Balanced budget amendment...in Italy?

[Keystone Phil]

http://blogs.forbes.com/afontevecchia/2011/08/05/berlusconi-confirms-italy-moving-toward-balanced-budget-amendment/


Looks like the rest of the plan calls for cutting elected officials' salaries (well overdue in Italy, of all places, since their politicians are some of the highest paid in Europe) and subsidies to political parties.

[Хahar 🤔]

Seems like a gimmick to me.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Seems like a gimmick to me.

It's Berlusconi. I'd imagine he's fairly desperate by this point.

[TheGlobalizer]

Oddly, since Berlusconi is pretty much a lame duck, we might actually see meaningful reform.

Whether it sticks, however, is an entirely different matter.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Hopefully this gets defeated.

[ZuWo]

Hopefully this gets defeated.

Why (and that's not a rhetorical question, I'm really clueless regarding Italy)? Doesn't Italy desperately need balanced budgets?

[Antonio the Sixth]

Hopefully this gets defeated.

Why (and that's not a rhetorical question, I'm really clueless regarding Italy)? Doesn't Italy desperately need balanced budgets?

Of course. Every country needs is better off with a balanced budget.


However, the idea that, always and in every circumstance, the budget need to be balanced is outright crazy. By forcing a government to craft a balanced budget in a time of economic crisis, you're considerably aggravating the situation, risking a long recession that will reduce the revenues, hence forcing to balance the budget again, etc...

Deficits aren't good, but sometimes they are useful. The modern obsession with deficits makes everybody forget that we have still an economy to pull out of recession.

[Verily]

Seems like a gimmick to me.

It's Berlusconi. I'd imagine he's fairly desperate by this point.

Berlusconi's final way to screw up Italy.

[TheGlobalizer]

Devil's in the details.  I generally support BBAs but not rigid ones.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Isn't Italy running a budget surplus at this point? The problem lies with the bonds and the crushing amount of debt Italy already has accrued, correct? If this is true, I see no reason to support a balanced budget amendment. I suppose it could appease the bond vigilantes for a while.

[phk]

Hopefully this gets defeated.

Why (and that's not a rhetorical question, I'm really clueless regarding Italy)? Doesn't Italy desperately need balanced budgets?

Of course. Every country needs is better off with a balanced budget.


However, the idea that, always and in every circumstance, the budget need to be balanced is outright crazy. By forcing a government to craft a balanced budget in a time of economic crisis, you're considerably aggravating the situation, risking a long recession that will reduce the revenues, hence forcing to balance the budget again, etc...

Deficits aren't good, but sometimes they are useful. The modern obsession with deficits makes everybody forget that we have still an economy to pull out of recession.

^^^^

Instead of a Balanced Budget Amendment there should be a Run-A-Surplus-In-Good-Times-Amendment.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Hopefully this gets defeated.

Why (and that's not a rhetorical question, I'm really clueless regarding Italy)? Doesn't Italy desperately need balanced budgets?

Of course. Every country needs is better off with a balanced budget.


However, the idea that, always and in every circumstance, the budget need to be balanced is outright crazy. By forcing a government to craft a balanced budget in a time of economic crisis, you're considerably aggravating the situation, risking a long recession that will reduce the revenues, hence forcing to balance the budget again, etc...

Deficits aren't good, but sometimes they are useful. The modern obsession with deficits makes everybody forget that we have still an economy to pull out of recession.

^^^^

Instead of a Balanced Budget Amendment there should be a Run-A-Surplus-In-Good-Times-Amendment.

Bill Clinton says we should all party like it's 1999.

[TheGlobalizer]

Instead of a Balanced Budget Amendment there should be a Run-A-Surplus-In-Good-Times-Amendment.

[All Along The Watchtower]

Hopefully this gets defeated.

Why (and that's not a rhetorical question, I'm really clueless regarding Italy)? Doesn't Italy desperately need balanced budgets?

Of course. Every country needs is better off with a balanced budget.


However, the idea that, always and in every circumstance, the budget need to be balanced is outright crazy. By forcing a government to craft a balanced budget in a time of economic crisis, you're considerably aggravating the situation, risking a long recession that will reduce the revenues, hence forcing to balance the budget again, etc...

Deficits aren't good, but sometimes they are useful. The modern obsession with deficits makes everybody forget that we have still an economy to pull out of recession.

^^^^

Instead of a Balanced Budget Amendment there should be a Run-A-Surplus-In-Good-Times-Amendment.

Someone should have given George W Bush that memo.

[TheGlobalizer]

Instead of a Balanced Budget Amendment there should be a Run-A-Surplus-In-Good-Times-Amendment.

Someone should have given George W Bush that memo.

[phk]

Instead of a Balanced Budget Amendment there should be a Run-A-Surplus-In-Good-Times-Amendment.

Someone should have given George W Bush that memo.