Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will accept most of the bailout creditors’ conditions offered last weekend but is still insisting on a handful of changes that could thwart a deal, according to a letter he sent late on Tuesday night. Read more.
What is it with these leftist/liberals? Why do they all have no backbone? Where does their universal timidness and lack of courage come from? I am not a psychologist nor a sociologist, but it's really strange indeed. There is not a single leftist/liberal around with any balls. They are the ones who are solely responsible for the relentless neoliberal onslaught on the rest of humanity.
They suck. They're a cancer.
24 comments:
I'd love to be a fly on the wall in the meetings that come up with these decisions. There has to be some almighty tension going on somewhere.
Because from outside the only word that springs to mind is - random.
You get the feeling these guys have never played a team sport with the aim of winning.
I'm beyond trying to explain what they're doing now.
Mike,
Liberal politicians are almost universally useless. I've lived among them here in Chicago for over 40 years. On the other hand conservative politicians suck too. Become a politician and selling out seems to be the overwhelming majority report. As for Tsipras I'd say he has to be the most frustrating politician I've witnessed. It really comes off as an unstable, double talking, dithering idiot.
Looking great for the far right in the future with all these traitors and weaklings in the political scape. The fight will be between neoliberals (representing what the traditional conservatives were in the first half of the 2oth century) and nationalist right in the future.
Rings a bell from the first half of the 20th century. You can feel the hate against all those morons raising as they betray the working class time after time and the feeling that "democracies are becoming decadent and weak". Neoliberal libertarians pro-"free trade" and global corporate governance against a rising nationalist and racist right.
The future looking great...
There is one liberal politician who has balls and his name is Putin. Take note Tsipras.
Just looks like gamesmanship to me. I don't think Tsipras believes that the deal will be accepted. Just more ammunition for his "I tried everything" posture that he'll portray to his constituents.
It's maybe a breakup that has been engineered by politicians in a way they can save face in front of their own respective electorates.
At this point they must be aware that this shit cannot work, but never underestimate the ability of politicians to kick the can.
I don't think these guys had any plan at all from the beginning. Tsipras is just a young guy who quickly vaulted from city councilor to low-level parliamentarian to Prime Minister in a few years, and has been in way over his head since he was elected.
He seems to have little understanding of the economic forces that have made his country's economy an under-employed, under-investing, graft-ridden basket case, and was not able to articulate any real plan for ending Greece's depression and turning Greece's woeful economic under-performance around. Without any "left"-style economic restructuring plan on the table, that left the Eurocrats, with their neoliberal/ordoliberal restructuring plan, as the only adults in the room.
The only "cause"one finds associated with Syriza and some of its allies is something they call "anti-austerity". You might think that means they are putting forward some kind of investment-rich growth plan that requires a lot of economy-building spending and socio-economic transformation. But no. The only plan was "please cancel some of our debts ... just because."
Tsipras hasn't been helped by his few global allies in the center-left, head-up-the-ass economic punditry who have encouraged the delusional thinking that Greece's problems are all related to a generic lack of consumer "demand" that can be fixed with either a somewhat lower surplus or small deficit, to keep a few more pensions and government sinecures flowing, without any significant structural change to the Greek economy or any major government public investment initiatives. This has been unbelievable to me. The Greek economy is in massively bad shape, facing a profound depression, but the prospect for bold, significant, transformative change along progressive lines has been thwarted once again by the lame Keynesian "stimulus" patrol.
On the other hand, any Greek leader is in an almost impossible position because the Greeks themselves seem to be deeply ambivalent about what it is they actually want.
I'm rather fed up with the pump priming narrative as well. Just hire a few more government employees and all will be well.
That's wishing for market magic as well.
Greece has a major supply side problem and a major problem getting its government to work. But unfortunately you can't get those going until you have the money to kick start the demand side.
But you need a plan for both sides, and you need to have the political firepower to make it happen.
"On the other hand, any Greek leader is in an almost impossible position because the Greeks themselves seem to be deeply ambivalent about what it is they actually want."
I agree, yet a third rail in politics is not to make promises you don't keep. Tsipras was clearly put into power under false pretenses. If you run on a clear platform then it's incumbent upon you to follow through, come hell or high water. Truth should not be concerned with making everyone happy.
The document that Tsipras agreed to (with amendments) was the one posted on the EU website, and not the one that was presented to him on Friday with the "take it or leave it" ultimatum that led to the referendum. The Document on the website was pretty close to the last Greek proposal.
This is why Merkel and Schauble are spitting venom in the German parliament as we speak.
Tsipras appears to have caused a split between France and Germany.
It appears that there have been many back channel communications leading to this action by Tsipras. As stated by Juncker "I am in permanent contact with Greece and the other authorities."
