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Greece FinMin: "No U-Turn" In Our Position; "Write-Off Can Occur In Several Methods" Spokesman Adds
Yesterday, when we reported on the FT's take of the supposed Greek flip-flop, we said that contrary to the official interpretation of Greece ending its demands for a hard debt write-down and replacing it with a proposal for a debt exchange, we stated that "the Greeks themselves realize that this proposal is nothing but a debt haircut under a different name, but hope that Europe will pull an Obamacare and bet on the "stupidity of their own taxpayers" to let it slide without anyone noticing. To wit: "[Varoufakis] said his proposal for a debt swap would be a form of “smart debt engineering” that would avoid the need to use a term such as a debt “haircut”, politically unacceptable in Germany and other creditor countries because it sounds to taxpayers like an outright loss."
For the benefit of the kneejerk algos we even highlighted the key section, noting that all Varoufakis had done, was engage in semantics for the "benefit" of German taxpayers:
A haircut that "avoids the need for such a term" pic.twitter.com/XVeJRYu2Q9
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 2, 2015
And not only was the Greet gambit merely a verbal paliation, the proposed alternative was in itself a non-starter, "when one considers what we explained a long time ago: namely that a distressed debt exchange, such as what Greece is proposing, is what the rating agencies have always deemed an Event of Default, and thus something which the ECB will never agree with as it once again impairs an ECB-held security" as well as is seen as ECB monetary financing of a sovereign state (the ECB does that with QE as well, but we'll let that slide for the time being).
This was confirmed moments ago by David Schnautz, strategist at Commerzbank who said that "the starting point of Greek negotiations on debt restructuring doesn’t look very promising" adding that "ECB, at least directly, won’t be able to swap its holdings of Greek bonds into other maturities due to the ban of monetary financing. The Timeline also doesn’t look very convincing, as asking or rather leaning on ECB for bridge-financing until June/July also probably borders on the ban of monetary financing."
We bring all this up because less than a day after the FT report sent futures soaring and has been responsible for the jump in European stocks this morning, the Greek finance minister made it quite clear that, as has been happening on pretty much every day since his ascent to power, he has been misinterpreted and that as Bloomberg noted a little over na hour ago, "there has been no "U-turn" on the Greek debt position, adding that "Our promise is solid, debt will be rendered sustainable even if haircut replaced with euphemisms, swaps" Greece’s Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis comments in Twitter post.
@PaulGambles2 Our promise = solid. Debt will be rendered sustainable, even if we replace haircut with euphemisms & swaps. No U-turn!
— Yanis Varoufakis (@yanisvaroufakis) February 3, 2015
Euphemisms being the key word, because he just confirmed all he was doing was engaging in verbal acrobatics.
In other words, precisely what we said yesterday: no change in the Greek position at all, and certainly not yet because the last thing the Greek population is to realize that they replaced one European muppet government with another within days of the "hope for change" election.
The local press confirmed as much:
The government's firm position is that the Greek debt is not sustainable and that is the reason why its write-off is required, government spokesman Gavriil Sakellaridis on Tuesday told ANT1 TV.
Sakellaridis stressed that the government has not changed its stance, which may have disappointed some people.
He underlined that the write-off can occur in several technical methods and one of them is "the technical method presented by (Finance Minister Yanis) Varoufakis to British investors". However, he said, the government is concerned with rendering the debt sustainable, to help the Greek society breathe.
Referring to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' contacts with Europeans, Sakellaridis said that the government has strengthened Greece's negotiation position.
As for the candidate President of Republic, he said that the government's proposal will soon be announced. "When the prime minister returns and the parliament opens, there will be an announcement of the candidate and we will smoothly proceed with the election of the President of Republic," Sakellaridis noted.
Regarding the possibility of a meeting between the Greek prime minister and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, he said that the Greek side has not made any moves yet. "This has not been finalised, the Greek side has not done any moves in order to plan a meeting between Tsipras and Merkel. If there is such a meeting, you will be informed. It is a long time until February 12," he concluded.
Nonetheless, all this took place only after Varoufakis was seen as backing off not only internationally, but in his native country. From Reuters:
Greek bond yields fell sharply on Tuesday as the new government in Athens appeared to soften its stance on a debt writedown with proposals for a new debt swap.
