Any student of semiotics could tell right away that the Euro was doomed from the start:
Also, any student of architecture/civil engineering will spot the flaws in design of the imaginary bridges printed on Euro notes.
Posted on 06/03/2005 6:04:18 AM PDT by blogblogginaway
ROME (Reuters) - Italy should consider leaving the single currency and reintroducing the lira, Welfare Minister Roberto Maroni said in a newspaper interview on Friday.
Maroni, a member of the euro-skeptical Northern League party, told the Repubblica daily Italy should hold a referendum to decide whether to return to the lira, at least temporarily.
He also said European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet was one of those chiefly responsible for the "disaster of the euro."
The euro "has proved inadequate in the face of the economic slowdown, the loss of competitiveness and the job crisis," Maroni said.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.myway.com ...
I would have thought the Euro would have gone UP in value with news the Italians might pull out.
Italy doesn't realize that the deafening silence for the past several years has been people NOT making fun of their currency and their economy.
Dumping the euro would once again give them the chance to demonstrate their economic cluelessness.
Any student of semiotics could tell right away that the Euro was doomed from the start:
Also, any student of architecture/civil engineering will spot the flaws in design of the imaginary bridges printed on Euro notes.
When I was in Italy in 1999, I was delighted to see how far my money went. I could find a lunch for USD2-3.00, and a nice dinner for around 7-10. You could buy almost anything for around US$10.00. They should have never converted, they were better off as is. Stupid Euro-land fantasy.
Cheers,
CSG
Get a few Euro for your collection now. They'll be collector's items in a decade.
Right, I feel the same way. I was actually thinking of going back until I heard my boss discuss it. I did some other investigating and found out it's true. All prices went up, way up.
The bargain right now is Thailand. It's a beautiful country even though Bangkok perpetually stinks(literally). Once you get out of town, it's fascinating and the people like Americans. At 40Baht to a dollar, you can get top notch hotel rooms for 40-50 dollars a night.
Turkish lira was running 8068 per US dollar in 1992. Italian lira was 1300 per US dollar the following week. I suspect Turkish lira are worth even less than Italian lira today.
I haven't bothered to check exchange rates in a very long time. I visited Rome, Italy the first week of March 2005. The Euro was running around $1.30 per USD. It was an expensive visit.
This was an old joke when I lived in Italy during the late 60s.
I noticed few Italians in the restaurants in March. Lots of English speaking tourists. Multiple bus loads of Japanese tourists.
But the EU Government is a castle built in the air. If it comes down to it, who will enforce the edicts? The Gauls? The Huns? The Poles? The Anglo-Saxons? These already have parliamentary democracies and will send packing any politician that has a go at it. I think the house of cards is crumbling, and just think, here at FR we are at the tip of the sphere in making it happen, just as we are putting it to the death rats here. Ha Ha, ha ha, couldn't happen to a better bunch of bitter barstads.
I went to England in '02. My choir went again in '04 but when I saw how much the price of the trip had gone up, I couldn't make it. I'd love to go to Thailand, but I'm afraid I'd get in trouble. I know people there though...
there is rampant tax evasion going on in italy also because of this.
Here in Ireland we are in the Euro and have the lowest unemployment rate in the EU (4.2%). So the problems many countries are having in the Euro have nothing to do with the currency. It has simply become a scapegoat for unpopular governments - especially the Italian one.
Polls show 27% of Italians want a return to the Lira. I think the Italians have a Swiss-style direct democracy provision to their Constitution triggering referendums if 4 million sign a petition. However, the turnout has to be at least 50% or the result is invalid - like the vote on liberalising infertility laws is like to be with just 14% turning out today though the poll is continuing tomorrow.
Actually, when Italy first joined the Euro its unemployment fell along with France and Germany's as the then weak Euro made exports to the US cheaper. When the Euro became strong (rising from 82 US cents to $1.38 c and now $1.21 cents now), that hurt exports. However, the existence of the Euro means that no longer can the Lira go up and down versus other Eurozone currencies. So outside of the Euro, things could be worse for Italy.
In Ireland, 6 months before we joined EMU, we had 10% interest rates, compared to 2.5% now. Ask mortgage-holders do they want a return to 10% interest rates and see what answer you'll get.
Italy, France and Germany's main economic problems are connected to:
A: High taxes
B: Inflexibly labour laws that make sacking a worker too difficult and give unions too much power e.g. secondary picketing.
C: Rampant and intransigent trade unions.
Nothing to do with the Euro.
Malsua, you think they were better off as it was?
With 11% unemployment?
Get real!
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