Thoughts On The Greek Crisis

There is an article on Naked Capitalism with the title Lessons for Europe’s Fiscal Union from US Federalism by Yves Smith. The author looks at the history of monetary union in the United States under Alexander Hamilton.  He writes the following:

As part of his plan to establish the credibility of the US government as a borrower and build a ‘modern’ financial system, Hamilton famously ‘assumed’ the debt of the states. This federal bailout, which was repeated after the War of 1812, is anathema to present concepts of the fiscal ‘sovereignty’ of the states in the US. But the powers of the federal government grew largely from that decision. After establishing its authority, the federal government shifted to a no-bailout stance in the 1840s, letting several states default. Simultaneously, and subsequently during the nineteenth century, states adopted balanced-budget rules of varying strength on their own accord. Today, all states except Vermont have such a rule inscribed in their law or constitution and, although these rules can leak, state debt accumulation has been relatively limited.

What that would translate to in Europe today is that the economically strongest countries such as Germany and France would assume the hundreds of billions of dollars of Greek, Portuguese, Italian, etc. debt, and then set up a system where all the European countries pay taxes to a central government-sort of how we pay both federal and state taxes here in the United States.  Of course that would take incredible political will because it means that countries would have to sacrifice their fiscal policy to the new central government (which it seems they are doing anyway, Germany is now  asking for a mechanism which would allow any country whose budget deficit  exceeds 0.5% of nominal GDP-Greece's is estimated to be about 9% GDP right now-to be taken to the European Courts. The author continues to explain that the Europeans are actually going in the reverse direction:

The rules of the fiscal union in the US evolved in a distinct sequence. The federal government first developed a robust fiscal capacity, with the assumption of state debt, issuance of federal debt, and access to its own tax revenue. Once that was established, the states could adopt balanced-budget provisions. By introducing strict balanced-budget rules prior to a robust fiscal union – assuming that some of them harbour ambitions for such a union – European policymakers are attempting to reverse this sequencing. Adopting such rules might reassure the ECB and smooth the path for further expansion of its operations, both of which are desirable, but it leaves the Eurozone short in terms of countercyclical tools. 

He concludes:

Creating a common capacity for countercyclical action – through a more robust central budget, issuance of euro bonds, backed by tax authority – is more reliable. But this route of course requires strong political cohesion and robust institutions for the monetary union that would match those through which Hamilton worked.

Issuance of European bonds with taxing authority.  In essence a strong federal European government with the individual countries having the status that the states have in the U.S.A. I have heard it said many times that there can be no fiscal union without political union.  But that will take a lot of work and time-something that Greece doesn't have.

Hypocrisy in American Politics

Newt Gingrich's ex-wife was interviewed on ABC and stated that he lacks the moral character to be president of the United States.  Accoring to the article:

"his second ex-wife Marianne told ABC News, saying his campaign positions on the sanctity of marriage and the importance of family values do not square with what she saw during their 18 years of marriage."

At the same time he was assailing Bill Clinton for getting head in the oval office, he was telling his wife that he had met another woman and wanted to have an "open marriage".  

Marianne described her "shock" at Gingrich's behavior, including how she says she learned he conducted his affair with Callista "in my bedroom in our apartment in Washington."

"He always called me at night," she recalled, "and always ended with 'I love you.' Well, she was listening."

This all from a man who is a "fierce advocate of traditional marriage" and advocates denying marriage to gays and lesbians.

Is this… Sparta?

"I can't think about that right now. If I do, I'll go crazy. I'll think about that tomorrow.."

Quoting Scarlett from “Gone with the Wind” is probably the mildest way I can present the Mayor of Chania's thoughts regarding homeless people in the city.

While young, glamorously dressed up children had the chance to take pictures by the beautiful and impressive Christmas tree in the central square of Chania, a homeless 62 year old man’s last breath blew the dust off a long forgotten book in people’s mind-library called “compassion [anthropiá] and respect”. That, along with the book I am reading on Alcibiades, a great General of Ancient Greece, led me to some thoughts. I couldn’t help but wonder.. Who exactly are we? What is the role of society?

In the state of mind of Ancient Athens, elderly people symbolized wisdom, justice and common sense. They were fully respected and their opinion was highly regarded in their family, in court, and in day-to-day situations. Society took good care of them and younger people looked up to them, looking forward to reaching their age and receive such honors themselves.

In Ancient Sparta, on the other hand, things were different. Old men along with new-borns that seemed to have some kind of malfunctions- physical or mental- were thrown into “Kaeadas” cliff and died there, since they could be of no service to the society.

So is Chania a new Sparta? Do you consider yourselves innocent of the above?

Just.. food for thought!

S

Greek Americans in the Balkan Wars!

I was reading one of those Osprey "Men at Arms" books called "Armies of the Balkan Wars 1912-1913".  

You may have seen them at Barnes and Noble where they usually have a section all to themselves! 

