Study Document
Greece Economic Crisis Article Review
Pages:2 (827 words)
Sources:2
Document Type:Article Review
Document:#20896892
Greek Tragedy
Das (2015) discusses the Greek economic crisis, and the hold it has over the public via the media, in the same terms that one would use to describe a classic of Greek theater. He outlines that the Greek financial crisis bears many similarities with the classic tragedies. Among these similarities are the morality element. Greek tragedy always contains a morality element, he argues, and so there are many moral elements to the economic crisis as well. First, the two players (the EU/Germany, and the Greeks) both contain elements of moral ambiguity so essential to good theatre. Whichever you choose as protagonist and whichever as antagonist, there are moral costs to their actions. The European side sees the Greeks as needing punishment for moral transgressions such as profligate spending and rampant tax evasion; the Greeks point to the hardships caused by the austerity policies imposed upon it by the EU (FIDH.org, 2014).
Das then outlines how his conflict leads to overture, following the narrative of classic tragedy. There has been an extension on the existing bailout of Greece, but the Greek government is starting to grow weary of austerity, and has little to no tolerance for new measures that the EU wants to impose upon the country. The author notes that the current wrangling over Greece's austerity and debt are more theater than anything else. He points out that Greece's debt is a lower percentage of GDP than some other EU nations, and that it pays a very low interest rate on its debt. Indeed, 45% of its debt comes from the European Financial Stability Fund, and carries a rate of 1.5% (Das, 2015). The issues that Das identifies as critical are capital flight, which is compromising the solvency of Greek banks, which in turn risks deepening the financial crisis. The capital flight, of course, is the result of the austerity measures that are crushing the Greek economy, and the fear that Greece will ultimately be turfed out of the Euro. Capital flight might also be a response to the deal that was made in Cyprus a few years ago that resulted in a net worth haircut for all Cypriot depositors. Greeks rightfully are squirreling their money in safer places.
The tragedy as described by Das is that none of this needs to happen, but the prevailing conditions in Greece are such that there is little way out, either…
Sample Source(s) Used
References
Das, S. (2015). My big fat Greek crisis. EconoMonitor. In possession of the author.
FIDH.org (2014). Downgrading rights: The cost of austerity in Greece. Hellenic League for Human Rights. Retrieved April 5, 2015 from https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/grece646a2014.pdf
Related Documents
Study Document
Greece's Debt Crisis: Causes and
This flaw creates an incentive for firms to accumulate large sums of unpaid taxes over several years and then enter into negotiations with the tax authorities in order to remit small proportion of taxes. This flaw has been a constant feature of all tax reforms and thus makes the whole tax system less credible and more prone to abuse. Following the inadequate government intervention, it is clear that, in 2009,
Study Document
Economic Issues Regarding Greece and
This will immediately decrease the funds of lending countries. And most importantly, this situation with the sovereign risk is not only characteristic to Greece, but to various other countries, including the United States. "More especially, the IMF is concerned that higher sovereign risk in countries like Greece can spill over to domestic banking systems and across borders, thereby triggering a second global economic crisis. It is also important to
Study Document
Greece Economic Problems Analysis
The economic environment of Greece is that of a capitalist economy, but with significant public sector contribution – about 40% of total GDP is from government activity. This speaks more to the relatively small size of the Greek private sector than to excessive government ownership of industry. Tourism is one of the major drivers of the Greek economy, accounting for 18% of GDP (CIA World Factbook, 2017). Thus Greece
Study Document
European Economic Crisis Greek Government
European Economic Crisis -- Greek Government This paper provides a deep insight into the European economic crisis and the events which eventually lead up to Greece debt crisis. It explains the causes which were responsible for the chaotic and poor financial situation currently prevalent in Europe. It also analyses the current tools used for stabilizing the situation in Greece and the shortcomings in them. It also highlights certain steps and measures
Study Document
Irrational Exuberance: The Economic Crisis
As banks faltered and default rates rose, rates of consumption and demand plummeted. Unemployment began to increase, and in a predictable Keynesian fashion, as individuals grew more insecure about their job prospects they began to spend less money. The United States has a particularly consumer-driven economy -- Americans are known for having historically low rates of savings and to engage in high rates of spending -- so this was
Study Document
Economic Globalization Has the 2008 Financial Meltdown
Economic Globalization Has the 2008 financial meltdown in the U.S. And the ongoing economic crisis in Europe have practically ended the era of economic globalization? Following the financial crisis that marred the U.S. economy along with other global economies as well as the ongoing Eurozone debt crisis, there have been projected concerns that this predicament would end economic globalization. The purpose of this paper is to assess this claim. Going by Immanuel