Right, but is a similar situation for the rest of the West. Look at USA: it's trade deficit is abysmal, if there were some international trade problems there would be shortages of some important raw materials very soon. Not to speak about Europe, which would starve in weeks without external supplies and only through the 'ordoliberal' model of being world's #1 exporter can afford the current living standards.
We can only live by selling garbage and smoke (many service industries with little value added) to get much needed supplies in return. The worldwide economic system has almost zero resilience, which will only lead to disaster as soon as there is any minor shock (financial, because a real shock would be doomsday).
The incompetence is all around, and the corporate overlords model of can-kicking isn't much better than those of clueless politicians in Greece IMO.
"other authorities."
I'd say that is being more than a bit kind....
"He seems to have little understanding of the economic forces that have made his country's economy an under-employed, under-investing, graft-ridden basket case..."
Almost every PM or President is in the same position, but they do have economic advisors who'll tell them what's what. What's amazing is that Syriza is full to the brim with brilliant heterodox economists, many of whom are superstars within the heterodox community. Is Tsipras ignoring them, or are these superstars only radical in the seminar room, not when it matters when they have the levers of power handed to them?
What baffles me about Greece is that the only goal is to get out of crisis. But beyond that there is no goal, the government has no plan, Europe has no plan, business has no plan, citizens don't appear to care enough to drive politicians. Just odd. The same ambivalence and sense of powerlessness to drive the course of human events exist in the United States and most western nations that seem to believe the political process and markets will sort out the details.
Outside of Africa, parts of Latin America and China, I don't see anywhere in the world that has a government with an economic plan of how they will raise the standards of living of their people with realistic environmental, industrial, scientific, educational and other goals that would be expected of a prosperous nation. We get a few bits and pieces of plans, but nothing that can be agreed upon without contentious bickering among partisans over ideology.
financial, because a real shock would be doomsday
This is the treat presented by global warming. It's a real threat. It looks like it is going to come as a shock, too, since the world seems to have decided to put off serious action until the vise tightens enough to hurt some major players.
Everyone in Greece and most elsewhere knows what's really wrong with the sick man of Europe now. It's kleptocracy.
Wikipedia even has an entire article devoted to it.
Tax evasion and corruption in Greece
So far no government has been able to address it, and it is the subcontext of reform the "reform" that the eurocrats are demanding. Greece is Chicago, where it doesn't matter which party is in power. The politicians of both parties are corrupt.
While this is a chief causal factor and one that needs to be addressed, it is different from the financial negotiations that are taking place now. Since no Greek government has been able to successfully attack corruption in Greece, the eurocrats are not going to provide a bailout based on Syriza promising to clean house.
Moreover, part of the EZ project is to make the EZ the economic equal of the US-UK-Canada-AU-NZ Anglo alliance and the rising China and India and their BRICS alliance. That means becoming "competitive" by reducing the "generous" social welfare state of European social democracy.
But everyone knows that Greece cannot address its debt with social cuts alone. As far as the eurocrats are concerned, if the Greek government got ahold of corruption, then the debt would not be onerous. The elites of the core nations are reluctant to continue supporting the Greek kleptocracy that benefits the Greek elite.
There is no clear solution. Communism failed in Russia and Eastern Europe for a variety of reasons but elite and petty corruption was a large factor. Same in today's China, which Xi Jinping is addressing now. The GFC was the result of elite corruption in the US and UK financial centers. Bot capitalism and communism are affected by corruption. Changing systems is no solution.
Confronting corruption is like trying to bell the cat. Many have gone to the grave trying, either through assassination or "accident."
Here's the bottom line, which others here have articulated ad nauseum: If Greece doesn't make a clean break from the EU or at least issue it's own currency, it will have no chance of escaping then clutches of an endless economic depression, Yves Smith's obtuse opinion notwithstanding.
Breaking from the EU or at least issuing their own currency (which is tantamount to a break)is Greece's last best hope. I don't see this happening, however, because half the country is obsessed with all things EU. Given its divided polity I think in the end a military junta is the likely outcome, with the military serving the interests of the Greek oligarchs.
BTW, here's a snippet from YS on why a Grexit is worse than living under the thumb of the troika:
"As horrible as things will become, a Grexit will only be worse. None of the economists blithely recommending a Grexit have bothered to examine payment systems issues, what it takes to do software development in a mission critical setting (which payment systems are), how hard, time consuming and costly it is to resolve banks and introduce a new currency, and how an economy goes into free fall when you can’t import due to banking system failures and/or payment system issues. And that means you need to look at imports in detail and what happens if you don’t get them or can’t buy much/enough of them. Greece will have trouble fending off starvation for at least a year, for starters.
