joi, 6 februarie 2014

West Wing Peek: President Obama, Filmmaker

 
 
 
 
 
 
  Featured

Watch: The President's First Short Film

On Tuesday, President Obama visited Buck Lodge Middle School in Adelphi, Maryland to announce major progress on his ConnectED initiative. Before his remarks, however, he stopped by one of the school's math classes to chat with students -- and have some fun with their technology.

President Obama borrowed a student's iPad to record his first short film -- make sure you watch:

Watch: West Wing Peek

 

 

  Top Stories

First Lady Michelle Obama: "I'm First"

Yesterday, we released a special video message from the First Lady in which she talks about being the first in her family to attend college. This video is part of the "I'm First" storytelling project, which lifts up the stories of first-generation college students in order to inspire future generations. 

READ MORE

Making Progress on ConnectED

Earlier this week, President Obama announced that the Federal Communications Commission will invest $2 billion over the next two years to dramatically expand high-speed Internet connectivity for America's schools and libraries -- connecting more than 20 million students to next-generation broadband and wireless.

READ MORE

Announcing the First White House Maker Faire

At the 2012 White House Science Fair, Joey Hudy wowed the President by using a homemade cannon to send a marshmallow flying across the State Dining Room. Inspired by "Joey Marshmallow" and the millions of citizen-makers driving the next era of American innovation, we are thrilled to announce plans to host the first-ever White House Maker Faire later this year.

READ MORE


 
 
  Today's Schedule

All times are Eastern Time (ET)

8:00 AM: The President, the Vice President, and the First Lady attend the National Prayer Breakfast; the President delivers remarks

12:00 PM: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney

1:00 PM: The Vice President delivers remarks at an event highlighting the need for infrastructure investment and unveiling Amtrak's new Cities Sprinter electric locomotive

2:15 PM: The President holds a bilateral meeting with President Martelly of Haiti

 

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75 Content Starters for Any Industry

75 Content Starters for Any Industry


75 Content Starters for Any Industry

Posted: 05 Feb 2014 03:15 PM PST

Posted by Amanda_Gallucci

Suffering from blank-page anxiety? Before you go on the hunt for inspiration all over the Internet and elsewhere, turn to the resources around you and realize that you can create exceptional content with what you already have at hand.

Thinking of content topics doesn't have to be such a long and grueling undertaking. Use the following starting points the next time you need an idea.

Individual achievement

  1. Talk about a transition to a new role and how you had to adapt your skills to succeed.
  2. Think of lessons you learned the hard way and share with those who are just starting out.
  3. Describe your thought process for approaching different tasks in a way that will help others be better organized or prepared.
  4. Write about a mentor figure or a brand you admire. Explain why this person or company has excelled, and how others may be able to follow a similar path.
  5. Share your action plan for the future. Give people a sneak peak of what's to come and talk through the steps you'll take to accomplish your goals.
Shining example: Rand's announcement of his changing role at Moz

Tools

  1. Create a video tutorial that walks people through how to use a tool for a specific task.
  2. Review a new or lesser-known tool that you believe more people should use.
  3. Present creative, alternate ways of using a tool, including plugins and combinations that make using multiple tools together advantageous.
  4. If there's an in-house tool that you use, put together a case study of why it's better than some of the commercial tools that other brands use.
  5. Perform the same task with a few different tools. Note which one is most cost effective, easiest to use, saved you the most time, etc.
Shining example: KISSmetrics' Google Analytics Dashboard Secrets

Lists

  1. Compile resources for different subjects and skill levels.
  2. Gather content that shows the best examples of what people should be striving for.
  3. Rank your favorite tools, blogs, ads, etc.
  4. Give reasons why someone should or should not follow a certain tactic or strategy.
  5. Curate useful content and put together "best of" lists.
Shining example: Point Blank SEO's Complete List of Link Building Strategies

