Greek Debt

It was clear even after the first bailout that Greece would never be able to pay back all its debt. Now there is talk of a haircut, with either the European taxpayer or the bond holders eating some of the losses incurred from a Greek default.

Finland and German taxpayers are (understandably) reluctant to have their government effectively pay off Greek debt using their earnings. Finns want collateral (you know, the Parthenon) before giving any more money to the Greeks. However, there are a couple of points that these countries would do well to consider:
1. The more productive countries that adopted Euro (read Germany) made a killing exporting their products to less productive countries that adopted Euro. Greek debt financed by German Banks was used to buy German Engineering to build Greek Infrastructure (and pay lavish government salaries).
2. After WW-II, the Marshall Plan supported Germany financially in spite of all the ills that the Nazi state had caused the world. The Greeks (and the Irish and the Italians) by contrast, merely borrowed too much.

Europe should suck it up and pay for a new Marshall Plan in the interest of a united, peaceful Europe.

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