The European Union throughout its history has experienced periods of Euro-optimism and periods of Euro-pessimism, with crises scattered in between. Jean Monnet, a pioneering advocate of European unity, wrote that “Europe will be forged in crises, and will be the sum of the solutions adopted for those crises.” But the recent period of Euro-pessimism has […]
Brexit: 7 Lessons to Draw
Brexit shows the primacy of politics and emotion over economic rational calculation. It is very difficult to understand the decision of British people otherwise. Britain, or what would be left of it after potential secession by Scotland and Northern Ireland, is likely to become a less open economy with a long-term decrease in productivity potentially. […]
Greece: Citizens and Debt
Syriza’s victory was received as a victory for Europe’s generous and compassionate South, versus the stingy and vengeful North. We have no way of knowing if the South would have behaved better than the North if it had found itself in the role of creditor, nor are we entirely certain that the “slap in the […]
We don’t understand the Greeks
Everyone is uneasy about the electoral victory of Syriza in Greece and the threat of populism in Europe. The media has been buzzing for days now with comments and analysis, largely talking about what Syriza should do, what should be done by the European Union, Germany, the International Monetary Fund… the consequences of the policies […]
A Window for Europe?
The story teaches us that the rules governing the single European currency are not based on economic considerations …
