A resounding ‘no’ from Greece as the electorate punches back hard at austerity

[GliderGuider]

A resounding ‘no’ from Greece as the electorate punches back hard at austerity
by Jared Bernstein

Although much of what you will read in coming days, including this analysis, will be the literary version of rigorous head-scratching in regard to what happens next, we should be careful not to under-interpret the meaning of this vote.

This was a vote that:

–reasserted the democratic self-determination of the Greek people, even when the opposition was threatening to shut down their banking system;

–showed that with the unemployment rate at 25 percent (and youth unemployment rate at 50 percent) there is only so much economic pain a sovereign nation will accept in the name of “austerity” without trying to fight back, even when the consequences of the “path less taken” are unknowable;

–showed far more solidarity behind Prime Minister Tsipras and his outspoken finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis, than most observers expected, possibly — I’d say probably — strengthening their hand for what’s coming next.

Which is . . .

Like I said, who knows? The referendum itself was already bizarre in the sense that nominally it was a vote of whether the Greek people would accept the terms of a bailout deal from the nation’s creditors — the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission — that is no longer even on the table.

Thus, to some of the harshest austerians from the north — such as Sigmar Gabriel, Germany’s vice chancellor and economy minister — the Greeks have “torn down the last bridges, across which Europe and Greece could move toward a compromise.” To him, the vote is simply Greek for: “You can’t fire me. I quit.”

I think he’s wrong, and although this could easily be wishful thinking on my part, I believe the more likely outcome is that the parties will return to the bargaining table with a better understanding among the creditors of the way forward.

Jared Bernstein, a former chief economist to Vice President Biden, is a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and author of the new book 'The Reconnection Agenda: Reuniting Growth and Prosperity.'

[daleanime]

1. K&R.....

[appal_jack]

2. To the Greatest page! K&R for democratic reins on the financial elites! nt

[Cleita]

3. The birthplace of democracy teaches us how to do it.

Put it to the people for a vote. Too bad we can't have referendums for TPP and all the other Ts attached to it.

[gratuitous]

4. ABC News had a brief story on the Greek vote

It spent nearly as much time explaining how "confusing" the situation and the ballot were, and how their alleged experts weren't sure if the Greek people knew what they were voting on.

News flash for ABC: Voters in other countries are nowhere near the know-nothing low-information card punchers created by design in the United States system. I visited with isolated people in the countryside of Chiapas state in Mexico with a Christian Peacemaker Teams delegation. These people had a knowledge and understanding of the politics of their country that would shame four out of five guests on the Sunday news shows. The Greek electorate knew exactly what they were doing when they went to the polls.

[daredtowork]

5. Jared Bernstein rocks

I did a small job for him around a decade ago. He was so nice to me - even after the job I shot him a couple of philosophical email questions, and he replied even though I was a nobody. I wish him all the best in his career.