For Pedro Marques Pereira, chief editor of the Diário Económico, the rejection of the 700 billion dollar bailout represents a financial 9/11: "The world changed seven years ago on September 11. At that time many people prophesied the US would turn inward on itself. The opposite happened, and the country even strengthened its role as the sole global power. I will leave the mistakes it made for another discussion. But can one deny the world would be better without its leadership, that is to say with no leadership at all? The fact is that when something goes wrong, the world continues to pin its hopes on the US, as we have seen with the Paulson bailout plan. This would be a good time for others to take the baton. ... The fact that Uncle Sam is not going to go on writing blank checks could lead to greater changes in global power structures than we saw with September 11." (30/09/2008)

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All available articles from » Pedro Marques Pereira

The US economist Joseph E. Stiglitz stresses the need for a new regulatory system: "There is a growing consensus among economists that any bailout based on Paulson's plan won't work. If so, the huge increase in the national debt and the realization that even $700 billion is not enough to rescue the US economy will erode confidence further and aggravate its weakness. But it is impossible for politicians to do nothing in such a crisis. So we may have to pray that an agreement crafted with the toxic mix of special interests, misguided economics, and right-wing ideologies that produced the crisis can somehow produce a rescue plan that works. ... Getting things right – including a new regulatory system that reduces the likelihood that such a crisis will recur – is one of the many tasks to be left to the next administration." (01/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Economic Policy, » Financial Markets, » U.S., » Global
All available articles from » Joseph E. Stiglitz

According to the daily newspaper De Volkskrant, the US Congress needs to reach an agreement: "Even if the opposition is understandable and the rescue plan leaves much to be desired, it cannot be denied that the 'no' of the US Congress is sad testimony to Washington's incapacity to act quickly in a serious, acute crisis and thus hold back the tidal wave that threatens to wash out the entire economy. ... To simply let events take their course is not an option. There must be a new - and swift - attempt to reach an agreement in Congress. The best scenario would be for Obama and McCain to adopt a joint stance on this issue so that at least one bone of contention is banished to the background in party political relations. But even then Congress must be made to realise that some things are more important than being re-elected." (01/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » U.S.

Columnist Will Hutton argues in The Guardian that only the euro can save the UK from financial crisis: "International investors will single out Britain's banks as the weakest in the international system with only a medium-sized country behind them. Britain will need its own Paulson plan to respond, but has not got the financial firepower. ... [Opposition leader David] Cameron and [Prime Minister Gordon] Brown are united in saying they will do what is needed and not allow political differences to get in the way of financial stability. Good, but do either realise what may be needed in a worst case? The only viable British Paulson plan - bar a £500bn-plus international loan - may require us to join the euro to win the support of the whole of the European economy and European Central Bank as part of a pan-EU initiative to create 'good banks' for Europe." (01/10/2008)

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All available articles from » Will Hutton

Czech intelligence services have ascertained a drastic increase in Russian spying activities directed at preventing the planned construction of a radar base for the US missile defence shield in western Bohemia. They claim that these infiltration attempts are part of a broad strategy aimed at driving a wedge between Europe and the US. "No one could have expected anything different," the liberal daily Sme comments. "The Russians' Iranian and North Korean espionage colleagues are also mobilising - for these countries stand to lose an advantage [because of the US defence shield]: part of their potential to blackmail the West. Moreover, the return to imperial logic in Russian politics not only entails higher military spending but also the use of a traditional Russian trump: spying and ideological diversion [sabotage]. This is not a new endeavour. One need only recall the peace marches in the West in the times of the Cold War. ... Naturally this is not to say that every naïve activist against the radar station is on the Kremlin's payroll." (01/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Domestic Policy, » Czech Republic, » Russia
All available articles from » Peter Morvay

The conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes on Russia's impeding the EU mission in Georgia: "Two hundred EU observers are to take up their activities in Georgia's conflict areas starting October 1. This is set out in the six point plan negotiated by President Sarkozy. But Russia is making no sign whatsoever of facilitating the EU mission. On the contrary, it is impeding it at will. The observers will be unable to enter the security areas set up by the Russian troops outside the occupied zones of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The reason: the necessary technical agreement has putatively not yet been negotiated. As the EU sees things the observers' mandate encompasses Georgia as a whole and not just the security zones from which the Russian troops are to withdraw by October 10. The impreciseness of Sarkozy's agreement may be adding to the difficulties of the EU mission. Nevertheless an impediment is precisely that: an impediment." (01/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Russia, » Georgian Republic

The right-wing Belgian politician Bart De Wever has caused an outcry by comparing the current rapprochement between Flemish and Walloons with Britain's appeasement policy in 1938 and by likening the government of Yves Leterme with the French Vichy regime, which collaborated with the Nazis. De Standaard newspaper comments: "Above all, historical comparisons say something about the person who makes them. The past becomes a rummage box from which anyone can pull out the argument they want, even if it is not historically correct. ... The comparison with Vichy is striking primarily for its negative connotations. With it De Wever is suggesting that Belgium's Francophone communtiy is as pernicious, unreliable, immoral and unlawful as the Nazis. ... 'Munich 1938' and the appeasement policy of the time are still a symbol of political naivity and cowardice, and are regularly used as historical arguments. ... But that too is a one-sided and incomplete interpretation resting not on a deep insight into history but on present day opportunism." (01/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » History, » Belgium
All available articles from » Marc Reynebeau

