Europe to Rescue Ireland

Another European Union member state is at risk: After Greece surrendered to an emergency bailout about six months ago, Ireland is following suit. The EU and the International Monetary Fund agreed Sunday night to give the struggling, bankrupt country more than 80 billion euros, or more than $100 billion, to stabilize its economy and start getting its banks under control. Officials stressed that reckless lending in Ireland’s banking sector, as opposed to the public corruption and fiscal irresponsibility as in Greece, made the rescue necessary. “Irish banks will become significantly smaller...so that they can gradually be brought to stand on their own two feet once more,” the country’s prime minister said. The EU hopes the bailout will give Portugal, another struggling economy, enough confidence to avoid a similar emergency intervention.