Meeting investors in London on Monday, Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis proposed ending a standoff with creditors by swapping the debt for growth-linked bonds, and reassured private investors that they would not face losses.
While Varoufakis later issued a statement saying that his comments had been misinterpreted, he was widely reported in Greek media to be backing down from the anti-austerity government's plan to reduce their debt.
The bottom line is that Varoufakis has just been introduced to the modern media's version of broken telephone where attempts at diplomacy are immediately taken as a sign of weakness, and misstated to impact risk levels around the globe (higher naturally) which - after the past 5 years of flashing red headlines at key market inflection points - should have been all too clear: namely that by now the "independent" media merely serves not only its corporate advertising masters but their stock prices as well.
As for Varoufakis, perhaps he can be a little more careful to avoid having to explain and re-explain every single statement: granted, it is clear to most that he is simply doing everything in his power to avoid a bank run ahead of the February 28 D-Day and thus playing as much as possible for both sides, but he must also try to stick to Syriza's party program which is what got him elected in the first place. How he resolves the two clearly irreconcilable positions, will be the biggest problem.
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Who are they trying to play? Algos?
Greece can easily raise the 318 billion euro they owe if they just trade these moves they are triggering with their public statements....LOL
That's how politicians make alot of their side money.
@taraxias
yeah right investment ideas ... thats how Goldman sucked greece in the first place to start with ... funny how they turned a few billion into few hunderds billions loans in just few years ... all funny money no REAL money
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17108367
It's Greek to me.
Just default on those damn debt
No more games Greece WTF
I concur. Why keep delaying the inevitable. Lets get the break the Euro party started!
Wake me when they return to the drachma. As long as they are fixed to the euro, the only way "forward" for them is to play in the same BS we've been watching for the past five years.
Greece 300
Troika 3
Hand-to-hand
...and Dr. V has mind-meld.
http://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/varoufakis-dr-spock.jpg
Varoufakis Is A Big Haircut Man...
It takes a while for the Drachmas to be printed and minted.
BULLSHIT!
the way I see it, it's the media that is constantly trying to force headlines, which then lead to algo moves
and except in some extreme cases, like what bloomberg and reuters routinely do, it's just the "circus effect" of a media landscape that fights bitterly for every scrap of attention and readership. in a way, a result of the internet age coupled with extreme levels of speculative money looking for something to exploit, aka the financial casino
I've never seen a fresh, new party take over government without having to reconcile for the first time, often painfully, the logic of the elections with the realities and logics of government
and this is the situation of the Tsipras cabinet. interestingly, I have the impression that they too have now a certain antipathy about how the media treats them, now that they are Gov (and EuroCrats)
And your point is?
not much different then the one you are making below, where I later wrote that I agree with you. with an explanation on how the media landscape forces alleged points and later alleged U-Turns... i.e. whatever generates articles and headlines
If you want evidence for what I am writing about, watch this BBC interview on YouTube (dated 30. Jan) with the Greek FinMin. note the rabid way the interviewer poses question, and note how much this pisses off Mr. V. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiIO4YciewU (Yanis Varoufakis, Greek FinMin)
I'm not alone in my view. Jesse of Jesse's Cafe Americain noted "The media person here is looking, not for understanding or even facts, but headlines."
Not surprising. Media was similar on Argentina news, and Cyprus banks news. It is a stall game, that allows some rich connected people to change positions before real losses hit. Euro banks were given about 20 day advanced notice to pull out of Cyprus.
Argentina asked for debt restructure at lower rates, but ended up cutting deal with BRICs and did not pay. Media dropped it completely after two weeks or so, other than trying to find dirt on Ms Christina and family.
yes, but my point is still that there is more media concern in generating headlines for attention-grabbing headline's sake then for price or algo "manipulation"
your point is way more complex then that
Sure, but to say that the headlines are directionless is foolish. They never create the headlines they don't want, which are those that impact the market negatively.
Yes, the reporter is finding a headline to sell his media, regardless of content.
To rephrase the "media" should be renamed to "damage control".
I prefer "National Lie Support Apparatus".