Mikhail Gorbachev, the former General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, is planning to found a democratic opposition party in Russia together with the billionaire oligarch Alexander Lebedev. The Corriere della Sera speculates on the interests behind the planned party: "The project could have been concocted by Putin's strategists. Just one year ago they contrived to cobble together three 'pro-government' parties so as to cover all sectors: the left, the right and the centre. But the new opposition party could also be Lebedev's idea, a means of protecting his [economic] interests which risk colliding with those of the Kremlin. ... The crisis in the last six weeks is said to have shrunk his fortune by sixty percent. ... Should the Kremlin agree to the party's registration, it can be expected that with Gorbachev it will form a respected opposition group. The father of Perestroika makes no bones about his support for the Kremlin. He describes Vladimir Putin as a true democrat and backed Putin's line in the Caucasus crisis." (01/10/2008)

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All available articles from » Fabrizio Dragosei

In the monthly magazine Kritika, sociologist Pál Tamás reflects on the new Russian duo Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin and on Russian power structures: "What we know for sure is that the Medvedev's election as president has brought no changes to Russia's political system. There are no indications whatsoever that Medvedev has renewed the country's power mechanisms. The centralised power that Putin established during his second term in office remains unchanged, and will probably continue to do so for a long time to come. Firstly, Medvedev as a person is a 'Putin project'. Secondly, the current president doesn't possess the instruments to revamp the system even if he wanted to. In this respect it is important to underline that Putin is not just the erstwhile controller of the current system but also its main designer and in a sense the coordinator of its all-encompassing 'central computer system'. Medvedev's role is confined to that of formal representative of the system. And it looks like this is how things will remain for a while to come." (01/10/2008)

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All available articles from » Pál Tamás

In his column for the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat Antti Blåfield writes about the two school massacres in the Finnish cities of Jokela and Kauhajoki, in which 20 people died. "In Finland we are facing a new brand of networked, reproduced violence ... Combating it must be a top priority for police work. ... The necessary conditions must be created for this to be the case. ... All children need support, protection and adequate space to grow up. And all children need adults they can talk to. In the past people complained that parents were too strict with their children, thus destroying their self-confidence. Now experts talk of the opposite being the problem. ... A secure childhood doesn't necessarily guarantee that a child will develop a balanced personality. ... In the past victims of mobbing destroyed their own lives. Now their hate has found a new channel. Mobbing is an omnipresent form of violence. Children who are mobbed experience feelings of shame which make it difficult for them to talk about it. And a silent majority promotes acceptance of mobbing." Commenting on a project against mobbing which is already up and running at Finnish schools taking part in a pilot study Blåfield writes: "So far the results have been positive. If schools all over the country take part in the project the chances of reducing mobbing will increase. ... The most important lesson is joint responsibility. ... We [also] need money, probably a great deal of it. Families and schools need the knowledge, help and support of experts." (01/10/2008)

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All available articles from » Antti Blåfield

On September 12 Poland presented the EU with a new restructuring plan justifying government subsidies for the shipbuilding industry. The European Commissioner Neelie Kroes rejected the plan. The shipyards are now facing closure. Rzeczpospolita newspaper complains that the European Commission's decision is unfair. "They help the banks of the West while allowing the shipyards to sink. ... A wave of financial funding is sweeping through Europe. Belgium, Luxembourg, France and the UK have all spoken out in favour of bailing out three banks with 20 billion euros. ... Of course, the bank sector is more important than the shipbuilding industry. ... But in the case of the shipyards Poland only has itself to blame. Throwing billions of zloty into a bottomless pit for years on end only postponed the problem without solving it. The Polish governments were afraid to take on the burden of implementing radical reforms." (01/10/2008)

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All available articles from » Hubert Salik

More than half of the energy consumed in the autonomous Spanish province of Catalonia comes from nuclear power stations. Economist Manuel Ludevid argues in the daily La Vanguardia that before Spain considers further imports from France and boosting production of nuclear power there needs to be more research into this source of energy. "The first question mark pertains to the competitiveness of combined gas-and-steam power stations. A 2003 study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology came to the conclusion that in its entire life cycle nuclear power accrues higher costs than energy from gas-powered combination power stations or coal. ... It would be good to know whether the new generation nuclear power stations cut a better figure in a cost comparison. ... The necessary debate about the continued use and potential expansion of nuclear energy in Spain must deal transparently with all these aspects. [Nuclear energy] is too important and we cannot afford to leave it as an unknown quantity."  (01/10/2008)

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All available articles from » Manuel Ludevid

The Cypriot daily Phileleftheros notes that so far the introduction of the euro, which could lead to a long-term increase in prices, has not been a source of consternation in Cyprus. But pointing to the price increases in France after it converted to the euro it adds that this could soon change. "In the first half of 2008 3,000 restaurants and cafes in France were forced to close because the economic situation is making the French cut down on eating out. ... The increase in prices at restaurants was erratic because restaurant owners exploited the conversion from francs to euros to raise their prices by varying degrees. And of course this works very well. But no explosion in prices can rock us here [in Cyprus], even if the conversion from the Cypriot lira to euros offered a good opportunity to increase prices. ... Times are changing and the sheep [the consumers] could suddenly wake up and take their revenge." (01/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Economic Policy, » France, » Cyprus
All available articles from » Christala Chazidimitriu

The Swedish school system is increasingly coming under fire for disciplinary problems and a huge drop in quality. Now a new state school inspection authority has been set up under the former police chief Ann-Marie Begler. The new body started work on Wednesday October 1. To ensure better quality control in schools, it is entitled to impose fines on weaker schools, writes the Sydsvenska Dagbladet: "Ann-Marie Begler says there will be more school inspectors, more frequent inspections and a clear definition of tasks. ... In this context it can be expedient to impose fines. ... An enduring warning that hurts the wallet is not a bad idea. Because if the alternative is closing down the school, the risk is that nothing may happen at all. If the state school inspection has no bite it will only leave the pupils in the lurch, primarily the weakest ones. Begler and her school inspection board must be able to bite - and hard, at that." (01/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Education, » Sweden