With scary news about the “financial crisis shaking the world!” making the headlines every second day, you can easily end up blaming the godawful traders for every single bit of wrong-doing. Or Greece. As time goes by, I more and more have the impression that everyone around is turning into […]

With Hungary’s joining the EU, the country now faces a previously unforeseen challenge: with the new freedom of movement, it’s not just the Hungarian plumber who’s leaving the country for a better future abroad, but droves of doctors and nurses too in an exodus that has brought the healthcare system […]

  I dread the moment I need to see a doctor in Russia because I know that seeing a doctor in Russia is not a pleasent experience. The prospect of crass bureaucracy coupled with idiotic rules and endless waiting in line forces me to turn around and take the same […]

One of the first effects of the crisis on Slovakia – one of the most open, export dependent economies in Europe  – was felt when the country’s rich customers started importing fewer Slovak goods. Similar problems have started to occur again recently, with the slowdown in China, a major destination […]

When the financial crisis hit the Western world, a saying spread throughout Macedonia: ‘We can’t be hit by the crisis, we’re always in crisis’ This was very true at the time. The financial crisis of 2007-2008 brought the collapse of powerful financial institutions and caused a downward spiral in the […]