tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post4317677070305268582..comments2023-07-17T11:55:51.363+02:00Comments on ObservingGreece: "The Rescue Is Over" - Reviewing 7 Years Of Bloggingkleinguthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comBlogger86125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-77064935206076261732018-10-24T10:49:58.889+02:002018-10-24T10:49:58.889+02:00Hi Klaus, thank you very much for this excellent s...Hi Klaus, thank you very much for this excellent summary of the weird tale of “rescuing“ Greece. As someione who has paid attention to this madness and occassionally commented here, it saddens me that your optimistic views have not prevailed. Yes, there had been a chance for a better outcome, but now, so many years later, it has become very obvious that it had been a very small one. The reason for that is very simple and you mentioned it yourself at the beginning of this article: It's the self serving attitude of large parts of the Greek public which milk the country for as much money as they can get, unlimited by any ethical concerns. Those greedy Egomaniacs don't give a damn about solidarity or loyalty, they don't see the state as a necessary part of the community that deserves their support, but only as a cashcow to enrich them. Thus, a lot of energy goes into finding new creative ways to get a bigger share of this apparently unlimited supply of money, and hardly any into succeeding in the real economy. The few real entrepreneurs who opposed the con artist mentality of the majority have been ruined by now or fled the country. Without such enterprising folks who are necesary for an economic revival, any hopes for improvement are moot. <br /><br />That's the ugly truth, and - pls excuse my monday morning quarterbacking - you could have known that when you made your first aquaintances after moving to Greece. Didn't it occur to you that your optimistic ideas were not compatible with those freeloaders, who had no bad conscience for ripping their country off? That very mentality let to the ripping off of the Troika and the stubborn resistance to each and every measure that was seen as a burden to the deadbeats. In many cases, they prevailed, and what's even worse, they never contributed anything productive to the reform program.<br />That's why there's no happy end to this story, actually no end at all. Nothing has seriously changed and Greece will continue to use all means available to squeeze money out of naive investors and the EU. So, pls keep this blog going, Klaus, if you have the energy and nerves to do so. There's more madness ahead and your insights will be valuable. Here's to the next season of this giant soap opera. Yamas!Grayhttps://disqus.com/by/Gray62/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-91098541078744921372018-10-24T10:08:38.065+02:002018-10-24T10:08:38.065+02:00That's the same experience virtually every rat...That's the same experience virtually every rational commenter has made when trying to have a discussion with Dean Plassaras, Lennard. Dean is a well known troll and blocked by many sites. I wonder why Klaus let him comment here, that's a total waste of time. Grayhttps://disqus.com/by/Gray62/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-74339206035651060802018-10-18T12:28:26.163+02:002018-10-18T12:28:26.163+02:00Well, Nguyen is a family name as common as Meier i...Well, Nguyen is a family name as common as Meier in german speaking countries. There are even a number of David Nguynes around. This David Nguyen is probably this guy:<br /><br />https://www.niesr.ac.uk/users/dnguyen <br /><br />UrsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-43505238726934492352018-10-16T11:08:53.695+02:002018-10-16T11:08:53.695+02:00For the last sentence, you don't have to stop ...For the last sentence, you don't have to stop writing. <br />Typically, the economy is improving, but parallel important issues how the economy performs, are far more complicated.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-9301174711938846202018-10-15T20:53:18.493+02:002018-10-15T20:53:18.493+02:00PS: the name David Nguyen rings a bell. I have com...PS: the name David Nguyen rings a bell. I have come across this name before but I can't remember where. kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-76516477606626349462018-10-15T20:48:48.367+02:002018-10-15T20:48:48.367+02:00What I see is an excellent PowerPoint presentation...What I see is an excellent PowerPoint presentation, the type of presentation investors like to see. So the optics are great. As regards content, I will have to take time to study it but as luck would have it, of all the 31 slides, I hit the one about "strengthening banking sector" and having followed the news lately, that is a heading I would not have used...