Wall Street tactics akin to the ones that fostered subprime mortgages in America have worsened the financial crisis shaking Greece and undermining the euro by enabling European governments to hide their mounting debts. As worries over Greece rattle world markets, records and interviews show that with Wall Street’s help, the nation engaged in a decade-long effort to skirt European debt limits. One deal created by Goldman Sachs helped obscure billions in debt from the budget overseers in Brussels. Even as the crisis was nearing the flashpoint, banks were searching for ways to help Greece forestall the day of reckoning. In early November — three months before Athens became the epicenter of global financial anxiety — a team from Goldman Sachs arrived in the ancient city with a very modern proposition for a government struggling to pay its bills, according to two people who were briefed on the meeting. The bankers, led by Goldman’s president, Gary D. Cohn, held out a financing … [Read more...] about Wall St. Helped to Mask Debt Fueling Europe’s Crisis
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Why Are Food Prices So High in Europe?
Britain Italy Germany +28 % +17 % +40 % Britain Italy Germany +28 % +17 % +40 % Britain Italy Germany +28 % +17 % +40 % Source: Britain’s Office for National Statistics, Italy’s Industry Ministry and Germany’s Federal Statistical Office By Rebecca Lieberman Agricultural and energy costs are falling, but basic items remain stubbornly expensive for consumers. By Eshe Nelson Reporting from London It is the most basic of staple food items: sliced white bread. In Britain, the average price of a loaf was 28 percent higher in April, at 1.39 pounds, or $1.72, than it was a year earlier. In Italy, the price of spaghetti and other pasta, a fixture of the Italian diet, has risen nearly 17 percent from the year before. In Germany, the European Union’s largest economy, cheese prices are nearly 40 percent higher than a year ago, and potatoes cost 14 percent … [Read more...] about Why Are Food Prices So High in Europe?
Milton Friedman, 94, Free-Market Theorist, Dies
Milton Friedman, the grandmaster of free-market economic theory in the postwar era and a prime force in the movement of nations toward less government and greater reliance on individual responsibility, died yesterday. He was 94 and lived in San Francisco. His death was confirmed by Robert Fanger, a spokesman for the Milton and Rose D. Friedman Foundation in Indianapolis. Conservative and liberal colleagues alike viewed Mr. Friedman, a Nobel laureate, as one of the 20th century’s leading economic scholars, on a par with giants like John Maynard Keynes and Paul Samuelson. Flying the flag of economic conservatism, Mr. Friedman led the postwar challenge to the hallowed theories of Lord Keynes, the British economist who maintained that governments had a duty to help capitalistic economies through periods of recession and to prevent boom times from exploding into high inflation. In Mr. Friedman’s view, government had the opposite obligation: to keep its hands off the economy, … [Read more...] about Milton Friedman, 94, Free-Market Theorist, Dies
Glacier Tragedy Shows Reach of Europe’s New Heat
CANAZEI, Italy — Days before a glacier in the Italian Dolomites broke off with the force of a collapsing skyscraper, crushing at least 10 hikers under an avalanche of ice, snow and rock, Carlo Budel heard water running under the ice. “I heard what sounded like a river’s torrent,” said Mr. Budel, who lives in an isolated refuge next to the glacier on the 11,000-foot Marmolada mountain . At the mountain’s base, he watched a yellow helicopter fly overhead searching for signs of life, or remains. Mr. Budel recalled that when he first scaled the glacier at the end of summer, not even a decade ago, he hardly needed ropes, there was so much snow. “The difference between now and then is scary,” he said. “At this point we are on another path.” It is an increasingly common path for a world confronting the deadly consequences of extreme weather brought on by man-made, and irreversible, climate change. A year after Greece lost lives, livestock and entire swaths of forest to … [Read more...] about Glacier Tragedy Shows Reach of Europe’s New Heat
Fresh, Local Food: Illinois Farmers Market Guide 2023
5 Community Corner Check out Patch's annual guide to some of the best markets Illinois has to offer. Eric DeGrechie , Patch Staff Posted | Updated Replies ILLINOIS — Farmers market season is here. Many of the popular community gathering spots began opening earlier this month, with most running weekly right through the fall. According to the Illinois Department of Agriculture, Illinois ranks third in the United States in total number of farmers markets operating. "Farmers' markets serve as integral links between urban, suburban, and rural communities, affording farmers and their consumers the opportunity to interact," the Illinois Department of Agriculture says on its website . "The popularity of farmers' markets continues to rise, as more and more consumers discover the joys of shopping for unique ingredients sold directly from the farm, and the pleasure of buying familiar products in their freshest possible state." … [Read more...] about Fresh, Local Food: Illinois Farmers Market Guide 2023
Stunning Mid-Century Modern Pool Home In Laguna Beach Ideal For Summer
Sponsored By 0 Real Estate Residents interested in this picture-perfect estate will have the unique opportunity to co-own it. Miranda Ceja , Patch Staff Posted Reply LAGUNA BEACH, CA — Do you have dreams of co-owning a fabulous pool home in Laguna Beach? This four-bedroom, five bathroom home just hit the market for $2,500,000, and Patch has all the details. Welcome to 481 Dartmoor Street. The home boasts 3,283 square-feet of living space and jaw-dropping views to Catalina. The open floor plan of the home offers sweeping views through floor-to-ceiling walls of glass and a sumptuous pool area ideal for summer. The main floor primary bedroom suite also has floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Laguna Village, but is private and secluded. Address: 481 Dartmoor Street, Laguna Beach, CA Price: $2500000 Square feet: 3283 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 5 Listing Description: Awe-inspiring, … [Read more...] about Stunning Mid-Century Modern Pool Home In Laguna Beach Ideal For Summer