For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: Is the next shoe to drop the disbanding of the European Union and the euro?
The European Union is learning a painful lesson: that its cosy consensus world of officialdom, diplomacy and contempt for voters, is not up to the mark when dealing with a full blown crisis. The last two weeks have shown that the EU is better off at puffing up fears about climate change, bird flu and other terrifying environmental perils than it is at dealing with a concrete problem that could lead to a full blown recession.
The G-7 meeting this weekend produced nothing. An EU meeting last week in Belgium also resulted in nothing concrete to solve the financial crisis. Maybe even worse, Germany didn't even show!
With European nations much more concerned about their own people and economies, can this Union survive? If the answer is no, how would the disbanding of this Union, as well as the recreation of individual currencies such as marks, lira, and francs -- assuming this were to occur -- impact a global economy already in turmoil?
