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The World's Uberwealthy Scramble To Buy Greek Isles
The emir of Qatar is a busy man: in addition to providing funding and weapons to the mercenary group formerly known as Syrian "rebels" in order to boost his already incalculable wealth and promote his LNG interests in the region over those of Saudi Arabia, in the process isolating Russia as the marginal provider of energy to Europe and furthering western interests even if it means escalating the Syrian civil war, he is also diversifying his assets. And he is doing so in a way that would provide for a quick and painless getaway should things in his country turn sour (now that the US and Russian fleets are converging nearby, this is no longer a merely token possibility): by buying Greek islands. So now that the world has seen the "lead investors" step in, the uber-wealthiest are scrambling to copycat one of the world's richest people and stake their own Greek island claim.
As reported two months ago, Qatar's emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani paid €8.5 million for six islands in the Ionian sea. As Guardian reported, "The isles, known as the Echinades, caught the oil-rich monarch's fancy when he moored his super-yacht in the turquoise waters off Ithaca, took in the view and liked what he saw. That was four summers ago."
When the royal eventually got off the yacht, he inquired about the pine-covered chain as he strolled about Ithaca in sandals and shorts. "They have a fund with a couple of hundred million in it," enthused Kassianos, a former US economics professor who assumed the mayorship of Homer's fabled isle three years ago. "And as far as I know they want to buy all 18 of the islands, the whole lot."
The purchase, the biggest private investment in Greece, appears to have been a windfall for the emir, who drove a hard bargain in a market where investors are few and far between. The first island, Oxia, initially came with a price tag of €7m before its Greek-Australian owners agreed to let it go for just under €5m. Last week, Denis Grivas, whose family has owned the title deeds to the other five almost since the foundation of modern Greece, also settled on a price.
"The islands have been in my family for over 150 years but we are not rich enough to be able to keep such valuable properties any longer," he said, ruing the soaring taxes the crisis-hit Greek state has slapped on real estate. "We are very, very happy to see them go. They have been on the market for nearly 40 years."
...the Gulf royal does not appear in any mood to create tourist resorts on the retreats. Instead, said Kassianos, his aim is to build palaces for the exclusive pleasure of his 24 children and three wives. The architects have already moved in, drawing up plans to create a private idyll.
One of the recently purchased islands in question: Oxia, which cost €5 million.
However, even for a man for whom the purchase prices was pocket change did not splurge.
The emir may be rich but he is business savvy. He had wanted to buy the Ionian isle of Skorpios, where Jackie Kennedy married Aris Onassis. The deal fell through when the late shipowner's granddaughter, Athina Onassis, refused to come down in price. She is selling for €200m.
Curiously, that offer may soon be lifted because as Spiegel explains, following the Qatar emir's purchase, suddenly there is a mad rush by all of the world's superwealthy to do just that, and partition Greece's private islands among themselves.
From Spiegel: Coveted Coves: Emir's Greek Isle Purchase Inspires Hope
The sparsely inhabited Greek island of Ithaca is set for new
growth after the Emir of Qatar bought some islands in the area
Despite the country's crippling financial crisis, residents of the Greek island of Ithaca have found new hope after the Emir of Qatar bought a nearby island for his summer retreat. The purchase has sparked a rush on local real estate and could bring new development.
After the Trojan War, Odysseus' journey ended on the island of Ithaca, which later became part of the Byzantine Empire. Located in the middle of the Ionian Sea, it is covered with vegetation and has few beaches, which explains why no one was particularly interested in it or other neighboring rocky islands south of Corfu for a long time.
Only a few of the rich and powerful have anchored their yachts in Ithaca's coves, including Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, Jr., Maria Callas, Madonna, Prince Charles and the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
Celebrities are attracted to the group of islands off the west coast of Greece because they are sparsely populated, and their coves are relatively inaccessible and protected from the eyes of the paparazzi. There is nothing celebrities desire more than spending their vacations without being observed -- and in the company of other celebrities. This is probably why Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, cast his anchor there. He must have liked what he saw, because he promptly decided to buy some of the islands in the area.
