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What's happening in Greece right now
#41
Austerity Measures Demanded by E.U.-IMF Cripple Nation

Greece continues to face political turmoil over a sovereign debt crisis that has embroiled the country for almost two years. On Monday, the Greek government said it would hold new elections in the face of massive demonstrations against a new austerity package that was approved on Sunday in exchange for a European Union-International Monetary Fund bailout. Under the austerity deal, Greece will fire 15,000 public sector workers this year and 150,000 by 2015. The minimum wage will be reduced by 22 percent, and pension plans will be be cut. As lawmakers voted, 100,000 people protested outside the Parliament building in Athens. Some protesters engaged in rioting, looting and setting fire to dozens of stores and buildings. Some 160 people were detained, and dozens were treated for injuries. To discuss the latest in Greece, we're joined by Maria Margaronis, London correspondent for The Nation magazine. She was in Greece last week covering the economic crisis there. Margaronis says Greece faces an "impossible choice" "either to default on its loans by March, when it owes a massive loan payment, or to accept this desperate austerity program, which will further sink the economy... The Greek people have really had enough of this. People are exhausted and desperate. On the street in Athens, there's a sense of everything breaking down." [includes rush transcript]

AMY GOODMAN: Greece continues to face political turmoil over a sovereign debt crisis that's embroiled the country for almost two years. On Monday, the Greek government said it would hold new elections in the face of massive demonstrations against a new austerity package that was approved Sunday in exchange for a European Union-International Monetary Fund bailout.

Under the austerity deal, Greece will fire 15,000or one in fivepublic sector employees, reduce the minimum wage by 22 percent, and cut pension plans. Greek union leader Vassilis Korkidis condemned the austerity deal

VASSILIS KORKIDIS: The new austerity measures were voted yesterday from the Greek parliament, but this is only temporary. We think that the Greek economy may, for the time being, be safe. We don't know for how long. We believe that in six months we'll be in the same position. And the only thing that we are sure is that the Greek society is poorer, and the Greek political system is bankrupt.

AMY GOODMAN: As lawmakers voted, 100,000 Greeks protested outside the Parliament building in Athens. Some protesters engaged in rioting, looting and setting fire to dozens of stores and buildings. Over 160 people were detained. Dozens were treated for injuries.

The Greek vote paves the way for the European Union and the International Monetary Fund to hand over $72 billion in rescue loans. But following the protests and ahead of a key meeting in Brussels Wednesday, European officials suggested the bailout could be delayed until early next month, adding further uncertainty to an already volatile situation.

To discuss the latest in Greece, I'm joined by Maria Margaronis, London correspondent for The Nation magazine. She has just returned from Greece covering the economic crisis there.

Describe what is happening in Greece, Maria.

MARIA MARGARONIS: Well, Greece is in the throes of a multiple breakdown, economic breakdown. The economy has been in recession for five years. We now have massive unemployment, homelessness among not only poorer people but also middle-class people who never would have expected to find themselves out on the streets but are losing their jobs. Unemployment among young people is about 50 percent. Those who can are leaving the country to find work elsewhere. And it'sthe scenes on the street in Athens are like nothing anyone has seen, I would say, since the 1940s: people queuing for food at soup kitchens, graffiti everywhere

AMY GOODMAN: Maria, we're goingwe're calling you on your land line, because, though we're speaking to you via Skype, the sound just isn't good enough. I think we're going to go to a break, and then we're going to come back, so we can make sure everyone hears what you have to say. Maria Margaronis is The Nation magazine's London correspondent. She has just come back from Athens. This weekend, 100,000 people protested the austerity plan, which means one in five public workers will be fired. Something like 15,000 people are expected to lose their jobs. We'll be back with Maria Margaronis in a minute.

[break]

AMY GOODMAN: We return to Maria Margaronis, on the phone now, just out of Athens, Greece. Again, describe what you found there and what is at stake, Maria, in Greece.

MARIA MARGARONIS: Well, what is at stake, Greece is in an almostI'm sorry, should I turn off the Skype?

AMY GOODMAN: Yes, please.

MARIA MARGARONIS: I'm getting likeOK. OK, there we go.

So, what's at stake? Greece is in an extremely difficult situation. It's been set this impossible choice by the European Union, the European Central Bank and the IMF, which is either to default on its loans by March, when it owes a massive loan payment, or to accept this desperate austerity program, which will further sink the economy, which has been in recession now for five years and is really now in a deep depression. As you said, it involves a 22 percent cut to the minimum wage. It involves laying off not 15,000, but 150,000 public sector workers by 2016, and many other changes.

And the Greek people have really had enough of this. People are exhausted and desperate. On the street in Athens, there's a sense of everything breaking down. A lot of stores have closed. The ones that are open all have 50 percent sales on. You see people looking through garbage for something to eat. Homelessness has increased horrendously, so that where in the past you would only see recent immigrants queuing at homeless shelters, now many Greeks who were formerly middle-class people with good jobs and laptops and cars and so onyou know, the full middle-class lifestyleare finding themselves out on the streets.

AMY GOODMAN: What about healthcare right now, how people are getting access to healthcare, Maria?

MARIA MARGARONIS: Healthcare is also in a very difficult situation, because when you lose your job in Greece, you also lose your healthcare, so that, for example, last week I went to see a clinic that's been set up by the Athens Doctors Association to treat people who have lost their healthcare in that way and which is being staffed by unemployed doctors. Some doctors who are working, they're volunteering, but also young doctors who have graduated but, because there's a complete freeze on hiring in the public sector, can't get a job in the public health system. I spoke to one young pediatrician who has a graduate degree in child development from Denver, Colorado, who's working there for free and who told me that a number of families are now not vaccinating their children because they can't afford to pay for the vaccines. So, we're on the verge of a health disaster in Greece, as well.

