Display:

So are we left with the Gallic, Nordic and German social market economy models - three close variants - or the potential for the emergence (wishful thinking) of a new model based on Open Society?

We are also left with plain old fascism. Something the power classes might try to resort to if a whole truckload of manure hits the fan.

By the way, and about Europe decoupling, I've found this on RGE today:


Daniel Gros/Stefano Micossi: The "overall leverage ratio" - a measure of total assets to shareholder equity - of the average European bank is 35 due to large in-house investment banking operations, compared with less than 20 for the largest U.S. banks. This means that relatively small writedowns on their assets could have a devastating impact on a bank's capital--> some EU banks have become too big for any one European country to save while an official cross-border crisis management mechanism with ex ante burden sharing is not in place.

I am not an economist, but it seems pretty grim to me...

by t-------------- on Fri Sep 26th, 2008 at 05:45:54 AM EST
[ Parent ]
We are also left with plain old fascism

Which is a significant risk in the US, for a start. Not to mention some of the Central/Eastern countries. Don't know about the old EU - most of them don't seem likely to fall that way.

Economic disaster will have political fallout.

by Colman (colman at eurotrib.com) on Fri Sep 26th, 2008 at 05:53:17 AM EST
[ Parent ]
I think we're pretty insulated. If you remember, it didn't work out very well last time we tried it.

Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.
by Starvid (arvid.hallen at gmail.com) on Fri Sep 26th, 2008 at 06:16:52 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Display:
Login
. Make a new account
. Reset password
Occasional Series