Cliff Diving

The next couple weeks here in the United States should be very interesting to watch.

The European Union, which is a union of financial resources, but not political resources, is facing a questionable future as several of its member nations have fallen on hard economic times.  Those member nations who are currently less financially vulnerable have been allowed to control the conversation and are insisting that the financially vulnerable member nations “tighten their belts”.  By their influence these financially more stable nations have chosen to obligate the citizens of the less stable nations to take up a position of austerity, or self-denial by insisting that these citizens inject their own personal cash (by way of taxation, reduction in government spending or currency manipulation) to support the financial solvency of their governments.

 

What will be interesting is watching how this proceeds here in the United States.  Although we have not been directly involved in the European Union’s crisis of financial identity, we have officially concurred with the “belt-tightening” recommendations in Europe.  

Meanwhile, interestingly now coming into fuller view is our own tenuous financial condition.  Our own austerity measures have been built in as a default that is being referred to as the “fiscal cliff”, imagery of destruction intended.  Funny how for Greece and Portugal, it’s prudent and necessary “belt-tightening” but when it happens to us, it’s cliff-diving gone terribly wrong.

It will be interesting to see if at some point we recognize our conflicted opinions in public.

Technically, is it still "cliff diving" if you've been pushed?