The euro crisis: A contagious Irish disease?

| The Economist

ON NOVEMBER 21st the Irish government at last gave in. It yielded to pressure from its European Union counterparts to seek an emergency bail-out from the EU and the IMF that may amount to as much as €85 billion ($115 billion). In May, when the Greek government secured a €110 billion bail-out and a joint EU/IMF fund worth a stonking €750 billion was put in place, investors believed and the markets rallied. Not this time. Bond yields in Ireland dropped back to 7.93%, but rose to 4.75% in Spain and 11.75% in Greece.

Why? In short, because rescues need a bit of “shock and awe” to convince investors. The bond markets must be startled by the size of the package, persuaded that the authorities will do whatever is needed—and not be invited to doubt it by talk of making investors foot part of the bill in future. They also have to believe that a country’s difficulties concern liquidity (ie, they can repay debt eventually) not solvency (ie, they can’t).

In this case the markets felt starved of detail, and bothered by German insistence that private investors must bear part of the burden. They worried whether Ireland, having looked dodgy for so long, could cope with this politically, could ever regain investors’ trust, and would ever be able to repay its debts. And, not least, they agonised about where in the euro zone contagion might spread to next.

US says it may go after Assange

US says it may go after Assange: "The United States says it is carrying out a criminal investigation into WikiLeaks."

just to let u know, Assange, u can hide in my place...DM me now

Ecuador offers Wikileaks founder Julian Assange residency | News.com.au

ECUADOR has offered Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder who has enraged Washington by releasing masses of classified US documents, residency with no questions asked.

"We are ready to give him residence in Ecuador, with no problems and no conditions," Deputy Foreign Minister Kintto Lucas told the Ecuadorinmediato website today.

"We are going to invite him to come to Ecuador so he can freely present the information he possesses and all the documentation, not just over the internet but in a variety of public forums," he said.

Ecuador's leftist government is one of several in the region that have often been at odds with Washington.

Mr Lucas said even though Ecuador's policy was not to meddle in the internal affairs of other countries, it was "concerned" by the information in the cables because it involved other countries "in particular Latin America".

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.
Related Coverage

An international arrest warrant was issued in mid-November against Assange, a 39-year-old Australian, on suspicion of rape and sexual molestation of two women in Sweden.

The US, for its part, has a criminal investigation under way into the release of some 250,000 diplomatic cables, the most recent of three huge document dumps by the self-styled whistleblower website.

The White House branded those who released the documents "criminals, first and foremost," but so far US authorities have publicly filed no charges against Assange.

Now, the 39-year-old former computer hacker said, he will expose global corporations.

Speaking from his hideout in a London flat, Assange said a new haul of secret documents, about half of which relate to the private sector, would be released early next year.

Wikileak's next target will be a major American bank, he said.

"It will give a true and representative insight into how banks behave at the executive level in a way that will stimulate investigations and reforms," he told Forbes magazine, adding: "For this, there's only one similar example.

"It's like the Enron emails."

Assange also said he was sitting on a haul of damaging data on pharmaceutical, finance and energy companies.

He had information on everything from BP to an Albanian oil firm that attempted to sabotage competitors wells, he said.

"You could call it the ecosystem of corruption," he said.

The North Queensland born activist said as his profile grew the secrets fed to Wikileaks expanded.

"These megaleaks ... they're an important phenomenon. And they're only going to increase," he said.

The constant scandal-causing exposures are motivated by "pain for the guilty", he said.

Speaking from a room packed with computers and programmers, with wires trailing across the floor, Assange yesterday told the The Times why he had unleashed the latest Wikileaks deluge.

"You only live once, why not do something worthwhile?" Assange said.

Australian Attorney-General Robert McClelland has instructed Federal Police to investigate Assange and said he possibly faced arrest and the removal of his passport if he entered Australia.

via ScribeFire

Goodbye My Lover

Did I disappoint you or let you down? Should I be feeling guilty or let the judges frown? 'Cause I saw the end before we'd begun, Yes I saw you were blinded and I knew I had won. So I took what's mine by eternal right. Took your soul out into the night. It may be over but it won't stop there, I am here for you if you'd only care. You touched my heart you touched my soul. You changed my life and all my goals. And love is blind and that I knew when, My heart was blinded by you. I've kissed your lips and held your hand. Shared your dreams and shared your bed. I know you well, I know your smell. I've been addicted to you. [x2] Goodbye my lover. Goodbye my friend. You have been the one. You have been the one for me. I am a dreamer and when I wake, You can't break my spirit - it's my dreams you take. And as you move on, remember me, Remember us and all we used to be I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile. I've watched you sleeping for a while. I'd be the father of your child. I'd spend a lifetime with you. I know your fears and you know mine. We've had our doubts but now we're fine, And I love you, I swear that's true. I cannot live without you. [x2] Goodbye my lover. Goodbye my friend. You have been the one. You have been the one for me. And I still hold your hand in mine. In mine when I'm asleep. And I will bare my soul in time, When I'm kneeling at your feet. Goodbye my lover. Goodbye my friend. You have been the one. You have been the one for me. I'm so hollow, baby, I'm so hollow. I'm so, I'm so, I'm so hollow. I'm so hollow, baby, I'm so hollow. I'm so, I'm so, I'm so hollow.

James Blunt - Carry You Home (Video)

Trouble is her only friend and he's back again. Makes her body older than it really is. She says it's high time she went away, No one's got much to say in this town. Trouble is the only way is down. Down, down. As strong as you were, tender you go. I'm watching you breathing for the last time. A song for your heart, but when it is quiet, I know what it means and I'll carry you home. I'll carry you home. If she had wings she would fly away, And another day God will give her some. Trouble is the only way is down. Down, down. As strong as you were, tender you go. I'm watching you breathing for the last time. A song for your heart, but when it is quiet, [| From: http://www.elyrics.net/read/j/james-blunt-lyrics/carry-you-home-lyrics.html |] I know what it means and I'll carry you home. I'll carry you home. And they were all born pretty in New York City tonight, And someone's little girl was taken from the world tonight, Under the Stars and Stripes. As strong as you were, tender you go. I'm watching you breathing for the last time. A song for your heart, but when it is quiet, I know what it means and I'll carry you home. As strong as you were, tender you go. I'm watching you breathing for the last time. A song for your heart, but when it is quiet, I know what it means and I'll carry you home. I'll carry you home.