A New Economic Policy

While I rarely dabble in economic theory, I feel that dabbling is due, so here I go.

America has a lot to learn from the EU (at least those under the euro). The EU, as is shown by the current strength of the euro andthe lb., has a decently strong economy, which I believe is due to consumer spending. Here are the three reasons why:

1) They use play money. Have you seen the euro? First of all, the bills are colorful and have shiny stickers on them. The numbers are, well, fun. Look at the US bills- they're green and very important. They don't remind you of Monopoly, they remind you of real life, and in real life, you want to spend as little money as possible. With euro-Monopoly money, the point is to spend, spend, spend. Just like in Monopoly, your goal seems to be to acquire as much as possible, not save your money. Why would you save a euro? It's just so much fun to throw it down and look at the shimmering stickers when you spend your hard-earned euros.

2) The two euro coin. They have a coin for this while the US has a bill for less than half that amount! The two euro coin is worth $2.44 as of today. Imagine having a two dollar coin, you wouldn't worry about spending it, losing it, hell, you'd probably give one to every homeless person on the street just because it's a coin, not a bill. Remember (they're still in circulation, but have stopped production I believe) the Sacajawea gold dollar? Same thing. That's why the economy had a boost in the Clinton years, not well-thought out economic policy, but coins dammit, coins!

3) The conspiracy between banks and storeowners. You go to an ATM, say gimme 100 euros, and does it give you 5 twenties? No. TWO FIFTIES. So, the next time you want to spend money you end up buying as much as possible in the store just so you don't feel guilty about making them break a fifty. Instead of getting an espresso for 60 cents, you get an espresso, croissant, two bottles of wine, a new set of china, and an oversized bag of cat food and you still feel guilty about that damn 50 euro bill.

So there, America, redesign (again!) your bills, make a ten dollar coin, and only give banks one hundred dollar bills (because, of course, everything in America must be bigger). And please do this soon, I'd like to see a stronger dollar for my next few months in Europe :)

Ciao.

Florence as a City

Florence is a beautiful city. Its rich history makes every step down the street a leaning experience. However, the paradox is that its history nearly destroys all that is wonderful about the city.

I have visited Florence three times before coming here to live for a semester, and in those three visits I did not see a single flaw in all of Florence. Now, living here, its flaws are utterly apparent. It is a city that is just too good, too famous, too international for a city of its size.

Every year, the city is overrun by loads of tourists flocking to view Florence's amazing history first-hand. During the schoolyear, you are more likely to hear English spoken on the streets among the thousands of American students that "immerse" themselves into the Florentine culture. How can such a small city adjust to such an incredible inflow of mass tourism?

A city like New York has plenty of mass tourism, but its size more than compensates for that fact. Florence, however, becomes dominated by a complete other culture for half of the year. Restaurants claiming to be authentic churn out plate after plate of what outsiders think to be typical Italian cuisine, but is in fact nothing more than pre-packaged pasta. Museums flaunt their one masterpiece and overcharge for entry after hours of waiting.

But what makes everything worth it is that one place you find that seems untouched by the tourist industry. The restaurant that could churn out terrible food and no one would notice, but still provides tasty, only-in-Italy dishes. The neighborhood where you can walk into a store and not be greeted in English. The street where there is not a single camera in sight, but is the most photogenic Italian street ever. In my Florence, these places will remain untouched, if from nothing else but sheer stubbornness.