WSJ: Spanish Bad Loans Hit 17-Year High

[Rivet]

[itsybitsy]

Yeah, this getting very serious. I think things are going to start happening pretty fast now. 16 banks have been downgraded today. The UK government is discussing and planning for a Euro break-up. There is a run on the Greek banks which is only going to get worse. The house of cards is leaning dangerously.

[Rivet]

It does appear to becoming unglued in Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain.  What that portents for Europe or the rest of the world is anyone's guess.

[itsybitsy]

It does appear to becoming unglued in Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain.  What that portents for Europe or the rest of the world is anyone's guess.

David Cameron has been in the US discussing the situation with Obama and the G8. If the Eurozone crumbles then this will have affect the global economy. We should all be concerned. Here is a good article that spells it out pretty clearly.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/may/19/david-cameron-urgency-eurozone-crisis

[Sandra Piddock]

It amazes me that Obama has such a lot to say about this, when he doesn't live in Europe, and his remarks show that he doesn't have much of an idea what's going on here. In Spain, families are relying on handouts from charities to have enough to eat, and expats are handing their properties back to the bank, because they cannot keep up the mortgage repayments, or service the bills on their home. The ramifications could spread worldwide, so everyone is involved.

[itsybitsy]

It amazes me that Obama has such a lot to say about this, when he doesn't live in Europe, and his remarks show that he doesn't have much of an idea what's going on here. In Spain, families are relying on handouts from charities to have enough to eat, and expats are handing their properties back to the bank, because they cannot keep up the mortgage repayments, or service the bills on their home. The ramifications could spread worldwide, so everyone is involved.

Well, I think that it's because it DOES involve everyone that he is speaking with Obama. The world's countries are all so interlinked that nobody is immune from this.

If Greece does exit the Euro, the UK is predicted to go back into as bad a recession as 2008 when the banks almost collapsed. So that's something to look forward to...

[Frank]

Euro goes down the drain, Greenbacks come back?  Hey, maybe so.

[itsybitsy]

Euro goes down the drain, Greenbacks come back?  Hey, maybe so.

In the short term, yes. But if the Euro collapses the likelihood is that the USA will fall into a fully fledged depression.

Read this - and you'll find out more: http://www.businessinsider.com/what-happens-if-the-euro-goes-bust-and-why-the-fed-will-actively-intervene-to-stop-it-2011-11

[TeacherSmurf]

Euro goes down the drain, Greenbacks come back?  Hey, maybe so.

In the short term, yes. But if the Euro collapses the likelihood is that the USA will fall into a fully fledged depression.

I reminded my students just the other day that The Great Depression was not just in the United States.  Most countries had problems after WWI, even the victors.  This lead to revolution and/or major changes in power.

Our economies are tied even tighter now than then.  When the young don't havea job to keep them busy, don't have food, and don't have hope for the future bad things happen.   

[itsybitsy]

If anyone doubts just how bad things could get, here's a news article about the situation in Greece that'll pull you up short. It's desperate there - and it will spread, without a doubt.

http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/16232020

[Rivet]

Reminds me of the expression, "The US sneezes, the world catches a cold."  Better buckle up, this ride is getting bumpy.

[itsybitsy]

Reminds me of the expression, "The US sneezes, the world catches a cold."  Better buckle up, this ride is getting bumpy.

I think things are just warming up! We are in for a long, hard grind. I have no clue where it is going to end, but I do believe that, when it DOES end, the financial and economic landscape will be irrevocably changed.