The Eurozone is falling apart. To start with, the European Union has no elected government, only faceless bureaucrats in Brussels who rule dictatorially. The bureaucrats receive very generous pay; have 17 weeks vacation a year and can retire at age 58. The Eurozone’s carbon taxes and green energy mandates coupled with socialist governments with their own bureaucrats have driven EU countries to the brink of bankruptcy. Greece can not even pay the interest on their debt. They may default and exit the European Union and Spain is close behind.
China, who is supposed to be the economic power of this century, also has a slowing economy. As the European Union falls, so do China’s customers. With the euro down to 1.25 dollars per euro, Chinese goods become very expensive in Europe. And when China’s economy falls, it, in turn, hurts Australia and other Asian countries who supply many of the raw materials to China.
Economic growth in India is suffering a sharp slow down due to corrupt government officials and regulations (those bureaucrats again).
The global economy will not get any help from the United States. We are saddled with an administration that is attempting to remake America in Europe’s image with state run healthcare, job killing environmental regulations, job killing business regulations via Dodd Frank and wasteful green energy projects. We have our own highly paid unelected bureaucrats, called Czars, who are unresponsive to the electorate or to Congress.  Our latest jobs report shows that our economy is stalling, our unemployment rate is rising and consumer confidence is falling. Our economic recovery is the worst since the Great Depression and our employment picture is the worst since 1948. We could be headed to a double dip recession.
Meanwhile, our President is hitting the campaign trail where he is actively campaigning against capitalism in his bid for reelection. He says that capitalism is "...an economic philosophy that has failed." The surprising thing is that the election is viewed to be a toss up.

Printed in the June 7, 2012 edition