AMY GOODMAN: Talk about the position of the Greek government, the power of the protesters, and whether there's any sense that this can be turned around.

MARIA MARGARONIS: OK. The Greek government votedit's a coalition government betweenit used to be the three parties: the two main partiesthe center-right and the center-leftwith a far-right party called LAOS. Now, LAOS pulled out before the last austerity vote, because its popularity was dropping as a result of supporting the austerity measures. And we have a caretaker prime minister, Lucas Papademos, who is a former banker from the European Central Bank, who is an appointed prime minister. The vote onduring the vote on Sunday, a third of MPs voted against the new measuresthat is, for default, effectivelywhich is quite an extraordinary number. And as a result, a number of MPs were expelled from the two main parties. So there's a rejigging of the political system going on now. There's general rage in Greece with the old politicians for having brought the country to this point. And there's a real lack of new blood in Parliament, people who people trust to be able to turn things around.

The protests are also a complex scene, because what you see on the street in Athens, both in October and now inon Sunday, is a complete cross-section of people from all walks of life, all agespensioners, working people, unemployed people, students, everybody. There's also the large group now of hooded black-clad protesters who also are a complex scene. There's a quite a strong anarchist movement in Greece. Some of them belong to the more violent tendencies of that. There's also some far-right involvement, possibly. And a lot of people are certain that there are some of these protesters who actually are working with the police to cause trouble. So, a huge demonstration of, I would say, well over 100,000 people in Athens on Sunday.

The first thing that happened is that the police set to with tear gas to clear people from Syntagma Square, which is in front of Parliament, because that's where all the TV cameras of the foreign stations are lined up on the top floors of the grand hotels. And the policy in the last demonstrations has been to get people out of the square, so that, you know, the demonstration isn't seen. And then unbelievable street battles began between the police, with tear gas and truncheons and boots, and the hooded protesters, throwing firebombs and Molotov cocktails and marble shards. And 45 buildings in Athens were set alight. It's a miracle that nobody was killed. And Athens now looks like a devastated war zone.

There's noI spoke to a friend who was at those protests, and she described a feeling of real despair, that there's no vision, there's no sense of a way out for Greece, apart from default, which is also an extremely painful option, unless the E.U. and the ECB and the IMF change their policy, realize that austerity isn't working, is never going to work, and that the plan that they've now set in motion is only going to lead Greece to default further on down the line.

AMY GOODMAN: Maria Margaronis, how are people organizing?

MARIA MARGARONIS: Well, the interesting thing that's happening is, a lot of very small local groups, some of whom began last summer in Syntagma Square, where there was the birth of the popular democracy camp, which has now moved into the neighborhoodsso you see people organizing, sometimes through their local councils, to resist the tax that's been placedthe property tax that's charged through people's electricity bill. And the penalty for nonpayment of the tax is that the electricity gets cut off. Now, the government is beginning to retreat on this, partly because a number of boroughs have organized their citizens to just not pay it.

And we're also seeing a great outpouring of solidarity. I was at a homeless shelter in Athens last week and talking to people there. And while I was there, several people arrived with quilts and blankets. One of the things that's happening is that you can't tell anymore who are the clients, if you like, of these shelters and who are the volunteers. I went up to one young woman, and I said, "Hello. Are you a volunteer?" She said, "Yes, I'm a volunteer. I'm also homeless and unemployed." And she had been sleeping on a park bench in Piraeus until she got there and is now both at the shelter and also helping at the shelter.

AMY GOODMAN: Is the fall

MARIA MARGARONIS: So that's the heartening thing, is people are really coming together and pulling together.

AMY GOODMAN: Is the fall of the Greek government imminent, do you think?

MARIA MARGARONIS: I don't think so. They have now scheduled elections for April or possibly early May. I don't think this government is going to fall before then, unlessand this isyou know, there's still a real question as to whether the loan will be forthcoming, despite the vote in Parliament. There are still a number of steps that have to be gone through. The party leaders all have to sign up to implementing the measures before the election, which makes the election a bit of a travesty, since they won't have any choice about what policy to pursue. And then the Bundestag has to approve it, the German Bundestag, and the troika of the E.U., the ECB and the IMF also have to approve it. So, there's still a real possibility that that loan won't come through, in which case we have disorderly default in March. And then, at that point, the government may fall. But if that doesn't happen, I think we will go to elections. But those elections will be very turbulent and very unpredictable, I would say.

AMY GOODMAN: And the effect on Europe? Moody's Service cut the debt ratings of six European nations on Monday, including Italy, Spain and Portugalthe outlooks.

MARIA MARGARONIS: Right. Well, I think what the troika are trying to do is put a firewall around Greece and somehow cauterize the problem. But I don't think this is going to work, because I think it's very clear now that this is a pan-European problem and its root causes are the financial crisis that began in 2008 and also the structural problems in the eurozone, where there was nothere was no policy put in place to deal with profound inequalities between the northern and the southern countries. So, unless those things are resolved, unless some kind of Eurobond system is put in place, unless some sort of investment program for the southern countries and also Ireland is put in place, the crisis in Europe will continue.