Internal resources

  1. Ask the sales team what their most common roadblocks are. What content can you put together that will aid them in illustrating the solution?
  2. Sit in on meetings in different departments. Take what you've observed about their communication styles and workflow and turn it into content about processes such as effective ways to brainstorm or overcoming internal objections.
  3. Find out what questions your account managers get asked most frequently. Put together a blog post or other resource that lays out the answers.
  4. Request that every department share their biggest accomplishments on a monthly or quarterly basis. Select at least one to develop a case study.
  5. Get to know your coworkers. Find out more about their backgrounds, their daily routines, and future aspirations. You can highlight employees in a video or blog series introducing your team, or better yet, you can learn a new way of thinking or working that you can write about.
Shining example: Fi's interactive Sony Case Study

Industry

  1. Find an opinion piece that people in your space are discussing. Back it up with new research or make a case for the other side of the argument.
  2. Explain the steps that your company is taking in response to a new policy affecting your industry.
  3. Introduce a new technique or strategy you're using. Detail why this could work better than industry techniques that are becoming stale.
  4. Comment on a trend you see emerging and why or why not it should continue.
  5. Share tips and best practices.
Shining example: Copyblogger's How to Write the In-Depth Articles that Google Loves

How-to

  1. Have each person on your team write down a five step process that takes them through a daily task start to finish. This can be used for an email campaign or a blog or video series.
  2. Ask your leadership team for pointers on how they've developed the business and how they keep it running smoothly.
  3. What skills would be helpful for your customers to have so that they could better understand your product/service or use it more easily? Teach them.
  4. Write down the steps you took in a successful campaign. Layout this process so that it can be repeated.
  5. Interview several experts on the same topic, asking each how he or she accomplishes a certain goal.
Shining example: Wistia's Intro to Video SEO

Company culture

  1. Get involved in your community and volunteer. Talk about what you're doing and why it's important to you.
  2. Ask coworkers to each share one benefit of working at the company that they've never experienced at another job.
  3. Have someone from the leadership team discuss the company's core values and why they are integral to the brand.
  4. Congratulate new hires and talk about why they're great fits for the team.
  5. Let interns shadow an employee for a day and write about what a day in the life of someone in this role entails.
Shining example: Buffer's transparent look at their salary formula

Educational series

  1. Teach a skill or illustrate how to use a tool or software.
  2. Put together a set of lessons that will take someone through an entire plan or strategy.
  3. Summarize long articles or eBooks into short snippets, highlighting the actionable takeaways.
  4. Create quizzes and interactive lessons and then post a walkthrough of how to arrive at the correct answer.
  5. Host a workshop or lunch and learn for your team internally, and film it or have someone create a summary.
Shining example: Field Museum's The Brain Scoop

Events

  1. As soon as the list of speakers comes out for a big event in your industry, select a few who are covering topics in which your audience is interested and reach out to see if they will do an interview or guest post for your site.
  2. Scan the live tweets and recaps of conferences you weren't able to attend. Find common themes and determine the hot button issues that emerged. Contribute your unique perspective on these subjects on your blog.
  3. If someone from your company speaks at an event, have him write a bonus blog post that expands on something in his presentation. Make sure he posts his slide deck on SlideShare and links to the blog post in it.
  4. Put together a list of all the conferences, meetups, and networking nights in your area. Rank them, talk about why people should attend, compile basic information like cost and dates… make this a robust, go-to resource.
  5. Go above and beyond the traditional recap of what you learned. After a set time period of putting those lessons into practice, demonstrate the use of your new skill set with a mini case study of your results.
Shining example: aimClear's measurement of #NMX speakers

Research

  1. A/B test everything you do for your internal marketing. Write up the results and draw conclusions that can lead to best practices.
  2. Create a survey about the tools and tactics people in your industry are using and which they find most effective.
  3. Analyze market research about consumer behavior relative to your audience and present a study.
  4. Find a popular study done in the past few years and update it with new research and fresh insights.
  5. Walk your audience through the research and measurement process at your company.
Shining example: ESPN teaming up with Medium to ask people about the World Cup

World Cup

Theories

  1. Write about why you believe a certain trend has emerged and what this means for the future.
  2. Give advice for a hypothetical client or user.
  3. Relay the possible causes for results that you've seen in your analytics data.
  4. Make a prediction about how a new policy or technology will impact how you do business in the future.
  5. If there was one aspect of your role you could add or takeaway to make your job easier, what would it be and how would it make you more productive? Make a case for it.
Shining example: Distilled's Don't Silo Me, Bro: Integrating Content Strategy Across Disciplines

