Is there something to envy Europe for?

[mahnmut]

In the financial sector I mean.

I think the one thing to be jealous about is the fact that after the crisis, Europe actually started to address the issues of:

1. Market deregulation, particularly risky finances, and the troubles that come with it.
2. Transparency and accountability in the financial sector.
3. Protection mechanisms against balloons and busts.
4. Ridiculous bonuses for bankers who've run whole economies into the gutter.

For a time it looked like Obama would keep his promise to address these issues. But that was only until the, maybe 10th day of his presidency. Then we saw who were the guys he chose to surround himself with. And all hope was lost for a change.

And change didn't come.

The US economy may still be more versatile but the lack of political will to address its flaws means that the framework is now tilted in favor of other regions, and the US financial dominance may be pushed away sooner than most of us are expecting.

As for Europe, it may still have to heal itself from the ditch it was put into (yes, including wounds like Greece, Ireland and Portugal), granted. But there are some good signs there that I'm not seeing at the other side of the pond.

Comments

[kardashev.livejournal.com]

Who would you say is mkissing and why? I'd like to write a critique of this documentary sometime and anything they've left out would be helpful.

[abomvubuso.livejournal.com]

They actually listed every single high-ranking guy from the financial circles that they tried to interview and that declined to appear on the documentary. While watching it you can occasionally see a caption saying "XXX declined to be intervewed for this film".

[kardashev.livejournal.com]

Ohhh, those guys. I thought you meant that there were other people who needed to be put on the hot seat that weren't.