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In Australia, we have so far tried to ameliorate the effects of our unaffordable housing market only with first-time buyers grants and public housing. To make the whole market much more affordable, perhaps we should copy the German model instead.

Европа е континент в криза. Финансовите проблеми на много европейски държави станаха очевидни, когато през май 2010 г. Гърция едва се спаси от фалит. Оттогава се появиха много неприятни данни за държавните финанси в Европа, които оказват натиск върху единната европейска валута – еврото.

By comparing the different economic conditions of Europe and Australia, it should not be too difficult for Australians to make a choice about economic policy. Mimicking European policies is the surest way to economic disaster.

To superficial observers, this week’s European summit in Brussels will look like any other high-level conference. Prime ministers, chancellors and presidents will rub shoulders, pose for photographers, and dally with waiting journalists. Once again it will all seem a bit like a school reunion. But the pretty pictures of smiling politicians cannot conceal that the continent is in crisis and the European Union is falling apart.

Even tragedies like the Great Depression have their pluses. One of them is Monopoly. If a certain Charles Darrow had not lost his job at a sales company, he would never have had the time to develop the famous game that Parker Brothers started selling in 1935. Today, 75 years and a few economic crises after its original launch, it is time to update Monopoly to the new realities.

For Australia as a nation, population growth is an opportunity. Many other developed nations in Europe and Japan would love to swap their problems of population ageing and shrinking for our task of dealing with growth. But we need to ensure that our growth is properly managed. Fixing the relation between Canberra and the states is a necessary first step.

Indien — das ist ein Land, das ich bislang nur von meist nächtlichen Überflügen kenne, wenn ich wieder einmal zwischen meiner ersten Heimat Europa und meiner zweiten Heimat Australien unterwegs bin. Auch wenn ich das Land selbst nicht kenne, so kenne ich doch genügend Inder. Und getroffen habe ich sie weniger in Europa, dafür umso mehr in Australien.

Economists should take the time to ask themselves what they can learn from the events of the past three years. If they were honest with themselves, they would conclude that many of them had been too optimistic about their ability to predict the future with certainty. They would have to confess that the world is too messy a place to be expressed in models of ‘general equilibrium’ or ‘perfect competition’.