■ Greece: the world's navel in disarray

Wherever I happen to travel nowadays Greece seems to be headline news. But I don't think the world at large was given the full story. As I am writing this the world's media are focused on the election results. I am not even sure what I will vote for. Here are some thoughts that will hopefully clear yours and my mind too.

Greece is in deep trouble, and has only got itself to blame. However our european colleagues have not been very supportive up to now. Your media is absolutely misleading you.

Europeans are making money out of us. The support packages offered to greece in the last two years are loans. Nobody gave us money as a gift. Moreover many european countries (especially the strongest economies like germany) lend us 'for support' at 5% while themselves borrowing the money at 2-3%. Not quite philanthropic. Scandalous in fact.
All the support money go for loan repayments. None of the billions of euros went anywhere close to greek needs. All the money goes straight to repay loans, and that means back to the european countries that 'support' greece.
Greece is ruined mainly as a result of the imposed austerity measures. If we go broke the lenders will never get their money. You are shooting yourselves on the foot. All greece's economic metrics went down the drain in the last two years. The only increase was in unemployment, which is about to reach spanish heights. I am not a financial expert but the measures dictated by the 'Troika' are not working. The only plausible explanation is that greece is made to hurt as an example for others to beware. It doesn't make sense though because you will also lose a lot of money.
PSI is half funded by greece. The latest bailout plan, which is subject to the result of today's election, the so-called Private Sector default, is hurting greece most than any other individual country. For Private Sector you must read all the greek (and cypriot) banks, pension and national insurance funds etc. So this 50% debt 'haircut' is almost by half funded by greece itself! The only positive side about it is that the latest repayment interest rates are not the loan-shark levels of 5% mentioned above but more reasonable.

As you can understand, the feeling of the average greek is not very pro european at present. That's why radicals left and right get such a big proportion of the predicted vote. If greece is forced out of the euro, it will immediately default on all debt, so all hell is going to break loose, in greece and worldwide. This is a very strong hand in financial poker. Greece is porked either way.

I believe I am a reasonable man, and although I feel bitter towards our 'partners', my vote isn't going to be vindictive. I have a deep resentment on the sad state of greece, which was caused by 30 years of political debauchery. Getting in the euro was the final straw, where we were effectively offered a cheap loan rate and we went bezerk spending unproductively for 10 years. And now it is time to pay the bills.

I want to vote for somebody who will bring back a sense of order and respectability in public affairs. I want to see thieves go to jail and their illegal earnings seized. The jail expansion project that would be required to accommodate all the people that misappropriated public funds the last 30 years alone, would itself raise the greek GDP <g>. I don't think that the existing political establishment can clean itself, there's need for fresh blood. Believe it or not, in greece if you secretly film any member of parliament accepting a backhander, it is you who ends up in jail (!). The establishment is protecting its right to steal unimpeded.

Not only is the system corrupt, it is deeply inefficient too. You will find hard to believe but in greece nobody needs to write CVs, any job, no matter how big or small, is given as a favor. You vote me and I will give your son a job in the public sector. You are a failed politician that couldn't get in parliament? Don't worry, I'll put you in charge of a big public organization where you won't have a clue what you are doing. Instead of putting forward people with experience and capabilities, the key positions are filled by idiots as political favors. How can you possibly rule a country using people who wouldn't know how to run a corner shop?

You may have read stories about dead people still getting their pensions paid, or people evading taxes, or whole villages full of 'blind' people getting invalidity pensions. It is all true and even worse. Aristotle is turning in his grave: there is no honour, no 5th element left anywhere in Greece. As you understand I have no solution. What would be ideal is if a big earthquake levelled the whole thing and we could start from scratch — a reboot. With new people steering the boat.

So tomorrow after the elections, will be a day for the world to behold...