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"Obviously there will be an all-out effort to create a catastrophe in Greece (you know with famine and such)."

A famine in Greece?

That's going to take some doing. It is a strongly agricultural country. And any attempt at that would probably mean total depletion of the Mediterranean sea (Greece already takes 19% of the EU fish catch there, and would probably not worry with quotas too much in case of a famine).

No doubt that much will be done to prevent a Syriza government, even though they are the only moderate party left in Greece (its tag as "radical left" notwhithstanding). But famine seems a somewhat distant prospect.

Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed. Gandhi

by Cyrille (cyrillev domain yahoo.fr) on Tue Dec 30th, 2014 at 05:10:45 AM EST
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I think the first goal of the entire EU establishment will be to scare voters off Syriza, and whatever they'll say won't really equate to (is probably worse than) their post-election contingency plan. If Syriza wins, the second goal will be to scare off potential coalition partners from joining them for a viable government majority. If that fails, there is still the option for some compromise in which Greece gets some debt relief and EU leaders [here I mean both leaders of EU institutions and EU nation states] can claim that Greece can leave the bailout regime because of the good work of the previous government. Making an example will come if the confrontation reaches points of no return from the EU elite's view like Greece leaving the Euro.

*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.
by DoDo on Tue Dec 30th, 2014 at 05:18:47 AM EST
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Greek trade balance breakdown for 2013 shows that, of a negative overall balance of -25bn USD:

the biggest negative articles are
*oil & gas -8.4bn USD
*capital goods (machinery, eletrical, electronic, ships, vehicles) -6.6bn USD
*pharmaceuticals -2.4bn USD

Foodstuffs figure on the negative side thus:

*meat -1.3bn USD
*dairy -0.5bn USD
*cereals -0.3bn USD
*miscellaneous (my rough calculation) -1.6bn USD
Total -3.7bn USD

but bolster the positive side:

*vegetable/fruit preparations 0.9bn USD
*fruit, nuts etc 0.75bn USD
*animal/vegetable fats/oils 0.4bn USD
*fish 0.35bn USD
Total 2.4bn USD

The foodstuffs balance is negative but not enormously (-1.3bn USD). Eat less meat and dairy, and more vegetables, fruit, fish, olive oil (the Mediterranean diet!) and it could be fixed.

The worrisome items, in terms of immediate living conditions, are oil & gas, and pharmaceuticals.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Tue Dec 30th, 2014 at 10:55:18 AM EST
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Ooops on that page you have to specify Greece as country and trade balance in other criteria.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Tue Dec 30th, 2014 at 11:05:19 AM EST
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Oil and gas should be less of a problem next year.
by gk (gk (gk quattro due due sette @gmail.com)) on Tue Dec 30th, 2014 at 12:33:43 PM EST
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A famine anywhere is trivial to bring about: agriculture is an energy intensive activity in its current form. Unless Greece is energy independent there is a problem.

It does not matter if they have a current account surplus if the global political environment makes it impossible for Greece to sell.

"Sell to Greece, make Germany an enemy". Who would sell to Greece?

by cagatacos on Wed Dec 31st, 2014 at 01:30:38 PM EST
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You are saying no crude-producing country would deliver to Greek refineries for fear of Germany?
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Thu Jan 1st, 2015 at 03:40:53 AM EST
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Even Russia for a share in Piraeus port?
by gk (gk (gk quattro due due sette @gmail.com)) on Thu Jan 1st, 2015 at 03:47:05 AM EST
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They already sold that port to China.

- Jake

Friends come and go. Enemies accumulate.

by JakeS (JangoSierra 'at' gmail 'dot' com) on Thu Jan 1st, 2015 at 04:16:14 AM EST
[ Parent ]
What about Thessaloniki?
by gk (gk (gk quattro due due sette @gmail.com)) on Thu Jan 1st, 2015 at 04:39:04 AM EST
[ Parent ]


Friends come and go. Enemies accumulate.
by JakeS (JangoSierra 'at' gmail 'dot' com) on Thu Jan 1st, 2015 at 04:40:14 AM EST
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I would lease a naval facility on the Island of Lemnos to the Russians...

A society committed to the notion that government is always bad will have bad government. And it doesn't have to be that way. — Paul Krugman
by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Thu Jan 1st, 2015 at 05:58:06 AM EST
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That is being said, and it is absurd.

A society committed to the notion that government is always bad will have bad government. And it doesn't have to be that way. — Paul Krugman
by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Thu Jan 1st, 2015 at 05:44:21 AM EST
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The only thing absurd is the idea that a small country in a very perilous position in many regards will be able to face the wrath of the most important EU country plus the whole view of the globalized political and economical elite (which is currently aligned with Germany's interests).

What people are here suggesting is akin to saying that the American embargo to Cuba is of no consequence to Cuba's relationship with the rest of the world.

by cagatacos on Tue Jan 6th, 2015 at 06:33:44 AM EST
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