Thread: Merkel's Blitz through Euroland, Pushing Eurozone Cliffs Edg

Merkel's Savage Blitz through Euroland, Germany Pushing Eurozone To Cliffs Edge

Politics / Euro-Zone May 25, 2010 - 02:59 AM
By: Mike_Whitney

Angela Merkel has let a minor brush-fire on the periphery turn into a raging inferno that's sweeping across the continent. Absent Berlin's fumbling diplomatic effort and its ferocious attachment to Hooverian economics, the Greek matter would have been over by now. Instead, the fire continues to burn while the German Chancellor pushes the eurozone closer and closer to the cliff. And what for; to prove that prodigal spending by the member states (Greece) mustn't go unpunished? Is that what this is all about? Is Merkel really willing to break up the EU just to prove her point and to accommodate her towering sense of self righteousness?

There is a fix for the EU's problems, but it will require cooperation, vision and a supra-national government institution capable of implementing fiscal policy. It's all very doable, but not in an atmosphere that is charged with acrimony and divisiveness . As the most powerful member, Germany has a special role to play in maintaining cohesion; it's the glue that holds the EU together. Unfortunately, Merkel and Co. appear to be less interested in building bridges than settling on new ways to punish nations that stray from the 3%-maximum deficit rule. The German Chancellor wants to make sure that countries that exceed the limits will be stripped of E.U. subsidies and voting rights. The Austrian Finance Minister summarized the policy perfectly when he opined, "Countries that are lax with budget planning must be able to be rapped on the knuckles."

None of the countries in the Euro-project joined because they wanted to be lectured by arrogant German/Austrian bureaucrats whose Stone Age grasp of economics has thrust the 16-state confederation to the brink of disaster. Besides, the markets have already voted thumbs down on Merkel's "hair shirts and thin gruel" remedy. They want stimulus, growth and liquidity; none of which are provided in "Frau Nein's" plan for economic contraction.

It's worth reviewing some of the details of the so-called "Greek bailout" to get a handle on how debilitating the EU's austerity measures really are. Here's an excerpt from an article by Polyvios Petropoulos, former economics professor in the US, which outlines some of the harshest cutbacks:

"First of all, the IMF/EU program... is no “helpâ€

Good. I have been wanting to pick up some authentic collectables in Europe......like armoires from the Loire Valley. Waiting for the prices to drop back down might be worth it.