During the late 1990s there was a lot of talk about the cause of the Celtic Tiger. As the downturn continues to deepen, it becomes pretty obvious to this non-economist that the biggest influence was the combination of American investment and a favorable exchange rate.
Now that the euro has gained around 35% in value against the dollar in the past 2 years we may see the opposite of a celtic tiger. The effects on tourism are only a small part of the pain we will feel if a strong euro drives American investment to the "sterling" regions.
