First was the credit crisis, and governments around the world intervened to bail out the banks; then came the sovereign debt crisis, which has hit the eurozone hard. Now is the time to pay the consequences, and ordinary citizens across Europe are beginning to understand that the socialism of the wealthy means making a few more holes in their already tight belts. Lapavitsas says that European austerity is counterproductive: cuts in public spending will mean a longer and deeper recession, aggravate the debt burden, further endanger banks, and may soon lead to the end of the monetary union itself.
Crisis in the eurozone charts a prudent path to a restructuring that depends on the strength of trade unions and civil society. The lucid rationalism of this book conveys a controversial message, which is unwelcome in certain circles, but will soon resonate across the continent: impoveri...read more