Since then, Denis Grivas' phone has been ringing off the hook. An engineer with a doctorate from the University of California, Berkeley, he lived in the United States for a long time before returning to his native island of Ithaca in 1994. He too once owned an island in the Ionian Sea, a four-and-a-half square-kilometer rock called Atokos, apparently suited for little more than goats and sheep. But he eventually sold the island. How could Grivas have known that one of the richest men in the world would be interested in islands like his one day?
The Return of Hope
It all began centuries ago, when the Grivas family acquired 10 small islands near Ithaca. When Grivas's grandfather passed on the islands to his sons, his father received six islands. But there wasn't much he could do with them. Even shepherds and goatherds felt the islands were too rugged to lease them as pasture for their animals.
When his father died in 1973, Denis Grivas inherited one of the islands, Atokos. But when he was unable to pay the hefty inheritance tax and the authorities temporarily confiscated his passport, he began looking for a buyer. He finally found one in 1982, with the help of a Hamburg broker. Grivas sold Atokos for the equivalent of about €1 million ($1.3 million), and his passport was returned.
It seemed like a good deal at the time, but now he regrets selling Atokos. The emir has brought both hope and money back to the Ionian Sea. The Arab ruler reportedly paid €5 million for Oxeia, an uninhabited island near Ithaca. He also reportedly paid Grivas' sister, a homemaker in California, several million for five smaller islands, although the final transfer of title hasn't yet taken place.
Since then, Grivas and his family have become famous and are now receiving inquiries from around the world, even from as far away as Singapore and Nepal. A gold fever of sorts has also erupted among Grivas' neighbors. A few weeks ago, the daughter of a Russian businessman apparently bought, or at least leased, the neighboring island of Skorpios. "The emir has brought a feeling of hope back to the islands, something that was missing in these depressed times," says Grivas.
No Longer Relying on Tourism
"The best approach is to conduct fair and direct business deals," Qatar's premier told his Greek counterpart Antonis Samaras when he visited Doha in January to drum up investment. The emir is now taking his prime minister's advice literally.
He apparently intends to build a private estate for his family on Oxeai, says Ithaca Mayor Ioannis Kassianos, although he doesn't know exactly what the estate will look like. But it will undoubtedly be grand, given that the emir has three wives and 24 children. Kassianos advises the man on whom he is now pinning his hopes to bring along plenty of patience. "Even if you are the emir of Qatar and are buying an island, the paperwork still takes 18 months," he says.
Kassianos, a former business professor, also returned from the United States in the 1990s. As the nonpartisan mayor of Ithaca for the last two-and-a-half years, he has been trying to lead his community out of the crisis. "Nothing worked throughout the entire time, and now someone comes along and is bringing in money," he says. A lot of money, in fact. The Qatari ruler apparently wants to invest about €200 million in his summer retreat.
The mayor now hopes that his island will finally get a water pipeline to the mainland and garbage collection. He expects that both services will undoubtedly materialize once the emir starts building. A harbor expansion is also likely, he says, as well as a new shipyard. Workers will be needed, as well as provisions for the workers, and it seems logical that the emir will turn to Ithaca for these things. Besides, Kassianos argues, the emir's plans will likely attract other wealthy investors. "We will no longer be dependent on tourists, and we'll be able to double our revenues," says Kassianos.
But Grivas, who sold his island too early, is unlikely to benefit from the gold rush. "When you sell something, you sell it with all of your heart," he says. "I had no choice at the time. It had to happen." Now he's waiting for his retirement pension.
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OT but it gave me a chuckle:
http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/05/17/scientists-study-violent-winds...
That happens to me after I eat Mexican food...
Sung to the tune of 'NYC Boy' [by Pet Shop Boys]
~~~
"When you're a Pope
some dayz are tough...
Printin' up ur bux
buyin' ur shit n-stuff"
~~~
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gAn7AW14zQ
This is what should be happening.
These countries aren't insolvent - they need to sell their assets. Same with the US. Over 50% of its land is held by the government. SELL IT and pay off your debt! Maybe the Bernanke could quit printing money then.
Isn't about 50% of CA owned by the feds???
Fuck The Pet Shop Boys
It's all Greek to me...
Well they arent making any more of it.
wonderfully played
I'm interested in which ones the Cheesepopes are buying.