<br /><br />Still, I am impressed that the Greek government would have understood that in order to impress foreign investors, one has to go the international (and not the Greek) way and the international way, I say this cynically, begins nowadays with beautiful PowerPoint presentations. One has to bear in mind, though, that the best presentation will not do the trick if it is not supported by facts and actions.kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-82355522291036226382018-10-15T19:51:42.307+02:002018-10-15T19:51:42.307+02:00What is the source of the "Investor Presentat...What is the source of the "Investor Presentation"?<br /><br />You mean the source of the data? <br /><br />Probably, PDMA Public Debt Management Agency.<br /><br />-----<br /><br />"Who prepared it?"<br /><br />Download the document, and then click File, Properties.<br /><br />In Description you will see: <br /><br />Title: UTILISATION DU MODÈLE<br /><br />Author: David Nguyen<br /><br />-----<br /><br />"Who was it made to?"<br /><br />Probably (?) for investors. Tsakalotos and Chouliarakis have made lately many trips in US and Asia.Tsipras also visited USA (24 September).<br /><br />What do you see? <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-32163471835103000502018-10-15T18:16:22.363+02:002018-10-15T18:16:22.363+02:00What is the source of the "Investor Presentat...What is the source of the "Investor Presentation"? Who prepared it and who was it made to?kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-47461096419443045022018-10-15T16:13:08.580+02:002018-10-15T16:13:08.580+02:00http://www.pdma.gr/attachments/article/1710/Greece...http://www.pdma.gr/attachments/article/1710/Greece%20-%20Investor%20Presentation_September%202018.pdf<br /><br />page 22 <br /><br />and <br /><br />https://www.nbg.gr/greek/the-group/press-office/e-spot/reports/Documents/NBG%20Greece_Macro%20Outlook_September%202018_final.pdf<br /><br />page 10 (after Eurogroup June 21, 2018) <br /><br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-28197828150531537202018-10-14T17:37:19.345+02:002018-10-14T17:37:19.345+02:00Come on Klaus!
This publication from August has n...Come on Klaus!<br /><br />This publication from August has now gathered several months of comments with many readers saying that they would like to continue reading your valued opinions.<br /><br />Myself I also would like to thank you for all your efforts and kindly ask you to continue.<br /><br />I fully understand that it is hard work without recompense. I think that an average of quarterly texts would lessen your burden and still keep us informed how you see the situation.<br /><br />Thanks again and regards from Switzerland<br />H. Trickler<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-56660091462169728122018-10-13T02:47:27.167+02:002018-10-13T02:47:27.167+02:00Thanks for the blog. I've visited regularly ov...Thanks for the blog. I've visited regularly over the years and learnt a lot.<br />Your polite, active commenting style was also a highlight.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-14355475449047709382018-10-08T13:35:16.767+02:002018-10-08T13:35:16.767+02:00@ Klaus.
There seems to be confusion regarding how...@ Klaus.<br />There seems to be confusion regarding how much Greece has received to manage her migrant problems, most likely caused by the European Commission paper MANAGING MIGRATION EU Financial Support to Greece, April 2018. My take on it is that Greece has been allocated/disbursed as follows:<br />From the 2014-2020 long term funding 561/153 MIO.<br />From 2015-2018 Emergency Funding 393/279 MIO. Thereof 197.4 MIO ear marked for NGO's (UNHCR etc.)<br />Those figures indicate that Greece had availability of 80% of the money at hand.<br />As for who is accountable, the Greek state is, EU allocate funds to member states, not NGO's.<br />As for who is more reliable as responsible end spender entity, <br />Greek General Secretary for Co-Ordination or UNHCR, I leave it for you to decide.<br />I don't share your views on misuse of funds. Not being religious I don't pray "don't lead me into temptation". If I was religious, I hope I would ask for "the moral strength to resist temptations".<br />Lennard.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-39364994616032350242018-10-07T20:55:24.035+02:002018-10-07T20:55:24.035+02:00From your response i'm surprised you gathered ...From your response i'm surprised you gathered anything at all.<br /><br />Lykinos<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-25462938564718798742018-10-07T20:23:26.062+02:002018-10-07T20:23:26.062+02:00@Lykinos
