Inkwell Institute

European Desk

For about a month or so A loyal reader of Info Ink, Quin of Quintessential Havoc (blogroll will get you to his insightful site….visit often) and I have been having an exchange about the happenings in Greece and the possible effects on the rest of us mortals…..my view, at this point, is that the people of Greece are pulling for a default……and the EU is trying to help Greece save itself from itself……buy are there other forces at work here?  If you have been reading then you know that I think that this whole process is a situation brought on by world financial services and their solution does little to help the people of the country, but rather give them access to to a wide variety of profit making enterprises…..but that is just my opinion and not held by too many others…..but for this post I want to ask if the existence of the EU could be shaken by a failure of Greece……

In a piece written by Toby Helm for the UK’s Guardian…….

The talk was no longer of high ideals and “more Europe”, but of mere survival for the European project. Where they used to talk of “ever closer union” in the commission press conferences, the phrase i s now rarely, if ever, heard except when referring to history. José Manuel Barroso, the pragmatic European commission president, set his sights at this summit on “stability” for the foreseeable future, meaning the EU will do well to steady the ship in the face of Greece’s financial implosion and possible exit from the single currency. Never mind any new European dreams.

From Schwaiger’s perspective, one of the reasons why Europe has run out of idealism is the passage of time. He argues that Germany’s postwar guilt, which did so much to power the European project, no longer drives young Germans to think about the EU as their parents and grandparents did. “In Germany the new generation, just out of school, has no memory of this,” he says. Instead the young see a Germany united from its former east and west, communism fallen and a continent no longer haunted by its past or racked by the fear that it could plunge back into war. Much of Europe’s original raison d’être has disappeared and Germany is now less willing to be its unquestioning, selfless paymaster.

The immediate challenge for Brussels is to ease the Greek crisis and hope that its economy can be revived. The aim is to get private banks that are exposed to Greek debt to exchange them for new loans. Then pray the rescue measures work. In the meantime, plans are being pushed through the European parliament to toughen up the kind of rules that were supposed to apply under the stability pact. There will be new surveillance “early warning” measures aimed at ensuring eurozone countries are not heading into economic trouble, such as unsustainable property booms.

Optimists in the EU try to convince themselves that something good could come from the crisis – meaning more economic integration and harmonisation of taxes – steps towards the single EU economy of which Prodi dreamed. One of the arguments the commission deploys to calm anxiety is to make out that Europe is no stranger to crises – indeed, it says, it has always thrived on them.

I think the concern is for the EU and not what is best for Greece…..and since it is a form of centralized government I can understand the need to see the the Union survives over the state……but Greece could not be the only weak link……hiding in the economic weeds is Spain, Portugal, Ireland and slowly entering into the game is Italy…if things do not improve the EU could be just a not so fond memory…….to some it will be….Good Riddance!

The US needs to watch and learn!

P.S.  At the time of this draft….the Euro has sunk to $1.40 in value….that is one of its lowest points so far.  Is it a sign of the coming storm?