Adolf Hitler may have been a National Socialist Dictator, but even he did everything he could to get the Germany economy ticking again in the 1930’s. Without respect for the means of production, he wouldn’t have been able to produce all those Tiger tanks and fight World War II. That’s Germany. Greece is a Balkan Land. The Greek mindset is miles away from Germany’s. So it’s no wonder that the Germans get increasingly frustrated when Greece doesn’t see things the “right way”.

George Papandreou, Prime Minister of Greece, reported yesterday that talks between him and the opposition leaders failed, thus making it even more unlikely that Greece is going to get the additional 60 billion euros it seeks. For example, New Democracy Party leader, Antonis Samaris, refused to accept the latest calls for austerity to save Greece from default. He says that the only thing worth discussing is how to re-negotiate the bailout. He says about the current German plan, “We won’t pre-sign a policy that fatten the economy and destroys society.”

What is Greece’s beef? Most of the jobs are in the public sector. If the government sells off parts of what it controls to private companies, many are doomed to lose their jobs. The same thing with other austerity measures. Olli Rehn from the European Monetary Affairs Commission says that he expects Greece to tow the line like any other country (i.e. any other Northern European country). But he gets his answer from the Greek youths who on Friday held a protest outside the Greek Parliament building in imitation of their confederates in Spain. They are also answered by the public sector unions that are staging strikes to oppose the bailouts.

If Germany doesn’t figure out a way to deal with non-Germans in a multi-ethnic currency confederation they will lose out in their dreams of competing with the United States.

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Olli Rehn, European Monetary Affairs Commission

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