Greece's brutal austerity measures

[UglyCasanova]

What exactly are they? The cuts have been described by words such as "brutal" and apparently it is causing a lot of civil unrest, but what are the cuts? Are they cutbacks in pay, entitlements, social services? Who is feeling the brunt?

 

[KB]

http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=greece+austerity+measures

Short version:
Much Higher Taxes
Cuts to social programs

 

[Craig234]

There's a third thing I disagree with: selling off state assets/buildings.

This is a cheap way to raise money that costs the public a lot.

 

[Genx87]

There's a third thing I disagree with: selling off state assets/buildings.

This is a cheap way to raise money that costs the public a lot.

The costs have already been incurred. Now they have to pay the costs back.

 

[ichy]

The Greeks are lazy pieces of shit, just compare their retirement age (58) to Germany's (recently raised from 65 to 67.) They're pissed that they're going to have to work as long as everybody else.

 

[Macamus Prime]

The Greeks are lazy pieces of shit, just compare their retirement age (58) to Germany's (recently raised from 65 to 67.) They're pissed that they're going to have to work as long as everybody else.

They are pretty corrupt too. Their politicians have been known to take up public land and built private homes, with tax money.

 

[Moonbeam]

And when I heard that our Communist fagot loving Muslim President wants to use American taxes to bail them out I damn near busted my gut rolling around on the floor screaming for, oh, at least a good twenty minutes. The veins in my neck are still popping. SSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!

 

[highland145]

And when I heard that our Communist fagot loving Muslim President wants to use American taxes to bail them out I damn near busted my gut rolling around on the floor screaming for, oh, at least a good twenty minutes. The veins in my neck are still popping. SSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!

Heard on the A.M. news, 100K public sector jobs to be cut.

 

[Doppel]

There's a third thing I disagree with: selling off state assets/buildings.

This is a cheap way to raise money that costs the public a lot.

It's stupid, should almost be treasonous to be perfectly honest.

The Greeks are lazy as F, though, and things are about to get real for them. They will either have brutal austerity for many years or divest from Euro and suffer a more severe crash in economy.

 

[WelshBloke]

I'm starting to wonder if it would just be better for them to default.

At the moment it seems like the only people being protected here are the banks that hold the debt. The media makes out like Germany is paying the Greek people large amounts of money when that cash is going straight to financing the debt and the Greeks are going to be paying that debt for years. Better to just say 'fuck it' and stop paying.

 

[Moonbeam]

I'm starting to wonder if it would just be better for them to default.

At the moment it seems like the only people being protected here are the banks that hold the debt. The media makes out like Germany is paying the Greek people large amounts of money when that cash is going straight to financing the debt and the Greeks are going to be paying that debt for years. Better to just say 'fuck it' and stop paying.

That would be so cool. When the Greeks start to die of starvation we can move our jobs there from China. There's no motivator like hunger to get you to work for beans.

 

[WelshBloke]

That would be so cool. When the Greeks start to die of starvation we can move our jobs there from China. There's no motivator like hunger to get you to work for beans.

Well rather than paying German banks large amounts of money they could buy lots of beans instead.

 

[chucky2]

That would be so cool. When the Greeks start to die of starvation we can move our jobs there from China. There's no motivator like hunger to get you to work for beans.

Africa is much more desperate, be a better choice...

 

[Doppel]

That would be so cool. When the Greeks start to die of starvation we can move our jobs there from China. There's no motivator like hunger to get you to work for beans.

None what you wrote makes sense.

Greece is almost certain to default, there's really no way around it nor has there been for many months as politicians have continued to try and juggle. The only way Greece could possibly not default will be completely unpalatable to the population and they will not go along with the austerity needed.

 

[Moonbeam]

Africa is much more desperate, be a better choice...

Nobody gives a shit about Africa. Greece is in Europe.

 

[chucky2]

Exactly. Just like no one gives a shit about China's slaves, they'll give even less of a shit about Africa's slaves. Win-win for us...

