Reinventing Economics
Mark Hendriks | 21-12-2011 @ 17.47
I disagree Artur: quite the contrary, we need more Europe! Although I think you're right in pointing out that there will be many more hurdles on the road towards a more integrated EU (e.g the German constitutional court), Cameron's choice is a big gamble that I fear will play out wrongly in the long run, also for the UK government's beloved "city". Politically, diplomatically and economically, it was a failure. Why do you think the integration process "went too far already"?
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Reinventing Democracy
Jonne | 20-12-2011 @ 10.54
This can of course be argued for every civilization in history, the question is what the Chinese resilience is to declining growth. The social contract with its so far complaisant middle class will be renegotiated, its ethnic minorities might rebel. But what about the potential of Han nationalism?
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Jonne | 20-12-2011 @ 10.33
I think the push for agreements was long overdue and is more out of fear of the financial markets than a genuine passion for European integration. As you said, what has been agreed on might still become stillborn when facing national parliaments.
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Kiona | 15-12-2011 @ 16.49
In the case of Europe, we can see that the Eurozone country politicians are really pushing for a new Eurozone agreements, thus contradicting the statement made above. However, even though most state politicians are pushing for such an agreement, the real question is how much friction is there within national politics.
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Reinventing Global governance
artur | 15-12-2011 @ 16.45
But why you think this is the solution. For some reasons a lot of people believe that if Germany +Netherlands assume all other countries debt the EU will be saved. Why they don't discuss the possibility that it can topple Germany plus the rest of the EU. Print money. Drop the ballast. Then we can move forward!
Read more Reinventing Economics
artur | 15-12-2011 @ 16.36
China is a way more capitalistic country than a lot of countries in the West. Stores are closing at 6pm!? Is this a market economy!? C' mon be serious. What about the freedom to shop whenever you like?
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artur | 15-12-2011 @ 16.32
Eline, how sure are you that any northern euro zone country would ratify the new EU treaty at a referendum? I don't think that Britain is the only hurdle to the European integration process. I think it went too far already.
Read more Reinventing Democracy
Elsa | 14-12-2011 @ 17.50
I have just read this morning an interview of a French philosopher (Marcel Gauchet) in which he explained to what extend the lack of solutions to the economic crisis is deeply linked to the political one that occidental societies have to face. For him, both the political model of liberal democracy and the economic system of neo-liberalism reached their limits, failing either to analyze the causes or to provide adequate solutions to the crisis. http://gauchet.blogspot.com/2009/10/crise-economique-et-crise-democratique.html
In all crisis time, societies ‘values and basis are being test. Therefore, the same reluctant issues come again and again: integration, immigration, delocalization, defiance of public opinion… Isolationism have always been the immediate reaction to economic or socio-political crises.
I wonder if the question of “societies going inward-looking” is truly accurate. Indeed, for me it’s already the case, and there are many practical evidences where state’s interest largely govern the domestic policy-makers ‘agenda.
My interrogation is more about the paradox existing between what national politicians claim being able to do and the range of real possibilities: going inward-looking on issues that cannot be solved solely at a national level is a real contradiction, that populism parties don’t seem ready to understand.
