As the Eurozone edges closer and closer not only to disintegration but to complete and utter collapse, the IMF chirps up. Mme Lagarde has been quoted as saying:
“We believe, considering the situation of the country and the efforts that had been undertaken, the 25% unemployment rate at the moment, (that) it’s clearly needed to do fiscal consolidation but we don’t see the need to do upfront, heavy duty fiscal consolidation as was initially planned.
Spain needs more time and needs to be able to adjust into its fiscal consolidation efforts…”
She might like to spare a thought for little Greece whose unemployment is higher than that of Spain, as well.
Germany is stuck on a policy of “fiscal consolidation” and is blind to all else. How can you say an economic policy has been successful when one third of the working population is out of work? When recession has turned into a full blown Depression?
Yet no. Germany insists on greater and greater austerity which will at best lead to the disintegration of perhaps the whole European Union and at worst… well, we have seen what this dark continent can do when things get sticky. And it is not pretty. Particularly when Germany is the lead player in the disaster brought about.