EU deal announced

[Gerald]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15604169

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Oberon

Looks like Papandreou has squeaked through a vote of no-confidence.

Originally Posted by STEED

Greek PM George Papandreou has won the vote.

For 153

Against 145

I was extremely sad and sat up watching the vote take place live

[TarJak]

Its still not looking good though for the deal. I've got a feeling Greece will be Europe's Argentina in less than a year.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by TarJak

Its still not looking good though for the deal. I've got a feeling Greece will be Europe's Argentina in less than a year.

Well, without this latest bailout amount it is thought the country would be bankrupt by the end of this year

[STEED]

Originally Posted by jimbuna

I was extremely sad and sat up watching the vote take place live

I was buying time waiting for Family Guy.

[andritsos]

Originally Posted by Skybird

What now my dear?

Dont know, still big mess, surely more political rallies. I'll have to check on greek channel when i can what developments we have. at least watch their news.
At the moment nothing significant on greek channel, just a summer documentary etc ...

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by STEED

I was buying time waiting for Family Guy.

LOL

[Skybird]

The head of a German economist lobby organisation said that the Greek government should prepare IN ALL SECRECY a return to the drachme, and bring it back over the christmas holidays. The country'S borders would be needed to be closed, all traffic in and out being stopped, all banking actions interrupted, in order to prevent a massive banking rush and panic sales and people storming the banks to get back their old savings. Printing the new notes would take three days.

It is also reported that in Cannes, Obama, Cameron and Sarkozy tried to get access to the nations' central bank'S currency reserves and especially the German Bundesbank'S gold reserve, and that Merkel even was willing to give in. It was only the head of the (still) independent (for howlong anbymore?) Bundesbank that blocked that move, so that she had top say No. . He is said to be under very heavy fire now to make him giving up the golds reserves. Merkel is outraged over him.

The follies know no limits, madness on rampage.

[Jimbuna]

"IN ALL SECRECY".....love it

[TarJak]

Originally Posted by jimbuna

"IN ALL SECRECY".....love it

Shhh! don't tell anyone.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by TarJak

Shhh! don't tell anyone.

Best switch off the SS server before the cat gets out of the bag

@Sky....was Merkel really willing to give in I mean, what would be in it for Germany?

[Gerald]

Not much, I would say, Germans learn to shell out a lot in the banking system....

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Vendor

Not much, I would say, Germans learn to shell out a lot in the banking system....

Really ?

Coming from a long term 'neutral' that doesn't hold a load lot of weight

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by jimbuna

@Sky....was Merkel really willing to give in I mean, what would be in it for Germany?

There is a deep-rootinjg desire in the German intelligenzia to dismantle Germany and let it merge into a bigger state of Europe that is given birth by Germany'S heroic and path-leading self-sacrifice. Our Greens say they crave for the day when Germany will not be any German anymore (original quote), and that they like it the better the less German it is (original quote), our conservatives in parts want Germany to lose the meaning of a state and being formed into the first cell of the new European superstate (original quote), our socialists want no states at all and especially Germany being the first to get forgotten as a national entity, since thousand years of history mean nothing but 15 years of tyranny mean everything and thus Germany is evil from top to bottom and not worth to be remembered; they want the socialistically inspired planned economy with x-years-plans made in Brussel which serves as their holy grail of how to heal Europe, and our communists, well, you can imagine what they are wanting.

Yes, Merkel was serious. And the story is not yet over. The next EU-meeting tomorrow will raise the demand again, and the chancellor's office is said to fight bitterly with the stubborn Bundesbank president currently, to make him comply. Merkel installed the new president herself, he was a close adviser to her and she hoped he would be a puppet in the federal bank obeying her commands. That is why many fear that he will not hold out in his resistence, but sooner or later give up. His predecessor already gave up in protest and despair over politicians trying to destroy the bank's independence, both the ECB and the German Federal Bank. That'S why you do not see him in the ECB chief position now (he was agreed upon throughout Europe due to his stressing of stability and debt-control), but Draghi, who is quite the opposite of the former German candidate and immediately lowered the interest rates already on his first day.

I say this serious: the Germasn are not rational, when it comes to Europe, and romanticism and illusions control their decisions to quite some degree. Optimists say that could serve as a motivation for the "European project", whatever that means. Realists like me just stick to the obvious conclusion and just call it decisions based on irrationality, emotions, and romantic dreaming. It goes withiout need to mentioning it that it already serves as an invitation to others to suck our blood that we so voluntarily distribute for free.

I wish we would go back 200 years and start searching the blue flower again. Would be less costly to us, and still more satisfying for our sentiments, and would create some good prose. Contemporary German literature - is a sad state of affairs. Das Volk der Dichter und Denker - don'T see much of that anymore.

Germans tick differently. I do not mean that as a joke. If I have learned one thing here in these forums over the past ten years, then this. Do not compare us to the British or the French. We are Romantiker - that formed some of the most influential cultural treasury in the world, helped to trigger two world wars, and now makes us sacrificing ourselves over illusions of a better world to make. Which is a contradiction, because in principle Germans are no people overly enthusiastic over foreigners. It's still that feeling of guilt for WWII, I assume. And a wide gap between our self-declared pseudo-elites and political establishement, and the people.

[Gerald]

Originally Posted by jimbuna

Really ?

Coming from a long term 'neutral' that doesn't hold a load lot of weight

Not? There are differences in the background that one should keep in mind before you embark on this, primarily, the neutrality is not something that needs to be touched in this context, Germany and Sweden have very good trade partners both now and earlier, and strong ties in various areas, personally I do not think that the EU will have to take the hit Greece in this manner, when the country when entering 2003 ... if I remember correctly, was not even fly to get into, that they "cheated" to enter the EU. . this whole business of the Union and countries that do not meet budget targets, the country's population must pay the prize,which means that Brussels has failed to hold it together when it really counts certainly was not good before this happened either.