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Monday, May 3, 2010

Making it Worse in Greece

KT has two updates, here and here, on the Greek bailout situation. Greek unions' violent protests cut off tourists from their hotels. KT points out that one of Greece' main economic pillars is tourism. He also points out the inevitable failure of the bailout as the the Greeks haven't really shown the will to make the changes needed to mend their balance sheets. Further, they've been lying so long, who knows if the approximately $150 billion will be enough.

Tim Cavanaugh at Reason Hit & Run, shows how the bailout is already making things worse. A few of the juicier quotes:

Second, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel is taking credit for bringing in International Monetary Fund support and forcing some tougher fiscal-cleanup conditions on Greece, the bailout does not address the counterproductive elements in Greece's own so-called austerity package, including currency controls and cash-transaction limitations that will only slow the country's economy.
...
Fifth, Marshall's [an Asset Manager] doubts are well founded. As they have shown throughout this crisis, Greece's strong and ancient socialist institutions can only respond to market discipline with violence.


Compare this video of lefty Greek protests with any Tea Party event:

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