7 Story Lines to Watch in the Euro Crisis This Fall - NYTimes.com

I don't agree in the expression "Euro crisis". To me it seems to be a bank crisis, a crisis of Greece itself (ongoing since 1820) and an additional real estate bubble in Spain. Greece need a complete restructuring of administration, infrastucture and the corrumpted political system. That will not work without political pressure on those politicians who are responsible for the current status assisted by bankers who made their benefits with high interest rates in Greece government bonds trusting in the responsibility of the stronger Euro nations. All payments from ECB and IMF are directed to the creditor banks. That 's helpfull for the banks only but not for the Greece economy. They do need programs to bring up economy after doing their homework.
On the other hand there is of course a misrelation between the spendings of national households and collateral effects on the value of the common currency. That need a fix by regulations, observations and a central control council in absence of a common democratic political body. Hopefully leading into a political integration of Europe. All in all this seems to me rather a great chance than a desaster.
Grant Greece another decade to correct the sins of more than a century. I think it's worth to help them.

• Aug. 28, 2012 at 11:49 p.m.
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1. • JoanneN
   • Europe
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   You're right, it would take a decade. But it would take more than time: people need to have a sense of justice restored.
   
   The major failure of the EU has been its inability to bring about institutional change in Member States. Greek citizens have seen no real structural change in 30 years. The main improvement was in consumption, which was called 'development', but of course is anything but. Its politicians have carried on with the same old destructive clientilist party politics, except with a a lot more European tax-payer money to throw around.
   
   As a result, the flaws of Greek democracy have become even more entrenched. Now the same politicians are being asked to implement in a couple of years what they failed to do in the preceding 30. Meanwhile, citizens are asked to drastically reduce their standard of living, pay a lot more taxes (VAT has reached 24%, but cannot make up for the lower tax collection due to recession), and face worsening schools and hospitals - all without anyone in the political scene being called to account. How can this work?