Greece pro-austerity party announces victory - How the hell did that happen?

[NNN0LHI]

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/20120618_07.html

Jun. 17, 2012 - Updated 21:14 UTC

With about 70 percent of the votes counted in the parliamentary elections in Greece, the pro-austerity party is winning the vote and the party's leader has claimed victory.

New Democratic Party leader Antonis Samaras proclaimed victory in Athens. He said Greek people chose to stay in the Eurozone and says it is a victory for Greece and for all of Europe. snip

The leader of the Coalition of the Radical Left, Alexis Tsipras, has conceded defeat. He said the party will remain in the opposition and will monitor the government to represent the Greek people who oppose austerity.

[Jackpine Radical]

1. Maybe they borrowed Wisconsin's electoral equipment.

Our machines were still set on Wanker.

[dipsydoodle]

11. In Europe

we use pencils and pieces of paper. Can't beat that way of voting.

[russspeakeasy]

2. Maybe a bunch of people from Ohio moved there ???

[girl gone mad]

3. Both parties wanted to stay in the Eurozone.

Not much of a choice for the Greeks, who still can't comprehend why they are in this mess, but they don't want to give Germany an excuse to expel them now (and then turn around and rescue Spain and Italy so they can pretend Greece was the problem all along).

[Fla_Democrat]

4. Citizens United?

[GarroHorus]

5. They scared the electorate.

They painted how bad things will be if they don't go down the austerity road that enough voters went for it.

[hack89]

6. Because the voters got too close to the edge

and didn't like the disaster they saw coming.

The first election was to punish the people that fucked everything up. The second was to decide the way forward.

[Zalatix]

7. Now they will get an even worse disaster.

[hack89]

8. They were fucked either way

but the Greeks need other people's money right now and they realize that.

[Zalatix]

13. Yes, they'll get other people's money now, but then they'll be in debt forever

and they'll STILL crash, and everything they are trying to avoid now will happen anyway.

In Greece they're talking about public workers being forced to give back their paychecks. Me, I'd rather have anarchy than GIVE BACK what I earned. I'd rather burn it all down than let someone rob me.

[hack89]

17. To avoid debt they have to stop spending more money than they have

that seems to be a problem for Greek governments.

[jmowreader]

23. They also have to get all the money they're supposed to have

In Greece, Tax Evasion is the national pastime.

If the United States REALLY wants to help Greece, we need to send them the 100 most zealous tax auditors the IRS has.

[hack89]

24. I would not wish the IRS on my worse enemy

Yes - I was once audited.

[jmowreader]

30. Which is why we need to send them to Greece

We send the worst assholes in the IRS' employ to the CIA's Greek-language crash course (one of the things the CIA does really well is teach its people foreign languages) then send them to Greece to clean up this tax evasion bullshit.

[dipsydoodle]

9. That's a fair assessment of the situation

Think so anyway.

[a kennedy]

10. So does this mean the DOW is going to dive again??

[TBF]

29. Nope - this is a win for the banksters. nt

[Odin2005]

12. This is a green light for German banksters to fuck over all of Europe.

[Zalatix]

14. It's the economic Kaiser plan.

[bhikkhu]

16. Keeping in mind, Germany has many good points

such as a successful socialist-leaning government, excellent national health care, comprehensive social supports, an affordable quality university system, Gini index value (measuring income equality) among the best, very strong unions, an exceptional manufacturing sector, and Germany is among the few countries taking global warming seriously, currently leading the world in solar installations.

Not to be too much of a cheerleader, but this isn't WWI and they aren't brutish huns - they are in fact much more effective social progressives than anything we have in the US. If the governmental and social system of Germany were to be imposed a bit upon Greece, it is possible to imagine that might be a good thing in the long term. It is even conceivable that the voters in Greece wouldn't mind seeing a bit of German influence over the idiots they have had in charge.

[hack89]

18. If Greece wants German money

then it is reasonable for Germany to put conditions on it. The Greeks can always try to get someone else to give them free money.

[gregoire]

19. You think it's morally acceptable...

for the Germans to rule over the Greeks just because they have money and the Greeks are in need? I take it you think the rich always have the right to rule over the poor.

[U4ikLefty]

21. Only if they have a gun.

hack loves them gunz

[hack89]

22. I think that beggars can't be choosy

Greece is in the mess they are in because they lived beyond their means. They have no right to demand that German taxpayers give them money. They can tell the Germans to fuck off and face the consequences. If they want German money then Germany is within its rights to put conditions on the loan.

Greece understands their choices.

[girl gone mad]

26. And Spain, Ireland, Portugal, Italy..

why are they in the mess they are in?

And Japan which "lives beyond its means", why are they not in the mess Greece is in? The USA, living way beyond our means, etc.

[hack89]

27. Each country is different

1. Ireland and Spain were hammered by the collapse of the housing bubble that left their banks holding billions in bad loans.

2. Italy's problems are very similar to Greece's - too much spending, low productivity and an inefficient government. Their debt problem is second only to Greece's.

3. Portugal is also similar to Greece - huge debt, a too large and inefficient public sector, and corruption.


Japan has held off disaster due to a positive trade balance that countered their crushing debt. But that trade balance just went negative. Japan has some very bad days ahead.

America is in better shape for several reasons. One is the shear size and diversity of our economy - we are not dependent on one or two sectors to carry the load. Secondly is that the economy has shown growth every quarter since 2009. And finally, the dollar is seen as a safe haven for foreign investors - the US gets to borrow money at extremely low rates through the sale of US Treasury Bonds.

[unblock]

15. the election turned into a referendum on the euro. they voted to stay in.

not sure if this was the doings of the local media or of the opposition parties, but ultimately it sounds like the vote ended up being on whether or not to stay in the euro, and more people in greece wanted to stay in than to quit it entirely.

makes it sound like if there was an opposition party message of staying in the euro but rejecting austerity and renegotiating a better deal, that message wasn't the getting through to voters. or at least the local media.


that said, the new winning coalition might well try to renegotiate or improve things, especially given france's socialist victory (although germany continues to be the stick in the mud).

[DCBob]

20. Most decided the repercussions of exiting the EU were worse

than the austerity measures.

[girl gone mad]

25. Exiting the EU was not on the table.

What part of this are people not understanding?

Both parties wanted to stay on the Euro and in the EU.

[DCBob]

28. Effectively that is what would likely happen if no bailout.

Even if Syriza didnt say it or admit it.