Euros - how long can the Euro currency last?

[Pei]

Originally posted by Shane
BUt... but.. isn't Europe wanting to become the united states of Europe?
 

Unfortunately there are many politicos and beureaucrats who think so.  

Maybe one day in the far future it might be possible but not now, besides diversity is far more interesting.

[RedDg]

Originally posted by Pei
Unfortunately there are many politicos and beureaucrats who think so.  

Maybe one day in the far future it might be possible but not now, besides diversity is far more interesting.

Resistance is futile

[Shane]

Originally posted by Pei
Unfortunately there are many politicos and beureaucrats who think so.  
Maybe one day in the far future it might be possible but not now, besides diversity is far more interesting.

America's pretty diverse. The regions have very distinct character, yet the underlying foundation is solidly homogenous.

Once you euros learn how to live with each other, you'll only become better for it.

[leitwolf]

Another beet1e Euro thread.. , you are a little bit target fixated, aren't you?

[Redwing]

Shane, I don't think there'll ever be a United States of Europe. No one around here would want that either.

Also, having been to the US quite regularly in the past I think I can safely say that even though there are in fact some distinctive regional differences between some of the US States, they are nothing compared to the cultural differences between countries like, say Finland and Italy, both of which are members of the EU.
Now add in language differences, how would you unite 25 countries with almost as many differenct languages, what would be the official language? How would you determine which it'd be?
English, because we're all learning it in school? German, because it's spoken by the largest percentage of EU citizens (germany is the biggest country in the EU, additionally german is official language in austria). French... because, well the French insist on it?

Don't even get me started on differences in governmental systems. Germany is a federal republic, France is very much centralized. How do you blend those?

These are barriers that can't be overcome in a few years. I'm all for the european free trade zone. I'm all for being able to travel from spain to estonia or malta to finland without having to show my passport once. European defense politics, all for it.
But uniting 25 totally different countries.. not possible in the next 25 years at least. Probably never.

Oh, almost forgot about that: No one in europe would want the european football championship every fourth year to be replaced by some artificial european league that'd surely be established once we're all united.
That alone makes a united states of europe totally impossible.

[beet1e]

Originally posted by Redwing
Beetle, it's not the euro's fault, at least speaking for Germany. The problem you're referring to dates back much further.

Agreed. But what about countries like Italy? As I said before, they used to be able to devalue their way out of trouble. Britain did the same thing in 1967 (14.3%) and, to keep the tourism trade alive, Spain immediately devalued the peseta by 14.6%.  These measures are no longer options.

Of course, it's nice only having to have one other currency for going around Europe. And I'm sure that trade is easier - no more bank charges for changing large amounts of one currency into another.

[BUG_EAF322]

I will always be dutch before i start feeling european.

U americans want it to be easy targetted under one label.

Europe is a economical bond of independant different cultures countrys etc.

all countrys mostly have different habits and language etc.

forget it

[BUG_EAF322]

And so u americans always keep making the same fault by pointing denmark on the map and say its belgium.

making it all one colour and say its europe is just culture barbaric.

[Knite]

Personally, I'm wondering how long until we start seeing it in the US. (you laugh...)

Also, I don't think the Euro is the reason of economic fall in some European countries. Yes, some countries had issues before the conversion of the Euro, but another thing that's hurting the affluent countries is today's globalizing markets. To have a true "global" market, basically economies have to come to a relative equalibrium, hurting the rich, helping the poor (countries, not people). Add to that that GLOBALLY economies are having trouble, and it really has nothing to do with the Euro, cultural wishes aside. =)

[Dinger]

Dunno, I'm amurrican, and I've lived for more than a month (in many cases, much more than month -- I say more than a month 'cos I've only lived about 2 months in Denmark and Belgium, so I have trouble distinguishing them on the map) in 7 member states of the EU. I've spent time in 14 of the 25 member countries (all but 3 of those I haven't been to are the new states).

And frankly, the Euro strikes me as a silly idea cooked up by corporate interests to make Europe compete with the United States on a global level. The various member states have very different economies, and very different aims, meanwhile Brussels seems to cook up some impressive bureaucratic wastes that would make members of the Bush administration blush. And while everyone was trying to be the next US economically, China snuck in the back door. The only benefit the Euro has brought has been the need not to change currencies between those countries. Of course, once in those countries, things seem to cost a lot more than what they used to.

Then again, as someone who's paid in a currency that's being inflated so that it gets a good conversion rate to the Euro, and in a country where EU money gets cheerfully funnelled for all kinds of silly projects, I personally don't mind that much. I'm just sayin'

[deSelys]

All your currency are belong to us!!!

[cpxxx]

The Euro is not going to go anytime soon. Mine seem to but that's another story!

Germany's economic problems were there before the Euro and will remain until they get the act together on their economy. If Mercedes has quality problems then blame the management and workforce not the currency. Blaming the Euro is nonsense. Italy has similar problems. But they have been scapegoating the Euro all along. As long as both countries refuse to face the facts about their economies nothing will change.

The fact is that for the most part in the countries that use it. The Euro is working just fine. The fact that the Euro is strong is as much to do with the fact the Dollar is weak than anything else. Sterling is strong against the Dollar too. Is that damaging the British economy?

In fact, Beetle isn't that what this issue really about? The whole anti Euro thing in Britain is less to do with economic issues than nationalism. Loss of soverignty and national identity with the demise of the good old pound sterling etc.  This is frequently predicted if Britain joins the Euro. But oddly enough the French are still French the Greeks still Greek and the Germans still have no sense of humour. Only the British, it seems will lose their national identity.

So the anti Euro faction in Britain are constantly looking for signs of the demise of the Euro. In fact the actual term Euro is interchangeable here. Euro meaning European and Euro the currency. The Euro skeptics in Britain like neither.

Like it or not Beetle, Britain will join the Euro in due course. It will be a non issue except for the rugged few who hate all things perceived to be foreign. Maybe when King Charles the third's face starts to appear on banknotes the time will be right.

I'm afraid Sterling's days are numbered not the Euro.

[beet1e]

Originally posted by cpxxx
In fact, Beetle isn't that what this issue really about? The whole anti Euro thing in Britain is less to do with economic issues than nationalism. Loss of soverignty and national identity with the demise of the good old pound sterling etc.  

No, I don't agree. I couldn't give a horse's arse what currency we have here - be it sterling, euros, US$, plastic tiddly-wink counters or monopoly money. Sovereignty is not the issue AFAIC. And I would even be in favour of the euro single currency - if it would work. But in the past, Europe's economies have been able to address difficulties by varying interest rates or even devaluing their local currency.

It's ridiculous for anyone to say that economic conditions in say Greece are the same as those in Ireland, or that the Italian economy is the same as  the Finnish economy. All are different, and those which are booming need to raise interest rates, while those struggling need to lower them. With the "one size fits all" Euro, such measures are impossible.

[scott123]

love it,or hate it the euro is here to stay.

[BigGun]

Originally posted by Edbert
Nearly all wold currencies are declining to some extent, primarilly due to the subsidization of the Yuan.

Not possible for all currencies to decline. They are relative to each other. If one is weaker, then by definition another has to be stronger.