Obama Calls out Europe

    As an indicator that things are getting better for the U.S. economy, Obama took the time to call out Europe today. Compared to Europe we have our act together-LOL.

    For more on a U.S. economy that may be starting to expand

   http://diaryofarepublicanhater.blogspot.com/2011/11/economys-prospects-improve-as-does.html

     http://www.cnbc.com/id/45319026

    There is some truth in what he's saying however. We have definitely seen some improvement in the second half this year and economic forecasters have now raised their numbers for the U.S. economy. It is perfectly true that one thing that really could threaten a U.S. recovery is Europe not getting it done.

    'We saw some progress with Italy and Greece putting forward unity governments that can implement some significant reforms. But at this point the larger Europe community has to stand behind the European project."

    "Obama's comments, some of the bluntest to date, added to a chorus of non-European policymakers urging greater action to deal with the 2-year-old crisis, and came as equity markets fell in response to a sell-off in euro zone bond markets."

    Obama is not just griping, he has answers too:

     "Until we put in place a concrete plan and structure that sends a clear signal to the markets that Europe is standing behind the euro and will do what it takes, we are going to continue to see the kinds of market turmoil we saw," said Obama.

      Right now it/s true, Europe is the weakest link. The latest concern is that even core EU nations like France, Belgium, and Austria have seen their bond yield spreads spike relative the German Bund to Euro era highs.

      Obama said that while there had been progress in putting together unity governments in Italy and Greece, Europe still faced more than just a technical problem.

    "Ultimately, what they are going to need is a firewall that sends a clear signal—we stand behind the European project, we stand behind the euro."

     "Canada's Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, speaking earlier on Wednesday in Japan, urged European leaders to put "meat on the bones" of plans to stem the contagion."

      "Until European countries build firewalls for their financial system, I think we will continue to see market volatility," he said. "Some of us are frustrated by the failure of clear and decisive action in Europe."

       I like that one-put some meat on the bones, Europe! Stop playing around. China has weighed in too:

      "saying in its quarterly monetary policy report posted on its website that the European debt crisis was a prime risk to the global economy. "

      "The sovereign debt problem in the euro zone will cause continuous turbulence in financial markets, and, if the crisis spreads to core member countries, it may cause global systematic risks," the report said.

      Finally, Japan. "Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa told a news conference there were signs the European crisis was starting to affect emerging economies through trade and other channels."

     "Dollar funding at European banks has also worsened and there are signs of dollar assets being squeezed, or so-called deleveraging," he said.

     C'mon Europe where's the beef? LOL