In your opinion, was the current form of the European currency foreseen by its creators, or are they rather surprised today at the monster they have created?
As far as I know, some of the original creators of the single currency have spoken out against it in recent years. Their ideas were completely different. The question is, of course, to what extent this is a question of the euro itself and to what extent it is a question of the appalling bungling of the next generation of elites. And, in fact, not only the bungling, but also the cowardice. Today, we cannot imagine any statesman coming up with the vision, for example, of dividing the euro area into several smaller currency areas. Today’s programmes are prepared by launching a promotional slogan, repressing the critics and then thinking about what to do. Any lobbyist and any group of fanatics can push for practically anything.
There is no such thing as ‘economic rationality’. It is only those who profit from a move who try to justify it as a supposed rational necessity.
The euro was the first project where economic and monetary issues were subordinated to a political objective. Today, we see this sort of thing more and more often (for example, when banks assess applications for loans on the basis of their carbon footprint on the basis of a political mandate). In this respect, was the euro not a barrier-breaker that made this fundamental transformation possible?
Economic and monetary issues are always subordinate to some political objective. There is no such thing as ‘economic rationality’. It is only those who profit from a move who try to justify it as a supposed rational necessity. Higher inflation is more profitable for some, zero inflation for others. Privatisation is more profitable for some, nationalisation for others. When the local branch of the French Credit Lyonnaise or the Austrian Reiffeisenbank assesses credit applications on the basis of their carbon footprint, do you think they are being told to do so by the government? When they categorise advertisements not according to advertising objectives but according to the political views of the editorial staff, do you think the government is telling them to do that? Banks are adjusting the world so they can squeeze more money out of people.
