Media Reaction - Financial Crisis

UNCLAS STOCKHOLM 000653 SIPDIS SECSTATE FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/PPD, EUR/NB, EUR/PA, EUR/FO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO PINS PHUM PREF EUN SW SUBJECT: Media Reaction - Financial Crisis ¶I. On October 1, the conservative Stockholm morning daily "Svenska Dagbladet" opined, "The financial crisis is caused by shameless misers. There is widespread agreement about this undeniable part of the reality. Too much credit has been granted haphazardly. The bonus culture also is one of the villains in the drama. But the fact that there are bad habits among those that caused the crisis does not mean that all those who now tackling the crisis now are paragons of virtue. This was evident last Monday when the House of Representatives said no to the crisis plan.... "Many voters do not want to agree to a proposal they consider is a gift to Wall Street bankers, which made the popularly elected representatives back off from something that is hard to digest despite the fact that it will be beneficial as a whole...Washington DC has had finer moments." II. On October 1, the independent, liberal Stockholm morning daily "Dagens Nyheter" ran a signed editorial by editorial writer Ragnar Roos headlined "A Black Farce" "This is becoming more and more like a black farce. A President on his way out of the White House who has no clout among his own fellow party members, a U.S. Congress where too many members shortsightedly only have their re-election in mind, a financial world where greed and over-smart solutions have caused an almost non-regulated market to collapse.... "But now there is no time for holy principles and fundamentalism. What is most tragic is that many of the Republicans who passed the laws that have contributed to this gigantic market failure now are unwilling to pick up the cleaning bill.... "The U.S. reputation is hurt not only financially but also politically, which can have far-reaching consequences. One can now only hope that the U.S. Congress listens to reason and takes a new vote on a renegotiated finance bill. And that it will be a 'yes.'" III. The apolitical Stockholm business daily "Dagens Industri" commented, "The proposal that was rejected last Monday took as its starting point the risk that the bankers may get off too easy...However, the heavy market reactions may be enough to make a revised packet pass. The reason is that many of the angry voters who scared the House Representatives also hold saving bonds. But the mix of recession, financial crisis, and U.S. elections has proved to be a dangerous cocktail." SILVERMAN