In other words, there’s a reason the Greek government says “no Grexit”. It’s not just to appease the voters. It’s also that some of the officials, particularly Varoufakis, understand or at least have a sense of what a catastrophe it would be.
"
Outside of Africa, parts of Latin America and China, I don't see anywhere in the world that has a government with an economic plan of how they will raise the standards of living of their people...
That's because we are stagnating, this ties very well with the mention to corruption by Tom. Once we enter an 'era of conservation' the drive is conservation of the current structures and status quo, and when this naturally cannot happen (because not enough progress) corruption is instituionalized at all levels. Under corruption progress cannot happen, so it's a positive feedback loop of ever-worsening situation. The willingness to crush others to conserve what you have means taking no risks, and if no one takes risks and everybody tries to conserve, the safest way to maintain a position is through corruption.
At some point the corrupted state of affairs is legally recognized, and we have a new social structure, like CEO's becoming the new aristocracy or feudal lords. The current degradation may be very well a signal that democracy is dying and we entering a new era were the powerful will rule over the weak, with the weak not being able to stop the grinding machine of the powerful.
Only those who are at the very bottom in the world may benefit of the "revolutionary force" of capitalism (as Marx said), as they haven't reach the point at where the system gets corrupted (they are in fact escaping an other sort of social and economic structure in places like Africa).
Systems, more than collapsing, mutate to a different thing, and that's what we may be watching (indeed both western representative democracies and competition capitalism are dying in favor of oligarchy and corporatism, which is everything but competition). And "the left" is framed on the same discourse, so they cannot give alternatives (plus 1/2 of the population is neoliberal itself and adopting this new framework).
Ryan this is textbook laizzes-faire straight out of Darwinism 101...
... ie "no one in charge" ... ie a libertarian utopia chaos fest....
I agree with Ryan Harris. The tunnel-vision focus on the Greek debt payment crisis to the exclusion of the broader problem of Great Greek Depression has been very perplexing to me. As I have said a few times, Tsipras often comes off to me like some kind of big city mayor who thinks his only problem is how to roll over his debt so he can make the next payroll for the police and fire department.
Well, regarding the tunnel vision on the debt payment crisis, I think it needs to be that way. Until the crisis is resolved nothing else can happen. This is disaster capitalism 101. TPTB are going to keep this vise as long as they can as they know nothing else can happen til its released. Of course part of the conditions for releasing the vise are; "Tell me your plans for afterwards" which are then deemed inadequate by the creditors and the vise stays tightened.
Its like having someone sitting on your chest, you cant think straight or do anything else until they get off you.
@Malmo.... how do you figure that Putin is a "liberal"?
how do you figure that Putin is a "liberal"?
These terms have somewhat different meaning in different national contexts.
There are four factions in Russia liberal, conservative, communist and Western neoliberal. Putin belongs to the liberal faction that is presently in power.
Putin's liberal faction is far and away the most numerous. The conservatives are second. The communists third. The Western neoliberalism fourth.
If Putin were to be replaced he would be succeed either by another liberal or a conservative government. There is almost no chance of a communist government coming power. and even less of a Western neoliberal government coming to power in today's Russia in spite of the wishful thinking of the US political class.
Because the conservatives are second and really the only actual opposition likely to successfully challenge the liberals, Putin has moved somewhat in the conservative direction over the past couple of years, but he is quite far from the conservatives, who want military invention in Ukraine, for example. Putin is taking a lot flak from the conservatives for not intervening and "allowing" the depredation of Donbas by the eastern Ukrainian "fascists."
Putin did annex Crimea and has kept the eastern Ukrainians from overrunning western Ukraine by providing logistics and allowing Russian "volunteers" to cross the border to fight. This was largely at the insistence of the Russian military rather than due to pressure from conservatives.
The Russian military stood back while Russia was depredated in the Nineties. They have decided that was a mistake that won't be made again, and they see Ukraine as an Atlanticist proxy war against Russia led by the US, whose goal is ultimately the dismemberment of Russia, ending Russia great power status forever. That's not acceptable to them and they have decided to re-arm as quickly as possible as a defensive measure sending a signal to the West that war with Russia will be very expensive in terms of losses. Putin agrees and is obliging the generals advising the government.
Putin governs closer to the ideological center out of pragmatic considerations that all heads of state attempt to finesse. He is certainly not the crypto-commie-world aggressor mad man the West makes him out to be, but that doesn't make him Reagan incarnate. Putin's ideological hero, Vladimir Solovyov, isn't exactly Bill Buckley either. On the other hand if sexual orientation is the sine qua non of liberalism, then, yes, Putin isn't a liberal.
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