The Situation in Greece, from a Greek perspective

[Pittsey]

I think he has the politics nailed.

http://sturdyblog.wordpress.com/2011/06/18/democracy-vs-mythology-the-battle-in-syntagma-square/

 

[Sebastian]

Ive read the whole thing and i have to say this:

If the greeks work so much, their economy is - relatively - strong and so on then why is the country so god damn broke? Or, and this is the impression that im getting, is he accusing the finance sector for all their shit?

Plus, i cant see - i might have missed it - how he is showing a way out of the greeks miserable situation.

 

[Chronic]

Greeks are hairy people.

 

[Pittsey]

Ive read the whole thing and i have to say this:

If the greeks work so much, their economy is - relatively - strong and so on then why is the country so god damn broke? Or, and this is the impression that im getting, is he accusing the finance sector for all their shit?

Plus, i cant see - i might have missed it - how he is showing a way out of the greeks miserable situation.

The problem is since the Euro, Greece no longer have control over their currency or their economy because they are following the same rules as all the countries in the eurozone. You can't have completely different countries with completely different economies stuck on the same structure.

Also, German banks and French backs have given the Greeks credit they can't possibly afford. This is similar to the sub prime mortgage issues that kick started the recession. No amount of economic support is going to get the greeks out of trouble, they have cut and they have cut. They need to default and bring back the Drachma. Obviously the financial institutions who have invested heavily in Greece aren't going to like this, and would lose Billions....

I have heard certain financial experts compare the Euro and the behaviour from Banks and Economies as modern warfare. The Greeks hold a lot of historical works, some prize islands and apparently a lot of gold. So this is an underhanded way of getting their hands on their assets. Gold is very valuable right now, and there is very little out there. It's a race to see who can get the most. Similar to the issues with oil.

 

[Sebastian]

The problem is since the Euro, Greece no longer have control over their currency or their economy because they are following the same rules as all the countries in the eurozone. You can't have completely different countries with completely different economies stuck on the same structure.

Yes, i read about it. But who is to blame here? The Greeks who wanted to b a part of the eurozone and miscalculated the benefits of being a part of it or somebody else?

Also, German banks and French backs have given the Greeks credit they can't possibly afford. This is similar to the sub prime mortgage issues that kick started the recession. No amount of economic support is going to get the greeks out of trouble, they have cut and they have cut. They need to default and bring back the Drachma. Obviously the financial institutions who have invested heavily in Greece aren't going to like this, and would lose Billions....

Again i know about the problem. Personally i cant understand how a bank can give credits to broke ass countries when its obvious for anybody with only basic knowledge of economics that there is a high risk they wont get their money back. I mean, some of them probably thought: you crazy? It doesnt matter that they are in debt. It been like that forever and everybody was still lending them money.

As far as i understand it the problem is that if the politicians decide to let them off of all their debts then a lot of banks will get in trouble. Which will only cause more trouble outside of Greece. So its kinda like a situation where there is no way out.

 

[Pittsey]

It is financial institutions who are to blame. It's the financial institutions who own the Politicians. It is the financial institutions who are holding Greece to blame.

They should never lend to people who can't afford it. It's against the law if you are a loan shark, but acceptable if you are approved.

 

[S O F I]

Pittsey and his propaganda. I haven't read the article. It's in a tab in my browser, though.

Greeks lied about their public debt with shady accounting to get into the Euro zone, same with Italy. Once in the EU, Greeks were met with favorable credit terms, as well as any country that gets in the EU. They borrowed beyond their means and lived beyond their means. Then, reality hit. To put sole blame on financial institutions is preposterous.

A brief skim of the article reveals that the author is significantly downplaying the issue of the Greek populace not paying taxes. There's even a term in Greek used to describe the situation where everybody pays for everything under the table.

 

[Pittsey]

Pittsey and his propaganda. I haven't read the article. It's in a tab in my browser, though.

Greeks lied about their public debt with shady accounting to get into the Euro zone, same with Italy. Once in the EU, Greeks were met with favorable credit terms, as well as any country that gets in the EU. They borrowed beyond their means and lived beyond their means. Then, reality hit. To put sole blame on financial institutions is preposterous.

A brief skim of the article reveals that the author is significantly downplaying the issue of the Greek populace not paying taxes. There's even a term in Greek used to describe the situation where everybody pays for everything under the table.

Nah, man.

I agree. It is a national hobby in Greece not to pay your taxes. They are responsible for the poor situation they find themselves in. My issue is with the bail outs. And how they are being forced to take bail out which won't help their situation. Their debt is something like 5 Billion Euros. The interest on it for a year is something like 16 Billion euros (if i've got that right?) that is mental.

This issue here is that the european government should be doing their due diligence before allowing countries into the eurozone and financial institutions should not be lending to those who cannot, or who do not want to repay. And like i said above I have read another blog from a well regarded financial analyst about how this is a calculated attempt to gian control of valuable greek assets.

If you read the blog, he isn't really defending the greeks past behaviour, just explaining why they are rioting, and want to default now rather than prolonging the inevitable. I don't back the whole article, I just believe he has the politics spot on.

 

[S O F I]

Yeah, it is no secret that they're being bailed out because European banks, most notably German ones, have a huge exposure in Greece. The bail outs are to protect the banks and the financial system, not to protect the people from suffering.

Anyway, I'm interested in that article you mentioned. Link?

 

[Pittsey]

^^

It was on digital spy forum.

I don't have the link. I am not a member of that forum, a work colleague of mine thought it might have interested me and sent me the link to the blog via IM. I will search for it or get him to resend.

I think the world has gone capitalist crazy these days though. And I'm not sure if I am imagining (like you said earlier, possibly buying into the propaganda).... But... It seems they are no longer hiding their true intentions and no longer care what we think.

 

[Preach]

I have a similar impression to Pittsey's. The world is growing colder.

I'd like to read that other article too, if you find the link.