Posted on 07/05/2015 12:11:53 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
"I voted with my heart and also my mind," said Marie Triadafillou, who works in transportation logistics and voted yes. "I believe when you are in a union you cannot leave. We say in our country if the sheep leaves the flock it cannot live."
...Martin Schulz, the head of the European Parliament, who had offered at one point to come to Greece to campaign for a yes vote, said on Sunday that Greece would need to prepare to operate without the euro and with a parallel currency if there was a no vote on Sunday. While Greece would remain in the euro, it "will have to introduce another currency after the referendum because the euro is not available as a means of payment," he said in an interview broadcast Sunday on Germany's Deutschlandfunk radio. He added that he hoped the risk of such a change would induce Greeks to vote yes....
The French economy minister, Emmanuel Macron, on Sunday called on Greece's creditors to resume discussions with Athens immediately after the referendum, no matter the outcome, and warned against punishing Greece in the event of a no vote...
At a polling station in a middle-class Athens neighborhood, Baizar Tazerian, 76, said... "No, means that we don't have to say yes to whatever they are saying," ... At a polling station in a southern neighborhood of Athens, Pantiotis Andrikopoulos, 33, a student, said he planned to vote no "because I don't like being blackmailed by the E.U." He did not buy European arguments that a no vote meant Greeks wanted to leave the eurozone. "I'm for Europe but against the memorandum," he said, as he stood in a long line of people waiting to vote.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Lol!
Grexico :-)
True. But at least the Saudis and Kuwaitis pay their bills. Greece hasn't and won't, as evidenced by today's vote. Nobody's gonna work to get that oil if they don't pay for it.
What; olive oil?
“...if the hotel and car rental prices are cheap enough, tourists will come to gawk at them, eat that primitive food, stay in accommodations built 500 years ago, etc...”
Hmm...primitive food is by definition easy to prepare. I enjoy cooking Greek & now have another reason to like it.
As for going there, “why should I travel when I’m already here?”
Many people there are dependent on imported medicines, such as diabetics and cancer patients. Without these supplies, there will be a humanitarian catastrophe.
They should have never been in admitted to the EMU in the first place, having failed the criteria of the Maastricht Treaty from the jump and never coming into compliance.
The reality here is the populace sees this as a vote for freedom and on the surface is actually is, but underneath is where the issue lies because Sryiza cannot deliver all that they promised without the German money men.
This economy actually benefited from German economic strength, not on any of it own, since the inclusion. Now they will work to float their own currency and issue bonds under their own central bank flag (BTW they can't call the new currency the Drachma, that is against the EMU rules) which will cost them so much in the short run that they won't have the reserves to make any interest payments.
The concept of the EU/EC and further the EMU was flawed from its inception. The Germans and to some degree the French have benefited the most because if they had the D-Mark and Franc cross currency rates would be astronomically high against both countries that EU trade would favor the weaker countries.
The unnatural blend of democracy and communism at work here. The latter will prevail and the Greeks will pay a heavy price unless Berlin decides this vote will cost them more if they accept it then it would to reject it and cut a deal with Athens.
If that is so, the powers that be should have thought about that before they decided to keep up the handouts while they quit paying the bills-it is not anyone else’s problem, nor should it be-churches and other charitable concerns should deal with that, if it happens, because I can’t really see the UN helping the people of any country that does not sponsor terrorism or openly commit major human rights violations...
That is what will be interesting to me. If the EU comes back to the bargaining table.
Sounds like they are darned if they do...and darned if the don’t.
In spite of the wealth of historic sites, I’ve never had the desire to visit to Greece, even if I could afford it-and we certainly do have plenty of goats and pits to cook them-some people out here make and barter goats’ cheese that is very tasty, too...
This is the point where all good American liberals, including Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama, should invest a large portion of their personal savings in Greek government bonds to demonstrate their solidarity and faith in the righteous Socialist path of the Greeks. What could possibly go wrong?
If the EMU members let Greece leave well the Euro will fall which is what they and the ECB wants, but the equity markets will crack some which is what NO ONE wants. If they decide to save Greece then the Euro would stabilize which they may not want and the equity markets would go back to watching ECB policy which is what they DO want.
But the end result doesn't fix the problem at all. One allows the infection to spread to the rest of the Continent and, I don't care what any textbook pilot says, Italy and Spain will start to feel the pain in the form of the servicing of their own debt....the other keeps throwing Euros at an unsolvable problem.
Gold may not be so bad an investment again.
Good grief, the democrat party has taken over Greece....spend every dollar that you take from those who produce to support those who are the gibmedats....pathetic, and what’s worse, we are going, rapidly, down the same road......sigh.
Sounds like California, Michigan, New york, etc.
Most hysterical sites are overrun with crowds & souvenir sellers. Who needs that? I’d rather take an historic tour on youtube.
What foods are native to somewhere else that are impossible to replicate here? Your post gives the answer: none.
America is a better place to live than anyplace else on Earth. Greece has tourism & that’s it. I rest my case.
What could go wrong? ;’)
The Greek government needs to find something of value to trade with someone else who has the value they need. Maybe start issuing 50 year leases on the Greek historic landmarks, like the Parthenon and Acropolis. Charge a high signing fee, and annual fixed lease fee, and a percentage of revenue. Turn loose some talented Greek or other capitalists who know how to make money off existing assets.
Change the Greek welfare system so it pays out based on the profits of the landmark rental business. (Similar to Alaska oil payments to state residents.) Give Greek citizens first priority to get the jobs to work at the landmarks, provided that they actually have to work. Just some ideas.
Crazy as it sounds, it might just work. That broad wait staff skill set will get it up and running in no time. No job training needed. ;>)
Wow, that’s a good idea. With a cheap drachma, the leases would probably be very reasonable.
On top of that, I would recommend that a few big international hotel chains pay to construct some mega hotel/resort structures with big near views of the Parthenon, Acropolis, etc. Set up some major trams that transport people from one place to another. Set up some of the best restaurants on earth as part of this infrastructure. Interlaced small scale trains out to the coastal resorts. It could be one of the most amazing and financially successful destinations on earth.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.