AMY GOODMAN: I want to thank you for being with us, Maria Margaronis, speaking to us from London, just returned from Greece. She's writing pieces for The Nation magazine and The Guardian.
"Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws. - Mayer Rothschild
"Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience! People are obedient in the face of poverty, starvation, stupidity, war, and cruelty. Our problem is that grand thieves are running the country. That's our problem!" - Howard Zinn
"If there is no struggle there is no progress. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and never will" - Frederick Douglass
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#42
Some good commentary from Nikos Raptis here:
Quote:

Merkel's Incredible Feat! (Part one)


By Nikos Raptis

Wednesday, February 15, 2012


Angela Merkel (a Cheney - Rumsfeld - Wolfowitz "offering" to the world) managed to turn almost an entire society, the Greek society, into a healthy political force; a leftist force.

"The Saxon Lady ... had 'a 40-minute lunch at the Pentagon ... with Rumsfeld and his deputy, Paul Wolfowitz'. She 'drew appreciative laughter when she said that having grown up near Berlin before the fall of the wall, she has a little bit of new Europe in her'..........

In the early months of 2001 she [Merkel] tours America and chats with Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of State Collin Powel. On April 24, 2001 Angela is photographed in the office of Congressman Henry Hide, sitting on a luxurious leather armchair with the American flag in the background............

So the 'baptism' of Angela Merkel in the holy waters of the American Shiloah was underway ... Thus, Merkel advanced in this procedure so much that she 'drew an appreciative laughter' from Rumsfeld and Co., while licking their 'hands' ...

Some of her [German] fellow-politicians [in 2001!] are even afraid of her. (Because they know that if her US baptism goes well, then she will be able to terrorize anybody she feels like.)"

This is an excerpt from my ZNet Commentary, "A Tale of Two Ladies", of March 15, 2003.

Of course, almost three years later, on November 22, 2005, Merkel, the Saxon lady, became "Kanzlerin" of the German folk.

There is no doubt that the majority of the post-Hitler politicians have been fervent arselickers of the US elites. However, the crown goes to Merkel, hands down.

So, it is not unreasonable to accept that the umbilical cord connecting Merkel to the US elite is still there. Which means that her acts as "Kanzlerin" have a lot to do with the "desires" of the US elite.

Which, in turn, leads us to the conclusion that ultimately it is the US elite that have been the originators of the feat accomplished by Merkel in Greece.

Of course, I have to explain what I mean by the expression: a "healthy leftist" society or force. This is necessary because, the term "Left" has become meaningless. For example, in the US, Obama - of the drones, of the US Navy Seals murderers, of the bonuses to the Wall Streeters, etc - is considered a "leftist"!

I think that a person is a "healthy leftist", if he or she:

- is not an asshole (most of his life)

- talks to his neighbor

- helps his neighbor (when in need)

- does not exploit his neighbor

- does not support covert or overt authoritarianism

- does not support wars or violence

- does not approve of profit, growth, and competition

- respects nature

- respects justice

- respects knowledge

- respects his fellow-humans

- is modest

So, it seems (repeat: seems) that humans are born as "leftists". The family, schools, the wider social environment, etc., destroy this attribute for many people.

However, there is a situation that forces most persons that have lost their inborn "leftism" to regain it. That situation is poverty. Murray Bookchin, a few years before his death, had come to a similar conclusion.

So, this is what Merkel & Co. have accomplished with the Greek society.

Before, the Merkel "attack" the situation in Greece, as mentioned in previous Commentaries, was approximately the following:

- "Socialists" (PASOK): around 40 %

- New Democracy, conservatives, i.e. rightists: around 35 %

- KKE, Communists (Stalinists): around 6 %

- SYRIZA (Eurocommunist roots): around 3 %

After the Merkel "attack" and the thrusting of 1/3 of the Greek population, about 3.5 million people, into deep poverty, the Greeks regained their inborn leftism, that is their dignity. So the situation today, February 2012, according to recent opinion polls, is the following:

- "Socialist (PASOK): around 10 %

- New Democracy, conservatives: around 30 %
[Which agrees with my claim, in previous writings, that about 33 % of any given population are assholes, a.k.a. conservatives, Republicans, Christian Democrats, etc.]

- KKE, Communists (Stalinists): around 12 %

- SYRIZA (Eurocommunists): around 12 %

- Democratic Left (new party, split from SYRIZA, see below, in "Part Two"): around 13 %

- Greens (with anarchist roots): around 5 %

So, Merkel & Co, in only two years, created a Greek Left that, in all, numbers a political force of around 42%.

This has scared the shit out of the Greek rightists (especially) the neo-Nazis, but mostly Merkel's mentors in Washington, D.C. Also, it is troubling for the Israelis, who have a very chummy relationship with the American-born Greek prime minister, George Papandreou. An exaggeration?

Read this:

In 1958 the Greek party of EDA, a front for the then-outlawed Greek communist party, gained 24.4 of the votes, in the parliamentary elections of that year. The result: a 7-years-long (1967-1974) military dictatorship for the Greeks, offered by the noble people at Langley, as ordered, again, by the US elite.

Therefore, the real problem now is not the "debt", but the "Lefties".

What happened yesterday (Sunday, February 12, 2012) in Athens, can have only one explanation: the Greek population must be terrorized and start doubting about the Left. Because, if the "virus" of the Greek Left spreads to the rest of Europe, then the US elite, and even the ... Chinese elite would be in trouble.

The questions to be answered are:

- Who benefits from yesterday's destruction? Might it be the present Greek government and Merkel & Co.?

- Is there an honest person in the world who will accept that an anarchist will break into small ordinary shops, owned by lower middle-class people, to loot the place clean and turn the family of the small shop-keeper into beggars?