It aggregates core function more holistically.
state media like the BBC, ok. but there is a "Corporatist Lie Support Apparatus", too. and most of Murdoch's media would need a title like "Imperial Lie Support Apparatus"
the only problem is that they don't fight each other, not in a serious way. with perhaps the exception of RT being a bit in the defensive, lately
"Lie Support Apparatus"
The more 'prestigious' the interviewer and their organization the inversely worse they interview and avoid the germane.
"I've never seen a fresh, new party take over government without having to reconcile for the first time, often painfully, the logic of the elections with the realities and logics of government".
This NOT because of the so called constraints of reality but because those who dare change the status quo get simply murdered. In no particular order: Allende, Lumumba, Mossadeq, Sankara, Kennedy, Rabin, Palme, Torrijos,...
They tried to murder Castro but this fox has been smarter than the entire CIA for more than 5 decades now.
One of the reasons Putin is so fiercely attacked is simply because of the fact that he is a danger to the power that be.
Morales and Correa have managed to survive so far because the US has lost its grip on South America altogether. I belong to those who believe that Chavez was murdered by the CIA.
" They tried to murder Castro but this fox has been smarter than the entire CIA for more than 5 decades now. "
You could also use this information to question the very premise that CIA really wants/wanted Castro dead.
Which is the most important weapon in CIA 's arsenal you reckon, murder or deception ?
Answer: Character assassination. See Assange, Snowden Manning.
In their world, character assassination often trumps assassination, I would agree. Assassination might backfire. ( Jesus Christ ? )
Well, where its feasible, they still do it the traditional way with good old murder. Gaddhafi, Hussein are prime examples of persons that were disposed old style who come into my mind. Bin Laden was also murdered, in my opinion, because from what we know he could have been easily captured alive. But in his case all that unconvenient truths of the 9/11 reports which are kept under seal as state secrets could have come out.
Character assassination is fine with guys like Tsipras, good example is the coordinated attack the German news media run since last week. Spiegel of course is the most Stürmer-like, comparing Tsipras to a wrong-way driver on the title page.
Frankly, the example of Der Spiegel you cite is not an example of character assassination. It would have to involve deliberate lies....Moreover, from that title page it seems to me they criticize his political actions, not so much personal characteristics. So not really a good example imho. Maybe the images by William Bonzai come closer ?
Calling a newly elected minister president a wrong-way driver is an act of character assassination. Btw I am not the first to call Der Spiegel Stürmer. Philosopher Paul K. Feyerabend did it already in the 70ies - and he was spot on.
But Spiegel is also good for blatant lies, not only for - see above - offences meant to denigrate a person not fitting the actual social and political order. Just have a look at that now infamous title page with the faces of victims of MH 17 surrrounding a "Stop putin".
I think it is highly unlikely Der Spiegel is controlled by neonazis or German right wingers more generally. Do you read Der Spiegel ? ( I rarely do )
The Stop Putin cover was, in absence of clear proof of Russian involvement, not a good choice. But I do not tend to discuss Russia on ZH much, too many people around who do not seem interested in truth or arguments when it comes to Russia. I just let those non-debates fly over my head.
Have a good day.
there is a difference between having bankers killed in accidents, or "crackpot dictators" disposed of, and western government people
even Kennedy... well, people would notice if every second Prez is killed, wouldn't they? The Tsipras cabinet has an army and a secret service, besides
careful with that word, "status quo", then they themselves are now defenders of a certain part of the "status quo", i.e. that part that concernes the Greek state which they govern
the world is complex and full of shades of gray (no, not the silly book). for all it's power, the CIA and similar services can't snuff out every critic at every level
I'll just add that the leadership of Golden Dawn are in jail, framed by western intelligence in the killing of a communist thug, while Syriza were allowed to take power, which I think demonstrates how little of a threat to the PTB Tsipras really is compared to GD.
Varoufakis makes better TV, but if Papandreou can be removed for daring to just propose respecting the wishes of the Greek people, don't think the Most Interesting Man in the World can't be.
LOL. I think I need to make a few fresh enemies, here on ZH, by noting that Golden Dawn is a leeetle bit on the "enemies of the constitution" side
Papandreu was removed from his appointed position by the elected Greek Parliament. the same can happen anytime to Tsipras and Varoufakis if they anger their parliament. any. time.
Golden Dawn = Thugs posing as Nazi's.
Well, it had the desired effect on the Dax this morning (and as a result, the US overnights).
What a farce.
