When one "expert" comments on the inadequacies of other "experts"... you begin to wonder... does anybody actually know what they're talking about? For those of us who know that we (the common people) are definitely "not experts"... it is a no-brain-er fact that one or more of these so called "experts" are definitely wrong.
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Julia Gillard says that "... stories of American decline are exaggerated..." and that "... European countries are living beyond their means in an economic framework where there is one currency, and consequently the automatic stabilisers that would normally kick in to get you moving have not been there... that means the 'living beyond the means' deepens and deepens and deepens. There have been very half-hearted attempts to address that, a lot of game-playing, all these audits; the EU has been sending people to Greece to tuttut about fiscal circumstances for a long period of time, but with no real action to follow it up.'"
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Julia Gillard says that "... stories of American decline are exaggerated..." and that "... European countries are living beyond their means in an economic framework where there is one currency, and consequently the automatic stabilisers that would normally kick in to get you moving have not been there... that means the 'living beyond the means' deepens and deepens and deepens. There have been very half-hearted attempts to address that, a lot of game-playing, all these audits; the EU has been sending people to Greece to tuttut about fiscal circumstances for a long period of time, but with no real action to follow it up.'"
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Anyway... for what it's worth... I don't agree with her comments on America, but on her comments on Europe... there may be some truths... but then again... I'm no expert. Good luck to us all. The following is the full news report.
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News ~ Julia Gillard ~ Barracking for US, berating Europe: Gillard picks her side of economic divide
by PAUL KELLY, EDITOR AT LARGE, 24 Oct 2011, The Australian
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Picture Caption:
Julia Gillard, in the rear courtyard at The Lodge yesterday, has outlined a sweeping vision of Australia's place in world affairs
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ON the eve of a series of global economic talks, Julia Gillard says Barack Obama has ''the right strategy'' but that Europe has been ''living beyond its means'' and its leaders must fix their fiscal crisis. Interviewed by The Australian at The Lodge yesterday, the Prime Minister shifted on Asia policy, saying the new East Asian Summit was now the optimal regional institution, not the Australian-initiated Asia-pacific Economic Community. Ms Gillard said she would campaign for offshore processing of asylum-seekers and the Malaysian exchange deal ''at the ALP national conference, at the next election, and anywhere else it needs to be supported''. She warned that an Australian republic was some time away and was unsympathetic on the death of former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, quoting her mother that: ''You live by the sword, you die by the sword.''
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The contrast in Ms Gillard's views towards the US and Europe was sharp and revealing. With the US President visiting Australia next month, she said: ''I think stories of American decline are exaggerated. These predictions haven't been true in the past, and I don't think they'll be proven true now. The American economy, at base, is adaptable and resilient. I believe it will work its way through this challenge. ''I believe President Obama is pursuing the right strategy. I believe he is somebody of great strength and endurance and overwhelming calm, and he will continue to work his way through.''
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With her attendance at the Group of 20 leaders meeting in Cannes a fortnight away, the PM came down hard on Europe. ''For the sake of the global economy they need to get this fixed,'' she said of the EU's financial crisis. ''What the fix looks like is in the first instance a matter for them. But it must be fixed. ''I'm very concerned that European leaders have been on what appears to be a never-ending journey of just seeking to muddle through. That's not going to cut it any more. Just muddling through on a wish and a prayer, and hoping they can jawbone markets into a better analysis of the European position, is clearly not enough.''
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Pressed on Europe's core problem, Ms Gillard was emphatic. ''I'd say European countries are living beyond their means in an economic framework where there is one currency, and consequently the automatic stabilisers that would normally kick in to get you moving have not been there,'' she said. ''That means the 'living beyond the means' deepens and deepens and deepens. There have been very half-hearted attempts to address that, a lot of game-playing, all these audits; the EU has been sending people to Greece to tuttut about fiscal circumstances for a long period of time, but with no real action to follow it up.''
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With her attendance at the Group of 20 leaders meeting in Cannes a fortnight away, the PM came down hard on Europe. ''For the sake of the global economy they need to get this fixed,'' she said of the EU's financial crisis. ''What the fix looks like is in the first instance a matter for them. But it must be fixed. ''I'm very concerned that European leaders have been on what appears to be a never-ending journey of just seeking to muddle through. That's not going to cut it any more. Just muddling through on a wish and a prayer, and hoping they can jawbone markets into a better analysis of the European position, is clearly not enough.''
