Greek Crisis: Thoughts

So I was reading an article today I found via Reddit about the Greece financial crisis/impending default. If you've been under a rock, their economy is tanking fast, people have taken to the streets, there's a general strike, and everyone there knows they're on the wrong end of the stick. The article above gives some good background and context to what's going on, I recommend it.

I've taken an increasing interest in the events in Greece for a couple of reasons. The first is personal: my wife is Greek, I have Greek family now, and any children we have will be Greek. I might as well be Greek. The second is that what happens in Greece (and how it happens) will echo the world 'round. There is no doubt that Greece will default on its loans, the Western banking and economic system has seen to that. The vultures in the IMF and World Bank promise to 'bail out' Greece by giving the government an enormous loan, tacking more than 5% interest on top of that, and all of this on the backs of Greek taxpayers (which usually doesn't include the rich).

That article suggests the "easy" way out: Greece says 'Okay, we'll take your money at a huge loss then have to repay it back to you and then some in a relatively short amount of time, and when we can't do that, we'll take out another loan, which means even harsher austerity and economic woe for the entire country for the foreseeable future.' I think this is bullshit. This scenario benefits only two small groups: the wealthy Greek elite who will continue to not pay taxes and abuse the system and the even-more wealthy Western banks who are loaning out the money. Neither are deserving.

There is a second, riskier option, and that is to follow Argentina's lead: give the IMF the finger, default on all their loans to international entities, have a bank holiday until things get worked out, and then work on rebuilding on their own terms. Argentina, after doing this, has since had the most dynamic economy of South America.

I am all for this. Why? If you couldn't tell already, I believe the IMF and World Bank are nothing but powerhungry behemoths who will stop at nothing to keep the world under their control. They run the most successful cartel in the world, because they run the world. If a country gets in trouble, these banks (which are for profit, mind you) give a substantial loan but only on their conditions, such as the austerity plans on the table for Greece at the moment. Don't play by their rules, and you tank.

Secondly, the eurozone and the EU are imbalanced and broken. Germany, France, and Britain are powerhouses, sure, but what about Ireland, Portugal, and Greece (which have all had severe economic crises already) and the new, weak member states of Romania and Bulgaria? Those countries only serve to bring down and destabilize an entire continent. This is entirely foolish of the EU and in my opinion makes no sense. In fact, the EU doesn't even make a whole lot of sense any more.

So Greece default, things go bad, the EU dissolves, the euro breaks, the world changes, and everyone has more of a blank slate than they've had for a long time. Bring on the chaos, I say. The world is a mess right now but adding more shit to a pile of shit doesn't help anything. Best to shake it down and try again.

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