Banzai, do one map of the whole wolrd split in lots for sale... I would love to send that to friends
Goal accomplished by the super rich. Next, everywhere else. What public lands will the US be selling at garage sale prices to pay off the fictitious debt. It's all a scam/fraud.
Sounds like ya'll are jealous of rich people.
Sounds like you suck up to elite banker crooks and liars. Most rich people in the financialized economy get their money by skimming the productive economy by a rigged system and capture of government. Crony capitalism. Go ahead worship at the feet of the crooks. Be my guest. They piss on your worship! To them you are just a happy tool to be used for their gain. Keep it up. They think it is a joke.
Canaduh:
Sounds like you are clueless about the psychotic sociopathic narcissist nature of the Uber-Wealthy, and how it destroys the lives of productive individuals and their families.
The Middle Class is being sucked dry from beneath by the Underclass, and from above by the Uber-Wealthy. Yes, it is class warfare – those two classes have been waging war on the Middle Class since the beginning of civilization.
But the difference now is the immense intervention of the government to also join the fray, enabling both the Underclass and the Uber-Wealthy to loot and pillage the Middle Class through repressive militaristic-style law enforcement, secret courts (think NDAA, and the so-called Patriot Act establishing these courts and their secret proceedings) warrantless searches (Boston’s complete melt-down of the Fourth Amendment, the FBI’s absolutely unconstitutional prying into private emails, TSA armed intervention in law enforcement when it is NOT a law enforcement agency . . .) rationalized through unconstitutional laws, executive orders, and the implementation of these actions.
That’s not jealousy, Canaduh – that is fighting for the preservation of a way of life and the freedoms upon which America is founded.
-30-
Wow, you people are too easy, no wonder MDB does this.
I love MDB. I got him right from the start. But then he posts in much more detail which makes obvious what he is doing. Your sound bite post is not untypical of a number of regular ZH posters who can be counted on to back and support the financialized theft system of the new elites.
This is not the days when a rich man got rich by industry it is a day of getting rich by skimming the few producers left.
So because I'm not as obvious, you don't love me.sniff
How did a man ever get rich off of industry?? Wouldn't he just be 'skimming' the labor who actually produced the products?
Why isn't everyone only getting minimum wage at their job?
agree, but seems as if these are private land transactions
Gee, I hope Santorini doesn't blow and spoil the party.
Sorry. I already bought Santorini last week from a Nigerian royal.
What public lands will the US be selling at garage sale prices to pay off the fictitious debt.
None, that would depress prices, the state is actually accumulating land everywhere, and the land it doesn't own is being restricted, and the uber rich, they're getting land tax exemptions. Ted Turner for instance, aside from being one of America's biggest land owners is also one of America's least taxed land owners.
who's gonna pay for maintenance once they hang the emir
Looks like that guy got doubly screwed by the government; first the taxation which forced him to sell and "Now he's waiting for his retirement pension."
Good luck...
Quadruple taxed and screwed 9ways to Sunday, he's a CA resident citizen and no doubt pensioner.
It amazes me that governments are willing to give up assets like these for a little bit of fiat. I guess they figure they can take it back later when the house of cards collapses.
Sounds right. Eminent domain invoked - something about national security...
The goverments don't give up anything, it stays part of greece.
It are not sovereign isles, its just like buying a peice of land, surrounded by sea.
I'm thinking piracy can come roaring back now that the uber-priates are buying their future havens.
Nice island you got there, but do they have the firepower to KEEP it against all comers?
All ure isles are belong to us
K? Bye
Regards
IMF & Da bankstas
So why impose 'Austerity' on the Thessalonians?
~~~
Page Boy: "That Thessalonian is the biggest man I've ever seen, I wouldn't want to fight him"
Achilles: "That's why nobody will ever remember your name"
~~~
Hey WB7 ~ Can you 'superimpose' a concentric circle blast radius of a 50MT detonation at the epicenter of that map?... U kno ~ just for the lulz...
LOVE me some Isles
He will build an enormous villa so that future tourists can wander through the ruins.
Occupy (Greek) Islands... no island should be private...just hire a dinghy and land on the beach. Tell them to go fuck themselves...and organise a rave!
Greece has a relatively HUGE military and navy just to prevent such activities
They may have to row to get ya, but they will.
Unless the checks don't come.