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Pressed on Europe's core problem, Ms Gillard was emphatic. ''I'd say European countries are living beyond their means in an economic framework where there is one currency, and consequently the automatic stabilisers that would normally kick in to get you moving have not been there,'' she said. ''That means the 'living beyond the means' deepens and deepens and deepens. There have been very half-hearted attempts to address that, a lot of game-playing, all these audits; the EU has been sending people to Greece to tuttut about fiscal circumstances for a long period of time, but with no real action to follow it up.''
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Her comments come amid talks between French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel to try to settle a deal over how to leverage the European Financial Stability Facility to contain the crisis. With her attendance at the East Asian Summit in Bali three weeks away, Ms Gillard said that under Mr Obama the US was reorientating towards the Pacific and East Asia. ''The US understands this is the region being remade by economic growth,'' she said. ''That the US is joining the East Asian Summit is an indication of the depth of that engagement.''
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Ms Gillard said APEC would ''continue to play its traditional role'' in trade liberalisation. But with the US and Russia now joining the EAS it had ''the right membership, the right mandate at the right time''. She expected the EAS to address issues such as maritime security and the Korean peninsula, but said: ''We will have to walk before we can run.'' The task for the EAS was to ''make the journey to realise its promise''. Her message is that the two pivotal institutions for Australia in future are the G20 and the EAS covering Asia and the Pacific as the inclusive body Australia has sought since Kevin Rudd was prime minister. Ms Gillard wants her own stamp on Asian policy through the white paper she commissioned by former Treasury chief Ken Henry. She said the old debates about engagement with Asia were ''resolved long ago'', and she seeks new analysis for ''a maturer phase of our relations with the region''.
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Ms Gillard dismissed pessimists who say Australia cannot reconcile its US alliance and its economic partnership with China. Such analysts, she said, underestimated ''our status in the region where we live, work and trade''. ''I think we can do both, and I am an optimist on that,'' she said. The Prime Minister said her aim was to ''renovate and renew'' the US alliance for a new age. How did she rate its future importance? ''I think the alliance is going to be of the same continuing important to us,'' she said. ''I don't think the language of 'more' really makes much sense. It is absolutely pivotal to our foreign policy and strategic outlook.''
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Asked whether the eurozone should stay intact or undergo surgery, Ms Gillard said: ''I think that is a question for the Europeans, but they've got to get it done. They have to make the decisions about what is sustainable.''
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Ms Gillard said APEC would ''continue to play its traditional role'' in trade liberalisation. But with the US and Russia now joining the EAS it had ''the right membership, the right mandate at the right time''. She expected the EAS to address issues such as maritime security and the Korean peninsula, but said: ''We will have to walk before we can run.'' The task for the EAS was to ''make the journey to realise its promise''. Her message is that the two pivotal institutions for Australia in future are the G20 and the EAS covering Asia and the Pacific as the inclusive body Australia has sought since Kevin Rudd was prime minister. Ms Gillard wants her own stamp on Asian policy through the white paper she commissioned by former Treasury chief Ken Henry. She said the old debates about engagement with Asia were ''resolved long ago'', and she seeks new analysis for ''a maturer phase of our relations with the region''.
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Ms Gillard dismissed pessimists who say Australia cannot reconcile its US alliance and its economic partnership with China. Such analysts, she said, underestimated ''our status in the region where we live, work and trade''. ''I think we can do both, and I am an optimist on that,'' she said. The Prime Minister said her aim was to ''renovate and renew'' the US alliance for a new age. How did she rate its future importance? ''I think the alliance is going to be of the same continuing important to us,'' she said. ''I don't think the language of 'more' really makes much sense. It is absolutely pivotal to our foreign policy and strategic outlook.''
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Asked whether the eurozone should stay intact or undergo surgery, Ms Gillard said: ''I think that is a question for the Europeans, but they've got to get it done. They have to make the decisions about what is sustainable.''
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