“I think this is a deliberate, intentional destruction of the United States of America,” – Bill Moyers on the Bush administration, as quoted in the Nation.
FIRST THE NYT: Now the Sioux Falls Argus Leader. Bloggers subject their state paper to close scrutiny.
THE PRO-EURO NYT: In the middle of a completely competent piece about Britain’s debate over whether to join the euro currency, the NYT’s Alan Cowell writes the following sentence:
Ever since Mr. Blair took office six years ago, he and Mr. Brown have wrestled over the question of Britain joining the euro. It is a step that would at once dilute Britain’s control over its own economy and greatly enhance its political status and influence among the 15-nation European Union.
But there is no firm evidence at all that if Britain were to abandon its own currency and fiscal and monetary sovereignty, it would “greatly enhance its political status and influence among the 15-nation European Union.” That implies that London would somehow supplant or rival the Berlin-Paris axis at the center of the EU project if the pesky pound were just abolished, or that with ten new countries joining the EU, Britain would somehow have more clout than today. I guess it’s arguable, but it’s far from obvious. And once you take that argument away, what have you got? There’s no more reason for Britain to adopt the euro than for Canada to adopt the U.S. dollar. The latter isn’t even on the agenda. Why should the former?
The Dish 