? "no island should be private"...
why? they are small, unhabited, often barren and lacking water, and unfit even for goats
Back to Feudos, Bitchez!
Wake up, you dumb fucking sheep!
Feudalism 2.0 is on the rise, and will replace ALL 'democratic' powers. Thanks to the Global Banksters, "doing god's work".
A pity that their 'god' isn't your God, or that the 'Shepherds' of your God are so dumb and cowardly.
I know who's got your 'backside', but who's got your back?
Kirk why don't u take a smoke break.
or better yet direct your fire at yahoo finance or something.
I guess it would be 'better' if people no longer said what's on their mind [& took extended smoke breaks]... BY THE WAY ~ HAPPY BIRTHDAY 'ZH MANIFESTO'
~~~
BTW ~ I suppose a 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY' [4 years] is in order for the 'ZH Manifesto' [copied below]
Submitted by Zero Hedge on 05/17/2009 21:03 -0400
our mission:
our method: pseudonymous speech...
anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority. it thus exemplifies the purpose behind the bill of rights, and of the first amendment in particular: to protect unpopular individuals from retaliation-- and their ideas from suppression-- at the hand of an intolerant society.
...responsibly used.
the right to remain anonymous may be abused when it shields fraudulent conduct. but political speech by its nature will sometimes have unpalatable consequences, and, in general, our society accords greater weight to the value of free speech than to the dangers of its misuse.
- mcintyre v. ohio elections commission 514 u.s. 334 (1995) justice stevens writing for the majority
though often maligned (typically by those frustrated by an inability to engage in ad hominem attacks) anonymous speech has a long and storied history in the united states. used by the likes of mark twain (aka samuel langhorne clemens) to criticize common ignorance, and perhaps most famously by alexander hamilton, james madison and john jay (aka publius) to write the federalist papers, we think ourselves in good company in using one or another nom de plume. particularly in light of an emerging trend against vocalizing public dissent in the united states, we believe in the critical importance of anonymity and its role in dissident speech. like the economist magazine, we also believe that keeping authorship anonymous moves the focus of discussion to the content of speech and away from the speaker- as it should be. we believe not only that you should be comfortable with anonymous speech in such an environment, but that you should be suspicious of any speech that isn't.
those were the days.
ON A LONG ENOUGH TIMELINE THE SURVIVAL RATE FOR EVERYONE DROPS TO ZERO
Alright Francis here is what is on my mind. I am watching you hit the wall. Do you see that? As a matter of fact ZH commentary has hit the same wall with you. I thought you made your point initially with all your posts and told you to give up. You did not. I was wrong to tell you that. Like you said, say what's on your mind. Kirk should too. He can also go fuck himself for just yelling incoherently like a drunk asshole but he has every right to do so.
Anyway, so we have hit the wall on here. There is not much to do but chit chat until something comes along. You on the other hand continue to smash your head against that wall. I give you credit. You won't quit and you won't let anyone else quit. I wonder if you are going to break through that wall. I think you just might.
still a few places left to say what you want,
http://houston.craigslist.org/i/personals?category=rnr
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@fonz ~ Pretty much the classic thought process du jour... If you'll be so kind as to indulge me [&/or if you're really interested in hearing my thoughts to your questions, here they are, in sequence...
~~~
Alright Francis here is what is on my mind. I am watching you hit the wall. Do you see that?
No... I don't see anything... My manner of response is consistent with the way I've always responded to things [according to my interpretation of the 'Manifesto']... I seek the TRUTH...
As a matter of fact ZH commentary has hit the same wall with you.
Has it ever occurred to anyone to speculate WHY that might be the case?... [which is, by the way, an acknowledgement of what I 'sense' as a silent protest here... Except for myself, of course... I'm not so inclined to be 'silent' about things... To wit: My use of the 'Achilles' quote ^^^ above...
I thought you made your point initially with all your posts and told you to give up. You did not. I was wrong to tell you that.
Yes ~ you were wrong to tell me that [in the context of the 'Manifesto']... My only qualification for the 'spirit' of that assessment would be if my comments have been the work of a raving, mouth breathing lunatic... Whereby, I've 'INVITED' people, [like Thillson below] to conjure up a past log of francis_sawyer comments & make a case for it... Such 'cases' have not been forthcoming...
