One definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over again and expect different results. Germany’s determination to impose a fiscal hair shirt on its eurozone partners did not work in the “stability and growth pact”. Is it going to work in the “treaty on stability, co-ordination and governance” agreed last week? I doubt it. The treaty reflects the view that the crisis was due to fiscal indiscipline and that the solution is more discipline. This is far from the whole truth. Rigorous application of such a misleading idea is dangerous.
精神失常的一个定义是，不断重复同一件事，却期待取得不同的结果。德国决心强令其欧元区伙伴国实施财政紧缩，它的愿望未能通过《稳定与增长公约》(stability and growth pact)实现。那么通过月初达成一致的《稳定、协调和治理条约》(Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance)，这个愿望就能实现吗？对此我表示怀疑。新条约反映出一种观点：目前的危机是财政纪律缺失的结果，因此解决方法是施以更严苛的财政纪律。这种观点决非事实的全部真相。积极贯彻如此有误导性的主张，是很危险的。