That’s what the newscaster said as the Molotov cocktails flew in the background, engulfing a few policemen in flames. Greece is a mess, this we know. How much of a mess it is, we don’t know so much. The extent of the ails in Greece is past the comprehension of most people, including the Greeks themselves.
Let’s just say the police let the protesters through and the Parliament all resigned. Then what? Even if the people successfully take back their government, have their debts 100% forgiven, and establish a regime of peace and wonderment, they still have to eat. The Greek economy as it is cannot feed its own people. It does not provide enough to sustain the population therein. It can’t change fast enough to help them all. We’ll be looking at a refugee situation in that scenario.
I’m not at all one to support fascist bully-boys putting their jackboots on the throats of freedom, but maybe, just maybe, the Greek police there are actually all that stands between that nation having a depression, the good scenario, and a complete Somali-style state collapse into the hands of warlords, the less desirable scenario.
The people of Greece are enraged because their government lied to them. They also lied to themselves, adding to that anger. What they need to focus on is how they’re going to survive beyond the end of this crisis, because no amount of shouting, pointing, and Molotov tossing is going to put food on the table, let alone take care of the aged, infirm, and orphans.
It’s most certainly *not* peaceful in Greece, and that’s what worries me most.
How did the situation in greece escalate so rapidly? And though I don’t suspect the police will be stepping aside any time soon it would be beneficial for them to put their foot down now and try to wrangle the protesters before complete chaos ensues.
I suspect it esclated so quickly because the country and the people were in denial for so long…as long as they could hide behind loans and financing, all was well with the world….until it came to a crashing stop.
Greece needs a change in Government, but I dont think any type of Totalitarian government will benefit Greece in the long run, economically or socialy. Totalitarism might work for Greece for a little while, stablizing the violence and the economy, but in the long run absolute power corrupts and the people in charge will start to abuse their power, sucking the populus dry to the point of starvation. A starvation that will be worse than one born out of a depression, because of the heavy hand of totalitarianism. At least with democracy they have a chance for a brighter future, not a bleaker one.
If the U.S steps in to help the Greek, is that going to be a disadvantage to us? How can it affect our own economy?
The problem is that we really can’t step in to help Greece because we don’t have the cash ourselves. What happened in Greece economically can happen here and in Europe, as well. China’s even susceptible to this problem…
As for what government awaits on the flipside, either a more authoritarian one or a weaker central government that does nothing. Either way, Greece is in big, big trouble. Whether or not this is a foretelling of what’s to come for us remains to be seen, but it’s not entirely impossible.
This is upsetting, it doesn’t seem feasible that a country like Greece could fall so far. While they haven’t been the wealthiest country in the past few decades, they aren’t really a developing counrty either. I wouldn’t think that a failure of this magnitude could be possible for a nation like Greece.
And yet, here we are… and it’s what observers warned about when Europe went to the single currency.
Here’s an interesting graphic: http://www.oftwominds.com/photos2011/EU-dominoes.jpg
If these dominoes portray what is to come to Europe, how will this lack of value in the currency affect us specifically? Is there any way to avoid such a gruesome demise?
We’re looking at a deepening of the depression. There is a way to avoid serious political calamity, but the solution requires a very strong political will, which I see absent in the interest group-bound leadership today.
I saw a piece on how a Congresswoman introduced a bill to offer a discount on insurance premiums for people who exercised. The bill got shot down as soon as the American Cancer Society and other supposedly pro-health groups took up a position against it. She later lost her seat, probably because of those interest groups backing an opponent. When she was going to do the story with The Daily Show, the ACS contacted her about it to ask her to not go on the air. It’s insane.
And the people left in Congress, by and large, are those who are acceptable to group pressures like that. We could be in for a rough ride because there is no incentive to politicians to change the system that gets most of them re-elected every few years.
What makes Greece so much worse off than other European countries (or pretty much any country in general)? After all, don’t most all country partake in loans and financing (which was noted as contributing to Greece’s downfall)?
I really hope that Greece will be able to come out from these depressing times. Other countries may not be using them, but it will be a big shock to the world if something drastic is to happen. Hopefully, nothing like this will happen, but all bordering countries and countries involved with Greece should be prepared for the worst.
Greece seems to be getting worse and worse to a point that the country isn’t showing any signs of sorting our their economic state. Why can’t they just borrow money and try to get help in solving the crisis they’re having? They’ve been in this wreck less state for awhile, and the country doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere but into more chaos.
Its sad to see/hear about how much Greece is suffering. And knowing that they arent getting much better is tough too.