DavidC
Miracles, (that was 17 minutes of reply and bombs). Does anybody actually want to go war each and every day?
i dont get it why the fuck greeks just dont BTFD.
and algos will take care of it
Or better yet be given inside info on some stocks (world wide) to pull in an interest payment.
+1 I note that Draghi should consider a Hockey Cut. I'm missing here the "no haircut" haircut. or the "This is not a haircut" artistic reference
Where is the "Rasputin " haircut with straight long hair down to the shoulders. Surely, Drahgi is the Rasputin of the EU central bankers
You forgoot the ISIS cut..they take the whole head..
What I'm missing here is the Indian skin-deep haircut that would really suit the Drag-queen.
How ironic that YV claims to reject euphemisms for "haircuts", when that term itself is a euphemism.
BTW, haircuts don't hurt. Financial damage and theft does.
Quit splitting hairs ;-)
I would add the Mullet, the Mohawk and the Fade (going bald).
Under any changes, there will not be anyone paying off the CDS.
(They don't have any money to pay anyone.)
greece's fate is inescapable. whether it happens next month or next year, they are not long for the EU. I still think YV is pulling a swiss move. no one will know which way they go until it is done. all of this public blah, blah, blah is for appearances only. there is still nearly a month before d-day, so why should he exacerbate the lack of confidence in his own country by showing his hand to early. not good poker skills.
We'll do whatever we want......just as soon as we get financing.
Smells like asset forfeiture is in the cards. Who needs who, in this equation?
Could be protection, or support (BRICS bank)
Moar theatre.
Barf.
Whatever....its all pointless speculation until the facts are revealed.
WTI up over $7 since Friday ...huh?
since Friday
What's that in doggy years?
Varoufakis position has always been what he is advocating now which in essence still constitutes a haircut. It is Tsipras who directly used the term haircut to appeal to the Greek electorate. Tsipras was also emboldened in directly using the term haircut when a number of sane voices around the world spoke up in favour of reducing Greece's unsustainable debt load only to watch Merkel's reaction bring him back to reality.
All this talk of debt "haircuts"...
Well I say fuck it, lets have a debt beheading. Behead the debt!
and then... go on piling up debt? or... not? careful, it's a loaded question. nevertheless... more relevant to Greece, now, then your statement
+1 agree. but that's the problem, isn't it? you can't, as PM, talk only to Greeks in one way and to foreigners in another way
Internal statements designed for consumption by the masses.
Durden:
It's a complicated dance indeed.
FT report was flat out arong. They should fire the writer, what are they trying to do, influence markets?
25days more of this bullshit.
Savor every moment....it will be gone before you know it.
I'm so broke i'll have to hit the road for greener pastures by then.
Soon we will hear of lines at the grocery stores...and everyone out of everything...because they are broke.....I wonder what they are thinking...they borrowed all this money to live the good life....now no one works..no one pays taxes....they have no income....no exports...and they want to bring everyone back on the payroll..or more like the gravey train.....I am sorry i just dont see how the economics work on this idea...
Roman Empire brought in slaves near the end and they paper'd over the losses and ran things for decades.
When all the important jobs were/are filled by non-skilled labor eventually the economic system dissolves and the barbarians are at the gate.
News at 11, it will be very popular.
The €urodollah is dead and cannot be resussitated. Mr Varoufakis might opt for cremation or simply just leave the rotting corpse lying around as long as possible before he stuns the pedophiles in the BrUSsel$ politburo and pivots EAST. The BRICS Bank is on the horizon and the Ukraine sideshow will change nothing as the Ponzi Wall St sewer gets the plunge of all plunges and brings down Deutsche Bank in the mother of all toxic derivative filth tsunamis.
Watch Merkel surf that!
you know that EuroDollar is a term, older then the EUR, for all the USDs sloshing around Europe since 1946, don't you?
They should have just been so mad at Nixon they are pullin their hair out today.
Bullshit!
Bloomberg headline :"Greece leaders getting cold feet"
Dax is up another 1.2% towards 11000
Europe indexes are booming
only at ZH : armageddon
Right there.....everything is fixed.
10 hours should cover this...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngDxU5VTGS0
Hey look at that, everything is up this morning. Thank you K-Hen, I was afraid reality was going to creep in.