 

[halik]

They are pretty corrupt too. Their politicians have been known to take up public land and built private homes, with tax money.

This,
supposedly they lose some 30-35% of tax revenue to evasion.

 

[werepossum]

None what you wrote makes sense.

Greece is almost certain to default, there's really no way around it nor has there been for many months as politicians have continued to try and juggle. The only way Greece could possibly not default will be completely unpalatable to the population and they will not go along with the austerity needed.

The trick isn't to stop Greece from defaulting, it's to postpone the default until the American taxpayer is put on the hook for the default.

Shouldn't take much longer.

 

[freegeeks]

The trick isn't to stop Greece from defaulting, it's to postpone the default until the American taxpayer is put on the hook for the default.

Shouldn't take much longer.

just like European taxpayers who had to save European banks with European tax money because of Americans who were buying houses they could not afford?

some of you guys have a very short term memory

 

[werepossum]

just like European taxpayers who had to save European banks with European tax money because of Americans who were buying houses they could not afford?

some of you guys have a very short term memory

Exactly zero European taxpayers had to save European banks with European tax money because of Americans who were buying houses they could not afford. At the most, European taxpayers had to save European banks with European tax money because those banks invested in American derivatives which seemed to be highly profitable, but were in fact essentially worthless. Big difference.

 

[freegeeks]

Exactly zero European taxpayers had to save European banks with European tax money because of Americans who were buying houses they could not afford. At the most, European taxpayers had to save European banks with European tax money because those banks invested in American derivatives which seemed to be highly profitable, but were in fact essentially worthless. Big difference.

you are totally right, the tens of billions of Euro of tax money my govt. had to invest in the banks because of the worthless triple AAA rated USA toxic mortgage derivates are a total hallucination of my imagination. You are such a flagwaving idiot. These derivates were worthless because of Joe Sixpack and his spending habits, is that so hard to understand? My tax money first had to serve the Joe-SixPack-with-his-NINJA-loans bailout and now my tax money has to do a little sirtaki bailout. Please don't pretend that you guys are any better then the Greeks because we have seen the result of Wall Street the last few years, a financial crisis without precedent.

I hope you guys are on the hook for a lot of IMF money, you deserve it

 

[evident]

bunch of malaccas are waiting for a bailout from germany.

 

[Infohawk]

you are totally right, the tens of billions of Euro of tax money my govt. had to invest in the banks because of the worthless triple AAA rated USA toxic mortgage derivates are a total hallucination of my imagination.

Sorry but you can't blame the US for the fact that European banks CHOOSE to expose themselves to American markets...

The US and Europe are in the same boat in that their standard of living is falling due to globalization and governments try to borrow to save it. However, the specific Greece problem is specific to Europe and can only be blamed on the fact that there is monetary union and no fiscal union. Right now it doesn't seem like it works. Will Europe choose to abandon monetary union or increase fiscal control over member countries? That has nothing to do with the US.

 

[WelshBloke]

Sorry but you can't blame the US for the fact that European banks CHOOSE to expose themselves to American markets...

Those toxic debts were so well hidden and mixed in with the general packages of debt that were being passed around the market that there was really no practical way to refuse them.

Banking is an international business, its not a case of Euro banks choosing to get into the US market, those debts were passed into the international market.

 

[freegeeks]

Those toxic debts were so well hidden and mixed in with the general packages of debt that were being passed around the market that there was really no practical way to refuse them.

Banking is an international business, its not a case of Euro banks choosing to get into the US market, those debts were passed into the international market.

Don't try to explain here, the whole CDO/CDS mess that has cost trillions all over the world was apparantly not caused by Joe Sixpack and his AAA-repackaged-by-Wall-Street-NINJA loan but was caused by European banks choosing to "expose" themselves to the USA market. You just have to look at the savings quotes of the last 20 years of Joe Sixpack to know what's going on, just one giant debt bubble exported to other countries.