Higher-level overviews

  1. Create a resource with the definitions of basic industry terms.
  2. Give a periodic update on the state of your industry.
  3. Take content filled with technical terminology and industry jargon and simplify it to a beginner's version.
  4. Use an analogy to clarify and simplify a subject that would be otherwise difficult to explain to someone outside of your field.
  5. Illustrate how the different teams and departments in your company work together cohesively in a basic framework.
Shining example: Edelman's Sponsored Content: An Ethical Framework

Promotional

  1. Host a contest and give away a new product, tickets to an event, or a free consultation.
  2. Highlight employees who have been nominated for or received awards and let people know why they deserved that honor.
  3. Share customer testimonials.
  4. Remind your audience about the details of your Twitter chat and prompt them to help generate questions for the discussion.
  5. Enumerate new features of your product or service.
Shining example: SMX's "Biggest Search Geek" ContestSMX Search Geek

Seasonal

  1. On Valentine's Day, reveal yourself as a not-so-secret admirer of one or more brands. Let them know why you enjoy their content and how you strive to emulate a certain aspect of their business.
  2. Give a shout out to some of your best employees for Labor Day.
  3. For Thanksgiving, personally thank some of your biggest brand fans.
  4. During the holidays, send small physical gifts to people in your audience or even industry peers and then write a blog post or make a video saying what you're sending and why.
  5. Discuss your New Year goals and how the changes you plan on making will a better experience for your audience.
Shining example: Shopify's 8 New Year's Resolutions Every Ecommerce Entrepreneur Should Make

Out of the box

  1. Respond to email feedback (positive or negative) through a blog post or video.
  2. Write a satire piece about a recurring problem in your industry.
  3. Dig through old posts and republish with updates. Explain why your thoughts and recommendations have changed over time.
  4. Do some pro bono work and turn it into content about your capabilities.
  5. Make over your "About Us" section, spruce up your 404 page, or whatever else seems lackluster on your site, and then feature it in a special before and after content unveiling.
Shining example: Business Casual Copywriting's "Dead Page"

404 Zombies

Your turn

Whether or not you decide to use these exact ideas, I hope I've given you some directions to explore. Think hard, collaborate with smart team members, and make these your own.

Brainstorming should start broad before the content manager or editor-in-chief narrows down ideas based on marketing goals, target personas, and availability of resources. For a more in-depth look at that process, check out the eBook I created for iAcquire, Content Strategy for Digital Marketers: A Six Week Guide to Creating, Promoting, & Measuring Great Content. You want to make sure you have the right structure in place because as we all know probably too well, good ideas don't always pan out the way we hope for when they're not part of a well-crafted strategy.

No matter which post topics you choose, remember to infuse these ideas with personality, data, and insights that only you and your brand can offer. Publishing content that provides value no one else can is what truly leads to the traffic, social shares, and links you crave.

If you've had success with ideas like this in the past or if you have plans to try out something new, I'd love to hear about it in the comments!


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FPSRoca: "Rust - PvP no server dos Pé de lama" and more videos


Mihai, check out the latest videos from your channel subscriptions for Feb 6, 2014.
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Seth's Blog : Your relationship with the future

 

Your relationship with the future

Some people believe that tomorrow is likely to be better. Better opportunities, better technology, a brave new day to make a new kind of difference.

Others think that yesterday was a lot better than today. Tomorrow represents diminished resources, fewer opportunities, one step closer to the end.

We call tech geeks, "early adopters," and it's worth highlighting that they are not, "early adapters." Adaptation implies that people aren't eagerly going forward, they're merely tolerating what gets thrown at them.

As a marketer, then, there's a real choice here--to market your wares (new to this market) to people who are eager for change, or to get very good at marketing to people who would prefer not to change.

As a human, the question is even more profound: What relationship with the future will you choose?

The thing is, the future happens. Every single day, like it or not. Sure, tomorrow is risky, frightening and in some way represents one step closer to the end. But it also brings with it the possibility of better and the chance to do something that matters.

