The Greece Fiasco

This could well be a crucial week for Greece.  You’ve probably read that sentence somewhere every week since the banking crisis of 2008.

I’ve never been to Greece. In the early 70s I organised a holiday there but it was cancelled for reasons beyond my control.  I’ve never had a desire to try again.

How often have we heard about Greece’s financial problems in the last few years?  It’s becoming boring and I’ve more or less given up reading about the country’s woes as the same protracted negotiations with the EU rumble on.

It appears the Greeks want to stay in Europe.  Little wonder really because if they returned to the drachma they would have to make all purchases in cash.  

Without a release of cash before 30 June, Greece would become the only developed country in history to default on the International Monetary Fund.

A family friend has just returned from a week’s holiday in Greece.  They were on the mainland but became acquainted with an Athenian couple who own two hotels in the Aegean Islands.  During the week the political problems of Greece were discussed and the Athenians were angry at their government’s proposal to increase the VAT on the islands. Profits would be greatly reduced and their intention was to sell their businesses if possible. That didn’t seem to concern them as they seldom kept an island business for more than a few years and when asked why, the answer was ‘It’s good to keep moving around’.  The horror of having to pay tax was too much for them to bear it seems.

What could possibly go wrong with the latest proposals for VAT on island businesses?  One of the major problems is that the Greeks do not pay tax so the cunning plan to ask them to pay massive new taxes is a non-starter.

Greece has never had a large enough GDP to service the interest on it’s €320bn debt, let alone any of the capital yet the ECB has continue to loan them billions.

I’ve no doubt by 30 June a suitable arrangement will be made with the ECB financiers and the people will once again be lulled into a false sense of security - until the next time their government can’t meet their creditors demands.  

It won’t be too long.

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How Poor Is Greece?

A guest post from John Souter.

How ‘Poor’ is Greece Now & How Poor Will it Be?

Who would have believed the 21st century version of blitz-krieg would be waged by the use of speculation backed by computed digits and Monopoly money?

This is the financial shaman’s version of the neutron bomb – the one that supposedly annihilated all life forms but left the real estate and assets untouched and ripe for the victors spoils. Not a bad result for a threat backed by nothing more than a myth and a lobotomised propaganda machine.

Was this a conspiracy or a cock-up? Is Greece merely a tactical test case to test a greater strategy? Iceland blew up, but it wasn’t part of the EU and didn’t play the game, choosing instead to let their banks go to the wall. And, anyway, Iceland was too small to be treated as a test case. ( Though strangely the money men have already decided Iceland can come back into the funny money club if it wants to – perhaps the club doesn’t want any country to survive and progress out with the clubs ‘largesse’ of debt and interest?)

Ireland and Portugal for the moment have played into the austerity pack of socialising real costs in order to pay real interests for computed Monopoly debts that circled only within the speculators and did nothing for their real productive economies. So for the present, they will be allowed to continue paying the pawn fee while the broker decides whether to sell their pawned assets or keep them in escrow.

Until that is Greece succumbs or is subdued and the tactic is proved successful; then the PIIGS will be transformed to exactly one letter less than the acronym and given the same neutron treatment.

Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Italy are already on the conveyor. The new Baltic and eastern European entrants have little in the way of reserves or financial clout to be able to withstand the ‘new’ club rules. Then on to France and the UK, both of whom, for the moment, are claiming the role of self sufficient internal and external gualeiters while in reality they are in just as much, if not more, hock to the Financial Storm Troopers as the countries they’re victimising.

Some economists argue this isn’t a moral issue, purely an exercise in fiscal control. They might have a point if the money, the debt and usury charged were real and thereby creating real hardship for the alleged investors. But they’re not. It’s electronic Monopoly money that hasn’t even incurred the cost of the paper it isn’t printed on.

If we allow this idiocy to win even a tactical skirmish we may as well write off the last five hundred years, democracy and the advance of civilization; and gird our loins with the sackcloth of feudal serfdom to serve the alchemy of the Overlords of Financial Funny Money.

Whether through ignorance, incompetence or prior recruitment to their cause this is exactly what our political masters and their technocratic gualeiters want. There’s a lot of ‘profit’ in it and it would make their lives so much easier not to have to spin their way through the demands democracy places on them.

For now we still have a choice. Either the easy way of apathy, or we take a myth by its mythical horns, expose it to the ridicule it warrants and deserves, then carve out for ourselves, our communities and our nations a real life based on our real values.

In the real world, the Greeks are our neighbours and the rats in the financial shaman’s laboratory. How long before it’s our turn?

John Souter

20/02/12

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The Greek Experiment

Why would any country be serious about joining the European Union?

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Greece May Fail But Athens Will Still Stand

Greece prides itself on the strength of its democracy, but despite the number of demonstrations which have taken place outside its parliament, their politicians like to stress that modern Greeks' enthusiasm for protest shows an 'admirable continuity with the golden age of Periclean Athens'.

Is it any wonder the Greeks are upset with their present situation when their politicians are so utterly blinkered?

Richard North has followed this Greek tragedy for some time and believes Greece's association with the Euro will fail and result in problems for the UK - as if we haven't enough. Yet I agree. There are so many faults within the EU structure which have been allowed to grow out of control with hardly a word of protest from any of the 27 nations.  Let's not forget the EU's auditors have refused to sign off their accounts for some years.  Why isn't that a serious concern of member nations?

Also there is the 'small' fact that one of the member nations hasn't had an elected government for over a year - a record last set in November 2010 by Iraq.  This does pose the question 'is government necessary' but that's for future discussion.

I'm sure many of you will be following the Greek situation with varying degrees of interest but may I suggest you read this because it's written by a Greek.

In the past few months I've read of demands to sell off Greek islands and other assets.  Why not I thought, most of the UK doesn't belong to those who owned Britain of 100 years ago, but long ago the British stopped protesting at being bought out by other countries.

Many of the UK's future heritage sites are owned by foreign companies.  The London Eye is one. Much of Scotland's land belongs to foreigners and we give it away regularly without a whisper of complaint.

The Greek protests are complex but they're similar to what was left to us during the Labour years.  We're not in a position to criticise the Greeks.

The remains of ancient Athens will hopefully still remain in the country's hands, but who knows?  Gordon Brown suggested selling off the white cliffs of Dover to raise money for his extravagance in supporting radical left-wing Labour funding lobbyists.

My bet is that the Greeks don't sell their heritage to others.  They may be bankrupt but the people know what is of value to them.  Their history. They'll protect that stoically and with a determination which has yet to been seen in other countries which have been subjected to the power of the EU.  Ireland is but one example - with its two referenda.

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