How to Make Sense of the European Union Disaster Everything you need to know to understand the European Union can be discovered by simply glancing at the location of its headquarters. Brussels is in Belgium, which is not a real country, does not have a government, and does not have any money. Belgium has not had a government for a year and half, yet the capital city (to the degree that a country without a government can have a capital) is host to one of the largest government organizations in the world. The ironies and paradoxes of the EU are clearly seen in the microcosm of Belgium. Belgium was invented in 1839, when the powers of Europe decided to carve out sections of the Netherlands and Luxembourg and assigned what resulted the name "Belgium." This despite the fact that the bit of land was inhabited by Flemish, Walloons, Dutch, French, various Germans, and several other minority groups that had been hostile to each other for centuries. A group of unelected European leaders stepped in and said, "Let there be Belgium," and suddenly, there was Belgium -- but it was not a nation. Decrees do not make nations. Belgium is a haphazard collection of once-independent states with no interest in joining together and substantial reasons not to. Over the years, Belgian governments have maintained majority rule by offering entitlements and subsidies to every niche group they can find. This is the only way to get a majority in a country with eleven major political parties divided on ethnic and linguistic lines. Naturally, it leads to dangerous deficits. It all came to a halt in the general election of June 2010. No coalition has been able to strike a deal to create a majority. Parties join together to form majorities only when there is a significant handout being offered, but with a crashing economy, nobody is willing to continue this charade. Last week the interest rate on Belgian debt jumped into crisis levels. Belgium's credit rating has been systematically cycling downward for the past two years. There is a strong secessionist movement to break into at least two independent nations, while others push for a stronger central authority to enforce unification. So Belgium hasn't had a government for seventeen months running. Aside from debt, secession, and anarchy, there is also the matter of national defense. The powers that breathed Belgium into existence did so on the condition that it remain neutral in military affairs. Neutrality ensured that France, Germany, and Britain would have a low-lying, centrally located piece of land on which to fight wars, rather than having to deal with the unpleasantries on their own land. Belgium is whatever Europe needs it to be: a buffer zone when things are hostile, a highway for tanks when you want to go on offense, and a shooting range when the war starts. It was created for the purpose of hosting other countries' wars and is required to remain neutral so as not to spoil the fun. It has served this purpose quite well over the years. It doesn't matter that the various factions that happen to be stuck inside its borders have no desire to run a country of their own. They have to do it anyway because it is convenient for the rest of Europe. Belgium would be a joke if it weren't a tragedy. So it goes for the EU. Germany would rather not bail out Greece and Italy, and Greece and Italy would rather not be swallowed up by the European leviathan. Doesn't matter -- they have to do it anyway because Europe is all roped together now. The EU is not a real country. It is a collection of independent states that have no national interest in joining forces, and substantial reasons not to. It does not have a functional government, but it does have just enough of a government to make everyone's life worse, and to run up enormous deficits. Like Belgium, it has no national defense to speak of and numerous factions that are hostile to one another. All historical evidence suggests that Europe is a fragmented and dangerous place, with constant wars covering its entire history. It is the only continent on which something called "The Hundred Years' War" ever happened. In the last century, some of these constant small battles were saved up and unleashed as the two biggest wars in world history. But even WWI and WWII were not enough to satisfy the bloodlust haunting Europe. There was also the small matter of a Soviet occupation of half the continent and countless feuds within feuds. Italy just completed its 61st change in government in 66 years. Spain was ruled by a dictator up until 1975 and had its first democratic election in 1977. Germany, of course, tried to take over the world twice, and always followed the advice of bumper stickers by thinking globally and invading locally. The effort to make these nations suddenly join together in happiness and love is one of the most foolish ventures ever conceived. It is unraveling now. It would be a joke if it weren't tragic. The EU is Belgium writ large. A group of unelected officials from around Europe got together and dreamed up the EU, then arbitrarily made it happen. Now it is in the position of managing the countless factions of Europe. Constant bailouts and subsidies are the only things that keep everyone happy. There isn't enough money to keep up the charade, and there are considerable efforts to break it up. Each nation of the EU is held together by nothing more than the selfish decrees of others. It is crashing as you read. Europe has come full circle. The EU has taken over Italy and Greece and installed unelected puppet regimes there. Belgium, a puppet nation dreamed up by Europe with no history, no government, and no money, finds itself ruling puppet governments of the two foundational sources of European civilization because they have no money. In WWII Germany went through Belgium to take over France. Now Germany is going through Belgium to take over Italy and Greece. This is all you need to know about the EU. It is a messy assortment of peoples haphazardly crammed together, with no functional government, saddled with extremely high debt. Belgium was created as a puppet nation with no historical roots. Now it's been converted into a base from which all of Europe is held together as a puppet nation with no historical roots. The EU, like Belgium, is not strong enough to govern its various factions, nor does any freedom-lover desire it to be. The cradles of European history, Athens and Rome, are swallowed up by a puppet newcomer. It would be tragic if it wasn't an outrage. The next EU takeover will probably be Spain, and there will be more after that. At some point Europe will fall. The only question is the direction in which it falls. It may fall into totalitarianism, or it may dissolve back to its historical national divisions. There are mounting efforts in both of these directions already, and there will be tremendous instability either way. Do not be surprised if there is war. Watch what Belgium does. Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2011...he_european_union_disaster.html#ixzz1flTMDwnR Well, the EU is a mess. Is it Belgium writ large? Perhaps. I wonder if Belgium will split up? I think the EU will have to split up at least its monetary system. _
