Center-left Bavarian newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:
"This drastic infringement of property rights was possible due to the unique constellation in Cyprus: Cyprus is the third-smallest country of the European Union, so its political weight isn't very relevant. Cyprus set up a dubious business model that attracted dubious people; they're now being punished, so the burden isn't necessarily hitting the wrong people. The expropriation satisfied the sense of justice of most Germans, and not just them."
"Thirdly, a remarkably poor set of Cypriot politicians refused to see reason for much too long, and in the last week displayed an unpleasant gambling mentality. Anyone who manages in just four days to alienate the entire euro zone, discredit the Euro Group chief, tries to involve Russia in a circumventing maneuver and welds together the German government and opposition in an election year has failed to understand a few basic rules on transparency and policymaking in Europe."
"In this unique combination, Cyprus will remain a unique case. But Europe has changed a lot as a result of this rescue drama. The readiness to show solidarity is eroding by the minute. The euro zone has long since stopped being a brotherhood for increasing prosperity and mutual stability. It has transformed itself into a school of gladiators in which everyone fights for his own advantage and his survival."
/... http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/opinion-german-euro-leadership-stubborn-and-egotistical-a-890848.html
Hmm. Let's see.
The first paragraph says that the drastic infringement of property rights in Cyprus was possible because Cyprus's political weight isn't very relevant. Isn't very relevant to whom? It is certainly of primary relevance to Cypriot voters. There is a very patrician attitude on display here. Then we are presented with a logical fallacy: Just because some (but possibly not all) dubious characters participating in Cyprus's dubious financial system (not to mention, heaven forbid, some other places' financial systems one could mention) are being "punished", it is not posssible to infer that the "burden" isn't necessarily hitting some perfectly legitimate, entirely transparent, non-dubious savers as well. The "expropriation", however, satisfied the sense of justice of most Germans, we are told. Uh huh. So what? The protagonists here are Cyprus and the European Union, are they not? Stated thus, we perceive German arrogance.
The second paragraph refers to a need to "understand a few basic rules on transparency and policymaking in Europe", without specifying them beyond a reference to "seeing reason" (see above). See ref. 1 below.
Finally, in the third paragraph, we are told that "
Europe's) readiness to show solidarity is eroding by the minute." What is clear is that there is a lack of willingness amongst elites in Germany and those under their influence, fanned on by the anglo media, to respect principles of transparancy, democratic sovereignty and solidarity in the European Union where this is perceived to be detrimental to elite (sold to the 'marks' as 'national') interests.
Ref 1: Policy-Making and Diversity in Europe: Escape from Deadlock
By Adrienne Héritier, Adrienne Windhoff-Héritier
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/... http://books.google.es/books?hl=en&lr=&id=13BYDd8v-DUC&oi=fnd&pg=PR6&dq=transparency+and+policymaking+in+Europe&ots=D_givVm_2o&sig=jiStEoahg5J85wy6zbrthKSDihs#v=onepage&q=transparency%20and%20policymaking%20in%20Europe&f=false
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