The End of the European Dream | 276 comments (274 topical, 2 editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: "... But the Currency is Good" (4.00 / 3)

You cannot build a system that deliberately favours the most powerful player and then expect that it will be reformed to something better in the future. That is, well, "starry-eyed idealism" is a term that comes immediately to mind.

- Jake

Friends come and go. Enemies accumulate.

by JakeS (JangoSierra 'at' gmail 'dot' com) on Tue May 10th, 2011 at 10:25:15 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: "... But the Currency is Good" (4.00 / 4)

The same mistake made at Bretton Woods, and for exactly the same reason, failing to solve exactly the same problem.

Economics is politics by other means

by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue May 10th, 2011 at 10:30:54 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: "... But the Currency is Good" (none / 1)

The overwhelming dominance of one player?

It is very difficult for a political process/negotiation to solve that problem unless all the other payers have a united and coherent opposing position. So far the Eurozone crisis has seen a conspicuous lack of solidarity of anyone with or for anyone else. It's every member for themselves at the moment with the majority keeping their heads down and hoping not to have to get involved.

Index of Frank's Diaries

by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Tue May 10th, 2011 at 10:38:20 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: "... But the Currency is Good" (4.00 / 2)

The problem is the macroeconomic instability resulting from the tendency of trade balances to grow more lopsided with time. The solution is the introduction of penalties on net exporters. The difficulty is that, until a crisis hits, there is no incentive to do anything, and after the crisis hits the exporter of last resort has everyone else over a barrel.

See: the US at Bretton Woods, China at the G20, Germany in the Euro.

Economics is politics by other means

by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue May 10th, 2011 at 11:03:31 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: "... But the Currency is Good" (none / 1)

If you think Mitterand and Delors were starry-eyed idealists, have a bag of salmiak on me ;)

More than anyone seems to want to recognize in this discussion, the rapid fall of Communism redrew the map of Europe and forced them into an attempt to tighten the bolts on the European superstructure. I don't know to what extent they believed it would really work. Maybe I should try to see if Delors has said anything of late. Mitterand, apparently, is silent.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Tue May 10th, 2011 at 10:39:56 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: "... But the Currency is Good" (none / 1)

Hmm, time to revisit Reunification - some history rewriting where Jerome downplayed claims that Mitterrand feared reunification, or DoDo's "We'd better take down the wall ourselves".

Economics is politics by other means

by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue May 10th, 2011 at 11:05:58 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: "... But the Currency is Good" (none / 0)

afew:

My memory from that time is also that Mitterand feared reunification but was resigned to it - and negotiated with Kohl to get stronger European integration, particularly wrt the common currency, as the price of his support.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Tue May 10th, 2011 at 11:28:49 AM EST
[ Parent ]

The End of the European Dream | 276 comments (274 topical, 2 editorial, 0 hidden)

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