Politicians are not leaders… nor are they statesmen who are willing to make the hard decisions despite the potential loss to one’s career or reputation. And just days after the only Greek minister with the fortitude to stand up to the Troika resigned from office, it appears that not only is Greece ceding to another generation of austerity, but in doing so is giving up their sovereignty and possessions for a few billion euros from the real masters of the continent.
Germany.
At the beginning of the 20th century, and then again near its midpoint, the German empire rose and fell twice only to hide in wait as the Cold War placed its dream of continental domination on the shelf. But in the 1990’s when the Soviet Union and Berlin walls fell, Germany began a new empiric rise that would come not from soldiers, artillery, and tanks, but from economic means and power over European banks.
And on July 13, the emergence and rise of the 4th Reich took place as Greece not only capitulated to Germany in an utterly humiliating defeat, but voluntarily gave up their sovereignty, their future, and their legacy simply for new debt that like their current obligations, can never be repaid.
Varoufakis added: “This country must stop extending and pretending, we must stop taking on new loans pretending that we’ve solved the problem, when we haven’t; when we have made our debt even less sustainable on condition of further austerity that even further shrinks the economy; and shifts the burden further onto the have-nots, creating a humanitarian crisis.”
“Only the French minister [Michel Sapin] made noises that were different from the German line, and those noises were very subtle. You could sense he had to use very judicious language, to be seen not to oppose. And in the final analysis, when Dr Schäuble responded and effectively determined the official line, the French minister would always fold.”
The divide seems to have been brief, and perhaps even deliberate. Varoufakis thinks that Merkel and Schäuble’s control over the Eurogroup is absolute, and that the group itself is beyond the law.
“So,” Varoufakis said, “What we have is a non-existent group that has the greatest power to determine the lives of Europeans. It’s not answerable to anyone, given it doesn’t exist in law; no minutes are kept; and it’s confidential. No citizen ever knows what is said within . . . These are decisions of almost life and death, and no member has to answer to anybody.” – New Statesman
In the year long discussions between Greece and the Troika, only one nation negotiated on the side of Europe and the banks… and it was Germany. In fact, besides Germany, who is the largest economy in the Eurozone, not even Britain, who has their own massive debt problems, nor France, who are themselves owned by Germany since the country owns most of France’s debt, uttered little more than conciliatory rhetoric during the negotiations and allowed Germany and Finance Minister Schauble to mandate options that were a ‘my way or the highway’ ogre’s choice.
Greece had a nuclear option that they chose not to take, and in doing so willingly gave up their sovereignty to Germany and ensured another generation of austerity and life as a third world country for their citizens. And in exchange for some short term cash, the terms that are coming appear to the be the loss of much of their vital infrastructure, and a selling off of the lifeblood of Greece for a few pennies of worthless printing currency.
Kenneth Schortgen Jr is a writer for Secretsofthefed.com, Examiner.com, Roguemoney.net, and To the Death Media, and hosts the popular web blog, The Daily Economist. Ken can also be heard Wednesday afternoons giving an weekly economic report on the Angel Clark radio show.
