This is a damning indictment of the EU-imposed strategy. Greece is chasing its tail. The budget deficit is stuck near 8pc to 9pc of GDP because the economic base is shrinking so fast.

At least Ambrose Evans-Pritchard has a brain and is willing to state the obvious, though of course it helps that his country is not part of the EMU. The problem of the economy collapsing faster than revenues can be increased has been clearly described at least since Irving Fisher published The Debt-Deflation Theory of Great Depressions, although obtuse 'mainstream economists', including Bernanke, have dismissed its relevance. It is sufficiently accessible that I would encourage any who doubt this to click on the link. (PDF) It is an easy read. What is inconvenient to the needs of their masters always seems incomprehensible to those who might be in need of employment were they to comprehend.

Greece is clearly in the grip of debt-deflation and is experiencing a Great Depression, though not alone -- no matter how econometric statistics are defined so as to be able to deny the obvious. That depression grips the UK and the USA and will continue until and unless the grip of predatory finance over the policies of those nations is broken.

Exiting the EMU might not be a good thing for Greece, but, as it is currently run, it may well be the least worst thing they could do. The current policy of agreeing to comply with impossible demands seems to be the very worst possible response. Let us hope it changes quickly, even if unexpectedly.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."