G20 summit: Barroso blames eurozone crisis on US banks
The opening day of the G20 summit was threatening to deteriorate into a fractious row between eurozone countries and other non-European members of the G20, notably the US, as EU commission president José Manuel Barroso insisted the origins of the eurozone crisis lay in the unorthodox policies of American capitalism.
As Europe's leaders came under intense pressure to act decisively to cure the euro's ills, and a campaign gathered pace to relax some of the austerity programmes laying waste to countries with unsustainable debt levels, Barroso said Europe had not come to the G20 summit in Mexico to receive lessons on how to handle the economy. Asked by a Canadian journalist: "Why should North Americans risk their assets to help Europe?" he replied: "Frankly, we are not here to receive lessons in terms of democracy or in terms of how to handle the economy.
"This crisis was not originated in Europe
seeing as you mention North America, this crisis originated in North America and much of our financial sector was contaminated by, how can I put it, unorthodox practices, from some sectors of the financial market."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jun/18/g20-summit-barroso-eurozone-crisis
Judi Lynn
(160,530 posts)dipsydoodle
(42,239 posts)This is the exact background to what screwed almost the entire Spanish construction industry and led to their current demise.
liberal N proud
(60,334 posts)Because the government here has no interest in doing so.
Igel
(35,309 posts)Obviously GC is to blame, and that makes it North American's problem. (Really? Canada and Mexico's, too?)
On the other hand, Greece admitted that it had a problem and asked for a creative solution to avoid facing its problem. The solution that was offered--and that Greece took--made the problem worse.
Ireland's problem was also mortgage-based. They vastly overbuilt. When a downturn came, they had also vastly over-mortgaged. The government didn't complain until there was a stress. It didn't need to be that particular stress. A number of similar stresses would have been as good.
Best defense is a good offense. If nothing else, it certainly helps to make the waters barroso ... er, muddy.