 |  | | Economics & Politics | | ON March 24 the Portuguese
prime minister, Jose Socrates,
resigned after all the opposition
parties rejected his austerity
plan, which included slashing
pensions by more than €1,500 a
month and more cuts in tax benefits.
His government´s collapse triggered an
election, which could not take place for
another two months. During the interim
Socrates stayed on as acting prime
minister and reached an agreement
with the European Union and the
International Monetary Fund for a
€78bn bailout. The terms? Almost
exactly the same as those proposed by
him and rejected by the Portuguese
parliament six weeks earlier.
When the elections finally took place
the political class could sense a certain
degree of cynicism. The Portuguese
president, Anibal Cavaco Silva, warned
voters they could not complain about
what... |
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| |  | | CASH CON BY
CORPORATES |
| WATCHING the evolution
of economic discussion
in
Washington over the
past couple of years
has been a disheartening experience.
Month by month, the discourse
has gotten more primitive;
with stunning speed, the lessons
of the 2008 financial crisis have
been forgotten, and the very ideas
that got us into the crisis - regulation
is always bad, what´s good
for the bankers is good for
America, tax cuts are the universal
elixir - have regained their
hold.
And now trickle-down economics
- specifically, the idea that
anything that increases corporate
profits is good for the economy -
is making a comeback.
On the face of it, this seems
bizarre. Over the past two years
profits have soared while employment
has remained disastrously
high. Why should anyone believe
that handing even more money to
corporations, no strings... |
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 | Evans pips Contador in stage 4
TWO-TIME runner-up Cadel
Evans of BMC held off a late
charge from Alberto Contador to
claim a prestigious victory on the
fourth stage of the Tour de France
on Tuesday.
Norwegian Thor Hushovd,
tipped to lose the yellow jersey
after a...
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| | Chile edges out Mexico,
Peru holds Uruguay |  AFTER Brazil and Argentina
had served up dull fare in their
opening matches, the Copa
America finally caught fire on
Monday as Chile came from
behind to edge Mexico and
take command of Group C,
where fancied Uruguay were
held by Peru.
Four draws in five matches,
an average of barely a goal per
game and sub-zero temperatures
had left fans less than
impressed and questioning if
they would see anything
approaching samba-style football
from anybody over the
coming month, Brazil included.
Chile answered the question
emphatically enough - though
Arturo Vidal´s winner against
the Mexicans, a towering header
from a corner, had a rather
Anglo... |
| | New Inter manager has great expectations |
 NEW Inter Milan manager
Gian Piero Gasperini´s only
previous coaching experience
with a major club came with
Juventus´ youth squad.
Not to worry, Gasperini said
during his introduction on
Tuesday as Inter´s fourth
manager in little more than a
year.
"I´ve done well in the past
and I´m expecting to do well
here," the former Crotone and
Genoa coach said. "Inter is
already a great team and we
want to have a great season."
Gasperini signed a two-year
contract last month after previous
manager Leonardo
unexpectedly left to negotiate
an executive position with
Paris Saint-Germain.
Inter won an unprecedented
treble in 2009-10 that
included the European... |
| | India looks to claim series at Windsor Park |
 INDIA head into
Wednesday´s third Test
against the West Indies - and
the inaugural Test at Windsor
Park - looking to close out a
series that they have dominated.
The Indians, who are
ranked the top Test side in the
world, lead the series 1-0 after
winning the first Test by 63
runs inside four days at
Sabina Park in Jamaica. They
also had the better part of the
rain-hit second Test in
Barbados which finished in a
draw. Logic suggests that
their greater experience with
bat and ball will see them
complete a Test and one-day
series double but the two
unknowns remain the weather
- it is hurricane season -
and the pitch.
Windsor Park, located on
the eastern side of the... |
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