WINE WILL BE FLOWING IN COPIOUS AMOUNTSIt was a panel discussion full of interesting and knowledgeable observations on the G-20 starting in London on Wednesday. I will briefly list some of the most salient impressions I came away with from the group of four from Heritage today without attribution:
***The main stimulus to the world economy forthcoming from the G-20 this week will be the stimulus to the wine industry, especially in France. An untold amount of fine wines will be consumed by preening and grand-standing world leaders admiring and lecturing one another without ever getting to the heart of economic problems.
***Otherwise, very little of real import will be accomplished.
***Neither the Euro nor the European Union will survive the financial meltdown. As a result, every European country will go back to its own currency. There is no chance of a one-world currency as China recently suggested (and didn't really mean it since it is the US's greatest debt and dollar holder. They said it to put us down ahead of the G-20.)
***So far, the Obama administration is treating the economic meltdown like someone whose house is on fire who rather than rushing to put out the fire discusses redecorating the living room.
***A crisis like the world now faces does not draw countries together, as is the politically correct propaganda going into this G-20 circus. Rather it tends to drive consensus apart. This will be evident at the end of this meeting, though new promises will be made for the next gathering.
***The silly notions of world leaders wanting to regulate hedge funds--the most fast moving and liquid of global assets--- is based on fear and the fact that world leaders don't understand them. Hedge funds are not the issue of the cause of the financial meltdown, by a long shot. It's a straw man at the G-20.
***It is a testament of how far this country has fallen today when European countries, laden with debt, are lecturing the United States on the imminent dangers of debt finance. Germany has made it clear it won't go along with us on our road to hell.
***Regulation by governments can never keep up with that which it purports to regulate. It can never move fast enough and with enough sophistication. To think there can be regulations that people say, "It will never happen again," is pure hubris.
***The G-7 countries of old found it almost impossible to accomplish anything or to respond with a unified voice, especially to OPEC. Now that over a dozen more countries of varying stability have been added, gridlock is more than certainly assured. It can be no other way.
***The world economic crisis is a highly synchronized financial bust and no country will be able to dig itself out through exports. This is especially true for China, the erstwhile export king of the world. China has the most to lose in this crisis and political instability could have lasting effects on its and the world's economy.
***Geithner's ill advised bailout plan focuses on liquidity rather than the real issue solvency for banks and financial institutions. It is hubris to think that injecting liquidity will keep many of these institutions from ultimate collapse. Many should be allowed to fail, sooner rather than later.
***The main stimulus to the world economy forthcoming from the G-20 this week will be the stimulus to the wine industry, especially in France. An untold amount of fine wines will be consumed by preening and grand-standing world leaders admiring and lecturing one another without ever getting to the heart of economic problems.
***Otherwise, very little of real import will be accomplished.
***Neither the Euro nor the European Union will survive the financial meltdown. As a result, every European country will go back to its own currency. There is no chance of a one-world currency as China recently suggested (and didn't really mean it since it is the US's greatest debt and dollar holder. They said it to put us down ahead of the G-20.)
***So far, the Obama administration is treating the economic meltdown like someone whose house is on fire who rather than rushing to put out the fire discusses redecorating the living room.
***A crisis like the world now faces does not draw countries together, as is the politically correct propaganda going into this G-20 circus. Rather it tends to drive consensus apart. This will be evident at the end of this meeting, though new promises will be made for the next gathering.
***The silly notions of world leaders wanting to regulate hedge funds--the most fast moving and liquid of global assets--- is based on fear and the fact that world leaders don't understand them. Hedge funds are not the issue of the cause of the financial meltdown, by a long shot. It's a straw man at the G-20.
***It is a testament of how far this country has fallen today when European countries, laden with debt, are lecturing the United States on the imminent dangers of debt finance. Germany has made it clear it won't go along with us on our road to hell.
***Regulation by governments can never keep up with that which it purports to regulate. It can never move fast enough and with enough sophistication. To think there can be regulations that people say, "It will never happen again," is pure hubris.
***The G-7 countries of old found it almost impossible to accomplish anything or to respond with a unified voice, especially to OPEC. Now that over a dozen more countries of varying stability have been added, gridlock is more than certainly assured. It can be no other way.
***The world economic crisis is a highly synchronized financial bust and no country will be able to dig itself out through exports. This is especially true for China, the erstwhile export king of the world. China has the most to lose in this crisis and political instability could have lasting effects on its and the world's economy.
***Geithner's ill advised bailout plan focuses on liquidity rather than the real issue solvency for banks and financial institutions. It is hubris to think that injecting liquidity will keep many of these institutions from ultimate collapse. Many should be allowed to fail, sooner rather than later.
3 comments:
Thou hast been tweeted.
Oh, the end of blogger innocence!
I just linked to you on my sidebar: It's called G on Twi. See?
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