How d'ya say "bread and circuses" in Greek?
Posted on 05/09/2010 9:53:26 PM PDT by mlocher
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Global policymakers unleashed an emergency rescue package worth about $1 trillion to stabilize world financial markets and prevent the Greek debt crisis from destroying the euro currency.
The rescue, hammered out by European Union finance ministers, central bankers and the International Monetary Fund in marathon talks at the weekend, was the largest package in over two years since G20 leaders threw money at the global economy following the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
The size of the package surprised financial analysts and the euro rose close to 2 percent while stocks in Asia firmed.
The U.S. Federal Reserve reopened currency swap lines with several central banks and Group of Seven and Group of 20 finance ministers weighed in with their backing for the measures.
EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn told a news conference the package of measures "proves we shall defend the euro whatever it takes."
The emergency measures are worth much more than any previous attempts by the 27-country EU or the 16-state single-currency group to calm markets.
They come after the Greek crisis drove sovereign debt yields and insurance on this debt to record levels.
Financial markets had started to punish other euro zone debt of members with bloated budgets such as Portugal, Spain and Ireland, in what Sweden's finance minister described as "wolfpack behaviours."
The $1 trillion package consists of 440 billion euros in guarantees from euro area states, plus 60 billion euros in a European instrument.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.fidelity.com ...
Well, I sure wouldn't mind those "austerity measures" being implemented here.
Europe had their own financial meltdown... Bush’s fault too?
Problem for them is that they do live in the real world, whether they understand it or not. At some point, the leeches run out of “other people’s money.” We’re getting to that point.
And then it will get UGLY.
The irony is that once that happens, they lose either way. They either “win” and beat us down, and the whole world descends into misery. Or they “lose,” and we stop with the entitlements.
However, where WE land differs massively...
The train wreck continues, in slow motion. The people of Germany are going to be pissed off big time. Germany will wind up paying the lion share of this bill.
They’re trying to plug one hole in the dike. Greece, along with Spain, Portugal, Italy and Ireland are just the first holes in the dike. The welfare state is unraveling faster than most people realize.
The riots in Greece are all about NOT agreeing to be debt slaves for a generation or more. Of course, its a bunch of spoiled little SOBs that lived on everyone else's dime to begin with, but the lesson is that they are refusing to live like paupers to pay off banks and rich investors in other countries.
No one here agreed to mortgage our children's and grandchildren's futures - and you can bet your bottom dollar that people in this country are about to wake up. I am NOT going to pay for the utter irresponsibility of a bunch of America-hating Euroweenie Socialists, whom we ALREADY subsidized by keeping the Russian bear in its cage for 50 years, and I damned sure won't allow my kids to be enslaved to the bankers any more than they already are due to OUR America-hating Socialists.
Oh, how I can't wait for November. And I do hope for some serious rioting before then - it is long past time that the "let them eat cake" crowd in DC and on Wall Street gets a warning to back off, else the guillotines come out.
“A trillion dollars from WHERE??
Much of it from the IMF. The U.S. comprises about 2/3rds of the IMF...so the U.S. taxpayers will pay about 2/3rds of the IMF contribution to the Greek bailout.
Keep in mind that Greece is being bailed out because it cannot pay its bond obligations. Who holds those bonds? Mainly European banks. So the U.S. taxpayer is being forced to pay off European banks just as they were forced to pay off U.S. banks during the recent U.S. financial sector bailout.
This is another excuse to soak the U.S. of its hard-earned wealth and redistribute it.
Many analysts expect the rest of Europe to follow suit. As the welfare states of Europe default on their debt obligations, expect mass rioting throughout Europe, and more calls for the U.S. (via the IMF and other mechanisms) to bail everyone out. The so-called “P.I.I.G.S” countries are all at risk (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Spain) as is the U.K.
Unicorns and goats ? If Europe needs money, all they really need to do is to find that dang Leprechaun that stole 20 pounds off me in London. He was short. Had reddish hair. And spoke a version of English I never, ever heard before. That guy was very skilled at getting money out of people. I was quite impressed. Now if we can just find his pot of gold at the end of that rainbow.
Bankers are just agents for the state. They are debt distributors. They do not deal with wealth and they did not create the debt the state passes off as wealth. One day Americans are gonna wake up and decide that accepting nothing for something, is just like getting robbed. If we were properly compensated for our products and services, bankers would not even be needed. And they could never create fake money (debt) with Unicorns, Magic Goats or Leprechauns.
Nobody has any real money. We borrow from China and give to EU?? This can no longer be considered sane. As soon as the bailout was announced the gold and silver markets nose dived. It is amazing to see them flail and flop. We are witnessing the death throes.
Obama could not let his EU communist brethren fail yet. It could expose him too soon.
I hope some begin to realize that Ron Paul is not such a kook as they think.
According to Bloomberg financial web site,
The Greek 2 year bond dropped 5 to 13% and the 10 year bond dropped to 7%
The 5 and 10 yr went back up to 7+% from a low of 6+% initially. Looks like market only has faith on 2 year bonds only and they are still at 5% (they were 18% but 5% is still very expensive)
‘The U.S. Federal Reserve reopened currency swap lines with several central banks and Group of Seven and Group of 20 finance ministers weighed in with their backing for the measures. “
The Fed opened a line of credit.
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