[wreckimnaked]

>If you look at a lot of Western countries like Spain, France or Italy, you’ll easily realize that they are not doing very well: they are mostly lazy, complacent, nothing much going on there.

Such a simplistic and borderline racist analysis of the economical situation of these countries. This kind of narrative reminds me a lot of what was said on some media outlets during the recent Greece bailout episode.

[baldfat]

What is funny is Northern Italians accuse Southern Italians with being lazy, complacent, nothing much going on there.

Now I would love to see the Northern Italian's reaction to this. We have something similar in the States where the Northeast (Where I am born and raised) and particularity in New England view the rest of the country as backward lazy people with no real work ethic. I really had to fight this mindset when working in the Mid-West, South and California.

EDIT data on Italy divided- http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/italy---divided-country.asp...

[liamconnell]

So glad you called that out, I was about to do the same thing. The authors had extremely narrow and simplistic views, especially considering that they carry such lofty tiles as Philosopher and Writer. And at the end of the day, its their narrow views that keep them from seeing the things that will keep their [boring and soul-less] vision of the future from coming to be: I'm thinking of the fact that when people are left to network while the government shrinks they tend to organize criminally. Power vacuums get filled unless you are way more creative than these guys.

But back to parent's flag: Its really easy to see where the right-wing politics from in Sweden and other scandinavian countries by reading this, even though I presume that those guys would consider themselves socially liberal. Its completely infested with unfounded cultural superiority rhetoric.

[ArkyBeagle]

I'll take "optimal currency zones" for $0.01, Alex.

It is anything but clear that the Eurozone thing will work out even yet. You get to keep your debt, but we control the central currency. It might be worth reviewing how it is that the United States had and dismantled a Bank of the United States. Twice. Our present Fed isn't quite the same thing.

To be (somewhat) fair, there apparently was considerable "corruption" in Greece. That seems more of a public choice problem than racism. And, of course, if public debt eats the economy, it's no wonder about "not much going on there."

[eli_gottlieb]

Especially given that France has the second-largest economy in Europe. If the author intends to say, "Everyone but Germany is lazy, because they're just not German enough, and I'm totally devoted to ignoring how the Euro has bent Europe's trade balance in favor of Germany and nobody else," they should come out and say it.

[golemotron]

> Such a simplistic and borderline racist analysis of the economical situation of these countries.

People really need to be called out for crying racism when the things that are being discussed are cultural. Regional cultures are different. That does not have to have anything to do with race.