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De Omnibus Dubitandum - Lux Veritas

Sunday, July 5, 2015

Will Greece Be The Lesson in Socialism, Economics and Stupidity the EU Needs!

By Rich Kozlovich

Greece is toast and the EU is doomed! Elena Becatoros and Demetris Nellas wrote the article, Greece enters uncharted territory after referendum 'no' vote, saying:
“Greece lurched into uncharted territory and an uncertain future in Europe's common currency Sunday after voters overwhelmingly rejected demands by international creditors for more austerity measures in exchange for a bailout of its bankrupt economy. Results showed 61 percent voted "no," compared with 38 percent for "yes," with 93 percent of the vote counted. The referendum - Greece's first in more than four decades - came amid severe restrictions on financial transactions in the country, imposed last week to stem a bank run that accelerated after the vote was called thousands of jubilant government supporters celebrated in Syntagma Square in front of Parliament, waving Greek flags and chanting "No, no, no!" It was a decisive victory for Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who had gambled the future of his 5-month-old leftist government - and his country - in an all-or-nothing game of brinkmanship with Greece's creditors from other European countries that use the euro currency, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank."Today we celebrate the victory of democracy," Tsipras said......"a bright day in the history of Europe." "We proved even in the most difficult circumstances that democracy won't be blackmailed"

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras - are you really that stupid? Just how is insisting you pay your bills and repay the money you borrowed with promises you clearly were unable to keep and clearly never intended to keep - blackmail? Where are you seeing a bright day in all of this? As for the brain dead people who applaud you –they’re blithering idiots.

Those of you who've been reading P and D for some time know I believe Greece is toast and should be! This week a friend was telling me how badly he felt for the Greeks. He said he was shocked they can't even draw all their money out of the bank – “How can they do that”, he asked? I told him this was just the beginning. The government will eventually confiscate all the money in the banks, and now it's already being talked about. I also told him I wasn't the least bit sorry for the Greeks - they brought this on themselves and they deserve whatever happens to them.

He wasn’t alone in his disbelief though. In Mark Steyn’s article, Big Fat Greeks, and Weddings he quoted Angeliki Psarianou, a 67-year-old retired public servant, who stood in the drizzle after arriving too late at one empty ATM in the Greek capital. "How can something like this happen without prior warning?" His answer to Ms. Psarianou? “Don't you just hate it when the Germans refuse to re-fill your ATM?” Especially since she’s a retired government “worker” (later you will see why I deliberately put that in quotes) is one of the major reasons Greece is going down the toilet.

Somehow they think this vote gives them leverage with creditors and lenders. Why? Are they that delusional? Or is it possible the birth place of logic has now abandoned any resemblance to their ancestors and gotten completely stupid? Both! When one adopts socialism it requires a level of delusional stupidity that's incomprehensible to the rational mind. What exactly do they think they have to bargain with? They have no assets, they have no money, and although on paper they should have a thriving economy – they’re in the toilet.

Here's what fascinates me. The population of Greece is 11.03 million people. The population of Ohio is almost 11.59 million people, and the population of the Greater New York City Metropolitan area is 19 million 950 thousand people. How did they get into such trouble with that few people? It's simple. They have a burdensome incompetent bureaucracy, their citizenry demand great benefits and yet fail to pay their taxes, there is a high level of corruption and they're ability to compete in the global marketplace is low.

If they can't pay the interest on the loans they already have, what makes them think they can convince someone to give them more loans. One Greek citizen, Yiannis Gkovesis 26, says "We don't want austerity measures anymore. This has been happening for the last five years and it has driven so many into poverty, we simply can't take any more austerity," First of all, the so-called austerity programs never went into effect, so how did he suffer?

Steyn points out another major problem. Their birth rate! He notes: “The United States has a fertility rate of around 2.1 — or just over two kids per couple. Greece, as I pointed out in America Alone, has one of the lowest fertility rates on the planet - 1.3 children per couple, which places it in the "lowest-low" demographic category from which no society has recovered and, according to the UN, 178th out of 195 countries. In practical terms, it means 100 grandparents have 42 grandkids – ie, the family tree is upside down.”

The Greeks somehow think 42 future people will pay off the waste, corruption, greed and profligacy of 100 people today. Steyn goes on to say:

Greek public sector employees are entitled not only to 14 monthly paychecks per annum during their "working" lives, but also 14 monthly retirement checks per annum till death. Who's going to be around to pay for that?

So you can't borrow against the future because, in the crudest sense, you don't have one. Greeks in the public sector retire at 58, which sounds great. But, when ten grandparents have four grandchildren, who pays for you to spend the last third of your adult life loafing around?

Greek public servants have their nose to the grindstone 24/7: They work 24 hours a week for seven months of the year. It's not just that every year you receive 14 monthly payments, but that you only do about 30 weeks' work for it. For many public-sector "workers", the work day ends at 2.30pm. Gosh, when you retire on your 14 monthly pension payments, you scarce notice the difference, except for a few freed-up mornings...

Greeks are going to learn about reality the hard way –via some very unpleasant experiences. The problem with socialism is you eventually run out of other people’s money and when they finally realize they’ve nothing to bargain with rioting will undoubtedly break out as it has in the past.
 
So who cares?



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