       

 

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miercuri, 5 februarie 2014

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis


Voters in Bankrupt San Bernardino Sweep Pro-Union Guard from Office; Hard Line on CalPERS Coming

Posted: 05 Feb 2014 06:27 PM PST

The inevitable shape-of-things-to-come has finally arrived in a major California city. I am pleased to report Voters in bankrupt San Bernardino sweep old guard from power.
Residents of bankrupt San Bernardino, California on Tuesday voted to complete a rout of the city's pro-union old guard, electing business-friendly pragmatists who have pledged to try to reduce pension costs and take on vested interests.

As San Bernardino enters into a fourth month of mediation with its creditors, the biggest of which is Calpers, California's giant retirement system, voters on Tuesday elected Carey Davis as the crisis-hit city's new mayor.

Davis, a businessman and political novice, ran in part on a campaign to reduce the city's pension obligations. In an interview in November, when he became one of two mayoral candidates, he said the city had to cut spending on police and fire departments, currently more than 70 percent of the budget.

"You have to roll the pensions back," Davis said in November. Davis did not return calls on Wednesday.

Davis will play a big role in how the city approaches negotiations with its creditors. He will be part of a small team of elected officials who represent the city as the debtor in the bankruptcy.

Along with Detroit, the biggest U.S. city to seek Chapter 9 protection, San Bernardino is likely to set precedent on whether retirees or Wall Street bondholders suffer the most when a city goes broke.

Davis defeated a San Bernardino political veteran, Wendy McCammack. She ran for mayor despite having been ousted by voters from her own council seat in a recall election in November.

Also on Tuesday, another political novice, Henry Nickel, became a new council member, saying he wanted to take on special interests. Nickel's biggest challenger was Randy Wilson, a police sergeant endorsed by the police union, the only candidate for that seat who did not support pension reform efforts.

Tuesday's results follow elections in November, when the balance of power in San Bernardino's seven-member council shifted dramatically away from an old guard reluctant to take on unions and reduce pension obligations.

After Tuesday night, six of seven council members are now on record as saying they want to explore reducing San Bernardino's pensions, along with Davis, the new mayor, and a new city attorney, Gary Saenz.
Expect a Hard Line On CalPERS

This kind of broad sweep eventually it had to happen. I am not sure why it took so long, but even Taxifornia is finally fed up with public unions and the damage they cause. One bankrupt city after another will go this route.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

Latest EU Proposal: Let's Pretend for Another 50 Years! Why Now?

Posted: 05 Feb 2014 03:26 PM PST

What cannot be paid back won't, but that never stops officials from pretending it will. Please consider EU Said to Weigh Extending Greek Loans to 50 Years.
The next handout to Greece may include extending the maturity on rescue loans to 50 years and cutting the interest rate on some previous aid by 50 basis points, according to two officials with knowledge of discussions being held by European authorities.

The plan, which will be considered by policy makers by May or June, may also include a loan for a package worth between 13 billion euros ($17.6 billion) and 15 billion euros, another official said. Greece, which got 240 billion euros in two bailouts, has previously had its terms eased by the euro zone and International Monetary Fund amid a six-year recession.

New money would help Greece fill a financing gap that has vexed European Union and IMF authorities working to make sure the rescue programs stay on schedule. European Union President Herman Van Rompuy said last month that Greece must continue to tighten its belt even as "the people of Greece are still suffering from the consequences of the painful but nevertheless needed reforms that are taking place."

Under the eased terms, all the bailout-loan repayments would be extended from about 30 years and rates would be cut by 50 basis points on funds from the 80 billion-euro Greek Loan Facility, which was created for Greece's first bailout in 2010, said the officials, who requested anonymity because talks are still in preliminary stages.  
Why Now?

Inquiring minds might be wondering why these concessions come now. Here is the answer: Greek leftist seeks negotiated debt write-off.
Greece would seek to negotiate an international write-off of about one-third of its debt if the leftist Syriza opposition party won a general election, its leader said on Tuesday.

Alexis Tsipras, who is leading a Communist-backed pan-European leftist list in European Parliament elections in May, said his country's problems could not be solved by more loans, which just went to service past debts and shore up the banks.