- Why most Greeks, even right-wingers, believe that the two 19th century buildings that were burnt have been "chosen" for "demolition through fire" and for future development, as the buildings, being part of the Greek heritage, were "untouchable" for development during the last half century?

- What explanation can be given for the fact that the destruction "modus operandi" of the hooded persons, and the looting, was so vulgar that it points only to members of the criminal society of prison graduates, hired by the Greek police?

- Why, the minister of Public Order, a certain Christos[!!] Papoutsis, a well-known "hard" person, who supervised the destruction, as the political head of the police, is (for the time being) beyond accountability?

- Why minister Papoutsis prohibited the communist unions, a crowd of about 50,000 people, with a vanguard of tough construction workers, to move to Syntagma Square and face down the hooded provocateurs?

[Note: As I am writing this, on the Greek state-TV, one Panos Beglitis, a PASOK "socialist" and a "chosen person" (in the sense of a "chosen people" by the Almighty) is analyzing to the Greeks what is in stock for them. My guess is that we should remember the name of this rather "aggressive" gentleman.]

Merkel's Incredible Feat! (Part two)


By Nikos Raptis

Saturday, February 18, 2012


As mentioned in "Part one" of this Commentary, Merkel, by thrusting 1/3 of the Greeks into deep poverty, managed to radicalize towards the Left almost the greatest part of the Greek society. Which resulted in the spreading of panic not only in the Greek elites but mostly in the European and US elites.

Let us examine in more detail this new situation:

- An important development has been the split of the (Eurocommunist) "Coalition", today called SYRIZA, in two parts, with the creation, in 2010, of a new party, the "Democratic Left", under the leadership of Fotis Koovelis.

Fotis Koovelis (64) is a mild-mannered lawyer with a diligently cultivated profile of political moderation. He has been part of the Eurocommunist movement after the military dictatorship of 1967.

In the most recent opinion polls the "Democratic Left", the new party of Koovelis, got almost 13 % to 20 % of the vote of the Greeks, while the governing "socialist" PASOK, which has been governing Greece for almost three decades, got around 10 %. Of course the term "socialist" means: a reactionary rightist party, participating in the CIA orchestrated two-party charade.

- The leader of (the Eurocommunist) SYRIZA is Alexis Tsipras, a young (38) and dynamic civil engineering colleague of mine, who, during the last many months has repeatedly attacked quite effectively the corrupt old political guard of the PASOK "socialists" and the Rightists of "New Democracy". Of course, the old guard considers the youth-factor as a ... "defect".

The older members of SYRIZA constitute a rather restraining factor in the present political process. However, there are younger members with solid educational and cultural background that are worthy of the support of the Greeks.

A very positive development not only for SYRIZA but for the Greek society at large, could be the support of SYRIZA by the young Greeks who can push SYRIZA towards a more "social libertarian" (anarchic) attitude.

- The leader of KKE (the Stalinist Communists) is Aleka Papariga (67), a graduate of the "History and Archaeology" department of the University of Athens.

The rank and file of the party, as expected, constitute a very disciplined and dynamic force in the Greek society, who, justifiably, are very proud for the history of their party and for the rivers of blood and the suffering that its members have been undergoing in the hands of the Greek Right, the Nazis, and the US, for almost 3/4 of a century.

Yet, at this specific point in time, their behavior could be crucial not only for the Greeks as a people, but, also, for the rest of Europe, if not for the world. Their hard-headed insistence to go it alone and their contempt for the rest of the Greek Left could be destructive for the struggle of the Greeks. Also, their quasi-religious insistence that the communists hold the absolute truth, is a huge minus for the Left.

Finally, their aggressive disdain for the "social libertarians" (anarchists) has always been (and is) bizarre.

The Greek people will not forgive an undermining of the unique chance present in this, Merkel-initiated, situation. The rank and file of the party should push to avoid such a tragedy. They have to cooperate with the rest of the Left.

- The leader of the Greens is Michalis Tremopoulos (54), a lawyer. He is a Murray Bookchin "social ecologist". A more combative presentation of the Bookchin ideas among the Greeks could add a significant percentage of votes to the Left. Again, it is imperative that the Greens put aside any personal disagreements with the rest of the Left and be part of a wider effort.

- The "social libertarians" (anarchists), are dispersed all over Greece. Naturally, there are (or should not) be any leaders. There is no way for them to participate in the electoral process. However, there is a very simple and effective way to let them present their vision to the Greek people: The other parts of the Left, the Communists, SYRIZA, the Democratic Left, and the Greens could invite them in their rallies, in their TV presentations, etc. to do just that, present their vision, in which the Albert-Hahnel "Participatory Economics" holds an important part.

- Finally there is a very important part of the Left: a very angry Greek people. All the above parts of the Left should seek to contact these ordinary Greeks in sincerity and respect.

On their side, the ordinary Greeks should demand from the above parts of the Left to unite and free the country of the blight; domestic and foreign. My estimate is that the Greeks are so angry and desperate, that, as previously mentioned, they are not going to forgive any irresponsibility on the part of the leaders of the Left.

[Parenthesis: This is the morning of Wednesday February 15, 2012 and this was just announced in Athens: Wolfgang Schaeuble, the German Minister of Finance, decided, in essence, that the Greek parliamentary elections, scheduled for April of 2012, should not take place.]

So, it seems that I was right (in "Part one" of this article): "[The] real problem is not the [Greek] 'debt' but the 'Lefties'".

However, even taking for granted that Merkel "succeeded" to radicalize the Greeks, will the elections change things?