It is not a 180 it is a 540 turn.
Crap.....I knew there would be a Common Core math test today.
Yea but I just got dizzy and almost fell down.
Dr. V has rotational kinematics !
(yes...he is spinning in-place)
But now he's confusing the gallery.
Will Dr. V go high or low on his next jab.
Russia and greece have common interest. in the end that is where this is going. cypress hurt russia Eu hurt cypress with bail ins..perhaps payback via greece by russia. energy thru greece? if you think the EU will not do anything to avoid Russia getting a foot in greece, perhaps you need to take a second look.
That headline will bring reality into the markets.
careful. there was a certain... smirk on the face of Putin during the Cypress Affair. who was hurt were Russian citizens
Putin built Sochi as winter holiday place and annexed Crimea as summer holiday place... and then told his Russian state bureacrats that they should stop banking offshore and spend their Rubles at home
a form of corruption control not completely dissimilar from the current Chinese efforts in that direction
"if you think the EU will not do anything to avoid Russia getting a foot in Greece..."
most of the EU are countries that are allied with the US through NATO. but don't mistake every move versus Russia as originating from the EU countries. Remember Nuland
Ghordius, I write what seems very plain. with nuland's actions in ukraine..she bet russia would back down and it blew up. russia got a lot with crimea..think how much more it would get with greece. I see what is before all of us..greece wins russia confuses and nullifies the nuland gambit.
Nuland has been a disaster for USA..and the price has not yet been paid.
but Ukraine and Greece aren't "the same pair of shoes". Greece is, despite all it's problems, a republic firmly rooted in democratic principles, and this since 1974
this current government, for example, is very conscious of their popular mandate. which does not include a switch to all kinds of other clubs, be them NATO, EU or EUR
as I wrote above, the Tsipras cabinet is appointed by the elected Greek Parliament, which can dismiss them in half an hour, if it wishes so, in the same way it dismissed Papandreos
Ghordius, if Russia give the greek parliament a out on debt and investments in greece and it is seen as a end to austerity? why would parliament care?? how much bribe money buys you a greek paliament vote for yes?
overmed, it's way easier to bribe a US congressman regarding things involving megacorps (and pesky foreigners) then a Greek MP regarding things involving whole switches of multiple allegiances
Russia can "bribe" Greece... in the whole. "People to People". but the Kremlin can't bribe the whole Greek Parliament, not this way. People would revolt, and possibly even support a military junta
in other words, you are right in the sense that Russia is gaining influence in Greece. but it's a slow process, and we aren't there, and won't be there for a while. meanwhile the influence from the US is still quite strong, and from the other EU countries even stronger
Before this plays out...perhaps Turkey, Cyprus, Greece, Russia will join hands. Didn't Greece defend Cyprus many years ago...and Turkey has some controversy (nasty stuff) and land grabs in Cyprus.
If natty is getting piped from Turkey into Greece (and Italy and EU) then Turkey and Greece better square up their differences now.
Recall how this happened though. Papandreou decided on a referendum, which enraged other European leaders and beaurocrats in Brussels. Samaras conferred with Barrasso on what to do with the Papandreou problem while Sarkozy abused and humiliated Pap. The coup de grace was Benny (Venizelos) that fat pig, on the flight back to Athens with Papandreou formulating how he was going to stab his Pasok boss in the back. Thus he turned Pasok against Papandreou.
Point being, it will take alot of road to get from here to Parliament dismissing Tsipras.
ZeroHedge talks about creating a doublespeak that sings the Euro populace to sleep over a "haircut that isn't a haircut", but what of the Greek populace? If all the prose used to get elected turns into the practicallity of governing in realities, and few, if any, of the promised austerity restrictions are addressed, does the Greek populace just accept that "they just got fooled again" and begin to lay down in the streets to start the process all over? If Greek's do not stand-up to a debt write-off, isn't the fight over austerity lost?
When you run out of money.....you stop spending.
Why is that so hard for everyone to figure out?
This sage advice should have been heeded by our ( U. S. ) legislators back in 2008 - but they are controlled by a select few within the banking industry - said few individuals who have avoided any kind of scrutiny of their actions.
How about you look at what you have and you adjust before you run out? That would seem more prudent especially for leadears (assuming they weren't planted there to bring destruction)
If they stop spending the money they don't have...
