Incredible!

From the New Yorker:
...

Years of such corruption and tax evasion, coupled with reckless expenditure—as a share of G.D.P., for instance, Athens spent almost twice the E.U. average on military purchases—pushed the Greek state into massive budget shortfalls, prompting the government to borrow heavily. In late 2009, the government announced that it had racked up enough debt to be running a deficit of almost thirteen per cent of G.D.P., sparking fears of a default. Greece’s creditors were mostly European banks, which had, in part, used public bailout money following the 2008 credit crunch to scoop up Greek bonds. For example, French and German banks were on the books for thirty-one and twenty-three billion euros, respectively. The troika stepped in during the spring of 2010, and again in 2012, to orchestrate bailouts of the Greek government, offering two hundred and forty billion euros in loans in exchange for a drastic reduction in government spending and other measures to make the Greek economy more competitive. “Understand that this debt is symbolic,” Theocharakis said. “It’s simply too much to ever be paid back fully.”

Across the hall from his office, there is a poster announcing a lecture on the bailout that bears a depiction of the famous con artist Charles Ponzi. The implication is not subtle: the troika and other creditors raised most of the bailout tranche from capital markets through low-interest bond issues, and then loaned the money to Greece at much higher rates. Close to ninety per cent of the money returns directly to the original creditors, or goes to recapitalize Greek banks; most of the funds don’t even touch the Greek government’s hands, landing instead for a few days in an escrow account, until they are transferred to bond holders.

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Tuesday, 9 07 15.

Still on the Greek question this morning. Seems Greece has consistently maintained high military spending. Which makes it an odd kind of place : tourists and the military. Because military societies tend to be ... Spartan, like North Korea. Found a link:

http://www.businessinsider.com/why-greeces-military-budget-is-so-high-2015-6

source: Wikipedia.