Ireland: Going For Broke

Of all the places to see the global economic mess in action, Ireland wouldn’t be first on my list. But a rather stunning (and depressing) piece by Timothy Egan points out that one in eight houses in Ireland is empty, and that the housing crisis that’s made a mess of Cleveland, Detroit, and much of the rest of the country is similarly unfurling in Ireland. This is bad news considering the island’s rapidly tanking economy. Egan writes:

“The skyline is crowded with idle cranes towering over roofless apartments. Property prices have plummeted…. And as the government plans drastic service cuts, people worry that Ireland will follow Iceland into insolvency.”

Sad! You can read the whole thing here.