From your response I gather that it does ...@Lykinos<br />From your response I gather that it does rankle that Austria could manage her migration problems and Greece, in spite of the millions she received from EU to do so, could/would not.<br />Or would you say that Moria is a beacon of Greek humanity and that conditions in Austria are worse?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-51590409206032354002018-10-07T17:46:45.980+02:002018-10-07T17:46:45.980+02:00And here are the numbers for asylum applications:
...And here are the numbers for asylum applications:<br /><br />Prior to 2014: on averasge 15.000 per year. Thereafter:<br /><br />2014: 28.064<br />2015: 88.340<br />2016: 42.285<br />2017: 24.735<br />2018: 9.337 (8 months)kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-32854085988850387312018-10-07T17:43:20.148+02:002018-10-07T17:43:20.148+02:00I will respond on behalf of Anonymous at 8.31 PM
...I will respond on behalf of Anonymous at 8.31 PM<br /><br />Asylums granted in Austria prior to 2014: 3.000-4.000 per year. Thereafter:<br /><br />2014: 8.724<br />2015: 14.413<br />2016: 22.307<br />2017: 21.767<br />2018: 9.786 (8 months)kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-63760004408845894812018-10-07T15:39:43.509+02:002018-10-07T15:39:43.509+02:00I shouldn’t be doing your work for you but since r...I shouldn’t be doing your work for you but since reading comprehension is obviously not your thing I’ll give you a hint: is Austria expected to imprison sixty thousand people and counting, since refugee and immigrant flows are not to stop soon, until its richer “partners” deem the moment opportune to show “generosity” without fear that their good honest folk will flock en masse to FPÖ – AfD shits and their we-are-the-moderate-centre desperate imitators? <br /><br />Does it disturb your picture of yourself as a good fiscally responsible northerner of humanitarian tendencies if not sensibilities and as a raging smartass telling off those Greek hypocrites that these camps – or, “a container city housing up to, say, 50.000 people” - cannot be anything other than concentration camps, no matter how much alike to apartments these container homes may be; the moment these people are afforded free movement, which is the humane and decent thing to do, most of them will strive to abandon bankrupted Greece and reach poor little affluent you, making people like your dearest self increasingly concerned about the “many different social benefits” that immigrants enjoy in you country, supposedly causing an open invitation effect, and increasingly ridiculous as you strive to come up with more and more sophisticated excuses why these up and coming Nazi apologists, misunderstood sons and grandsons of good old upstanding families that happened one to be Nazis, are not as bad as they are made to be seen and finally one could believe that they represent a legitimate political alternative and so on…<br /><br />See, I can also make assumptions about you. There’s nothing to it.<br /><br />I don’t even need to know where you hail from in order to expose your particular brand of hypocrisy in the matter of: “hey, let’s raise immense humane concentration camps many many many hundred kilometers south of our borders and then congratulate ourselves that at least we are not as bad as the wasting-our-hard-earned-taxpayer-euros people that are running them!”<br /><br />PS. Cool it off with your “Austria has taken proportionally more migrants than Greece” stuff. I know the numbers that ÖVP -FPÖ types like to advance but what I’d like to know is the actual number of people granted asylum.<br /><br />Lykinos<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-63250759717365606402018-10-06T20:31:06.528+02:002018-10-06T20:31:06.528+02:00@Lykinos
Does it rankle that Austria has taken pro...@Lykinos<br />Does it rankle that Austria has taken proportionally more migrants than Greece, and treat them decently, and finance it out of her own budget?<br />Does it disturb your picture of Greece as the hospital country that has shown Europe what humanity is?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-89632064756206147442018-10-04T11:23:30.884+02:002018-10-04T11:23:30.884+02:00Here is an interesting article about how Albania d...Here is an interesting article about how Albania developed in the last few years and lessons which Greece could draw from it:<br /><br />https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/albanian-economic-miracle-innovative-policymaking-by-ricardo-hausmann-2018-09kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-76094631292037322502018-10-03T20:30:54.040+02:002018-10-03T20:30:54.040+02:00Stop playing dumb.Stop playing dumb.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-26566996152459576342018-10-03T20:13:06.188+02:002018-10-03T20:13:06.188+02:00I take it you have never seen container homes. The...I take it you have never seen container homes. They are very much like mobile homes. From the inside, you couldn't tell the difference with an apartment.kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-22467360728612277472018-10-03T20:06:05.147+02:002018-10-03T20:06:05.147+02:00"...Austria offers so many different social b..."