The Italians are a sensible people

Drake Tungsten · September 5, 2003, 23:30

Quote:

France, Germany 'should be fined'

MILAN, Italy (Reuters) -- France and Germany should be fined if they cannot bring their 2004 budget deficits under the EU's limit of three percent of gross domestic product, EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti said in an interview on Friday.

Monti, speaking to Italian business daily Il Sole 24 Ore, said sanctions on the EU's two largest economies, in accordance with provisions outlined in the bloc's Stability and Growth Pact, would not weigh on European growth.

"When there are rules, they must be applied correctly and equally to all, to big countries and little countries,'' Monti was quoted as saying. "If the objective conditions are there...sanctions will be triggered.''

Germany told the EU last week it expected its 2003 budget deficit would reach 3.8 percent of GDP after 3.5 percent in 2002, although many private forecasters expect the deficit to exceed four percent this year.

France has already said it expects to break the stability pact's limit on deficits of three percent of GDP for the second year running this year, and on Tuesday raised the prospect of busting the limit again in 2004.

Monti said sanctions would be a strong signal to European countries, both inside and outside the budget deficit cap.

"(Sanctions) would not have a heavy financial effect, so they would not slow growth,'' Monti said. "It would maintain confidence in the euro without having a recessionary backlash on the economy.''

Monti added Italy's attempts to overhaul its pension system could help it encourage economic growth by removing a "sword of Damocles'' from over the heads of workers and pensioners.

"This should remove a brake on consumption,'' he said, but added sufficient competition was still lacking in Italy.

"It seems to me that Italian life is characterised by great bitterness in the relations between political parties, taking attention away from the things considered necessary, this is to say the creation of a system capable of carrying forward new initiatives.''

http://edition.cnn.com/2003/BUSINESS...eut/index.html

Wow, first Berlusconi and now this guy. Italy is turning out some very intelligent statesmen.

Godspeed, Mario Monti! All those who believe in fairness and justice stand behind you.

Whaleboy · September 5, 2003, 23:33

GePap · September 5, 2003, 23:34

Any praise for Berlusconi is more than he deserves.

Theben · September 5, 2003, 23:35

Ma certo.

Drake Tungsten · September 5, 2003, 23:39

Quote:

Any praise for Berlusconi is more than he deserves.

What can I say? I'm a generous man.

Boris Godunov · September 5, 2003, 23:48

Here here!

The Italians are smart! Or getting smarter:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...rope_america_1

"The war has made the trans-Atlantic disconnect so significant that large chunks of public opinion in France (70 percent), Germany and Italy (both 50 percent), Portugal (44 percent) now see U.S leadership as undesirable, the poll showed."

...

"The American president polled a 40-percent support level in Italy (down from 57 percent), 58 percent in Poland (down from 62 percent) and 41 percent in Portugal which was not polled in 2002, according to the survey."

DanS · September 6, 2003, 01:16

Quote:

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten
Godspeed, Mario Monti! All those who believe in fairness and justice stand behind you.

Kuciwalker · September 6, 2003, 01:17

Ummm, what's the point of suing someone because they have too much debt?

Nubclear · September 6, 2003, 01:18

More proof that a European Superpower will never exist.

Dis · September 6, 2003, 03:11

this thread title is racist.

you cannot generalize an entire race of people- even if it is postively. For instance, it is wrong to say black men have large penises.

Drake Tungsten · September 6, 2003, 03:24

"Italian" isn't a race.

MrFun · September 6, 2003, 03:25

Quote:

Originally posted by Comrade Tassadar
More proof that a European Superpower will never exist.

We Americans have known that since the end of World War II.

Nubclear · September 6, 2003, 03:26

Quote:

Originally posted by Dissident
For instance, it is wrong to say black men have large penises.

MING!!!! DISSIDENT JUST SAID......

Dis · September 6, 2003, 03:35

sure Italians are a race. Why wouldn't they be?

Drake Tungsten · September 6, 2003, 03:39

Quote:

sure Italians are a race. Why wouldn't they be?

"Italian" is a nationality, not a race. Racism is bad, but nationalism is fun.

For example, I think that all Russians are ignorant drunks who secretly lust after Mormon women.

That's not racism, it's pure fun!

Dis · September 6, 2003, 03:40

hey I'm a drunk who lusts after mormon women.

You should go to Utah. Their women look so pristine, so pure. Makes you just want to do naughty sex acts with them.

Nubclear · September 6, 2003, 03:45

Quote:

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

Quote:

sure Italians are a race. Why wouldn't they be?

"Italian" is a nationality, not a race. Racism is bad, but nationalism is fun.

For example, I think that all Russians are ignorant drunks who secretly lust after Mormon women.

That's not racism, it's pure fun!

OMFG HARDCORE LDS PR0N!!!!

Zylka · September 6, 2003, 04:20

Quote:

Originally posted by elijah

WOW!

BeBro · September 6, 2003, 06:59

That is not really a big deal. LOL.

We agreed to the rules, so if we break them we must face a consequence, that ´s how it works in the EU. Many in Germany were expecting sanctions because of our deficit much earlier.

The diff. to Berlusconi is that Monti has a point, while our good Silvio was talking out of his ass.

Drake Tungsten · September 6, 2003, 07:03

I think Monti, Prodi & Berlusconi are the divine Trinity of European politics. God bless them.

BeBro · September 6, 2003, 07:07

Yeah, Berlusconi will need all the help he can get.

C0ckney · September 6, 2003, 07:41

france and germany are everyday proving why we are better off out of the euro

Spiffor · September 6, 2003, 08:48

The Stability Pact is a farce. Basically, the EU countries agreed on a figure out of their asses, and made it a god-holy rule. Now, they're too immature to change the rule now that the international economic environment has changed, and they're busy booing states that don't respect it.

When France and Germany will eventually respect the Pact, they'll be the ones suing some other States for not respecting the inadapted rule

Kuciwalker · September 6, 2003, 10:00

I still don't understand how fining people because they're in debt isn't counterproductive.

BeBro · September 6, 2003, 10:02

Well, it´s not that Germany or France will become poor countries due to that - just a tool to generate pressure on countries who do not enough to deal wih their financial problems.

Theben · September 6, 2003, 19:10

Quote:

Originally posted by skywalker
I still don't understand how fining people because they're in debt isn't counterproductive.

Same reasoning behind raising personal interest rates because you can't make your payments on time, I think...