Two elections

There were two elections over the weekend. In France, neo-liberal Emmanuel Macron managed to defeat neo-fascist Marine Le Pen, which should be a relief to everyone (especially given what a le Pen victory would have meant for Ukraine). But its hardly a particularly inspiring choice, effectively just a question of which flavour of racist you prefer, and the fact it was the second such contest raises questions about how long people will be willing to keep voting for the lesser of two evils rather than just stay at home. France's multi-round system is to blame here, and replacing it with a simple one-round preferential vote seems like it would help voters avoid disgust-fatigue.

But it was a happier story in Solvenia, where incumbent prime Minister Janez Janša, who was explicitly modelling himself on Trump and Orbán seems to have lost to green-liberal Robert Golob. Golob's Freedom Movement wants to close coal mines and other major polluters and protect social services, which sounds pretty good. Slovenia's Social Democrats have already announced they will support Golob as Prime Minister, so it looks like they're going to get a green-centre-left government.

Austerity claims another government

Something I missed: last week, Slovenia's government fell over corruption and austerity:

Slovenia’s Prime Minister Janez Jansa was ousted from office in a no-confidence vote on Wednesday (28 February) amid economic gloom compounded by persistent allegations of corruption.

The tiny Alpine ex-Yugoslav republic is beset by an economic crisis, a banking system in shambles, and an unemployment rate of just over 12 percent.

[...]

The scandals and the economic problems have since caught up with Jansa’s minority government as junior coalition partners, the centre-right Civic List and pensioners' party Desus, abandoned the pro-austerity party bloc.

The state’s anti-graft watchdog accused Jansa of hiding away €210,000 of personal assets to avoid paying tax. In early February, some 20,000 took to the streets to protest the political corruption, rising unemployment, and erosion of social benefits.

The scandal also took down the leader of the opposition, and the new PM-designate, Alenka Bratusek, is anti-austerity. The question is whether she can put together a government which will back that policy. The other question is whether she will be allowed to let Slovenia's crooked banks fail, or whether the EU will force her to socialise their losses onto the Slovenian people, while the bankers laugh all the way to Switzerland.

Talk versus action

UK Prime Minister Gordon brown used the weekend's Labour party conference - almost certainly his last - to talk tough, promising a war on greed and the toughest action in the world to control banker's bonuses and end the incentives for short-term speculation which have driven the global economy to ruin. That action? Requiring bonuses to be deferred for a while (how long is still undecided). So, bankers will still get their money, they'll just have to wait. And this is what Brown calls "tough"?

Meanwhile, Slovenia shows us how its really done, imposing a 90% marginal tax rate on large bonuses and managerial salaries in all financial institutions receiving government guarantees or aid. Which means that managers and speculators will pay a personal price for the damage they've caused - unlike in the UK.