How to Make Sense of the American Disaster Everything you need to know to understand about America can be discovered by simply glancing at the location of its headquarters. Washington is stuck up in the right hand corner , about the last position you want a capital of 51 States which stretch between two oceans and runs between Canada and Mexico . It's uselessness reached low point in the nineties when it was simply known as the place where most murders took place , year in and year out .Now it is better known as the world centre for financial and economic disasters . America as exampled by its capital has steadily lost its novelty importance since 2007 when it became the epicentre for the Great Housing Scandal or Bubble which then spread as a financial pandemic .This triggered the total bankruptcy of most major American Banks and Fanny Mac and Fanny Mae which were Government sponsored corporations supposedly concerned with honestly managing the secondary mortgage market . These institutions were kept going , apart from a couple , by deceit and fraud . Washington allowed its independent master to slide imaginary money under the table so that the recipients could pretend it was real to unsuspecting suckers .They call their Ultimate leader Benny , just like my dumb cat, and he has happily plucked imaginary money out of the air until America's all inclusive debt now exceeds $100 trillion .A sum of money so great that it exceeds the whole planet's GDP by at least 130% . Needless to say there are people and institutions owed fantastic sums of money that they will not see in a million years .Literally . Unfortunately the world's greatest frauds were carried out by these dumb arse fraudster companies , and that is the basic cause for the 2007 Bankruptcy of USA and the spreading by contagion of this disease primarily to Europe . You might say that this Rogue State has single handedly brought modern civilisation to its financial knees . etc etc etc for another 1357 pages WRITE YOUR OWN LOUSY HISTORY FIRST AND GET ON YOUR KNEES AND BEG FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE AS A NATION TO FOUL THIS PLANET AND stop Posting " in denial " articles ..
LOL! He sure got our number! In all fairness, EU is mostly about trade between the nations. That is why the common currency is so importaint. Firms in small nations like Denmark export over 90% of their products. So getting rid of trade restrictions and making this trade easier is what it is all about. We need a large "inner market" in order to compete with USA, China, India... All europeans like money, but disagree on everything else.
I guess the US has been over the moon to fix the spotlight on Europe and the EZ particularly . And with good reason in fairness , given they have done nothing so far to solve any matter of importance . "We " have dillied . And then dallied . But as I have said before , there is and never will be a solution . It is logically and mathematically impossible . And that's what the US is going to find out itself plenty soon enough . What we are seeing right now is QE3 cranking up to full steam . Benny cannot tell your people that we all need an absolute minimum of £30 trillion . But that's what we need to further re-capitalise Banks and ring fence Sovereign State debt . Yesterday' EZ action was ludicrous as it did absolutely nothing to solve present bankruptcy . It simply suggested how we must behave in the future ---which a bright ten year old could have worked out . By the same token , the Feds promise to make lending easier with other Central Banks was garbage . The other central banks have no funds of the amounts needed . That statement actually said , The Federal Reserve will print until there is nobody left to buy up bonds , whatever interest rate you offer . Watch out American Private Investors .Benny and Tim will sell you garbage and laugh ... may be not all the way to the banks because most could have gone .
Not sure what the first line refers to but I am pro World Elite yet have not received the special invitation . I geared up for the melt down three years ago and selfishly can sit and watch and within reason do what I choose anywhere I fancy --- Brazil will do me , but you could be a Big Fish in a small pond in Chile .
Donny Glocky tells us "How to make sense of the European disaster" - and then posts a piece of crap from a conservative website. Obviously little Donny has no thoughts of his own about Europe, has never studied the matter and most probably has never been to Europe anyway. I would be surprised if he could even find it on a map. Rather then regurgitate someone else's thoughts like Donny did, let me give you my own potted opinion. The current problem in Europe is a variant of an economic problem called "The tragedy of the Commons" - you can look that up. Briefly, having a single currency like the Euro requires that all member states who employ the Euro as their currency behave with about the same degree of financial prudence over time. If they do not, and say one state like Greece, runs its finances like a drunken idiot; spending and borrowing big, then all the other Euro using countries find they have to pick up the tab. The proximate argument and politicking now going on pivots around the question of why hard working God fearing prudent German and French workers should contribute some of their savings to bailing out lazy shiftless cheating Greeks and Italians. However, we are reminded that economics is not a morality play. If the Germans and French do not bail these countries out then their banks will fail and their Governments may default on sovereign debt. That will have a knock on effect to European and American Banks that will hurt the Germans, the French and everyone else - including Americans. The current European summit on Thursday is about the issue of whether to agree to more integration, specifically supervising each countries budget outcomes with central rules and regulations to prevent this happening again - in effect giving up some financial sovereignty , how to enforce (read punish) Greece for what it has done, and/or breaking up the Euro and letting Italy, Spain, Greece, etc. sink. To put that in terms that little Donny might understand; It is as if you have a family with Ten Children. You as Father, give each of them a credit card linked to the families joint credit card account after the each swear solemnly on the bible that they will pay their share of the credit card account when it comes in at the end of the month.... Seven of your kids abide by that rule, with little Pierre and Hermann actually paying off more than their share so they have a notional credit balance. However Three of your kids spend up big and when the bill arrives they announce that they don't have the money to pay their fair share. What do you do? Does the family bail out the Three deadbeats, cut up their credit cards and pay off the credit card bill in total? .....or do they say "to hell with them" and the entire family defaults and loses its credit cards and credit rating? That is what will be discussed Thursday.