"The solution isn't more loans. The solution is fewer loans and less debt," Tsipras, whose party leads Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' conservative New Democracy in opinion polls, told the Europresse association on a visit to Paris.

Greece, which has already been bailed out twice with 240 billion euros ($324.44 billion) in euro zone and IMF funds, is due to hold its next general election in 2016, but voting may be brought forward if Samaras' fragile right-left coalition were to lose its narrow parliamentary majority.
The Debt-Slave Masters in Brussels are very fearful of a collapse in Antonis Samaras' conservative New Democracy which would lead to new Greek elections which undoubtedly Syriza would win. The New Democracy coalition hangs by a thread with a 2-seat majority in Greek parliament.

Hoping to stave off a parliamentary collapse, the EU is prepared to let Greece pay back 30-year commitments in 50 years. That in and of itself is nothing more than a form of default. It is also willing to commit another 15 billion euros to the debacle.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com 

Questions of "Fairness"

Posted: 05 Feb 2014 11:17 AM PST

In response to Controversy in Detroit: What's a Fair Settlement of Bondholder and Pension Obligation Claims? reader Ken suggests my proposal to have Detroit bondholders and pensioners be treated with the same percentage haircuts is not fair.

Ken asked "Which of the two would suffer more: pensioners or bondholders?"

The answer is irrelevant. By definition, "fair" implies equal treatment and equal opportunity, whether black or white, rich or poor.

Is it "fair" the poor have to pay the same for a loaf of bread as the rich? Heck on a percentage-of-wage basis, the poor pay thousands of percent more. Should Bill Gates have to pay $1,000 for a loaf of bread as an act of "fairness"?

I suggest, it's clearly "fair" for everyone who walks into a grocery store to pay the same price for a loaf of bread. Imagine having to prove how much you make and be charged accordingly every time you bought something.

In cases where bargaining happens (auto sales for instance), everyone gets the same chance to bargain, not just the poor or the rich. Some people bargain better than others, but the chance to bargain does not discriminate.

Equal Protection

Equal treatment is fair. There is no other way.

By the way, the "equal protection clause" of the 14th amendment reads:

"No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Does "equal protection" sound "fair" to you? It does to me.

Are the rights of Detroit pensioners higher than the rights of bondholders? Clearly not, given both are unsecured creditors. Whether or not pensioners would suffer more than bondholders is irrelevant.

"Screw the Bondholders" has a nice "Robin Hood" ring to it, but it is blatantly unfair, as well as unconstitutional.

Addendum

Reader John offered an interesting as well as accurate assessment. Paraphrasing John ... Detroit bonds are assets in the retirement plans of other. Ken essentially argues it's fair if Detroit pensioners' retirement prospects are enhanced at the expense of others' retirement plans.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com  

Brazil, Russia Cancel Debt Auctions; Head-in-Sand Move Won't Work

Posted: 05 Feb 2014 09:55 AM PST

Russia and Brazil don't like escalating interest rates. Their "solution"? Cancel government debt auctions.

Russia Cancels Debt Auctions Second Week

Yesterday, Reuters reported Russia cancels domestic bond auction citing market conditions
Russia's finance ministry cancelled its weekly domestic bond auctions for the second week in a row on Tuesday, saying in a statement the decision was "based on an analysis of current market conditions".

Yields on so-called OFZ bonds have risen by 70-80 basis points since the start of the year. A new ministry sale could have potentially pushed the rates higher, analysts said.

Brazil Cancels Debt Auctions

Today, Bloomberg reports Brazil Government Yields Fall After Auctions Canceled.
Brazilian government bond yields extended their drop from a four-year high after the Treasury canceled auctions of fixed-rate and zero-coupon bonds amid a selloff in emerging-market assets.

Yields on local bonds maturing in 2017 declined 18 basis points, or 0.18 percentage point, to 12.80 percent at 3:20 p.m. in Sao Paulo after increasing Feb. 3 to 13.14 percent, the highest since January 2010.

