care. It means that we are in the next phase of liquidation, and the guys who earned extraordinary profit from private funds are preparing to rob us in other way. Given that the government is proposing changes to law that will allow central bank to print money, I think I know how it is going to work...

I'm sorry, if you are tired of reading this long post, but what Jim is conveying here about economics and politics is now being practiced in full scale in smaller countries like Cyprus and Poland.

And what is even worse, taxation on vodka is going to rise by 15% next year...

Here's the madness of this market. But, like everything else, no one really cares.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-09-06/heres-your-efficient-market

And here's what this looks like on a regular 1-min chart. Sure, this is normal.




Chart created on QCharts, courtesy eSignal

Marcin, no, thanks, that is great stuff and I want you to post anything you think is relevant. I want to hear what is really happening in other countries, as I can only see with my own eyes our rotting cesspool here.

Hi guys. Yes Marcin is right about all this stuff. If anybody looks at Poland from outside it looks great. We have about 50% debt/gdp ratio when others are probably bancrupt right now (like Japan for example). Still our Prime Minister acts like he is totally controled by Merkel and others and it looks more and more that Poland has to be a second test after Cyprus. They still confiscate money like in Cyprus only from Private Pension funds not directly from the bank (not that there is any difference in the end of course).
One can only imagine what those idiots will do in the last two years of their term. We will see but one cannot expect anything good. They just cannot stop borrowing as they cannot even imagine spending less money either on themselves or for propaganda purposes.
Of course they tell us now that we will have a choice if we move money to state owned fund or we stay in Private fund. But they give only 3 months for a choice. And of course 90% of not so interested people will not choose and automatically will end up in state fund. I do not think they gave all the details of this so called 'reform' but I think either way even those staying in PRivate fund will loose a big part of the money.

Thanks, tomo, for the added input.

Next month I get my news on how much my 'new' healthcare plan will be going up. I'm expecting 200%-300% in one shot. I'm up about 800% since I was in Arizona on that plan. O'Bummer not only said prices would be coming down (they've been up 20%-30% per year for less coverage), he also said 'You can keep your current plan'. But they told me my plan doesn't conform, so it is being dropped. Now I'll have to have a 'new', O'Bummer approved plan. But, O'Bummer said...

Anyway, the big push is on for part-time workers to avoid O'Bummercare, companies are dropping coverage like crazy, and it's barely getting started. But, alas, this is one 'defeat' they will be happy to admit, since the plan is to make care unaffordable or impossible for most, then unveil the 'solution' in the form of the National single payer system.

One of the biggest issues is what happens to people like me, with health issues, in the meantime? And how about this? The rate for insurance may be such that to stay with the system for the 2-3 years until it transitions might take all the money I have saved for my entire life, for my 'retirement'. Again, back to just one more form of liquidation and theft. So, I see my future as being on welfare, getting food stamps, on National O'Bummercare, eating gub-er-mint cheese. You think I'm joking? I'm not. Me... Living like that... Yep. Me, and you. All of you. I'm serious.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-09-07/ibm-terminates-company-sponsored-retiree-health-plan-due-soaring-costs

For my polish readers. Is this as good as he says? I'm not on the inside of the joke like you guys are.

http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2013-09-07/polish-partitions

Yes, this is quite funny.
Partitions is a series of three times when Austria, Russia and Prussia annexed parts of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until they took over everything. So their point that this is only the beginning is really good.

This kid in the second poster is PM Donald Tusk also called Donaldinho (like Ronaldinho), as he spends more time playing soccer than working. ZUS - state owned fund.
And a writing below 'One more time' leaves no delusions. And showing chief communist here is well-aimed. After WWII communists nationalized everything including even the smallest groceries.