A good insight on the latest Greek socio-political developments

I copy the article which has been retrieved from Globalpost.com and conducted by Ken Maguire

I think that the article is extremely objective in terms of the facts provision. I would add that the main source of insecurity for the people is derived by the government itself (both the elected ex government of Pasok and the current transition government) which do not hold any social legitimacy at all among the majority of Greeks. 

 

Where Greeks hide their savings

With safes and Swiss accounts, rich Greeks could stand to profit from the crisis.

Demonstrators burn an EU flag during a protest in Thessaloniki on November 17, 2011 against austerity measures demanded by the new unity government to persuade its creditors to release bankruptcy-saving loans. Greeks are draining local banks in favor of Swiss accounts, London property and cash stashed in home safes. (Sakis Mitrolidis/AFP/Getty Images)

The effects of the IMF era on Greece - by Manos Matsaganis and Chrysa Leventi

Greek financial crisis has alarming effect on poverty levels

21 August 2011

 

New research from members of ISER’s EUROMOD project shows that levels of poverty among the Greek population have risen alarmingly since the financial crisis hit last year. The research concludes that policies to reduce Greece’s deficit need to be redesigned and stresses the importance of fighting tax evasion.

The research by Manos Matsaganis and Chrysa Leventi from the Athens University of Economics and Businessshows that as a result of the austerity measures and the wider recession in Greece, relative poverty (as measured conventionally, by reference to a poverty threshold of 60% of median incomes) has increased from 20.1% in 2009 to 20.9% to 2010. Extreme poverty (measured by reference to a threshold of 40% of median incomes) has followed a similar pattern, rising from 7.3% to 8.0%.

The researchers say that while these figures may appear unimpressive, poverty was shown to have risen to 25.5% if anchored in pre-crisis terms (measured by reference to a threshold of 60% of median incomes in 2009, adjusted for inflation). They argue that the latter indicator is better suited to periods of rapid change in living standards, better approximating the experience of impoverishment when nominal incomes fall and prices rise (as was the case in Greece in 2010 relative to 2009).

Iceland has won - by Krugman

September 1, 2011, 9:01 AM

Iceland Exits

Iceland is no longer under an IMF program; here’s the IMF report (pdf) pronouncing the adjustment program successful. Indeed. Iceland still has high unemployment and is a long way from a full recovery; but it’s no longer in crisis, it has regained access to international capital markets, and has done all that with its society intact.

And it has done all that with very heterodox policies — debt repudiation, capital controls, and currency depreciation. It was as close as you can get to the polar opposite of the gold standard. And it has worked.

 

The original article on: http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/01/iceland-exits/