Read all posts from ‘Austerity: Less is More?’

  No one knows what the term “music industry” means in Ecuador.  We did have one a long time ago, I think, but it just disappeared because local music couldn’t compete with foreign imports. Nowadays local music can’t compete with them either, even though worldwide record sales are poor and the […]

When economic growth is not a given anymore, how can democratically elected governments trigger growth, maintain the welfare state and keep public spending down all at the same time? The answer is easy: they simply can’t. European welfare states have come to a crossroads. On the one hand, private investors […]

Protests, Poverty and Prosperity in Perspective 2012 started with a bang in Bucharest. The usually sedate Romanian capital erupted with protests the likes of which had not been seen for at least a decade. At first glance it seemed that people were angry with new healthcare legislation and the ousting of a […]

Abstract: Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the western hemisphere. Their economic crisis is so severe that over 50,000 senior citizens are denied a pension that is rightfully theirs under the premise of austerity. Part of the strategy of Daniel Ortega’s government to remain in office is to provide […]

I do believe in the broader European Union including almost everything that comes with it. That also means that I uphold the idea of solidarity among members of the EU. Solidarity, however, is not supposed to be lopsided. Take a closer look at recent developments and the financial support given […]