All the social programs fail...
A Mob is a terrible thing to witness.
What's the plan here? Fuck your creditors and hope they loan you money again so that you can roll back "austerity"?
There's nothing to negotiate here. They either pay it back or they don't.
Greeks, where is the problem?
You woted in goverment in open democratic way that represented you and who took the loan for you. Now you voting again and this time goverment that don't want to pay off loan you took last time.
You are not responsible. Your actions are childish. So grow up! Deal with your problems on your own! Don't come for help from EU, ECB, IMF, etc. Deal with your reforms your self!
Dhey were unresponsive last time I checked in w/ them.
AH I get it now, basically they just need design words in a way to fuck over the public, but not endanger their phones-baloney jobs or make stawks fall. Got it.
Damn......you're good!
At this point, they seem to have compromised by speaking the language of their adversary. If/when Germany/Brussels refuses, they have lost nothing in the effort . . . translating the matter back into Greek for the home audience that elected them appears, as Tyler notes, to be the primary challenge.
I think they've been clear that it is the EU and northern sovereigns who have structured matters in a way that buggers their own publics if any bankrupt nation declares reality and decides to leave the game.
Default and send the bankers scurrying to look elsewhere for looting....
Think about the poor hookers and coke dealers.
Oh the humanity...
Fraud and derivative exposure....so let it be written so let it be done!
There are some who say that debt default is the wave of the future. Let them come to Berlin.
And there are some who say, in Europe and elsewhere, we can work with the Greeks. Let them come to Berlin.
And there are even a few who say that it is true that rob Peter to pay Paul is an evil system, but it permits us to make economic progress. Let them come to Berlin.
How long have you worked for the Berlin tourism board?
The invitation sounds rather ominous.
I am switching off from this debate for a month or two by which time we will know whether the Tsipras?varoufakis parachute has opened or whether there is a mess on the ground that needs to be cleaned up.
As far as I am concerned the Tsipras/Varoufakis plane hasn't even taken off yet and they look like smashing into the brick wall at the end of the runway.
I am not saying they are incompetent. I am simply stating that even miracles have their limits at times.
Nicely said. They have inherited a simple situation. The EU mafia is waiting to collect money Greece doesn't have, and has no way of ever getting.
It doesn't matter what dance any Greek government does. Eventually, if they keep bowing to the EUcrats, the mob is going to erupt, and they will be killed from within. On the other hand, if they stick to what their population demands and say screw you to the EUcrats, then the EUcrats will kill them (the "coup" in Ukraine leading to a new government, for example).
Which is the cause worth dying for? Anyone insane enough to take this job should be asking themselves this question now.
You see what I did there? I was trying to make a nuanced point with whether I'd pay you back or not. HAHAHAHA. But seriously, we're not paying all this back.
we're not paying all this back.
Dude....are you insane? You just can't come out and say that crap!
It's OK....he was just joking.
All along [the last 15+ years or so] it's been debt for unfiltered Camels and oozo for the masses. Now the bills have come due and the utter stupidity of the Germans and others to think this problem can be solved with more debt is utterly hilarious. The world's in the very best of hands. WTF.
www.traderzoo.mobi
More Ouzo.
End the U.S. ‘unfounded programs’ like Social Security, and Greece can default.
Belgium is going to be bitching soon. LOL!!!!
Is this a so called "superposition"? Or just the opposite?
As long as the Dow and S&P500 keep rising nothing else in the rest of the world matters. In fact the only purpose of news headlines from outside the US is to move the markets higher
you should check this site if you are into drones http://pickyourdrone.com/
Thanks for link. :)
Is it possible to take ANY "Tweet", seriously?
Not really.
This theatre is just getting more ridiculous by the hour...
Thats my sentiment as well. When the White House began tweeting, I thought that it somehow became less dignified....then I remembered who was in office. The first "black" President (we all know he's of African Arab descent...if he's really his father's son at all).
The Vatican began tweeting...same thing. The first "black" Pope. Weren't Jesuits not supposed to be eligible for this office? But what can you expect from a South American socialist, inserting the church intaningless social issues trying to claw back relavency?
Theater of the absurd indeed.
It is a mistake to look to media for truth. even Ghordius admits same..like obuma who said " we won in iraq and now we won in afgan"..while fighting rages in both..the media silent.
