Thursday, July 26, 2012
War is Antiquated
Does anyone need to die over resources or wealth anymore? Probably not. Corporations and nations can now practice imperialism in much more subtle and invisible ways. Countries and corporations are often purchasing and swapping resources and infrastructures across national borders with ease. What I am interested to see is the cultural affect of such invisible imperialism. Will the Greek and Americans become more austere with our spending in the face of debt or will some other factor such as inflation forgive debts and stifle cultural change?
Germany and Europe
When Italy knocked out Germany from the UEFA EURO 2012 cup my initial thought was that Italy's interest rate on that impending bailout just went up. I know it's not that simple but it was a funny thought.
Then I started thinking about Germany's situation. High unemployment, highly socialist, yet highly competitive. This seems at odds with much of the conservative thinking that is prevalent today. I don't think I could possibly understand this complex situation but I do think that Germany may be the biggest beneficiary of the Euro. By taking several "under performing" (financially, not in futbol) countries under its wing, Germany has managed to keep their own currency relatively weak. How much more would a BMW cost if it weren't attached to Greek or Spanish debt?
We often gripe about China's currency manipulation but this happens all over the world. If you are a gross exporter, such as China or Germany, then you benefit from having a weaker currency because the rest of the world can afford your products. A weak Euro may actually be good for Germany.
Germany certainly has a lot of other advantages on a global scale such as an incredible education system that has produced generations of talented and technical people but I have never read anything about Germany being attached to the weaker Euro as being a good thing.
On a side note, I see Spain being dominant on the national team side for a while to come. They are playing on a whole other level from everyone else right now. Maybe with home-court advantage Brazil might be able to put some breaks on their dominance but it is still a tall order.
Then I started thinking about Germany's situation. High unemployment, highly socialist, yet highly competitive. This seems at odds with much of the conservative thinking that is prevalent today. I don't think I could possibly understand this complex situation but I do think that Germany may be the biggest beneficiary of the Euro. By taking several "under performing" (financially, not in futbol) countries under its wing, Germany has managed to keep their own currency relatively weak. How much more would a BMW cost if it weren't attached to Greek or Spanish debt?
We often gripe about China's currency manipulation but this happens all over the world. If you are a gross exporter, such as China or Germany, then you benefit from having a weaker currency because the rest of the world can afford your products. A weak Euro may actually be good for Germany.
Germany certainly has a lot of other advantages on a global scale such as an incredible education system that has produced generations of talented and technical people but I have never read anything about Germany being attached to the weaker Euro as being a good thing.
On a side note, I see Spain being dominant on the national team side for a while to come. They are playing on a whole other level from everyone else right now. Maybe with home-court advantage Brazil might be able to put some breaks on their dominance but it is still a tall order.
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