Like you said, say what's on your mind. Kirk should too. He can also go fuck himself for just yelling incoherently like a drunk asshole but he has every right to do so.
No comment ~ I'm not predisposed to 'characterizing' other commentators [other than, perhaps, when I'm totally drunk myself]... If you sift through the body of my comments, I don't think you'll find a lot of deviations...
Anyway, so we have hit the wall on here. There is not much to do but chit chat until something comes along. You on the other hand continue to smash your head against that wall. I give you credit. You won't quit and you won't let anyone else quit. I wonder if you are going to break through that wall. I think you just might.
It is your right to 'characterize' my comments [in this moment], as [paraphrasing] 'hitting my head against the wall"... Instead ~ I'd describe them as 'setting the record straight' [which a reasonable person might be expected to do after suffering capricious 'slings & arrows' after presenting, what I consider to be, 'thought provoking' hypothesis...
It is what it is I guess Francis. I am just pointing out what I have noticed. Like you said some people have disappeared, possibly in protest. Other people like me have just made this our virtual local "Cheers" type pub. Other people are angry, others are depressed, or a combo of both.
I think it will stay this way for a while. Eventually the next step I see on here is people actually meeting up. Either that or we all drop off one by one for our own reasons.
That is... I believe... an 'accurate' depiction...
~~~
The Rubicon has been crossed... It's now 'Cheers' [with a Bloomberg Terminal]...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-mi0r0LpXo
"You want to be where everybody knows your name"... [Even if it's fake]...
francis_saywer be our 'big toe'...........
No fucking way... The 'BIG TOE' got... ["Blown up Sir!"]... & in the end, had to ride it out on the roof of an 'Urban Assault Vehicle'...
~~~
'I'm too old for this SHIT!" :-)
~~~
Alternately:
"Plattoon... RAZZLE DAZZLE"
Plattoon: "Why did the chicken cross the [RUBICON]... To get from the left to the right... Huh!"
The sentiment was tension in the barnyard
Throughout the years they had been through mad drama
With the farmer, word is bond
dead prez -- animal in man [3.19]
http://youtu.be/ubMQkPzc0Fs
None of that bolded stuff justifies your "joo" bashing, so go back to your dunce corner already.
As a measure of 'courtesy', I'll respond here... But say that my RESPONSE to your comment is printed above...
+1 "Political correctness" is BS. It's on your mind regardless. There's also a difference between indicating facts and bashing even if there's a fine line.
The use of the term "bashing" is a subjective characterization...
~~~
Personally ~ I tend to think of "bashing" to exist within the same realm of "drive by shootings"... Instead ~ When the author makes a sincere attempt to present a case for something, I believe, "bashing" is not applicable [as may be, perhaps, often levied towards, in a reflexive manner, the alleged perp [by way of indictment]... The scenario is further confused in an emotion [& analog] type atmosphere whereby any manner of 'hooligan' has the tools & manpower to effectively 'whip up' their own version of reality using the weapons of:
- hyperbole
- leverage
- & 'battle fatigue'
Addendum: [vis-a-vis ~ Thisson]...And there you have it folks... The 'FUTURE' of the ZH comment crew ['CONTRIBUTERS'... whose 'WISDOM' has been thoroughly vetted & approved by the newly assembled 'Pre-Crime" unit]... Sadly, I reckon... This scenario will persist...
Francis, I commend your response in referencing ZH manafesto. Bravo!
Also since new ZH policy, it is noted that while the content of your posts remain consistant, the words used reflect a nimble side step. "to follow the letter if not the intent"
@forwardho
~~~
Anyone who would have cared to have read that 'Manifesto', [if they considered themselves to be a 'REASONABLE' person], should have NOT failed to realize that any francis_sawyer comments... made at ANY TIME... conformed with the criteria of the DECLARATION...
Furthermore ~ AFTER the NEW policy was imposed... I invite anyone to present a case where the POST RUBICON rules were broken... IOW ~ All 'crimes', [from that & this point forward, are the sole domain of the office of the 'PRE-CRIME' unit]...
~~~
With that in mind... Indulge me in [copy/pasting] a 'late' comment [in a previous thread], whicg bears resemblence to all 'slippery slope' matters...
