Irish banks need extra EUR 24bn

The crisis in euroland is far from over.After Ireland the focus will turn on Portugal and then switch to Spain-a country too big to fail and too big to rescue.I think, at that point, if not before, the realisation of failure even amongst the most deluded EU bureaucrats will hit home.

I think Ireland has a choice to default big time and send a message to Bassle bankers and the Anglo-Saxon hedge fund speculators that they are not too big to go to the wall.

The idea that all those toxic banking loans turned into bonds should be paid in full at the expense of the social programmes is not only immoral but is borderline psychotic.The greed and stupidity of these bankers should be punished, not the general population of the country.

The Brit - While I support your stance against ethnic Albanian separatism and expansionism, I disagree with your comparison of the Kosovo independence project with Ireland’s historic struggle for statehood. In my view, partitioned Ireland vs partitioned Serbia is a closer analogy. The Serbs and Irish, as two distinct races with their own language and culture, suffered demographic alterations for many centuries under respective British and Ottoman imperialism. The two countries were partitioned and remain divided mostly due to foreign interference. Interestingly, Britain has played a key role in both instances.

Albos, pay close attention: it may take a few years but this is where illegal UDI gets you. The only option for the feckless and bankrupt Irish is to come seeking forgiveness and begging to be taken once more under the Crown. Being magnanimous, we'll have them back like the Prodigal Son and Dublin can once again aspire to its historical role as the second city of Empire. Left to their own devices they'll starve - it'll be like the famine all over again.

And YET, poor though it is, Ireland is like California compared with Kosovo. K/Albs, what you're trying to do is suicidal - you can't feed yourselves and Europe is rapidly tiring of doing so. Time to say sory to Belgrade for your folly and get back to being Serbia's welfare case. It's the best you can hope for.

Albos, pay close attention: it may take a few years but this is where illegal UDI gets you. The only option for the feckless and bankrupt Irish is to come seeking forgiveness and begging to be taken once more under the Crown. Being magnanimous, we'll have them back like the Prodigal Son and Dublin can once again aspire to its historical role as the second city of Empire. Left to their own devices they'll starve - it'll be like the famine all over again.

And YET, poor though it is, Ireland is like California compared with Kosovo. K/Albs, what you're trying to do is suicidal - you can't feed yourselves and Europe is rapidly tiring of doing so. Time to say sory to Belgrade for your folly and get back to being Serbia's welfare case. It's the best you can hope for.

The Brit - While I support your stance against ethnic Albanian separatism and expansionism, I disagree with your comparison of the Kosovo independence project with Ireland’s historic struggle for statehood. In my view, partitioned Ireland vs partitioned Serbia is a closer analogy. The Serbs and Irish, as two distinct races with their own language and culture, suffered demographic alterations for many centuries under respective British and Ottoman imperialism. The two countries were partitioned and remain divided mostly due to foreign interference. Interestingly, Britain has played a key role in both instances.

The crisis in euroland is far from over.After Ireland the focus will turn on Portugal and then switch to Spain-a country too big to fail and too big to rescue.I think, at that point, if not before, the realisation of failure even amongst the most deluded EU bureaucrats will hit home.

I think Ireland has a choice to default big time and send a message to Bassle bankers and the Anglo-Saxon hedge fund speculators that they are not too big to go to the wall.

The idea that all those toxic banking loans turned into bonds should be paid in full at the expense of the social programmes is not only immoral but is borderline psychotic.The greed and stupidity of these bankers should be punished, not the general population of the country.