"The Brussels Eurocrats are in the image of Plato’s Philosopher King, only there are too many Kings all believing themselves to be the most capable ruler. For two years I have written about that the European leaders feared referenda more than anything for direct democracy was an affront to the wisdom of the self-anointed elite. The European project was too important to be left to the capricious voters... The ruling elites, the Davos Gang, are not really financially astute for the Greeks could have kicked the proverbial can down the road for a mere 7.5 billion euros. Today’s market response to the new uncertainty probably wiped 500 billion in value off global equity markets and raised borrowing costs for the less credit-worthy countries of peripheral Europe. Egomania, like a membership in a quality credit card company, has a price to be paid... It is not economic contagion but political contagion that strikes fear in the heart of Angela Merkel." Yra Harris, Looking Back on the European Dystopia "Our main challenge, since the global financial crisis, has been to make rapid (or at least as rapid as possible) progress toward achieving these objectives. While it has taken a long time, and extraordinary monetary policy actions, the U.S. economy is now close to full employment..." Stanley Fischer, Vice Chairman Federal Reserve, Monetary Policy In the US and Developing Countries, 30 June 2015
