Greece bailout money decision looms

[dipsydoodle]

Source: BBC News

European Commission, European Central Bank (ECB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials are expected in Athens later to review Greece's progress in cutting its debt levels.

They hold the key to releasing further bailout money the country badly needs.

On Tuesday, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou hailed his country's "superhuman" efforts to cut its budget.

The review comes amid reports of a split among eurozone members about further support for Greece.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15086593

[Ikonoklast]

1. The Greek government got the wake-up call, but the people are angry.

The problem is that if they do not accept the austerity measures and replace the government, they will not get a second chance. The only thing they have going for them is the threat to crash the Eurozone; its been a game of chicken so far.

Germany will not tax its citizens any further so that the Greeks can evade paying theirs and continue to run their economy on borrowed money they never want to repay.

[Possumpoint]

2. In Greece

The national past time is tax avoidance. How is a country with that mindset ever going to change?

[Nihil]

4. True enough ...

> The national past time is tax avoidance.

(Along with outright evasion)

> How is a country with that mindset ever going to change?

Painfully.

[The2ndWheel]

6. Either Europe actually becomes a single entity

or it all falls apart because no two countries are actually bound together. Everyone will have to give something up either way they go. The question is what price they're willing to pay.

[Katashi_itto]

3. Well the teabaggers want to do the same here. Tax avoidance.

[tama]

5. Divide and conquer - stop that!

FIY, no eurozone citizen want's any of their tax money or other social contribution to be used to bail out banksters and give banksters all they got. The problem is not Greek people, Irish people, Portuguese people, German people. The problem is IMF and neoliberal "ideology" of elites - ideology of robbing the poor and giving to everything to rich. The debt bubble is not local problem (e.g. limited to Greece), it's global and systemic.

The IMF policies bring only misery to the people, that's why 3rd world has revolted and kicked out IMF and neoliberalism. Now it's the people in the "rich" OECD countries that those on the the top of the global pyramid scheme try to suck dry.

[bossy22]

7. i think the IMF fails to see the big picture

THE ECONOMY.

This isnt a class struggle- this is a credit struggle. The modern financial system (and really any financial system since formal systems have been around) works on credit- there is no other workable option.

Greece isnt being "robbed"- no one is saying "you have to issue bonds or else!"- no, Greece by its own accord, decided to issue Bonds to cover the shortfall in their income/expense accounts. For this to happen, there has to be a counterparty- basically the guy who lends the money. What is happening is that guy is unsure of Greece's ability to pay their debts and therefore is asking for higher return for the greater risk that is going to be taken. This inevitably will lead to a spiraling up of the interest rate and a self-fufilling proficy will result- a Greek default.

But with that being said, the lender has every right to ask for a higher premium in this case. I don't blame the banks for wanting to make sure their money will return.

It all comes back to this "debit is slavery" idea (which is very Tea Party-ish). Debit is not slavery, its a relationship. The Creditor hopes the Debtor does well because then the creditor gets their money back (plus interest). Not all lenders are loan sharks

[tama]

8. Ah, you again

You have lot to learn.

[Turbineguy]

9. Chancellor Merkel today

upped the ante on the bailouts. Papandreou got his "tax increase", but he also has to actually enforce it.

[unkachuck]

10. "...releasing further bailout money..."

....release all the bailout money you want, Greece people won't pay it back, nor should they....

....instead of harassing and conning the people of the world at both ends of their melt-down charade, these criminal banksters and their political stooges should be arrested, tried, imprisoned and/or executed to rid the planet of their existence and stench....

....it's time to stop paying homage to the bankster-criminal-class and begin rebuilding the worlds' economy with real and meaningful economic activities....

[dipsydoodle]

12. Its because they're unlikely to pay it back

that they don't deserve any more. They need to be like most other developed nations with public services and pensions paid from their own taxation.

[Turbineguy]

11. Just doodling:

About 2 trillion in wealth has been evaporated thanks to this Greek business. Tourism is a big business in Greece. If the average person were to spend say, 5 grand on a vacation in Greece, that would amount to 400 million tourists. At the current 17.5 million per year that's a 23 year supply of tourists.

[dipsydoodle]

13. Its worse than that

The majority of their tourists are Europeans who don't like having been being mugged off. I think there will be an increased reluctance for Europeans to persist on using Greece and its islands as tourist resorts.

A friend is just back from Tunisia which is ok again now for holidays. Another friend just back from a Greek island reported that the price of a cup coffee can increase between ordering it and subsequently paying.