G-20 Summit is not Going Well For Obama

"We are not coming here to receive lessons in terms of democracy or in terms of how to manage our economy." said European Commission President José Manuel Barroso at G-20 Summit in Los Cabos, Mexico yesterday.

"This crisis was not originated in Europe. This crisis was originated in North America. Many in our financial sector were contaminated by unorthodox practices from some sectors of the financial market."

Although not all economists agree with the view that the U.S. financial markets were responsible for Europe's heaving borrowing and ongoing structural problems with debt in it's currency union, Barroso, nevertheless, became angry and this outburst ensued when a Canadian reporter asked why North American should help pay for the Europe's crisis.

This is not the first time the U. S. has been blamed for starting the contagion that Europe is caught up in. Perhaps not in the inherent sovereignty problems of keeping together the EU with countries who's standards are as historically diverse as Greece and Germany but, after all, where does one start? Blaming the U. S. is as good a place as any. 

If I were Obama I might look into taking the first campaign bus home...

Europe's Supply-Side Revolution

Looking beyond the latest headlines about Greece's debt crisis, the long-term question for the European Union is: Can it grow? The conventional answer is that it's too sclerotic, too socialist, too indebted. Not so.

Germany is the largest economy in Europe, and it's been the first to recover and the best-performing developed economy since the start of the Great Recession. Since bottoming in 2009's first quarter, German output has grown at an annual rate of 2.8%, compared with 2.4% for the U.S. 

This is the blessing of the euro, not its curse. The common currency prevents politicians from fantasizing that they can devalue—and inflate—their way to prosperity. Instead, as Italy's new prime minister, Mario Monti, put it, growth "will have to come from structural reforms or supply-side measures.

The transformation of Europe is being made possible—as serious reform is everywhere and always—by crisis. For all the strikes and protests and backlash. Europe seems to know now that its tax-spend-borrow-and-protect social democratic past cannot be its future. Donald L. Luskin 

Mr. Luskin is chief investment officer and Mr. Roche Kelly is chief Europe strategist at Trend Macrolytics LLC.

Germany's Love Affair With The Euro-zone Waning

"The first medicine didn't work and now we are simply doubling the dose" Wolfgang Bosback prominent champion of European integration. Mr. Bosback is expected to vote "no" on Thursday's vote to put more money into Europe's bail-out fund. " My fear is when the big bang happens, it won't just be us who will have to pay but generations hereafter" Sound familiar?

Angela Merkel is finding it increasing difficult to keep her party and an increasing German nation convinced to go along with more bail-out measures to countries such as Greece who can not contain their debt and spending.

"I am for Germany supporting it's neighbors, but they have to be able to do it's homework" Horst Becker, head of Gmbh a German Restoration firm. Mr. Becker is speaking of the final straw this month when a team of euro-zone inspectors cut short a review in Athens over how to fill Greece's budget-deficit gap.

After six dacades of funding an intergrated Europe, Germany is worrying and considering it's own nations needs and challenges more closely now that it's faces, once again, another PIG bail-out. The Germany economy is Europe's locomotive and Germans are beginning to consider that the Euro-zone would be better off if Greece exits. 

Will The Euro Survive?

While German Chancellor Andrea Merkel works to hold together her ruling coalition, members of her center right and Christian coalition are fighting to stop the ever expanding bailouts of poorer euro nations and the growing risk it poses to German taxpayers.

In a ever growing drama, Germany's constitutional court is deciding  today to rule on lawsuits it as been considering against German participation in the European bailout program. The outcome of of Ms. Merkel's parliamentary struggle will depend on this ruling.    

Investors seeing the handwriting on the wall are fleeing to the Swiss Franc, bonds and gold. Switzerland is now fighting this currency turmoil and considering a cap on the value of the Swiss franc at 1.2 francs per Euro, implemented by "unlimited purchases of the Euro" to save it's Swiss exporters from bankruptcy.

Meanwhile  Greece is balking under the direction of the German Finance Minister when reminded that the disbursement of international loans and Germany's participation depends on Greece making progress on it's deficit.

 Failure for Ms. Merkel to hold together her own coalition and the growing discontent among the German people, who will bear the brunt of carrying the euro could spell it's disaster. 

TSA Now Storming Public Places 8,000 Times a Year

Americans must decide if, in the name of homeland security, they are willing to allow TSA operatives to storm public places in their communities with no warning, pat them down, and search their bags.  And they better decide quickly.

Bus travelers were shocked when jackbooted TSA officers in black SWAT-style uniforms descended unannounced upon the TampaGreyhound bus station in April with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies and federal bureaucrats in tow.

A news report by ABC Action News in Tampa showed passengers being given the signature pat downs Americans are used to watching the Transportation Security Administration screeners perform at our airports. Canine teams sniffed their bags and the buses they rode. Immigration officials hunted for large sums of cash as part of an anti-smuggling initiative. Tara Servatious - American Thinker - Click To Read More...

She calls it like it is

In what would would be political suicide for any American politician, German Chancellor has come out and said that "multicultural society in Germany has failed". Not mincing words, she went on to say: 

"Anyone who does not immediately speak German is not welcome". 

It is clear she was addressing the Muslim issue.

Anyone in Germany with the slightest tan is probably a little nervous right about now. Gulp. Germany tends to mean what they say, and they do not sit idly by.

The German Economic Miracle; Looking Back

In 1948 West Germany was rife with bureaucratic controls, rationing and the black-market.  Ludwig Erhard, director of economic administration, removed price controls, wage controls, allocation edicts and rationing directives." The West Geman economy surged by 50%. It was called the Wirtschaftswunder or economic miracle.  East Germany, on the other hand, suffered under soviet domination. West Germany went on to out produce France and the UK by the annual rate of 8%.

History is a great teacher.

Is Germany A Threat To Europe, Again?

Word on the street is that German banks have taken huge positions against the euro and the sovereign debt of the weakest of the Eurozone countries. This would definitely explain the pressure on the euro of late. It might also explain German Chancellor Merkel's recent evil grin.

"It could be argued that the collapse of the Eurozone partnership would strengthen Germany’s financial system because it could go back to its own currency"

Douglas A McIntyre over at 247WallSt.com

From Bismarck to Obama

Delivering ObamaCare unto the world wasn't supposed to be this hard. Just how hard is obvious when the president of the United States does five Sunday talk shows of sequential shilling. The New York Times memorialized this low point for the office of the presidency by arranging on its front page....

Read it at the WSJ.com