Yeah, austerity may be the most proximate thing, but that misses the chronic condition of depressed economic growth. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot help the wage-earner by pulling down the wage-payer.
But they try. Lots of European nations punish capitalists sufficiently that they just do their capitalism elsewhere, so any economic growth due to capital investments is happening elsewhere. Half of Europe's problems come from things like...
Okay, take this guy in Greece, who tried to set up an Internet-based olive-oil business (which you'd think would be a natural fit) and had to submit... stool samples... and faced other inane red tape... http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/19/world/europe/in-greece-bus...
to say nothing of insanely rigid diversity and disability hiring quotas which serve more as hoops to jump through than anything equitable and which depress average Greek wages to the tune of... what was it, 25% or so? need to find that article...
But they try. Lots of European nations punish capitalists sufficiently that they just do their capitalism elsewhere, so any economic growth due to capital investments is happening elsewhere. Half of Europe's problems come from things like...
Okay, take this guy in Greece, who tried to set up an Internet-based olive-oil business (which you'd think would be a natural fit) and had to submit... stool samples... and faced other inane red tape... http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/19/world/europe/in-greece-bus...
to say nothing of insanely rigid diversity and disability hiring quotas which serve more as hoops to jump through than anything equitable and which depress average Greek wages to the tune of... what was it, 25% or so? need to find that article...
and the labor unions... let me quote the tire guy... "How stupid do you think we are?" http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/02/20/us-france-workers-...