The #Greeks

The Greeks hate the Germans. They blame them for the predicament their country is in. Why is it that nobody ever takes responsibility for their actions? The Germans didn’t have anything to do with the lifestyle of the Greeks. They only lend them money so they could better themselves. If they wasted that money it is only the fault of the Greeks themselves, and maybe their government for not spending the money wisely.

Some time ago I read somewhere that everybody, that includes the Greeks, wants to live like the Germans but they don’t want to live like the Germans. It means they want to live the good life but they don’t want to work like the Germans. You see, German people work hard, they save, they want to own their home, and they retire with 67 (That’s the official retirement age in Germany).

The Greeks on the other hand want to retire at 55 with a full government pension. Who doesn't? Difficult to do they way things are in Greece. Apparently, many government officials are corrupt; there is a huge underground economy going on and many people don’t pay their share of taxes. You can’t take money out of the till and put nothing in. If a large number of citizens don’t hold up their end, a country will finally collapse. It is happening now.

In Canada, we have a segment of people that don’t pay taxes, but they take full advantage of the social programs and our health care system. If their numbers increase it will eventually be too much for the government coffers and the tax-paying citizens will get fed up with paying out but not getting anything in return. The payments and other perks will have to stop. It is only a question of time when that will happen, and happen it will.

You can’t always blame the government for not doing enough. There are times when one has to grab a hammer, some plywood and some nails and fix that hole in the floor instead of waiting for someone to come and do it. There are always people who will milk the system, looking for loopholes and taking advantage of every freebie that comes along. There will always be corrupt people, even in the government. We have them in ours. Take our Senate for example. The Senators do little work, get exuberant salaries, high pensions, and have other benefits, but they still cheat and screw the taxpayers and the taxpayers are getting tired of it. It is human nature for people to try and get away with not doing their part and to get something for free.

I don’t know how the Greeks got themselves into the bind they are in now; it is complicated, but they can’t blame the Germans or anyone else. They alone are responsible and they need to sacrifice whatever is needed to climb out of the hole they dug. Perhaps leaving the European Union is the answer for that. But they will never be able to pay back the 350 trillion Euros they own. Nobody will ever give them credit. If their currency is worth little on the world market, they will be able to sell their goods to other countries and make money. It will create jobs, but they will also have to work hard. They won’t be able to travel outside the country or buy merchandise from other countries, because Greek money won’t buy them much.

Even now, they won’t get any more money unless they give in to the demands of the European Banks. How they will ever be able to pay back the money they already owe is beyond me. A couple of years ago I saw an interview on TV. This Greek woman said, “Well, we’ll take their money but we just won’t pay them back!”

Wonderful attitude. I’d like to go to a bank and say, “I want to borrow a million dollars, but I have no intentions of paying anything back. I just want to live the good life. I might even be back in a couple of years and ask for another million, which I won’t pay back, either.” It doesn’t take much imagination what the loan officer will tell me.

I feel sorry for the Greek people, but they will have to do much contemplating, hard work, changing of lifestyles, and tightening of belts to come out of this. It will take years, and they will have to forget about retiring at the age of 55. They will have to save money, pay taxes and pay into a pension fund. Perhaps then they can finally live like the Germans.

I would have liked to retire with 55 and a full pension. I didn’t have that luxury. I retired from a demanding job at 67 without a huge government-job pension or a private pension, because I had my own business. Whatever I have now I worked and saved for. No handouts. No perks. So maybe I don’t feel so sorry for the Greeks after all.

Just finished watching the news. Well, the Greeks voted NO to the offer. It seems that most of the voters had no idea what they were actually voting for. I don't understand why they were dancing and celebrating. Do they seriously believe everything is magically going to be better from now on? They have no money. The taxpayers in the other EU countries are tired of bailing them out. There will be no other offer. One guy said that they want to be free. Who kept them in bondage? They were always free. But they need to blame someone for their problems. They picked the Germans, who only wanted to help them.

There is going to be some turmoil in the stock market but it will die down and things will be back to normal, or sort of normal. Most countries expected this to happen and they are prepared for it. The Euro will take a dip, but it will be short-lived. The Greeks will be the only ones who will suffer in the long run.

Time will tell.