Greece? What gives?

[Coito ergo sum]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/ ... HI20120221

Euro zone finance ministers sealed a 130-billion-euro ($172 billion) bailout for Greece on Tuesday to avert a chaotic default next month after forcing Athens to commit to unpopular cuts and private bondholders to accept deeper losses.

What does the rest of Europe think about Greece?

[Thinking Aloud]

"He got friendly, holding my hand..."
"She got friendly, down in the sannnnd."

[Thinking Aloud]

Damn. Wrong one. Sounds the same.

[Coito ergo sum]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYJgOt0R ... re=related[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wK63eUyk ... re=related[/youtube]

[Clinton Huxley]

I think the whole thing is a disgrace. Greece is being reduced to penury to save the pride of those Eurocrats idealogically wedded to the idea of a single currency. They are perfectly prepared to sacrifice Greece and the Greeks to save the Euro. Germany and Holland whine about having to pay for Greece but Germany in particular has greatly benefited from the single currency, in terms of its exports.

I look at it like this. Greece is, in effect, a "European Treasure". From her stem democracy, western philosophy, science (not to mention saving our asses from those pesky Persians).

If Westminster Abbey was falling down, the UK taxpayer would expect to foot the bill for repairing it. Europe should recognise its debt to Greece, stop whining and pay up. Sure, Greece needs reform but what is going on smacks of kicking someone while they are down.

During World War II, Churchill was asked to consider cutting subsidies for the arts, so more money could go to the war effort. His response - if we don't protect the arts, what exactly are we fighting for?

Merkel, Sarkozy, wouldn't give you tuppence for 'em.

[charlou]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/ ... HI20120221

Euro zone finance ministers sealed a 130-billion-euro ($172 billion) bailout for Greece on Tuesday to avert a chaotic default next month after forcing Athens to commit to unpopular cuts and private bondholders to accept deeper losses.

What does the rest of Europe think about Greece?

What do you think about it, Coito?

[Coito ergo sum]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/ ... HI20120221

Euro zone finance ministers sealed a 130-billion-euro ($172 billion) bailout for Greece on Tuesday to avert a chaotic default next month after forcing Athens to commit to unpopular cuts and private bondholders to accept deeper losses.

What does the rest of Europe think about Greece?

What do you think about it, Coito?

Not sure, really.

I think they have overspent, and are in a state of unsustainable debt and excessive public spending.

Other than that, I'm not really familiar with the ins and outs of the entire situation, how the Euro effects everything, and all that. Hux seems to have more insight.

[charlou]

yah, he does. : )

[Clinton Huxley]

Coito, I know the finances of some US states are in a parlous mess. Supposing a US state had a Greece-sized problem - what would the Federal Govt do?

[Coito ergo sum]

Coito, I know the finances of some US states are in a parlous mess. Supposing a US state had a Greece-sized problem - what would the Federal Govt do?

Given the last 4 years, I think we'd hand out a trillion dollars like it was Halloween candy.

I would hope that Greece might present some lessons as to what "not to do" in the first place.

[Clinton Huxley]

I've seen a proposal that the Elgin Marbles should be returned to Greece, as a show of solidarity. I don't normally support that kind of thing but would make an exception in this case. Little boost for Greek morale.

[klr]

Greece is a basket case. It massively over-borrowed, and should never have been allowed to do so. Blame all around.

[Clinton Huxley]

Greece is a basket case. It massively over-borrowed, and should never have been allowed to do so. Blame all around.

Should never have been allowed into the Euro in the first place. Was encouraged to do so for ideological reasons, resulting in the possibility of cheap borrowing.

Greece needs to put its house in order. Doesn't alter the fact that Germany and Holland are acting like a pair of auditors demanding a starving man sell one of his kidneys to pay off his credit card bill before they will consider giving him a jelly-bean.

One thing Greece DOES need to do is cut its military budget which currently runs at twice the NATO average.

[klr]

Greece is a basket case. It massively over-borrowed, and should never have been allowed to do so. Blame all around.

Should never have been allowed into the Euro in the first place. Was encouraged to do so for ideological reasons, resulting in the possibility of cheap borrowing.

Greece needs to put its house in order. Doesn't alter the fact that Germany and Holland are acting like a pair of auditors demanding a starving man sell one of his kidneys to pay off his credit card bill before they will consider giving him a jelly-bean.

One thing Greece DOES need to do is cut its military budget which currently runs at twice the NATO average.

I was going to mention that. Greece has ridiculously large armed forces. Some of the tech isn't the newest of course, but nonetheless the amount of military hardware compared against the population size and GDP is jaw-dropping.

[MrJonno]

I look at it like this. Greece is, in effect, a "European Treasure". From her stem democracy, western philosophy, science (not to mention saving our asses from those pesky Persians).

Modern Greece has about as much in common with Plato and Aristotle as your average teabagger American has with christianity. It only about 170 years old.

Anyway it needs to be bailed out as religious nationalists in the Balkans who are also completely broke is not a good combination (see Serbia in the 90's)