Oy oi,

that is some serious shit , is this current?

Dub's prediction from several weeks back unfolds. Maybe I should start an online empire?

Spanish police have fired rubber bullets at protesters in central Madrid as thousands rose up against new cuts introduced by the government. At least 21 people have been slightly injured, including one journalist and one policeman.

Only minor arrests have been made so far, with five people being detained. Three of those arrested reportedly threw bricks at police, local El Pais newspaper reported.

About 200 people remain surrounded by dozens of police in front of parliament, Twitter user Danips posted on his microblog.

Protesters disagree with a 63 per cent cut in subsidies to coal mining companies, major contributors to the Spanish energy market. Unions say the plan threatens 30,000 jobs and could destroy their livelihoods.

Miners, who were hiking from the north of the country for the past two weeks, have been joined by tens of thousands of Spaniards also protesting against Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s tax hike.

The prime minister announced his decision to raise VAT by 3 per cent as part of the plan to trim the public budget by 65 billion euro over the next two-and-a-half years. Rajoy also declared a 3.5-billion-euro cut to local government spending.

Many protesters marched more than 400 kilometers (250 miles) from mines in northern Spain.