I think the new greek .gov is being attacked by media to discredit them and to make them look fools..I do not buy that either.
We like to talk facts..so heres one fact : greek debt cannot be repaid. but the media does not want that fact to get in the way of the message of the banks.
I think if I was of the opinion that you can find only truth, the whole truth and nothing else then the truth in any media, including ZH... then I would not comment here
the new Greek Government has just experienced a few days of media treatment... of the same kind that all eurozone governments (aka EuroCrats) get
they themselves made some very critical (and slighly gagging) noises about "English-speaking Media Establishments"
welcome to the club, Tsipras Cabinet. it's tough up there, isn't it? ;-)
This 'smart debt engineering' is nothing but an exercise in intellectual dishonesty and bad kabuki theater.
Until the people actually wake up, take their heads out of the sandy shores of de-nile, they will keep doing the same things that hadn't worked before: insanity by any definition.
In a month, Greece will bend back into the fold and all this will be nothing more than 'sound and fury, signifying nothing'.
Kramer : You can't get a refund . Your warranty expired two years ago .
Jerry : So were going to make the Post Office pay for my new stereo ?
Kramer : It's just a write off for them .
Jerry : How is it a write off ?
Kramer : They just write it off .
Jerry : Write it off what ?
Kramer : Jerry all these big companies they write off everything
Jerry : You don't even know what a write off is .
Kramer : Do you ?
Jerry : No . I don't .
Kramer : But they do and they are the ones writing it off .
Just add to the algos
if (action == "haircut" || action == "smart debt engeneering")
SELL,SELL,SELL
I like how the indebted country is now dictating terms to those who loaned them the money.
I will try this with my house mortgage. I'll allow Wells Fargo to reengineer my debt with some conditions....no interest, I only have to pay AFTER I'm dead, they have to loan me enough to pay off my current debt, plus another billion.
polymarkos, perhaps you can define "money" if you print paper out of thin air..does it deserve the name "Money"?
a loan shark may give you counterfit bills and still tell you he owns the debt, so you owe the interest and pay up.
When you owe $300,000.00 to the bank they dictate the terms.
when you owe 300 bln you dictate the terms.
Urban mythology! But I'm sure the newly minted young wild eye socialist idealist will give it a go! Then its back to the olive press!
Greece hires Lazard to advise on debtThe amount of heat Greece is getting for 'overspending' is shameful. WTF has EVERY other government done, especially the US and China.
Scapegoating of the highest order.
Why can't we keep on point with the fact that this is a bank heist par excellance. Bring these fuckers down, whilst we still can, otherwise we'll all be on the streets begging for scraps. Fuckers.
Excellent point. The US is philosophicaly no better at it's own debt management, nor any less corrupt. The Greek population is just a decade or so ahead of the US population in tax evasion. If Greeks continue to lead the western world by (historical) example, then this is what we can look forawrd to as well.
Tyler, it seems apt (to the banksters) that your image of Varoufakis looks uncannily like Voldermort!
the Greeks need to be patient, just as Americans do, in a few months, after the 1% have sheared the 99% for as much as wanted, the BIS will come out and tell you what you really wanted, when you voted, and their doing their best to make things right.
Varoufakis and Greek communists are actually good for stocks. Wall street is going to have orgasmic rally, soarrrrrr
Time to double-flush this hapless country. Politicians have enticed voters for decades with their unrealistic promises of expanding a lucrative safety net, while practically outlawing private business. The Greek economy is now dominated by inept, inefficient state enterprise. Labor laws are so egrious to private business that it doesn't pay to run a business. Forget about entrepreneurs. The country has also been deficient in collecting taxes which makes everyone wonder how they've survived. Well, its through the generosity of credit extended by other EU member countries. The EU can't get them to privatize their economy, take a hatchet to their labor laws, or collect taxes. Making the most of this expensive experiment in socialism would be to make an example out of Greece for the sake of all the other EU members. Cutting free this millstone may serve to alter the path the EU is on.
Bingo! Give the man a cupie doll!
jesus - you fucking desk jockeys...it's so simple.
Greece has to pay them back, see?
But they should pay them in drachmas, and get the fuck out of that ZWO-infected NWO clusterfuck altogether.