Entries Tagged 'Economics and Investing' ↓

The eurozone is playing a dangerous game with Greece. Officials are treating the Greek crisis of payments as a liquidity problem. And that’s true as far as it goes. But Milton’s famous line from Paradise Lost in the title of this post may still be true for Europe

Greece nearly couldn’t pay its debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last week. Greece was able to pay the IMF only by withdrawing its own emergency funds left on deposit at the IMF. Obviously the IMF gained nothing from having Greeks withdraw money they had deposited in the IMF in order to pay the IMF.

Nevertheless, eurozone officials and financial reporters keep referring to Greece’s problem as a payment-on-time problem. That kind of problem is indeed what set off the toppling of the US financial system at the start of the Financial Crisis of 2007.

But it isn’t the same with a sovereign nation like Greece. Continue reading →

I believe one of the biggest things that will occur in this century is the diminution of theories of national economics.

Instead, there will be an increasing need over the century for a new field of global economics. Along with theory, will come a demand for international agencies to exercise more and more coordination among national economies in order to serve the interests of all countries.

Yes, perhaps we’ll be heading for a global Federation of Planets as portrayed on the 20th century Star Trek TV series.

What’s happening in Greece and Argentina right now suggests that this should happen—sooner rather than later. Each of these countries is in conflict with the national law of a foreign country. Greece is in conflict with German law; Argentina with US law. Continue reading →

Reprinted from Huffington Post

The German government s determined not to negotiate anew the terms for the expiring 712 billion Euro bailout of Greece.

I have three objections to the German line of “reasoning” about Greek debt.

(1) “Charitable” giving that was really out of self-interest 

Here’s what Martin Wolf, well-known British economist and writer for the Financial Times had to say about self-interest and loans  in June, 2011 in his editorial, “Time for common sense on Greece”. Continue reading →