@Bernanke speech -- trotsky, 13:04:56 11/28/06 Tue
my advice: don't invite this guy to any wild parties. he's like valium on legs - certain to bore everybody half to death.
he dwelt for quite some time on the housing bubble collapse (euphemistically referred to as a 'deceleration in housing-related activity'), which makes me think he's probably spooked a bit by what's happening lately. which in turn would be good news for goldbug-dom.
@European attitudes -- trotsky, 12:17:05 11/28/06 Tue
you will be surprised to learn that Europe's economic success is made possible by a tiny minority that has apparently no political voice.
i've recently watched a number of debates on German TV , on topics ranging from gun control, video censorship, trade, to tax policies, etc. - and more often than not felt a sudden urge to reach for the barf-bag. you wouldn't believe the obedient, anti-individual, collectivist, in short, freedom-hating attitude pervading this society. all this leisurely debating on how to further expand the State's powers is of course made possible by the very people who are not even present at those debates - namely Germany's embattled, and shrinking, class of private producers. presumably those are too busy doing worthwhile things. so i'm quite surprised at reports of economic success from the region. it proves however that productivity must be extremely high - this is the only explanation that makes sense.
@Europe -- trotsky, 12:04:15 11/28/06 Tue
sclerotic and socialistic though it may be, there's one area in which Europe beats the ROW:
note once again the curious gap between public perception and reality pointed out in the article:
bloomberg.com
snips:
``It raises eyebrows when people hear it, but Europe is doing well from globalization and greater trade,'' says Erik Nielsen, chief European economist with Goldman Sachs in London. ``
While ``Europe is benefiting from globalization,'' the continent's workers ``perceive it as a threat to the job security and leisure time they've enjoyed for decades,'' says Martin Baily, a senior adviser at McKinsey & Co. in Washington."
and this while :
"European stocks are benefiting, with the Bloomberg European 500 index up 15 percent this year following a 14 percent gain in 2005. In the U.S., the S&P 500 is up 12 percent. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index is down about 2 percent. In currency markets, the euro today climbed to the highest since March 2005 against the dollar and reached a record versus the yen."
and:
"Politicians who favor open markets credit increased trade and competition with helping to restrain prices and generate the fastest growth and hiring in six years. The euro-area's unemployment rate of 7.8 percent, while above the U.S.'s 4.4 percent, is close to a five year low."
in other words, a lot of good things seem to have flowed from the widely feared free trade. almost concurrently with all this good news, European worker opposition to free trade has grown to a multi-year high (see polls quoted in article). go figure. |
