Not just Greeks to blame for country’s financial problems
Isuggest that, whatever the merits and demerits of our financial or other habits, it would much benefit Mr Gerhard Fischer (Letters, September 8, 2010) to look long and hard at his own country’s record. Maybe he could explain to us, for example, how Siemens obtained contracts in this country, except if he means that we, as bad Greeks, have only ourselves to blame for doing business with impeccable firms like Siemens or ordering submarines which have serious faults and then being bullied into either paying for them or receiving Teutonic financial discipline. Of course there is also the «brilliant» alternative suggestion, seriously entertained by German parliamentarians, namely that the bad Greeks should sell a few of their sunny islands, preferably to German concerns, so as to wipe out our large national debt in one masterstroke and thus maybe earn a pat on the back, from say, Chancellor Merkel, for being so cooperative. One also reads of the demand of certain omniscient economists who insist that Greece should revert to the drachma and stew in its own juice, which is a fine example of European mutual cooperation and indicative of how certain great minds work. Luckily, most walking in the EC corridors as well as those who elect them, do not think that we have only ourselves to blame – although as a slogan, it sells well in some quarters. Lastly, there is the case of the German professor who professes to love Greece and who, along with a few of his colleagues, has taken his government to court for daring to finally agree not to veto the support package for the Greek economy approved by the EC-IMF-ECB. Presumably, those who are to blame are unworthy of help or when and if help should come, no criticism of the conditions attached is justified, precisely because we have only ourselves to blame. Our compatriot, Aristotle,would surely be envious of such logic. GEORGE FRANGOPULOS, Kifissia
