A journal of political, social, and other important, possibly even somewhat related affairs, including but not limited to: Central European Society, The European Union, HC Kometa Brno, American Politics, Film, and Beer.

11 May 2010

From Anne Applebaum Today

Her column in today's Post (Washington, not Denver or Prague) contains one terrific line about the recent bailout agreement signed by Greece (hint -- it has something to do with a train), and one interesting argument: that this bailout represents a huge departure from the "pooled sovereignty" arrangements which European states made in order to form the European Union. For Applebaum, this new policy signifies the EU's sovereignty over national governments, and she correctly points out the fact that in contrast to IMF bailouts, the arrangement with other EU states is VERY specific (and again, her writing style is excellent). Because of this specificity, combined with the strictness of the terms, it demonstrates that the EU, particularly the northern, more fiscally sober countries are essentially writing huge portions of another nation's budget. Because control of the national budget is a fundamental aspect of national sovereignty, it stands to reason that usurping this authority represents a shift in authority to the budget-drafters.

In some ways, the wife of the Polish Foreign Minister (who no doubt has his own troubles dealing with this, though not as much as the governments of eurozone members Slovakia or Germany) is exactly correct -- EU politics is getting verrrry specific about the free spending of Greece. This isn't like IMF intervention; this is like A&E Intervention. On the other hand, a certain degree of tempering of this opinion is in order. After all, the (publicly stated) theory was that entry into the euro would be very specifically controlled, and national governments such as Greece, Spain, and Portugal (all of them relative newcomers to modern democratic politics) would "learn" how to behave fiscally. As Josef Joffe notes (using a train metaphor elsewhere in his column), that was always a bit more wishful thinking than cold-blooded rational analysis of the Mediterranean nations' books -- everybody knew that Greece (and others) were using Enron accounting, or, more accurately, Goldman Sachs accounting. In other words, it was always politics and never solely economics that drove monetary integration. To indulge myself, you can say that this was a train wreck waiting to happen.

So in a way, saying that this is a huge political step for the Union is not entirely accurate. It was always a political set-up, and though it was a more obvious step, perhaps a bigger boot in softer ground, whether it was a Rubicon-crossing is less convincing. That was done years ago, and plenty of Cassandras were willing to point that out. The EU had political "rules" about control of national budgets long before this crisis, and the fact that everybody -- from the offenders to the enforcers -- ignored them only demonstrates that politicians may not always be acting in their constituents' interests or "the general interest." Now they are working overtime to keep the system from collapsing, and at the same time consolidate their own power. Never waste a good crisis!

10 May 2010

The best thing you'll read today....

...is from Fouad Ajami, writing in the Wall Street Journal. What's most interesting about it is the last part of it, which touches on the very delicate subject of what America is for someone like the Times Square bomber: it is at once "the object of their dreams and the scapegoat onto which they project their deepest malignancies."

No other nation is such a Rorschach test for the world. For Islamists, America is a decadent, highly secularist nation, while for Europeans, it is also an irrationally religious nation. How America's faith combines with its neverending appeal to scientific progress is the source of much confusion on the continent. This concept of America as the twin symbols of a technocratic modernity and a old traditional religious nation is always something that fascinates. Long long ago, your correspondent sat in on a class which dealt with this topic of America conceived (by others) as "the apex of modernity." Europe, in this view, also is at once seduced and repelled by this idea: think of French culinary attitudes to that fine treat Velveeta -- a brilliantly engineered product, or, conversely, the fear-and-admiration mix that comes with the latest beautiful and smooth iPhone. These products (along with the space program, Pixar movies, Nike running shoes, the '57 Chevy, and genetically modified corn) uproot traditions, and change how people live more dynamically than political changes or philosophical ideas -- occasionally, America designs things that are "better than nature." At the same time, America's deep skepticism about the perfectibility of man derived from its religious heritage and (possibly consequently) the rejection of more utopian strains of philosophic thought temper much of the starry-eyed naïveté emanating from other places. There are many people who want to build a heaven on earth; reactions to the way that Americans go about changing the world informs us about how others would imagine their own utopia. It might be the Ummah or it might be someplace else, but it's clear that America is still as much an idea as it is a geographical destination.

08 May 2010

Juche On The Internet!

In case you were wondering about North Korea's extensive English-language media services, here is the link.

07 May 2010

The Results Are In.....

....and it's a hung Parliament, complete with "voting irregularities" as we call 'em, high turnout, and calls for changes in the system!

Keep your eyes on Cam'ron and Clegg.... Apparently, Clegg has stated that he feels that the party with the most votes should have the right to form a government; however, the precedent is that the Prime Minister in the case of a hung Parliament also can try to form a government first, and one can't imagine Gordon Brown just packing up and going home. Going by the numbers, however, there would have to be sort of a "coalition of the losers" -- any government formed this way would undoubtedly be very shaky, and probably quite unpopular as well.

As always, Conservativehome has cool stuff on the matter, and the Economist has a nice writeup as well.

03 May 2010

The Old And The New

http://praguemonitor.com/2010/04/29/prague-archbishop-blesses-gamma-knife

I suppose I'd rather have a blessed gamma knife than a non-blessed one....

President Klaus in Germany

The intrepid translators at Prague Daily Monitor relay the news that President Klaus sees the EU as completing a political union by controlling the budgets of its more, well, profligate member states. He rightly views national budgets as a key aspect of national sovereignty, and thus any bailout is bound to lead to greater political control by whoever provides the money.

Klaus' most interesting comment concerns the idea about "economic spaces," explaining that, "Someone may now be surprised, but I can say that the Czech Republic is part of something I would call German economic space. It breathes in a similar way as the other countries in this German economic space. And I believe it could be good for the Czech Republic to create a common currency with this space."

The most interesting aspect of this quote is Klaus' use of the word "could." Klaus leaves open the possibility of Czechs adopting the Euro, (as they are obliged by treaty to do) but certainly has maintained his skepticism about a Europe-wide currency. The balance between sovereignty and the opportunity for national wealth accumulation is noted, yet Klaus is also clever enough to rhetorically ask if "Portugal, for example," belongs in the same "German economic space."

In any case, the trials of the euro and the Czech Republic's relationship to the currency regime will continue to keep policymakers and academics burning the midnight oil. Should be interesting.