madam president ireland's bail-out is unlikely to be the last in the eurozone despite protestations to the contrary
despite the debt crisis plaguing the emu officials are keen to emphasise that ireland's problem is different from the one seven months previously in greece
whereas with athens it was fiscal irresponsibility and public sector corruption dublin's debt is due to reckless banking
portugal does not appear to suffer greatly from either yet it is still struggling to keep its head above water as is spain
what do these countries have in common
the not-fit-for-purpose single currency founded upon idealistic ideology and not economic sense
the old adage about putting all your eggs in one basket rings true
which are europe's most prosperous countries
that would be norway and switzerland
they control their own resources and economies yet still trade with their eu neighbours knowing they can cast their nets elsewhere if the eu drags the whole project into oblivion
a rescue of portugal would push the combined bill to the eur three hundred billion mark exhausting the eurozone's entire capital
surely the only reasonable choice left is eu-thanasia
