General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThose Europeans are revolting, and it's about time.
Both countries held elections Sunday that were in effect referendums on the current European economic strategy, and in both countries voters turned two thumbs down. Its far from clear how soon the votes will lead to changes in actual policy, but time is clearly running out for the strategy of recovery through austerity and thats a good thing.
Needless to say, thats not what you heard from the usual suspects in the run-up to the elections. It was actually kind of funny to see the apostles of orthodoxy trying to portray the cautious, mild-mannered François Hollande as a figure of menace. He is rather dangerous, declared The Economist, which observed that he genuinely believes in the need to create a fairer society. Quelle horreur!
What is true is that Mr. Hollandes victory means the end of Merkozy, the Franco-German axis that has enforced the austerity regime of the past two years. This would be a dangerous development if that strategy were working, or even had a reasonable chance of working. But it isnt and doesnt; its time to move on. Europes voters, it turns out, are wiser than the Continents best and brightest.
Whats wrong with the prescription of spending cuts as the remedy for Europes ills? One answer is that the confidence fairy doesnt exist that is, claims that slashing government spending would somehow encourage consumers and businesses to spend more have been overwhelmingly refuted by the experience of the past two years. So spending cuts in a depressed economy just make the depression deeper.
The rest: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/07/opinion/krugman-those-revolting-europeans.html?_r=1&smid=tw-NytimesKrugman&seid=auto
Dawson Leery
(19,348 posts)She will now be balanced.
MannyGoldstein
(34,589 posts)that were negotiated during last summer's fully-fake budget crisis?
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)You see that's the very best that could be done..
Not a good idea at all for Americans to stage an electoral revolt, wouldn't be prudent.
FarLeftFist
(6,161 posts)girl gone mad
(20,634 posts)It's okay to hold the country hostage over fake crises, but it's not okay to promote real solutions.
By January, I'm guessing the President and everybody else will be wishing that Treasury's Constitutional right to mint had at least been used as a bargaining chip.
snappyturtle
(14,656 posts)hope to the U.S. The deficit hawks have done enough damage imho.
May they be forced to remove the tax breaks on the rich and plug the
corporate tax holes. Contrary to the President's remarks this weekend
in OH and VA, let's tax to re-build rather than use the 'savngs' (isn't
that borrowed money anyway?) from ending the war in Iraq. Thank you
France and Greece!
edit: punctuation
progressoid
(49,983 posts)Sorry, couldn't resist.