~~~TEXT~~~
On the 'TRUTH' path [francis_sawyer trying to live up to the ZH Manifesto, on the eve of its birthday]... Yesterday I made a comment to SMG [about 'THIS 'ERS & 'THAT'ERS ~ as is, it's NOT this, it's THAT]...
Seems to me I remember him always going on about 'Luciferians'... OK ~ Let's take that one out for a spin...
I'm no legal genius, but I'm seriously doubting that there's anything in Swiss Law that can get you sued for talking about 'Luciferians'... I mean, WTF?... Is 'discrimination' against 'Luciferians' a crime in Switzerland?... Are they actually a 'race'... 'Religion' I'll leave aside, & besides, I've always said IT.HAS.NOTHING.TO.DO.WITH.RELIGION.
Anyway ~ The only logical thing to conclude in this matter is that 'some [PLURAL] entity' is being protected... Following that path... If 'Luciferians' aren't the ones being protected, or, just for shits & grins, say, "Syrians", [& I'll just bundle up the 'Syrians' with that, because, if anything, it's 24/7 open season on 'Syrians' who nobody seems to give a FF about save for which bombs to torpedo them with]...
So, if SMG's efforts to shine the spotlight on "Luciferian's" is flawed... Then there are only two possible conclusions:
1. He's FOS
2. He's 'correct'... But if he is, how do you skate around the unlikelihood that anybody would ever win a court case that accused someone of 'discriminating' against 'Luciferians'? [there would be no need to post 'anti-discrimination' clauses on your webpage]... So while the 'Luciferian' ANGLE may still hold water, it can only mean that if the 'Luciferians' are behind anything, & if it's not a defense for THEMSELVES [which would seem an absurd court case, to ME anyway], then INSTEAD, they're [assuming it's THEM] acting on behalf of a special entity which is near & dear to their hearts... Now ~ when you consider that prospect, it is almost MORE frightful than considering the simpler idea of the 'special entity' acting by themselves [&/or how any particulat 'special entity' at large may or may not have behaved in recorded history]...
But I'm a classless handicapper of things, so I'll wait for a more reasonable explanation from the corps of experts out there that frequent this blog...
It's all so confusing [to some]...
~~~END TEXT~~~
SMG?... kito?... Las Vegas Dave?... Thisson?... 'Beuller'?
Sorry, but Crab Key has just been bought by some Asian dude.
Do not be overawed when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases; for he will take nothing with him when he dies, his splendor will not descend with him. Though while he lived he counted himself blessed - and men praise you when you prosper - he will join the generation of his fathers, who will never see the light of light. A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish. Like sheep they are destined for the grave, and death will feed on them.
Psalm 49:16-20, 14
This is what should happen. Europes experiments is diaster socialism has come to full fruitition. Land and assets should all be sold to pay off their debts and government should be restricted to enforcing property and private property ONLY. No way am I going to invest or start a business in a place that steals my money via taxes to pay some government employee exorbitant wages and retirement.
Socialism does not work.
fucking Greeks r a bunch of pussified serfs...
they have proved it over and over again...
next up, the selling of all their women and children to appease their banker overlords...
FUCK OFF....
Last price:$122.40000
Big increase in jobs coming on Greek islands belonging to Emirs, Pashas, and Wazirs: manservant, stable boy, footman, eunuch
"first by inflation, then by deflation, they will deprive people of all their property until one day they wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered..."
Yep...
meaningful quote with a meaningless origin.
http://www.snopes.com/quotes/jefferson/banks.asp
but noted
when Greece becomes land of the golden fleece we won't have to go to Colchis and Jason can lie on the beach with Medea at Ithaca while Ulysses sells sea shells from the sea shore to Qatari lords of the sea floor full of Cyprus bubbly gas.
What a neat little world looks on to the Parthenon, past relic in tatters, where democracy was invented and later died as the Greeks cried dried eyed when an Emperor went and created Constantinople.
"Now we are all Romans" they sang, "and Agememnon is back to say this is OLigarchy land and we be the new slaves of his empire."
They were right and every bit of greek land belongs to Oligarchy clan, once named Papa something but now also Sheikh rattle n roll.
What a beautiful stroll to eat squid meat but not the squid's soul black as hell.