(pic courtesy of incubatorgames.com)

They are very fun and interesting.  The "Men at Arms" series shows soldiers from different wars ranging from the Babylonians to the Roman Empire to Americans in Iraq.  It details their uniforms, weapons they used, number of soldiers they had and other logistical facts.  Here's a sample from the book showing what the uniforms of the Greek soldiers looked like then:

Notice the soldier from the Evzones Batallion to the Left.  There's no fuzzy ball or "founta" on the end of the shoe as is usually seen in the ceremonial uniform.

Here's another pic showing some irregular soldiers.

And a pic of a Greek soldier whose face looks like it could be seen in Greece today...

Beneath is my great-grandfather Kyriakos Frantzeskakis or "DimarhoKiriakos". Nicknamed so because he was the Mayor of Lakous in Chania.  He fought in the Balkan Wars and knew Elefterios Venizelos personally.  He even baptized his son Manoli, who was my grandfather's brother.  This image is from a book I found which documents all of the Cretans who fought in the Balkan Wars.

And a closer shot:

Here is an excerpt from the book discussing the Cretan fighters of which my great-grandfather was part of:

Cretan volunteers, 1912–13 

After a series of rebellions against the Ottoman rulers from 1860 onwards, the island of Crete had been given the status of an autonomous state by international treaty since 1898. Prince George of Greece was installed as the head of the new state, until his replacement in 1906 by a local politician, Alexandros Zaimis. Crete formally announced its union with Greece in 1908, but this was not recognized by the international community until after the Balkan Wars in December 1913. 

The island had its own military force in the form of a Gendarmerie, with a strength of 1,466 all ranks at the outbreak of the Balkan Wars. This militarized police force had been well trained by Italian instructors and had a reputation for reliability. The Gendarmerie were sent by the Cretan government to assist their fellow Greeks at the outbreak of the First Balkan War, and were given the task of policing the newly captured city of Salonika by the Greek Army. The gendarmes wore a distinctive black uniform comprising a tight-fitting jacket with white Italian-style collar, pantaloon trousers worn with a blue sash, and a round black toca hat. The cap badge was red with a silver anchor device for Crete, below the superimposed monogram of Greek Crown Prince George II.

Cretans also volunteered in large numbers to serve in the Greek regular army, usually in their own distinct units. The Army of Epirus included an ‘Independent Cretans Regiment’, and other units mentioned in orders of battle include the ‘Students Sacred Band’ and the ‘Cretans Military Company’. Volunteers from Crete were also formed into so-called ‘scout corps’, ad hoc platoons of less than 50 men; Cretans formed 77 of these, with a total establishment of 3,556 men. These scouts wore regular Greek Army uniforms without any unit distinctions apart from a cross on their breast pocket. However, some Cretan volunteers with Greek officers were photographed wearing their traditional dress with distinctive sarikia headscarves.

In other words these Cretans (3,556 thousand of them in the Greek army alone) picked up and left their homes and families (my great grandfather left his wife, sons and daughters) to potentially be killed in order to expand the nation (which it did by a full 68% more territory).  All this at a time when Crete was not part of Greece itself.  All this is very interesting to me because it has many modern parallels.  People fleeing to distant war zones to fight because they identify nationalistically, religiously or politically with a certain cause.

Equally interesting was this passage about the Greek army at the time:

The Greek Army, 1912–13 

Greece had a small peacetime regular army of 3,802 officers and 18,875 men, which could
be increased upon mobilization to 110,000 all ranks. There was also a National Guard with
80,000 men, and the National Guard Reserve with an additional 60,000 men. More men could have been called up, but the Greeks were limited by the stores of clothing, equipment and weapons available for volunteers. 

Greek recruits were expected to serve for a total of 31 years –two in the Active Army, 21 years in the First Reserve and eight in the Second Reserve. A French military mission that arrived in Greece in 1911 under Gen. Eydoux encouraged the Greeks to move to a ‘triangular’ infantry division with three infantry regiments of three battalions, plus two
artillery battalions and a half-company of cavalry for reconnaissance. This new system left a surplus of infantry regiments, which were formed into additional infantry divisions upon mobilization. 

The army was divided into two main field armies: the Army of Thessaly under the command of Crown Prince Constantine, and the Army of Epirus under LtGen Konstantinos Sapountzakis. The 100,000-strong Army of Thessaly comprised seven infantry divisions, four independent battalions of Evzones (elite light infantry recruited in mountain areas),
a cavalry brigade and various support units, with 70 machine guns and 120 artillery pieces. The Army of Epirus was a much smaller 10,000-man division-sized formation, with eight infantry battalions, one Evzone battalion, a cavalry company and 24 field guns. It was reinforced during the war by various volunteer units including the Cretan volunteer
regiment and the Italian Legion or ‘Garibaldini’ (see below).  

The Greeks also received volunteers for the regular army from the Greek populations in Macedonia and Epirus. Macedonians in the regular Greek Army served mainly in the so-called ‘Holy Regiment’. According to orders of battle, the Army of Epirus included nine small Macedonian scout ‘corps’ with a total of 1,812 men, and nine even smaller Epirot
scout platoons totalling 446 men. The Greeks also received volunteers from abroad, including a company of Greek emigrants from New York.

