> Hey, if you want to be conspiratorial about it, AG welcomes some
> competition so that it will force an austerity program on the U.S.,
> and thereby balance the current account. And, conveniently, external
> forces could be blamed.
You really buy into this Kautskyite idea of inter-imperialist collusion, don't you?
The US ruling class doesn't like being made to do things by external forces. They prefer being the external force that coerces other people into doing things. They like their hegemony, and they like having the sole reserve currency.
As for austerity, there's a reason the last decade has seen the Fed running a loose monetary policy and the ECB running a tight one. In Europe, the ruling class views permitting economic growth as a surrender to working class institutions like strong unions and the welfare state. Whereas in the US, strong growth is seen as an ideological victory for the model of weak unions and a shredded welfare state. I could see that attitude changing if the US model was threatened by rambunctious workers, but that's not what's happening now.
Seth