...Austria offers so many different social benefits to migrants that it will be a long time until they get to look into the Greek situation"<br /><br />...but, alas!, not "a container city housing up to, say, 50.000 people"... from where Austria, Switzerland (!) & Co could chery pick with whom they are going to share their "many different social benefits", while at the same time a) getting to shed bitter tears of moral superiority when lamenting the deplorable refugee concentration camps many many many hunderd kilometers south of their southermost borders and b)wallowing in that totaly pervasive but always-better-left-unspoken feeling of victimhood that good Northernes get when contemplating how much of their hard earned taxpayers money is beeing wasted many many many hundert kilometers south of their southermost borders on those ungrateful and incompetent camp keepers. <br /><br />But damn those (ex-)commies !<br /><br />Lykinos<br /><br />PS. One could and should hold, amongst others, SYRIZA responsible for its refugees concentration camps but that one should not come many many hundet kilometers north of our borders unless said one is willing and able to put up "a container city housing up to, say, 50.000 people" from where richer countries will pick and choose with whom and when they are going to share their generosity without Nazis, Nazi apologists, Nazi sympathisers & CO taking the reins of their affluent societies.<br /><br />But damn those (ex-)commies ! Damn them everywhere! <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-69450362398219047922018-10-03T10:33:22.168+02:002018-10-03T10:33:22.168+02:00I think I once wrote an article about this. At tha...I think I once wrote an article about this. At that time, if I remember correctly, total aid was around 800 MEUR (which now is said to be around 1,6 BEUR). Only a portion of that aid (I believe around 1/3) had gone to the Greek state, the rest to all sorts of other agencies/institutions like NGOs, etc. They all had one thing in common: zero accountability as to how the funds had been used. In my opinion, there is a point where misuse of funds is less a sin of those who misuse them and more of those who provide the funds so irresponsibly that they literally invite misuse.<br /><br />According to Greek commentators I have read, the above reflects the disfunctionality of the Greek state. That may be the case. It may also be the case that the Greek state wants to make it extremely unattractive for refugees to cross the Aegean. <br /><br />The true test would be to invite a tender for the construction of a container city housing up to, say, 50.000 people and the cost of operating it. My sense is that it would take at maximum a few months and cost much less than 1,6 BEUR. <br /><br />Greece's luck is that the new UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is a former communist (Michelle Bachelet). Apparently, she heard that the conservative Austrian Chancellor is opposing an open-door policy for migrants and she felt it necessary to send a commission to Austria to check on that country's human rights situation. These auditors will have a lot to audit in Austria because Austria offers so many different social benefits to migrants that it will be a long time until they get to look into the Greek situation (not to mention countries where they have torture, etc.).kleinguthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491174042954678023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-48442032296753661322018-10-02T16:17:20.048+02:002018-10-02T16:17:20.048+02:00Dear Klaus,
if you decide to close this blog, I ...Dear Klaus, <br /><br />if you decide to close this blog, I would like to thank you for the work that you have done over the years. I have followed the blog from time to time, and it has given me considerable new insight. Sometimes it seemed to me a bit like an island of sound reasoning in an ocean of rubbish.<br /> <br />If you decide to continue, this could be an interesting story to deal with:<br />https://www.nzz.ch/international/lager-moria-wird-zur-politischen-affaere-in-griechenland-ld.1424674<br />I wonder what to think about this matter.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882645467378797266.post-1698675410764149192018-09-27T08:51:51.094+02:002018-09-27T08:51:51.094+02:00Best deal ever for Greece. COSCO.
http://www.kath...Best deal ever for Greece. COSCO.<br /><br />http://www.kathimerini.gr/986792/article/oikonomia/epixeirhseis/yperdiplasiasmos-kerdwn-kai-megalh-ay3hsh-tziroy--apo-ton-olp-to-a-6mhnoAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com