Wednesday, February 01, 2012

European Youth Reeling


We're flooded with stories about Greece and the Euro and the European Union leaders and their deals.  Blah, blah, blah.  What these stories almost always overlook are the real victims, Europe's young people.   They are on the verge of truly becoming a "lost generation."

A report in The Guardian reveals staggering levels of youth unemployment - 28% among Italians 16-24; Spain 51%, Greece 43%.  In the Great Depression, America's unemployment rate briefly spiked at 25%.   Worse yet, some sectors of the European economy aren't expected to recover for at least a decade.

The article reports an exodus of Europe's "best and brightest" young people similar to what befell Ireland after its collapse.

As subpar Euro leaders like Britain's Cameron remain fixated on austerity campaigns that can only worsen conditions for their youth the question becomes for how long they can possibly suppress widespread unrest and what awaits their countries when that dam breaks.

2 comments:

crf said...

The fascists are going to come to power in Greece, Italy and Spain if Europe's economic policy continues on its present course. Sounds like they have both feet through the door in much of eastern Europe.

The Mound of Sound said...

Yeah, unfortunately radicalism seems to flow from despair. These numbers convince me that Europe's political leadership is utterly clueless. Maybe they should consult our own Furious Leader. Maybe not.