On a lazy Friday afternoon in a Research center in Switzerland, I started stirring up a discussion with a few friends on topics related to the currency -Euro. It was indeed a wonder for me that Germans, Italians, French and the rest (including Greeks ) could get together and create a European Economic Area where there could be a common currency. Although the reasons for creation of such a currency can be explained by many economists in many ways, I was more interested in how everyone's life got changed after the same. Italian friends told me that the Italian s too had their assets devalued. Even a German colleague of mine told me that with the introduction of Euro, the prices of daily use items increased by a factor of almost 1.5. Well if all these people lost out, who did gain?
We live in times where countries will be overshadowed ''economies'' in the sense that, the term economy would be synonymous to huge corporations. In a book titled ''Confessions of an Economic Hitman '' John Perkins talks about this interesting phenomenon calling it a ''corpratocracy'', a complex looking term which looks at nothing but one simple word, Profit. The more you gain power, the more you can bargain with governments to get your tricky deals to get through. Since these corporations sponsor election campaigns, have politicians as board members with fancy salaries to help them get across political and economic hurdles, it becomes easy for them to get these things approved.
If you read any of the newspapers today, there are news like countries going bankrupt, banks being bailed out, Financial rescue packages, revolts, uprisings and what not. Doomsday, if there is one, seems to be near isnt it ?? I am reminded of the Dilbert cartoon where the world goes back to the stone age due to the complete failure of the Geosynchronous satellites and Power systems. There is no light on the streets, everyone is out of the rat race and enjoying watching a beautiful girl dance , drinking, eating and enjoying themselves. Wow...would it become something like that if the EU collapses?
The answer is NO. Any social system in this world is designed to maintain status quo whether its religion or politics or family . Developments in science, technology and logical reasoning happen inspite of these systems, not because of them. With this kinda economic situations, a few countries might be forced to take a lot of ''shit deals '' home and pass them. But in short, a few companies might go bankrupt making us lose our jobs...so what? we must create value for the billionaire investor...thats why we were sent out from heaven... a few banks might face insolvency.....so what.?? there will be Financial stability packages offered....
Looking at it from that perspective, the success of huge organizations do not lie in their toplines, bottomlines or middle lines...it lies in making them too big to fail .....which in a way says that...if the companies fall...they take a whole lot of people down with them...through job losses, loss of capital and many more. So indeed the governments have to feed these monsters...which was indeed why i was intrigued when i first heard of monster.com....
But on the brighter side, in an inherently sadistic way, it paves way for new technology. Since we dont have money to buy such fancy technology, we can afford to buy them for 8% interest Year on year interest and pay loans till our grandchildren become pensioners . It will still produce brilliant entrepreneurs 1000 times richer than Zuckerberg (finance guys...please bear with me...since i dont know to evaluate assets the way you do....... )
