Re: some topics

On Sat, 20 May 2000, Jozsef Borocz wrote:

> - how do you interpret the secular downslide of the Euro?

Interest rates are higher in the US than the EU. Ergo, money flows out
from the EU to the US. Japan has superlow interest rates, but the
retrenchment of Japanese firms overseas has kept the yen artificially
high. Based on productivity levels and trade deficits, the dollar is
hugely overvalued vis-a-vis the euro. 

> - how do you explain the excess prosperity in the U.S.?

Borrow $300 billion -- er, make that 310 billion euros -- every year from
Europe and Japan and then spend, spend, spend. It also helps that the EU
and Japan effectively refinanced the world-economy in the mid-1990s.

> - what are the world-systems effects of the possible extinction of humans 
>in
> entire regions due to viral infections of one sort or another?

Humans are tenacious critters; not even the regions worst hit by AIDS in
Africa, for example, are experiencing absolute population decreases. We'd
darn well better worry about the effects of extinguishing *other species*
from our eco-system, though.

> - where is the strategic center of the world economy (on which its 
>coherence
> and survival all hinges)?

"Alle Menschen werden Brueder wo dein sanfter Fluegel weilt."
 
> - what are the chances of global democracy in 6700 languages? 

Pretty good, if you've got 6700 translators. Onwards to global linguistic
Keynesianism!

-- Dennis