Because the Banks and Insurance Companies Own Us

Hungary has just broken off talks with the IMF and the EU, because the IMF and EU only want deficit reduction on the backs or ordinary people, so throw pensioners into the streets, destroy your healthcare and education systems, and raise the VAT, but whatever you do, don't raise taxes on banks and insurance:

Mr Orban had intended to raise some half a billion euros (187 billion forints) via a new tax on banks and insurance firms. The IMF however said this ""is likely to adversely affect lending and growth."

More subtlely, the EU's Mr Rehn said: "Care will also be needed to ensure a stable environment for both domestic and international investors."

Brussels and the IMF will be hoping a swift sharp spanking from the markets will chasten Mr Orban's government, but the move will also unnerve investor thinking about the condition of economies across the bloc, particularly in eastern Europe.

The truth here is that the bailout package is more a bailout of western banks than it is of Hungary, which is why the EU and the IMF find it unacceptable that banks actually pay taxes in Hungary.

If I were the Hungarian PM, I would start drawing up plans to reverse Hungary's commitment to joining the Euro, and start immediate preparations to exit the European Exchange Rate Mechanism and allow the Forint to float.

It is clear that the deal with the Euro is that if you join, you don't just lose sovereignty to the EU institutions, but to French, German, and British banks as well.