What has happened to Ireland in recent weeks almost beggars belief. Almost, but not quite. After all, there are economists who have been predicting the inevitability of all of this since before the ill-fated ‘cheapest bank bailout in history’—the Irish government’s blanket guarantee of depositors and bond-holders back in 2008. The snowballing effect of steeper and steeper estimates for the total cost of this bailout freaked the bond markets (on whom countries rely for money they can’t raise in taxes) to such an extent that the return on a ten year Irish bond

When Jacquie Berglund walks into a room, people take notice. Her energy abounds and her smile is contagious. She’ll even admit to hugging just about everyone, from her vice president of marketing to the people at her public relations and advertising firms.