In the Blind Spot (The return of political Romanticism)
SNEAK PEEK — Ecuador’s new president Daniel Noboa may be the real beneficiary of the gang violence that gripped the country earlier this year. — The Houthis are more interested in revenue generation at this point than siding with Iran, argues Dario. — Polish culture wars channel old romantic strategies in their bid to […]
In the Blind Spot (States within states)
Our one-stop source for central banking & monetary policy news. SNEAK PEEK — Who really controls Kaliningrad? Dario takes a look at how the Russian exclave became a hotbed of illicit activity, while retaining a surprising amount of German influence. — What’s the difference between an investment zone and a special economic zone? Dario ponders […]
Happy Easter from the Blind Spot
Dear subscribers, No newsletter this weekend as it’s Easter. But for those with the inclination, I have left a couple of Easter Eggs in the system. The clues are out there. Happy egg painting, Sound of Music watching and, for the Poles, enjoy your Easter breakfast on Sunday and Śmigus-dyngus on Monday. Izzy and Dario,
How Dresden became Germany’s Chips City (POLITICO)
By Pieter Haeck · Mar 26, 2024. This article is part of a special report, The New Factory Towns. DRESDEN, Germany — If Europe’s best manufacturing days are behind it, no one told Dresden. The eastern German city and Saxon capital has become an industrial stronghold, with a world-class microchip manufacturing sector that is attracting […]
The Ozempic boom: How the entire country of Denmark became a company town (POLITICO)
By Charlie Duxbury · Mar 26, 2024 This article is part of a special report, The New Factory Towns. KALUNDBORG, Denmark — It’s not the first time this small Danish town boomed with the times. The question for Mayor Martin Damm is when, or even whether, the bust will come again. In the 1920s a […]
In the Blind Spot (Central bank schisms in Europe and beyond)
SNEAK PEEK — What it means for Poland and the ECB’s independence if Prime Minister Donald Tusk manages to remove central bank governor Adam Glapiński. — Dario argues that Nato’s push to up readiness for a Russian attack on Europe will run into the usual continental cohesion challenges — The Blind Spot’s Del J. Kelham […]
Spotlight on the Libyan conflict: explaining the unexplainable
After 13 years of fighting, the Western hemisphere’s longest-running active conflict remains its most bizarre standoff. And yet, almost everything makes perfect sense. French and American interests supported the rise of a former CIA-asset-turned-warlord, Khalifa Haftar, who battled on the Libyan streets alongside Wagner militias and Emirati Mirage jets against a UN-recognised government backed by […]
France pitches radical joint EU borrowing plan to pay for defense (POLITICO)
By Bjarke Smith-Meyer · Mar 20, 2024 BRUSSELS ― The French government is pushing for the European Union to issue joint debt to pay for increased military spending and is pitching the radical idea to its European counterparts, according to a confidential letter seen by POLITICO. In the diplomatic note, likely to spark fierce opposition […]
In the Blind Spot (Death by financialisation, Boeing edition)
Our one-stop source for central banking & monetary policy news. SNEAK PEEK — Why Boeing is just another example of an industrial giant coming unstuck because of financialisation. — Ireland’s renewed Celtic Tiger boom is not what it seems. — Dario digs into the new trade routes being opened up by the thawing […]
Spotlight: How ‘yellow rain’ disinformation blew back on us
In an exclusive interview recorded in 2021, Jim Coyne, a Vietnam veteran who later became a freelance journalist for Soldier of Fortune (SOF) magazine, explained how he had been duped into believing that the infamous “yellow rain” of the 1980s was a real biochemical weapon, but also how his experience may have been purposefully hijacked […]