i*******e
发帖数: 1904 | 1 SPIEGEL: Are the new austerity guidelines for countries like Spain, Italy or
Greece too tough?
Soros: They create a vicious circle. The deficit countries have to improve
their competitive position vis-a-vis Germany, so they will have to cut their
budget deficits and reduce wages. In a weak economy, profit margins will
also be under pressure. This will reduce tax revenues and require further
austerity measures, creating a vicious circle. Markets do not correct their
own excesses. Either there is too much demand or too little. This is what
the economist John Maynard Keynes explained to the world, except that he is
not listened to by some people in Germany. But Keynes explained it very well
-- when there is a deficiency of demand, you have to use public policy to
stimulate the economy.
SPIEGEL: But it was the abundance of "cheap money" that was at the core of
the last financial crisis. Would we not repeat the same mistake if we
pledged billions of fresh money to countries in crisis?
Soros: I know it sounds as though we are repeating exactly the same mistake.
But let's compare the situation on the global financial markets to a car
that is skidding. When a car is skidding, you must first turn the wheel in
the same direction as the skid. And only when you have regained control can
you then correct the direction. We went through a 25-year boom in the global
economy. Then came the crash in 2008. The financial markets actually
collapsed, and they had to be put on artificial life support through massive
state intervention. The euro crisis is a direct continuation or consequence
of the 2008 crash. This crisis isn't over yet and we will have to spend
more state money in order to stop the skidding. It is only afterward that we
can change the direction. Otherwise we will repeat the mistakes that
plunged America into the Great Depression in 1929. Angela Merkel simply
doesn't understand that.
SPIEGEL: But you push for lower interest rates or access to "cheap money,"
for instance. Both steps would help you as an investor.
Soros: That is true. But it would also help all other investors and it would
help to preserve the global financial system. In that sense, I am concerned
with my own interests. But I am also retired and no longer actually
managing the fund. Nevertheless, I think that I perhaps understand the
financial system better than some of the people who are in charge. So, as a
citizen, I feel justified in trying to give advice. I am not arguing for the
policies I support to make a profit. I make it a principle in my advocacy
to put the public good before my private interests.
SPIEGEL: You have repeatedly pushed for the introduction of euro bonds.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble responded by saying: Euro
bonds give the wrong incentives because you "spend money you do not have to
pay the bills of others."
Soros: People like Schäuble don't seem to understand that the heavily
indebted countries are now at a severe disadvantage, because they have
basically become heavily indebted in a foreign currency, the euro. They do
not control it, and so they are in the same position as third world
countries in Latin America were in at the beginning of the 1980s, where the
countries became indebted in dollars. It was a situation that led to a lost
decade there. Europe now faces a lost decade. That is the reason we need
euro bonds and a new EU fiscal compact.
SPIEGEL: Do you also support the idea, as demanded by the Occupy movement,
that rich people like you should pay higher taxes?
Soros: I do. And I do not support the Republicans who want to save me from
paying taxes.
SPIEGEL: What is your tax rate?
Soros: My effective tax rate is relatively low, but only because every year
I contribute at least the maximum 50 percent of my income to my foundation.
SPIEGEL: If you support the idea of higher taxes, then why don't you just
pay more taxes instead of giving the money to your foundation?
Soros: Because I think that my foundation uses the money better than the
government does. In any event, I do pay taxes.
SPIEGEL: You are basically saying that you are smarter than the government.
Soros: Well, I have greater freedom of action than a bureaucracy. I also
care more about the causes to which I contribute.
SPIEGEL: So how can you then turn around and tell other rich people that
they should pay more taxes?
Soros: If every rich person gave 50 percent of their wealth to charity, I
would not say they should pay more taxes. |
|