Unfortunately, the (Stalinist) Communists, have, already, expressed the view that the elections are not so important, implying that only a revolution will bring the change.

The rest of the Left spectrum and the majority of the Greeks understand that right now it is imperative to get rid of the corrupt old political structure. After that, it is up to the Greek people to change things and to seek a new vision.

By the way, is the following statement correct: "History teaches that the majority (if not all) of the politicians are problematic persons who decide for themselves that they should be our leaders"? The answer was given by the ordinary Americans of the Clinton era: "Throw the bums out!" However, the same ordinary Americans brought in W. Bush and Obama.

Of course, Noam Chomsky is right: it is the institutions that count. The individuals, as instruments serving the institutions, are simply replaceable. Yet, people like Merkel, Schaeuble, et al, can spread very deep anger to entire populations.

Also, there is an additional dimension, a moral one, in the Greek drama: the racist attitude of the European Schaeubles against the Greeks as humans.

The regular ZNetters will remember the article by Michael Lewis of "Vanity Fair" magazine (ZNet Commentary: "Thackeray's Greeks?" of September 26, 2010) who denigrated the Greeks as a people. Schaeuble does the same as a post-Hitler "good German", for he thinks of himself as a "superhuman" that can dictate to lesser humans his wishes, e.g. when the Greeks should be allowed to hold parliamentary elections.

So, let us check if Schaeuble is right in considering the Greeks as lesser than his German self:

- In the late 1950s George Mastoris, a fellow-student of mine in the Greek Polytechnic and a civil engineering colleague, found himself in Germany at one of the best technical institutions of the land. The German colleagues at the time were faced with a difficult structural problem which they could not solve, in spite of their efforts, for three years. When faced with the problem, Mastoris (the Greek subhuman) solved it in 15 minutes. [In case Dr. jur. (Doktor-in-Law) Wolfgang Schaeuble does not understand the term "structural" here is an aid for him: "Structural" means the mathematical analysis and consequent design of the members of buildings, etc and refers also to the physical properties of engineering materials. Herr Schaeuble: the term definitely does not refer to the "structural adjustments". That is, to give the right, for example, to corporations to push tens of thousands of families to poverty. By the way, Herr Schaeuble, how come you, a member of a supreme race, copied the "wisdom" of the Milton Friedman criminal idiots of the University of Chicago? Or, was it because originally the name might have been ... Friedmann? Or is it that Merkel is still carrying her Rumsfeld & Co. umbilical cored?

Let this be a tribute to the memory of my colleague George Mastoris, who died so young.

- Quite a few years ago Mikis Theodorakis (it is more than certain that Schaeuble knows who he is, not only because Mikis is a mortal class enemy of his, but because Mikis is adored by millions of Germans), was presenting, in Athens, a new work of his, the opera of "Karyotakis". I happened to sit by two German ladies, a middle-aged Mother with her daughter, in the concert hall. Discussing Mikis and his music, I told them (with pride) that Mikis was the Johann Sebastian Bach of the Greeks. The German ladies not only agreed, but told me that the Greeks are lucky because Mikis is alive, while JSB is not. Do you think Herr Schaeuble, that the German ladies committed treason by praising the member of a lower race? Or was it that the ladies, simply, belonged to the 2/3 of normal ordinary humans of the German population, in contrast to the members of the 1/3, defined earlier (in "Part one" of this article)?

- Many years ago Professor S..., the top expert in soil mechanics of Germany, and I were checking in Greece the foundation of the piers of one of the most important bridges in Europe, at the time. He asked my opinion and he agreed with it. Did he, too, commit treason by agreeing with me, given that I belong to a lesser race?

- Do you, Herr Schaeuble, consider that the Greeks are morally corrupt, as does the "Vanity Fair" journalist, because some Greeks, belonging to the Greek 1/3, were not paying taxes or got bribes from Siemens? However, do you have the right to pass such a judgment, when in Regensburg the local priest was fucking the =
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx

"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.

“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
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#43
Όχημα που αναφέρθηκε ότι χρησιμοποιήθηκε για την μεταφορά συλληφθέντων χθες στο κέντρο της Αθήνας. Εδώ είναι έξω από το ΑΤ Εξαρχείων.

Τι μας κάνει εντύπωση; Ότι έχει ιδιωτικές πινακίδες.

This vehicle was reported to be used for the transport of detained citizens yesterday in Athens. Here we can see it outside Exarcheia police station.

What amazes us? It has private number plates.
[Image: 396209_349844205038563_118926818130304_1...4989_n.jpg]


"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx

"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.

“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
Reply
#44
The juice is flowing...

The ECT dial is thrust to eleven...

The prisoner writhes in agony...

Quote:Greeks face further wage cuts as price of latest bailout

EU officials say planned 15% wage cuts on top of 30% already suffered will not be enough


David Gow in Brussels
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 21 February 2012 13.31 GMT

Greeks will have to suffer further wage cuts than the 15% planned for the next three years in order to restore their country's competitiveness, senior EU officials have admitted.

The size of the IMF's contribution to the €130bn bailout finally agreed on Tuesday after 14 hours of negotiations has also yet to be decided, while the European commission will only present proposals for "an enhanced and permanent presence" of debt inspectors in Athens later this week.

Repeatedly conceding that their forecasts were subject to high risks, the officials said the Greek economy would contract by 4.5% this year after a fall of 7% last year and would stagnate in 2013 before growth resumed in 2014.

Unemployment, now running at more than 18%, is expected to remain above this level this year and next, be just below 17% in 2014 and remain above 15% in 2015. But wages will have to be depressed even further to reorientate the Greek economy towards exports.

