PRESS RELEASE

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French and German Economists
Call for Abandoning the Euro

April 28, 2012 (EIRNS)—In a very targeted intervention against the euro, 14 prominent German and French economists, seven of each, have demanded "an end to the euro experiment." With Jacques Cheminade's powerful intervention into the French Presidential campaign and the growing resistance to the ESM in Germany, this cross-border intervention comes at an important point. It should also be noted that a September 2011 article in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung by anti-ESM fighter Bundestag member (MdB) Frank Schäffler (FDP) on how to separate bankrupt banks, ("Let the banks go bust") was reprinted in full in the April 26 issue of the Swiss financial daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ).

The call of the 14 professors and managers was reported today by major German and French press, including in FAZ in Germany, and Marianne in France. The "Appeal to the Governments of the European Union" was worked out in Düsseldorf on April 27 and a meeting last year in Lyon.

The declaration is clearly limited, as it does not explicitly identify the debts of banks and speculators as root cause of the problem; they also don't address the need for bank reorganization or Glass-Steagall, nor major projects to rebuild the real economy. But they strongly attack a "global financial oligarchy," which is dictating policies to governments and intentionally destroying the foundations of life for the people.

A sampling of the recommendations follows:

• "replace the euro with national currencies, with each state retaining all its prerogatives, while certain countries may reach bilateral or multilateral agreements to pool their currency;

• "create a new European monetary system, having a European unit of account, equal to the weighted average of the national currency units;

• "list upfront the desired parities of the national currencies to that unit of account, parities calculated so as to limit speculation, restore the competitiveness of all member states, ensure balanced trade among them, and reduce unemployment;

• "ensure that the actual exchange rates of the national currencies will then be stabilized within a fluctuation band to be determined;

• "convert internal prices and wages in each country, as well as bank assets on the basis of one euro for each national currency unit;

• "convert, by applying the same rule, the public debt of all the euro countries into their new national currency;

• "convert international private loans and debts into the European unit of account."

The seven German signers are Professors

• Wilheml Nölling

• Joachim Starbatty

• Albrecht Schachtschneider (the known anti-euro Professors)

• Dieter Spethmann (who has also sued against the euro rescues packages),

• Wolf Schäfer

• Rolf Hasse

• Bruno Bandulet

They are described as "liberal."

The seven French signers are well known. Some of these are "protectionists":

• Jan-Luc Greau

• Philippe Murer

• Gerard Lafasy

in March signed another call for revising the European treaties and for imposing protectionist tariffs, so that European workers would no longer have to compete with low-wage imports.