Entitlements

Southern Europe Has No Economic Growth Strategy – Italy Is In A Recession, Market Liberalization Reforms Are Not Popular – Monti Does Not Do Miracles

Posted by on May 15, 2012 at 10:56 pm

By Paolo von Schirach May 15, 2012 WASHINGTON – If you leave out Germany and the northern countries, Europe does not grow and belonging to the Eurozone right now does not help growth for those southern members (Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal) that are doing so poorly. Being in the Euro they cannot devalue, while [...]

Gov. Luis Fortuno of Puerto Rico Managed To Cut Gigantic Debt While Vastly Improving Island Business Climate – A Case Study Of What Is Possible, Given Drive And Leadership

Posted by on May 12, 2012 at 10:16 pm

By Paolo von Schirach May 12, 2012 WASHINGTON - A Fox TV interview by John Stossel with Luis Fortuno, the Governor of Puerto Rico, made me curious to learn more. This boysh (just 51 years old, and looking more like 31) Republican has had the courage to meet head on the challenge of a gigantic state debt [...]

Europe’s Never Ending Mess Just Got Worse After Key Elections – Voters Want Growth, But Their Governments Are Unable To Create The Preconditions For Investments And Enterprise

Posted by on May 8, 2012 at 11:23 pm

By Paolo von Schirach May 8, 2012 WASHINGTON – Just a few weeks ago Agustin Carstens, the Governor of the bank of Mexico, argued in a Washington public forum that the European debt crisis will not be over until the Europeans will be able to convince markets that all is well and that there is absolutely no [...]

Divided Washington Will Not Enact Pro-Growth Policies – Anemic US Economy Does Not Grow Enough – More Like Europe

Posted by on May 7, 2012 at 11:03 pm

By Paolo von Schirach May 7, 2012 WASHINGTON – Watching on C-SPAN, (the meritorious public affairs TV channels), a session of the US House Budget Committee was quite depressing. There was no real debate on the issues aimed at getting to some constructive policy outcome. I heard only prepackaged slogans and a lot of predictable posturing.

Debt In Western Nations Is The Outcome Of Expensive Welfare Systems And Weak Economies That Can No Longer Support Them – Yet No New Models, And No Real Change Of Course

Posted by on May 1, 2012 at 9:44 pm

By Paolo von Schirach May 1, 2012 WASHINGTON - In the never ending Greek fiscal debacle saga, everybody’s focus has been on the unfolding drama. Will this Eurozone-IMF rescue package work? Or will it be the next one, until finally something that would stick is cobbled together? But, while not unreasonable, this focus on crisis management and related countermeasures took all [...]

Budget Cuts And Austerity Alone Will Not Do For Europe, Growth Is Needed – From Spain To Greece Leaders Demand New Policies – But How Do You Get Growth In Very Weak Countries?

Posted by on April 30, 2012 at 10:19 pm

By Paolo von Schirach April 30, 2012 WASHINGTON – The Europeans are (rightfully) clamoring against an EU mandated “austerity only therapy” aimed at bringing several fiscally damaged countries back to financial health. Indeed, as it has been pointed out by many economists, (Nouriel Roubini, among others), austerity alone causes already weak economies to contract. When governments cut spending, the fiscal [...]

Europe Not Back To Normal: Higher Bond Yields in Spain, Italy and France – Record High Debt Levels In Spain, Political Uncertainty in France Should Hollande Win Spell Trouble

Posted by on April 19, 2012 at 10:54 pm

By Paolo von Schirach April 19, 2012 WASHINGTON – The very fact that there is talk about a possible EU bail out for Spain, justified or not, indicates how fragile the European fiscal/debt situation still is. Just weeks ago we were told that everything was under control. Greece had been stabilized. Italy under Prime Minister [...]

Spanish Debt Triggered New Market Unrest – Europe’s Problems Not Fixed – Austerity Alone Not Enough – Italy, Spain, Portugal And Greece Lack Growth Strategies

Posted by on April 11, 2012 at 9:46 pm

By Paolo von Schirach April 11, 2012 WASHINGTON – Until almost yesterday it seemed that the EU countries, Merkel’s Germany and Sarkozy’s France in the lead, had finally put the whole European debt crisis  to rest. They had  found a formula for rescuing Greece, the real, (but relatively small), basket case and they had managed to put all the [...]

Mercifully Santorum Dropped Out, But His Sentimental Paleo-Conservatism Really Damaged the GOP Brand – It May Be Impossible For Romney To Repair It Before The November Vote

Posted by on April 10, 2012 at 11:13 pm

By Paolo von Schirach April 10, 2012 WASHINGTON – By dropping out of the Republican Party nomination process, Rick Santorum did the only sensible thing he has done in a campaign founded mostly on preposterous, sentimental and hopelessly archaic themes. The scary part is not that another out of step with the modern world  politician wanted to run on family [...]

Walter Russell Mead Dismisses Predictions About US “Decline” – Then What About The Massive Debt, The Deficit, The Anemic Recovery? America Is In Even Worse Trouble If Serious Thinkers Deny The Mess We Are In

Posted by on April 9, 2012 at 10:20 pm

By Paolo von Schirach April 9, 2012 WASHINGTON – Professor Walter Russell Mead believes that all this talk about “American decline” is incorrect. (The Myth of America’s Decline, The Wall Street Journal, April 9, 2012). The real issue –he claims– is the decline of the Trilateral System, ( the US, Europe and Japan), that shaped the [...]