Apparently The European Bank Tests Weren't Too Stressful

Seeking Alpha ^ | 7-24-2010 | Tim Iacono

[blam]

Apparently The European Bank Tests Weren't Too Stressful

Tim Iacono
July 23, 2010

I’ve yet to do a whole lot of reading on the results of the just concluded European bank stress tests that commercial banks passed (surprise!) with flying colors. Whether or not others have delved into the details or not hasn’t stopped a couple hundred of them from responding to this WSJ poll that clearly comes down on the side of the stress tests being more like an afternoon stroll than anything that would raise one’s blood pressure.

When you think about it, like the modern day currencies, commercial banks really are based on confidence more than anything else and faith that the system, as currently constructed, will somehow persevere regardless of how shaky it may appear at times. The word “credible” as used in the survey question above surely means something quite different today than if applied to stress tests that might have been conducted 50 years ago or 100 years ago. The current system of pure fiat money and fractional reserve banking, neither of which have any practical limits, is, basically, designed to fail.

[blam]

European Bank Stress Test Politicians Desperate To Hide The Truth Of Insolvent Banking System

[TopQuark]

Another vacuous article that peddles the prefabricated beliefs of the author. Unsurprisingly, he debases himself to nonsense: "The current system of pure fiat money and fractional reserve banking, neither of which have any practical limits, is, basically, designed to fail."

Well, one could argue that the Roman Empire, too, was designed to fail. And that argument would be as ridiculous. All systems have their ups and downs. Under the "fiat money" system we have achieved unparalleled increases in prosperity and longevity. The argument that it is designed to fail --- 'cause, you know, it will have bad days --- is... well, stupid.