The Greek economy is down. Everyone agrees. And I thought everyone agreed now that if you're going to raise taxes it is when the sun shines, not when storm clouds are looming.
Despite that the EU wants Greece to raise €8bn of new taxes, now.
All that can do is kick the Greek economy when it's down, harm any chance of recovery and leave the Greek economy even more parlous than it was before.
When, oh when, will some basic economics get through to the thinking of politicians? Or is that just too much to hope for?
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This has more to do with not letting Greece get away with it than anything to do with economics. This is about stopping Greece escaping perpetual servitude and setting an example to others. The bankers don’t want that so Greece has instead to be made an example of. The bankers are fuelling their own defeat though as by imposing impossible conditions on her they’re forcing Greece out themselves. It’s only a matter of time before the whole criminal edifice comes tumbling down. Tick tock!
It appears that the EU has been totally infiltrated with neo-cons. In which case- does staying in the EU represent sense any longer?
My hope is that people across Europe can influence their governments and MEPs, to argue against the commission. They have some power although the European council, made up of national leaders have the final say. I don’t think the majority of people really believe in neo-liberalism.
if we leave and the EU breaks up and becomes a number of separate states, the work of the neo-liberals will be easier.
I’m worried that Syriza are trying to compromise too much and playing into the hands of the IMF (I’M Fired) austerity dogma. This could weaken the nascent anti austerity movement as James Medway of NEF has pointed out. The neo-libs will then say: ‘look , if you don’t accept austerity you get chaos.’ This shows how hard it is to resist the hegemony of financialisation with its ghastly ‘puppet mistress’ Lagarde. If the anti-austerity movement is weakened this will be a disaster for Europe and could signal the rise of extreme nationalism.
let’s get real here, what is happening in Greece is a humanitarian crisis and on a much smaller scale (at present!) the Tories want us to enter the same territory.
I share your concerns Simon
What is wrong with paying back borrowed money ie. Your debts? Householders run their small domains according to their means, pulling back on (sometimes essential) items in order to stay afloat. What makes a country exempt from spending in relation to its income or paying back borrowed money?
Households and countries are fundamentally different
I have addressed the issue thousands of times
Very simply governments can print money – even if Greece shares that right with others
This means balancing books is not necessary or desirable in most cases, let alone possible
Again…this is largely due to actions by Goldman Sachs and a previous administration. This debt is odious and should be written off.
The ECB could pay off the Greek debt now with QE or printed money and the Greeks could pay back anything they do owe on a realistic payment schedule when the country is back on its feet.
It’s hypocritical that we offer greedy banks such largesse, yet can’t help countries who are in dire straits largely through no fault of their own.
Goldman Sachs philosophy appears to be running the EU/IMF & BIS Central Bank policy. Grab all the sovereign assets, impoverish the population & invest in Asia.
see how many Goldman Sachs people are in positions of power, Mario Draghi at the ECB, Robert Rubin former Secretary of State at the US treasure as was henry Paulson, Romano Prodi, President of the european Commission until 2004,
Not to mention Mark Carney at the Bank of England and allegedly they have people in HMRC & The Treasury.
I always thought Cameron was on the payroll & that was why he couldn’t let the Tax Haven accounts be exposed.
But they can’t print money in Greece since that decision is taken in Frankfurt. Euro fundamentally flawed and shall break up…
But my whole point is that Frankfurt is using that power that Greece should share to exploit Greece