The government of Lucas Papademos, or its elected successor, will also have to find savings equivalent to 5% of GDP by the end of 2014, with officials talking of stepping up the fight against tax evasion.

Greeks have already suffered a 30% cut in wages and can look forward to steep cuts in the minimum wage as well as pensions as the price for securing the latest €130bn bailout which, with €34.4bn rolled over from the original €109bn rescue package, gives €164.4bn available over the next three years.

The sheer scale of the fresh dose of austerity, doubts over the ability of both the Greek government and the eurozone to reach targets and gaps in the eurogroup deal prompted cynics to suggest the agreement would hold together for only a few months. Some non-eurozone diplomats have already begun speculating about when a third package will be required to keep Greece within the euro.

Papademos, who flew to Brussels to help broker the deal, secured significant backing from a large group of private bondholders for the increased 53.5% nominal "haircut". He also won an extra €10bn in the package for the recapitalisation of Greek banks which now see €50bn set aside.

The proceeds from privatisations, already scheduled to raise €50bn, have so far been a paltry €1.6bn from five transactions and the new programme envisages raising €19bn from 35 transactions. But the full proceeds will only be raised if the Greek state sells off huge tracts of land and buildings, the officials conceded.
"It means this War was never political at all, the politics was all theatre, all just to keep the people distracted...."
"Proverbs for Paranoids 4: You hide, They seek."
"They are in Love. Fuck the War."

Gravity's Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon

"Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yahuarniy hichascancuta."
The last words of the last Inka, Tupac Amaru, led to the gallows by men of god & dogs of war
Reply
#45
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx

"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.

“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
Reply
#46

EXCLUSIVE: GREEK GOVERNMENT ROBBED PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS TO COMPLETE BOND SWAP

[Image: papademoslagarde.jpg?w=500]"But Lucas my dear, if you run out of poor people, you can always steal from the sick"

REVEALED: HOW VENIZELOS REGIME SECRETLY REMOVED 70% OF MAJOR HOSPITAL, UTILITY & UNIVERSITY BANK ACCOUNT FUNDS TO PAY BONDHOLDERS

Bank of Greece complicit in broadscale embezzlement revealed by respectable Greek health site
The illegally denied default of Greece entered a dramatic new phase this afternoon with the revelation by mainstream Greek public health website Health News that, shortly before midnight on March 8th the eve of Greece's psi completion on Friday March 9th on average 70% of public utility funds in varous large, interest-bearing accounts at the Bank of Greece were raided. These included most of the State's regional hospital budgets, various universities and (it is alleged) at least one utility company.The shortfalls came to light late last week and this morning as various hospital purchasing cheques in particular began to bounce. The monies estimated by one source to total some 1.4 billion euros appear to have been used to pay off the tiny minority of private sovereign creditors who, under the original terms of their bond purchase, were entitled come what may to full payment of the bond's yield entitlement.Setting aside the amoral audacity of this act, it does yet again raise the issue of a Greece so utterly lacking in any real funds in the real world, that to pay off a minute proportion of the bondholders it had to resort to such a desperate measure."The Greek government used this money in order to purchase government bonds from various bondholders without getting permission from the bank account owners," one reliable Athens source told The Slog in commenting on the story, "hospitals and universities have been robbed of hundreds of millions of Euros, absolutely essential for their core functionality."
On being pointed at the Health News site, The Slog immediately contacted another of many Athens sources who have flocked to this website in recent weeks. This informant in turn offered access to a senior administrator in a major teaching hospital. The person thus contacted told me: "There can be no doubt about this. It isn't even very subtle. All the monies were withdrawn over a brief period of time on March 8th after normal banking hours. I have spoken to teaching contacts at Universities over the weekend, and it has been confirmed that they too have the same embarrassment. These people are criminals who should be brought to justice. But in the Greece of today, it will not happen".
One final source told me shortly before posting, "The Bank of Greece is naked in this matter. We ask them for the reasons why this has happened, and they claim to have no knowledge of such things. This is ridiculous. This could not have been done without their cooperation. There is nobody now in Greece we can trust".
Equally, nobody should be surprised that senior politicians and government officials have conspired to do such a thing. The Venizelos elite has shown itself to be without ethics or remorse in many ways already. The European Central Bank, Brussels, the IMF and even Berlin have also shown a compliant willingness to look the other way or simply ignore the Law if it suits them so to do. But now, I think institutions around the world and their stakeholders need to look at what's happening in southern Europe and ask themselves, Is this really right? Is any cause worth this amount of depravity and deprivation?'
Footnote: sharp-eyed Sloggers may have noticed that last Friday that ill-starred March 23rd the Greeks once again postponed the time by which English Law bondholders have to participate in psi. The reason: they aren't going to participate, and Athens does NOT have the money to pay them…as the above post demonstrates rather well.

http://hat4uk.wordpress.com/2012/03/26/e...bond-swap/

"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx

"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.

“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
Reply
#47
Tanks and soldiers, jets and warships, are no longer necessary.

Power resides in the mouse clicks on a crooked banker's computer screen.
"It means this War was never political at all, the politics was all theatre, all just to keep the people distracted...."
"Proverbs for Paranoids 4: You hide, They seek."
"They are in Love. Fuck the War."

Gravity's Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon

"Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yahuarniy hichascancuta."
The last words of the last Inka, Tupac Amaru, led to the gallows by men of god & dogs of war
Reply
#48

Syriza Rising

The radical Left in Greece almost rules.
BY RICHARD SEYMOURIn Greece, social democracy is cadaverous, but as yet the social struggles have not produced organs of popular power. Syriza offers a mediating factor between the two.