New Yorkers returning to Greece to join the Greek army? That's wild...

Here are two maps showing Greece's moves during the war and her territorial gains after the war:

The Green areas and the brown area, were lands that were captured and make up the Greece's borders today. That's 68% more territory than before the war.

Mossad Celebrates Halloween in Iran

Foreign Policy magazine has a great article by Mark Perry in which he details how Israeli Agents posed as C.I.A. agents and met with members of an anti-Iranian organization named Jundallah based in Pakistan, and gave them financial support which later translated into the the assassination of Iranian government officials and the killing of Iranian women and children via suicide bombers.  In other words, the Israeli government in engaged in "terrorism" in Iran and they are making it look as if the United States is responsible by posing as Americans with U.S. passports and American dollars.  


The article quotes many American agents as surprised that Israel would have the "balls" (my quote) to pose as C.I.A. agents in London right under our noses.  

"It's amazing what the Israelis thought they could get away with," the intelligence officer said. "Their recruitment activities were nearly in the open. They apparently didn't give a damn what we thought."

They also added:

"There's no question that the U.S. has cooperated with Israel in intelligence-gathering operations against the Iranians, but this was different. No matter what anyone thinks, we're not in the business of assassinating Iranian officials or killing Iranian civilians."

 And when it was found out:

A senior administration official vowed to "take the gloves off" with Israel, according to a U.S. intelligence officer. But the United States did nothing -- a result that the officer attributed to "political and bureaucratic inertia."

They did what they wanted and didn't give a damn what we thought, and THEN...we couldn't do anything about it.  That's power.  

What has become crystal clear, however, is the level of anger among senior intelligence officials about Israel's actions. "This was stupid and dangerous," the intelligence official who first told me about the operation said. "Israel is supposed to be working with us, not against us. If they want to shed blood, it would help a lot if it was their blood and not ours. You know, they're supposed to be a strategic asset. Well, guess what? There are a lot of people now, important people, who just don't think that's true." 

Important people who aren't going to do anything.  Meanwhile we are supporting terrorism in Iran.
With the recent killings of Iranian nuclear scientists in the streets, it seems the Israeli's are at it again. Maybe they are still using Jundallah for this or they are just doing the job themselves.  Either way our   government's silence and inaction speaks volumes.

Obama on Marijuana

Obama has once again flip-flopped on another campaign pledge.  Here he is at the 0:56 second mark when he was "Candidate Obama" talking about how "I inhaled.  Frequently"

       

And here he is again at the 1:25 mark saying that as president he would not waste federal resources going after medical marijuana dispensaries because that money should be used to go after violent crime and terrorist offences.

And then we get this yesterday  :"Feds warn marijuana shops close to schools"and here is the actual letter that was sent to the shops.  The president is doing EXACTLY what he said he would not do:  Allocating Justice Department resources to go after medical marijuana dispensaries and threatening them with prosecution.

Now personally I don't have a problem with marijuana and neither do 42% of all Americans who have tried it at some point in their lives.  Neither are it's effects as deadly as the legal drug, cigarettes, which according to the Center for Disease Control:

More deaths are caused each year by tobacco use than by all deaths from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), illegal drug use, alcohol use, motor vehicle injuries, suicides, and murders combined.

But marijuana convictions provide the government with over 800,000 new prisoners each year for the prison system which is becoming increasingly privatized.  Imagine for a second if tobacco was illegal and had the same penalties as marijuana. How many of our friends and family members would be getting locked up?

But back to the point.  It seems to me that this is another question of federal versus state power.  The people of Colorado voted to legalize marijuana for medical use in 2000.  Now I have been to Colorado and marijuana is basically semi-legal for people who get the ID card from their doctor.  I have also heard stories of people able to obtain these cards from their doctors because they have "migranes ;)".  But I believe this is up to the people of Colorado to decide and not the federal government.  Especially a federal government that was elected with lies to the voters in Colorado about issues that would affect them.  

                                                         

Haiti Run By NGOs

http://inapcache.boston.com/universal/site_graphics/blogs/bigpicture/haiti_01_13/h43_21699853.jpg

According to Vijaya Ramachandran at the Huffington Post:

...almost all of the assistance provided to Haiti has bypassed its government, leaving it even less capable than before. Humanitarian agencies, NGOs, private contractors, and other non-state service providers have received 99 percent of relief aid -- less than 1 percent of aid in the immediate aftermath of the quake went to public institutions or to the government.

Also:

NGOs provided 70 percent of health care, and private schools (mostly NGO-run) accounted for 85 percent of national education.  

 In summary:

The dominance of international NGOs has created a parallel state more powerful than the government itself.  

I remember that I donated 50 dollars to the Red Cross in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake, its nice to know that 50 cents of that went to the Haitian people.  In reality, the Red Cross basically paid itself to provide services to Haiti.  After I donated, a friend told me it was a waste of money and that I should've donated to my local homeless guy.  I guess that was the best thing to do after all!