For those interested in the Euro, Andreas Hoffmann (University of Leipzig), has some interesting commentary at ThinkMarkets, A blog of the NYU Colloquium on Market Institutions and Economic Processes, “The Euro: a Step Toward the Gold Standard?”
The he sipports and critiques argument about the Euro where, in a recent piece [“An Austrian Defense of the Euro” ?],
Jesus Huerta de Soto (2012) argues that the euro is a proxy for the gold standard. He draws several analogies between the euro and the classical gold standard (1880-1912). Like when “going on gold” European governments gave up monetary sovereignty by introducing the euro. Like the classical gold standard the common currency forces reforms upon countries that are in crisis because governments cannot manipulate the exchange rate and inflate away debt. Therefore, to limit state power and to encourage e.g. labor market reforms he views the euro as second best to the gold standard from a free market perspective. Therefore, we should defend it. He finds that it is a step toward the re-establishment of the classical gold standard.
Worth a read. The exchange between Andreas and O’Driscoll in the comments is interesting as well.
Philipp Bagus author of The Tragedy of the Euro has also commented extensively on the Euro. See especially “Is There No Escape from the Euro?” and “The Eurozone: A Moral-Hazard Morass”.
