Category Archives: Europe

Don Quijones: Mini Tax Havens – How Europe’s 1% Gets to Pay Only 1%

If you thought tax havens were limited to tax haven destinations like Switzerland and the Caymans and the Isle of Man, think again. European governments happily accommodate tax schemes that allow the wealthy to shift funds into super low tax vehicles. Yet at the very same time, ordinary citizens are being broken on the rack of austerity.

Europe Has Wasted a Good Crisis

Yves here. This post is an understated version of a reading that a well-connected colleague gave me after spending three weeks in Europe: that the Eurozone is headed towards breakup.

Bill Black: The EU Center-Right and Ultra-Right’s Continuing War on the People of the EU

The New York Times has provided us with an invaluable column about the interactions of the EU’s rightist and ultra-rightest parties. It is invaluable because it is (unintentionally) so revealing about the EU’s right and ultra-right parties and the NYT’s inability to understand either the EU economic or political crises. The NYT article illustrates its points by presenting a tale entitled “A German Voice, Hans-Olaf Henkel, Calls for Euro’s Abolition.” It treats Henkel, an open racist and austerian, as a reputable figure, apparently because he is wealthy.

Debunking the Hype about the European “Recovery”

Europe’s “recovery” looks more like a mirage than the real thing.

Russia Cuts Off Gas Supplies to the Ukraine

the Russian move to stop supplying gas to the Ukraine unless it pays upfront is an important, if expected, development, But how is this standoff likely to play out?

How the Troika, the WSJ and the NYT Keep the Public Befuddled About Austerity and Deflation

Deflation proves that austerity policies are failing, but the media is doing a remarkable job of keeping readers confused and ignorant.

Mathew D. Rose: When European Politicians Cannot Read the Handwriting on the Wall

Despite the alarming results of the European elections last week, Angela Merkel remained unflinching. That is a cause for concern. European politicians believe the solution to voter ire is better messaging, as opposed to a change in policy.

Bill Black: Spain’s “Stimulus” Plan – Austerity, Rebranded

Spain’s conservative government, eager to change the media’s emphasis on its repudiation in recent EU elections, has launched a media campaign stressing its adoption of an aggressive “stimulus” program. But once you get past the hype, this new program is the same old failed austerity snake oil.

Michael Hudson: The EU Parliament Elections as a Vote Against the Oligarchs

The US press and newscasts make it appear that Europeans have voted against poor immigrants and foreigners. What they voted against was the super-rich, the oligarchy.

Ukraine: The Real Energy Crisis Starts in June

The West needs to curb its enthusiasm over the recent elections in the Ukraine. Gazprom is tightening the energy screws next week.

Don Quijones: The Bank That Nobody Wants To Buy

The sorry tale of the supposedly restored Spanish zombie bank Catalunya Caixa.

Ilargi: European Democracy Is Roadkill

How supranational and pan-European institutions, along with US meddling, have vitiated democracy in Europe.

The Birth of a Eurasian Century: Russia and China Do Pipelineistan

Russia and China, along with other developing economies, are exploring ways to create an Eurasian alliance to go toe-to-toe with the US economic hegemony.

New Zealand: the Shell Company Incorporation Franchises (II) (and Ukraine)

The nuts-and bolts view of these looting mechanisms shows how corruption actually works.

Yanis Varoufakis: Europe’s Slide into Deflation, and What to do About It

By Yanis Varoufakis, a professor of economics at the University of Athens. Cross posted from his website. From an interview for Jornal de Negócios by Jorge N. Rodrigues Europe is in the clasp of the deflationary forces that resulted directly from its inane handling of the Eurozone crisis. In this interview, I discuss deflation and […]