The Treasury cited market conditions for its decision and said the last time it canceled auctions to sell zero-coupon LTNs and fixed-rate NTN-Fs was in July. The government had planned to sell zero-coupon bonds maturing in 2014, 2016 and 2018 and fixed-rate bonds maturing in 2021 and 2025.
Head-in-Sand Move Won't Work

This kind of head-in-the sand move won't work long. In fact, it did not work at all, it only created an illusion of working. Unless underlying conditions change quickly, and favorably (both doubtful), there is a strong likelihood of increased volatility when auctions resume.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

"Situation Impossible"

Posted: 04 Feb 2014 11:52 PM PST

Greek economist Costas Lapavitsas says "The Euro has Already Failed" and it's "Situation Impossible" for France.

Via translation from La Vanguardia here is the complete interview ....

LV: When I interviewed you for the first time in late 2011, you said that the ECB was not the magic solution to the eurozone crisis. Then in July 2012 Mario Draghi stated "The ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro and believe me, it will be enough." Do you still believe that the ECB is not the solution?

CL: The ECB is not the solution. What happened in 2011 and 2012 is that the peripheral countries accepted the austerity demanded by Berlin and Brussels. They accepted wage cuts and unemployment. Their economies are headed for a recession. Have stabilized public finances and external deficit has stabilized. The fundamental answer is recession.

LV: Is that what the ECB wanted?

CL: The announcement of Mario Draghi pacified the financial markets but only because  recession was accepted by the population in the peripheral countries. The ECB did not solve the crisis in the real economy.

LV: Are we far from a stable eurozone crisis solution?

CL: The ECB stabilized the fiscal deficit and the trade deficit and hence financial markets. But the crisis has become a crisis in the real economy. There is foul growth and impoverishment.

LV: Has the crisis moved from the periphery crisis to other countries?

CL: Yes. The euro crisis has moved to the heart of the eurozone. France and Italy are now facing the same problems as the periphery in 2010 and 2011. The crisis is now in France and Italy.

LV: Is there more inequality now than at the beginning of the crisis?

CL: Of course. Here's how the situation has stabilized: recession, austerity without growth, more impoverishment and huge social problems for most of the working class.

LV: Can we forget the idea introduced a couple of years ago regarding a two-speed euro?

CL: I do not think it's going to be a two-speed euro. I think the policy that comes from Berlin and Brussels is the austerity of all European countries. France is now in a situation impossible. The real problem in the eurozone is now France. It has great competitiveness gap with Germany.

LV: Why?

CL: The competitiveness gap that the periphery had in 2010-11 is now in France. Wages in Germany have gone up a bit or frozen, wages in France have grown in line with inflation. This gap makes it difficult for the French economy to grow significantly. If France is moving towards austerity, as the periphery, Europe faces serious problems. Depression. And France is facing huge social and political problems. The eurozone crisis has moved to the heart of the euro.

LV: How does situation look in five years?

CL: It is difficult to say precisely. The eurozone will continue to be unstable as in recent years. It will be even worse than now because of tension between France and Germany. The currency is not sustainable. If the common currency fails, the EU is facing a huge crisis.

LV: Do you think that the euro will fail?

CL: The euro has already failed. It was a project that was supposed to create convergence, growth and solidarity between the peoples of Europe, it was supposed to create a commonality among Europeans. The euro has created divergences, recession, poverty, it is like a straitjacket for Europe, increases the national and the social tensions in Europe. It succeeds now only because it instills fear. I do not think this is sustainable for long.

LV: How is the situation in Greece?

CL: Greece is a mess. In 2010 Greece should have left the euro and put its economy in another direction. The economic and social catastrophe in Greece is worse than what happened in Argentina in the late 90s and early 2000. This is what happens when you're within this monetary structure that is the euro.

LV: This is your first trip to Barcelona. How do you assess issues such as the independence of Catalunya?

CL: The situation in Barcelona is very interesting. I am very surprised by the strength of  the independence movement in Catalonia. I'm amazed by the vitality of social movements. Yet, I think the level of understanding of the economic problems of Spain and Catalunya are not as high as they should be.

LV: Why?

CL: I think there should be more understanding of the implications of would happen if there was eventual independence in the Catalan economy. There is a lot of complexity that is not completely understood. Social movements in Catalonia need to further discuss these issues.

Mish Comments

I have little to add other than I agree with  Costas Lapavitsas on major points. The euro has already failed. The question is: when will that be politically recognized?

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com