After a period of worrying decline, some of Europe's Left parties, formed to contest social democracy from the Left, are on the rebound. The remarkable surge of Syriza in Greece is the latest indication of this, emerging in the May 6th elections as the main contender to consolidate the Left. With 16.8 percent of the total, Syriza finished second, only two points behind the center-right New Democracy.
What made this possible is the imposition of "austerity" policies that cut public spending, reduce wages and redistribute the burden of taxes to the working class. Greece's debts have been used as a pretext for a series of assaults on the public sector. In order to secure funds from the European Union to pay off debts to Europe's major banks, Greece had to sign on to the Memorandum of Understanding, which imposed cutbacks and mandated the sell-off of $66 billion worth of public assets at fire-sale prices.
Proclaiming a radical agendatearing up the Memorandum, nationalizing banks, raising the minimum wage, restoring lost benefits for workers, and ending cuts to public-sector jobsSyriza surprised everyone, coming closer to taking office than any other left-of-social-democracy formation in Europe. It has displaced the traditional social democratic party, Pasok (Panhellenic Socialist Movement), as the main party of the Greek working class, beating Pasok in many of its traditional urban strongholds (above all, in Athens). Among blue-collar public-sector workers, Syriza won 27 percent, compared to 10.6 percent for Pasok. Among blue-collar private-sector workers, it won 21 percent, compared to 7 percent for Pasok.
The significance of this is obvious. The stakes in Greece's struggle are graver than any situation in Europe since the Portuguese Revolution in 1974.

Roots of the crisis
Historically, Greek capitalism has been built on the basis of shipping and finance. These two sectors have led Greece's political power bloc, have never paid taxes to support a welfare state, and don't to this day. As such, the Greek welfare state, constructed by Pasok after the dictatorship collapsed in 1974, was funded by the taxes of workers, and extensive borrowing. The result was accumulating budget deficits.
But the strategy of the power bloc was to fully integrate into the European Union, where such deficits were taboo. They were to be suppressed through spending cuts and restructuring, with the remainder concealed by Goldman Sachs. The trouble, though, was that Greece's role in the Eurozone was to act as an export market for Europe's core economiesabove all, Germany. This escalated public and private debt in Greece. If the illusion was that growthspurred by financializationwould eventually pay the bills, the "credit crunch" was a merciless reality check.
When Pasok was elected in 2009 to reverse a series of cutbacks, the country's debts were four times the EU limit. Unwilling to tax the rich, the party's solution was fiscal "credibility"meaning austerity, soaring unemployment and people dying due to lack of medicine.
This began a cycle of protest that recalls the aftermath of Greece's military junta. From the student movement to the Indignados, from the first to the last of 17 general strikes, the tempo has varied, but the trend is one of intense polarization, largely favoring the Left. The problem for Pasok, and the "technocratic" coalition that briefly succeeded it, was that the Greek working class had not suffered a serious defeat of the sort that had been dealt to other groups of workersairline workers in the U.S., for example, or miners in the U.K.
Nor had Greek communism been vanquished. In addition to a number of organizations of the radical Left, major factions were present in the Greek Communist Party and Syriza, both of which contributed to radicalization. Five years of recession, social struggle and escalating austerity have produced a situation in which one faction came close to leading a government of the radical Left. This crisis is not just of an economy or a state, but of a whole social compact, and the systems of political and ideological representation that have bound it together.

Syriza: Duck or rabbit?
There is little agreement among the European Left about what kind of organization Syriza is. From one perspective, it is a typical reformist group with a pro-European strategy that (radical rhetoric aside) will tend toward conciliation with European elites. Those who take this view note the dominance of the ex-Eurocommunist formation Synaspismós (Coalition of Left Movements and Ecology), which makes up about 85 percent of the membership.
A few factors complicate this picture. First, while the radical fringe in Syriza is far from dominant, it is not negligible. Among Syriza's constituents are the Communist Organization of Greece, a Maoist organization and the second-largest group in the coalition, and the International Workers Left, a Trotskyist party. Though the dominant forces in Syriza are indeed relatively moderate, the other forces are not a mere appendage. The stances that emerge are the result of complex forces within the organization as well as from external pressures.
Second, Synaspismós has its Right and Left currents internally. Its very structure, seeking to form a "canopy" of the Left, encourages platforms and internal differentiation. Its participation in social movements drew in leftist youth, and the old right-wing leadership that once pursued a (brief, disastrous) alliance with New Democracy was defeated in 2004. Synaspismós has since pursued alliances with the radical Left rather than simply seeking favor with Pasok, and many of its right-wing leaders eventually defected to form the Democratic Left, now a partner in the coalition government.
Third, Syriza's pro-European stance has not been static. While Syriza still favors remaining in the Eurozone, there is growing dissent internally, led by its Left leaders such as Panagiotis Lafazanis. The slogan before May was "not one sacrifice for the euro," reflecting a much more ambiguous, critical stance (though in practice, this slogan was dropped some time before the May election).
Syriza answers the need for a mediating factor between complicit social democracy, which offers at best timid resistance to the worst aspects of austerity, and an abstract maximalism, which poses revolutionary demands in a situation that is not revolutionary. In Greece, social democracy is cadaverous, but as yet the social struggles have not produced organs of popular power. The majority of Greek workers are looking for a Left government to stop austerity, and this was the slogan that Syriza raised before the May elections.

