All This and WikiLeaks too

Worrying events on the periphery of Europe (Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Belgium, France) should not blind us to the essentially stable situation elsewhere. At times like this a steady hand at the till(er) is of paramount importance and we can be thankful that Italy has Silvio Berluscini at the helm and the Belgians a united government in full control of the situation.


Meanwhile there is no sign of panic in France: "There is no reason for concern, no risk," said Francois Baroin, budget minister and government spokesman, interviewed close to the Swiss border.

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Eurointelligence, an online commentary service, said markets were growing increasingly concerned about the solvency of euro zone peripheral states after focusing mainly on their short-term liquidity problems in past weeks.

"We at Eurointelligence consider a default of Greece, Ireland and Portugal a done deal," they wrote on Tuesday. "The question is only now whether Spain can scrape through."

For God's sake!

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American and British forces are said to be closing in on former hair stylist and WikiLeaks founder Jacques Dessange, now thought to be holing up somewhere in the Sahara Desert area of Africa. Feared RAC pointman and Scotland Yard alumnus, Inspector "Nosy" Parker, is in charge of the operation. "It's only a matter of time", he told this blog in September.