Typical (Greek) property ramping bulls*it, but why here ?
ultimate billionaire doomsteads.
"Sounds like ya'll are jealous of rich people."
Looks like you are bringing out the "duh" in "Canaduh." Thanks for the embarrassing comment.
However, Not too sure which map works better william. Funny and sad, all wrapped up in a map.
Cheers,
Pens,
i love how they call his purchase and hoped-for spending "investment". they honestly think he is going to contract the work to greek people and expand a harbor and pipe in water for them? he's going to pre-fab it out, have all the supplies put on a waiting tanker park it nearby and ferry the items in for the build.
water? they desalinize already. i see a small desalinazation unit on his own island. he's going off the grid! turn on tune in and opt out! Emir-style!
I see no one's bought Symi yet.
I like it there. A super-rich will moor their super yacht and then someone with a bigger yacht comes along and the original super-rich yacht owner gets angry and sails off thinking of ways he can earn?/defraud more money so he can get a bigger yacht. In the meantime, someone with a bigger yacht than the 2nd guy turns up.......................... oh these super rich have such stressful lives
Demographic Timing
An empire is like a farmer throwing his kids under the tractor tire as needed for traction. The only difference between this empire iteration and its predecessors is that it ran out of geographic space to swap populations in and out as they were grown and collapsed, … and labor employed the Internet as a microscope on empire activity, while empire operators employed it to find the virtual space required to continue growing the ponzi – print, tax, spend. Where is the cash? Bring it out and let us see it.
Registered voting is like a survey asking people if they have had extra-marital affairs, making decisions based on its literal interpretation. A better survey is the characteristics of the survey volunteers, and the non-profits funding the expedition. That’s the business of the most deliberative political body the world has ever seen, Congress. Bernanke is just supplying the crystal and the hay for the body politic to smoke.
The whole point of an empire is to live off the work of others, which works out just fine for the majority, because it prefers to be directed in exchange for guaranteed income, simpleton insurance, especially when future generations are the guarantors, which is why Buffet and Kissinger are referred to as vampires. Ticks more like, but critters have their niches for a reason.
If you think about it, allowing the majority to pull revenue forward and push costs back, rather than accepting responsibility for adapting to an increasingly difficult environment, suits your interest in distillation. One way to see evolution is to run your garbage disposal.
The problem/solution is the fixed cost of the empire’s non-performing asset base. Unless you promise to deliver your children to the empire and provide the technology necessary to support the growing demographic stupidity, the empire collapses of its own dead weight. Civil bridges are not designed to support REIT indefinitely.
An empire cannot exist without slave labor, entertained for the purpose. America is only a democracy in that the majority has voted to exempt itself from responsibility with social compliance. If everyone is participating, no one is responsible. Wrong assumption.
Kissinger’s bid to avoid FIRE collapse in China has failed. Although the majority cannot be prosecuted under civil law, which is designed to provide sufficient scapegoats as necessary to repeat the cycle, until it can’t, it cannot find a scapegoat sufficient to stop the hemorrhaging, NOT ONE, let alone a group to be recycled back into the mix at a later date.
Now we turn our attention to military law…
The vortex fulcrum is adjusted by kids swapping in and out of the family civil law enforcement role, on the margin at the multiplexer gate, adjusting expansion and contraction in the event horizon blades, as needed for any given propulsion development. They are the spark plugs, transistors, or whatever other analogy suits your purpose.
So, net, you have a rate of demographic deceleration ahead of a rate of demographic acceleration, with volumes and pressures in event horizons…now, where is that switch? The lock and the key complete development at fulcrum ignition. The chicken and the egg is relative to perspective.
Fuck the Greek islands. I'm holding out for the Grand Canyon.
Does POMO money impact the stock market on the "operation date" or the "settlement date" most?
"Qatar's emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani paid €8.5 million for six islands in the Ionian sea"
That was the "what we told the govt we got price", the real price was probably 10X time that amount, I suspect the emir's properties and assets have Greek "tax exempt" status too otherwise his Greek "investments" are just "donations" to Greek Communists.
"furthering western interests even if it means escalating the Syrian civil war"
Seems like escalating rhetoric to further or create a civil war is a growing business, hint hint.
Target rich environment for a passing military or government entity though.
The emir is only following Simon Black's advice.