A loss … but for how long?
Syriza's proposals are not especially radicaland are even to the right of where Pasok once stoodbut they pose an intolerable dilemma to European capital. The main plank of Syriza's agenda was to revoke the laws implementing the Memorandum, and force a renegotiation. In the course of fighting the subsequent election in June, Syriza's leaders tried to soften the unilateral element of this policy. But notably, they stuck with it. When Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras held his final election rally on June 14, he was clear that if Syriza won, the Memorandum would be dead.
For Europe's leaders, this meant either renegotiating the Memorandum (thus accepting a political defeat and setting a dangerous precedent), or forcing Greece out of the EU (at the risk of destabilizing the Eurozone). Syriza's plan would have relieved some of the burden from Greek shoulders, putting the crisis back in the heart of Europe.
In the June 17 elections, Syriza advanced to 26.8 percent of the vote. However, this was not enough to win, due to the consolidation of the right-wing vote around New Democracy, which garnered 29.6 percent. A major factor in New Democracy's increase was the intimidation campaign mounted against Syriza. European leaders let it be known they would not renegotiate; if Greece voted the wrong way, it would be forced to withdraw from the euro, and be cast into destitution. In the last week, a panic campaign led to savings being withdrawn from Greece, which shifted the advantage away from Syriza. The result was a relief for EU leaders, and a defeat for Greek workers.
But the new government is only as stable as Greek society is, or as the EU is. We may yet see Syriza's strategy put to the test.
http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/13472
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx

"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.

“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
Reply
#49
Leaked: Troika requires 6-day working week in Greece


Published: 04 September, 2012, 17:42

Edited: 04 September, 2012, 23:38

TRENDS:Eurozone crisis
TAGS: EU, Greece, Global economy

A leaked email sent to the Greek Ministries of Finance and Labor from the Troika says Greek private sector workers should work six days a week and longer hours.
The letter, which was published on August 31, shows that the Troika expects the Labor Ministry to implement a number of other new measures. They include reducing the notice period before firing a worker, and cutting certain severance packages by 50 per cent by giving employers the right to reduce workers' time in service. Restrictions on overtime are also expected to come into effect.
"It also wants a dismantling of the labor inspectorate which is the public service that is responsible for implementing labor law. So it's not only about making the labor market more flexible," Panagiotis Sotiris from the University of the Aegean told RT.
The email was sent ahead of meetings between Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and his coalition partners, the PASOK Socialists of Evangelos Venizelos and the Democratic Left of Fotis Kouvelis, according to the financial newspaper Imerisia.
"I think we are going to see a total dismantling of labor law which would possibly even include a 7 day work week. It's also interesting that they are trying to reduce the number of hours between shifts to only 11 hours. So their idea is that an employer can call up an employee at any time, giving the employee no stability of working hours," Sotiris said.
The six day work week is something that's already legal in France, where only one day of rest is currently required after 35 hours worked.

In the UK, employment hours are monitored by a reference period a span of 17 weeks in which an employee must average no more than 48 hours of work per week.
The law allows unlimited hours during any given week, so long as the worker's 17 week average does not exceed 48 hours.
The relationship between Greece and the Troika which includes the IMF, the European Union and the European Central Bank, has been tense for months, after the Troika repeatedly accused Athens of failing to keep to its deficit reduction plan.
"Nothing has been done in Greece for the past three or four months," a Troika official told Reuters during a July visit to Athens.
The Greek government agreed to new cuts for 2013-2014, but warned the slashed budget wouldn't be followed by additional cuts.
"This is the last such package of spending cuts," Samaras told a meeting of his conservative party's officials on Thursday.
The government is currently drawing up plans on how to come up with $14.5bn worth of savings to satisfy the Troika.
"There is political agreement on the package. It will be sealed next week and presented to the Troika," Greece's Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras told Reuters.
The new cuts will then need to be approved by the Greek parliament.
The vote is expected to spark protests as trade unions oppose further austerity.
The Troika is expected to return to Athens on Wednesday to deliver a report on the country's progress in terms of meeting its bailout obligations. The results will determine whether EU leaders decide to continue funding Greece.
Greece is in the midst of a five-year recession, with nearly two million people currently unemployed. The economy has shrunk 7 per cent, and 68,000 businesses have been closed.
But it appears Athens hasn't arrived at the economic crisis due to laziness.
Working for a living

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) figures show the average Greek employee works 2,017 hours per year more than in any other European country.
But unfortunately for Greece, more hours worked doesn't mean increased productivity.
The answer lies within a simple math equation. By taking Greece's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and dividing it by the total number of workers. This shows that despite the number of hours worked, Athens is still lagging far behind countries like Germany when it comes to productivity.
[Image: screenshot-website.jpg]
Screenshot from website pastebin.com

http://rt.com/news/troika-greece-week-six-345/
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx

"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.

“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
Reply
#50
"Troika."

What the fuck is the "Troika"?

It is an MSM euphemism for elite financial, corporate and military interests.

These interests have turned up the Shock Therapy dial to the point where ordinary Greeks are screaming with pain and despair, and now the "Troika" says:

"BECOME SERFS DENIED THE RIGHTS OF EVERY OTHER EUROPEAN.

OR BE CAST INTO THE WILDERNESS."

Naked Power. Naked Greed. Naked Self-Interest.
"It means this War was never political at all, the politics was all theatre, all just to keep the people distracted...."
"Proverbs for Paranoids 4: You hide, They seek."
"They are in Love. Fuck the War."

Gravity's Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon

"Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yahuarniy hichascancuta."
The last words of the last Inka, Tupac Amaru, led to the gallows by men of god & dogs of war
Reply


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