Europe drops a Grecian urn and it shatters. Ode To A Grecian Urn: Beauty is truth and truth is beauty. That is all ye know and all ye need to know. That, and how to handle something delicate.
The situation in Greece is not Europe’s fault, and any attempt to imply such is idiocy. Greece has been committing national suicide for years now. Blaming anyone else is just stupid.
If the Greeks are such bad credit risks, why did they keep lending them money? I don’t think the strategy of squeezing a country that is on it’s financial knees will actually produce any more money. The banks should take the haircut they richly deserve and the Greeks need to get their act together and fix their government so that it actually works.
It’s like this….[]Amount of money Greece needs for a bailout.$370 Billion[]Amount of bailout money various US banks ACTUALLY RECEIVED—————————————Citigroup: $2.513 TrillionMorgan Stanley: $2..014 TrillionMerrill Lynch: $1.949 TrillionBank of America: $1.344 TrillionGoldman Sachs: $814 BillionJP Morgan Chase: $391 Billion-—————————————————————But only ONE of the above is making the right wingers run around with their hair on fire, screaming “Socialism! Socialism!”Why is that?
The IMF “loaned” Greece $280 thousand million as a “bailout”. Guess how much of that was actually received by Greece? 10%. The rest went to the banks to keep them going. Unless the banks can be brought to heel any debt at all is a trap.
It is great to see what good business our bankers are doing. In the bad old days before the Euro, the Greeks only took out sovereign loans in drachmas. Then they printed enough drachmas to repay the loans. So if they wanted Dr 1 billion, which was about DM 3,000, and the German banks loaned them the DM 3,000, the Greeks would repay the Dr 1 billion with interest, which would be worth about DM 150. So German banks wouldn’t loan to Greece..Then Greece joined the Euro and the German banks rushed to offer sovereign loans in Euros that they knew the Greeks wouldn’t be able to repay. But a sovereign debt MUST be repaid. So now Greece has to stop wasting money feeding its people and providing any healthcare, and all that money has to go to service the debt (but it won’t even cover the interest). So Greece must privatise, meaning sell off all of Greece at foreclosure prices..The bankers, for their hard work, should make out like bandits, which is just how the International Economy is supposed to work.
Years before the crisis I remember reading somewhere that evading taxes was a popular public sport in Greece. I wonder if that had anything to do with the problem.
Stan King almost 9 years ago
The situation in Greece is not Europe’s fault, and any attempt to imply such is idiocy. Greece has been committing national suicide for years now. Blaming anyone else is just stupid.
dshans almost 9 years ago
That’s Ode ON a Grecian Urn, Tom.
Richard Howland-Bolton Premium Member almost 9 years ago
So how much DOES a Grecian earn?
(not enough by all accounts)
moosemin almost 9 years ago
Apparently, not all European countries are thinking as “Europe”.
Theodore E. Lind Premium Member almost 9 years ago
If the Greeks are such bad credit risks, why did they keep lending them money? I don’t think the strategy of squeezing a country that is on it’s financial knees will actually produce any more money. The banks should take the haircut they richly deserve and the Greeks need to get their act together and fix their government so that it actually works.
Simon_Jester almost 9 years ago
It’s like this….[]Amount of money Greece needs for a bailout.$370 Billion[]Amount of bailout money various US banks ACTUALLY RECEIVED—————————————Citigroup: $2.513 TrillionMorgan Stanley: $2..014 TrillionMerrill Lynch: $1.949 TrillionBank of America: $1.344 TrillionGoldman Sachs: $814 BillionJP Morgan Chase: $391 Billion-—————————————————————But only ONE of the above is making the right wingers run around with their hair on fire, screaming “Socialism! Socialism!”Why is that?
King_Shark almost 9 years ago
The IMF “loaned” Greece $280 thousand million as a “bailout”. Guess how much of that was actually received by Greece? 10%. The rest went to the banks to keep them going. Unless the banks can be brought to heel any debt at all is a trap.
PainterArt Premium Member almost 9 years ago
There are plenty of “Greece”s in the United States. We should do what European Union is doing to Greece and cut them off?
Mickey and Delia almost 9 years ago
It is great to see what good business our bankers are doing. In the bad old days before the Euro, the Greeks only took out sovereign loans in drachmas. Then they printed enough drachmas to repay the loans. So if they wanted Dr 1 billion, which was about DM 3,000, and the German banks loaned them the DM 3,000, the Greeks would repay the Dr 1 billion with interest, which would be worth about DM 150. So German banks wouldn’t loan to Greece..Then Greece joined the Euro and the German banks rushed to offer sovereign loans in Euros that they knew the Greeks wouldn’t be able to repay. But a sovereign debt MUST be repaid. So now Greece has to stop wasting money feeding its people and providing any healthcare, and all that money has to go to service the debt (but it won’t even cover the interest). So Greece must privatise, meaning sell off all of Greece at foreclosure prices..The bankers, for their hard work, should make out like bandits, which is just how the International Economy is supposed to work.
Mickey and Delia almost 9 years ago
https://www.stratfor.com/weekly/greek-vote-and-eu-miscalculation?utm_source=freelist-f&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Gweekly&utm_campaign=20150707&utm_content=readmoretext&mc_cid=fe84a80645&mc_eid=e61b98804d#
benbrilling almost 9 years ago
Years before the crisis I remember reading somewhere that evading taxes was a popular public sport in Greece. I wonder if that had anything to do with the problem.