Will Europe give the Greeks a shot in the arm? Image. © Veliano_2/Flickr

Greece, you had it coming

Under the watchful eye of EU inspectors, who are currently in Athens, the Greek government is ironing out the details of a package of cutbacks and economic austerity measures. For economist Georges Pagoulatos, the current crisis should provide the occasion for much needed debate on the nature of Greek society.

Published on 24 February 2010 at 16:38
Will Europe give the Greeks a shot in the arm? Image. © Veliano_2/Flickr

Deep down, we are a fundamentally conservative nation, even though most of us vote for left-of-centre candidates. Inevitably, we cling on to "entitlements" without really wondering about how they were obtained, and without drawing any distinction between rights and privileges. We have legalized a welter of exemptions and favours (like salary bonuses) and bizarre perks, handed over by ministers intent on buying our silence. And notwithstanding our conservative outlook, we are always ready to protest and complain. Ours is a culture where negotiation is seen as surrender, and where compromise is thought to be shameful. As a people, we are too easily distracted, which is why we have rarely sought to reform.

We have made a habit of harping on about the "law," and more often than not, this word plays a key role in our criticism of the state. But we rarely speak of "the rule of law," a concept that most of us would prefer to ignore. When we complain about the state, we talk about nepotism and the unjust appropriation of privilege, but we scarcely bat an eye when — in the name of law — our unions doggedly defend entitlements that are completely unconnected to any notion of professional competence, productivity, or the real potential of our economy.

Social contract must be broken

Over the years, we have come to accept a system based on an unwritten social contract: the masses will tolerate the corruption of some of those in power, and in return those in power will turn a blind eye to the small-scale corruption of the masses. This rule imposed by the highest level of the state has served as an excuse for an endemic complacency, which undermines our society, and sustains the privilege of the fortunate few in our urban elite. It is a social contract of mutual tolerance and give and take, but now this contract has been and must be broken, because we no longer have the financial resources to maintain it.

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Conservatism has spread to all levels of our society. When drafting budgets, government ministers base their demands on allocations in previous years, rounding up figures wherever they can. They do not apply for precise amounts of funding for specific initiatives, as they do in responsibly managed countries. They demand the funds first, and then decide on how to spend them. And it is for this reason that the new government (elected in October 2009) is now discovering skeletons in the cupboard left by the previous administration, which appropriated public money to spend on friends and customers, or to buy loyalty in some constituencies.

A predilection for clientelism and fraud

Greece is now at the centre of a storm of criticism, which many of us find hard to bear. And we are more than eager to offload the burden of guilt on to others, especially now that we have to be rescued. But we cannot blame Europe or the markets for our economic disarray. Of course, the international financial crisis, the greed of investment banks and speculators, and the selfishness of our elites have all played a role. But the vultures in international markets who are hovering over Athens are there for a reason: and this crisis has not been created by an international financial plot or by the European Union, which may well be undermined by it.

It is all our fault: a homegrown product of a corrupt political system, self-serving trade unions, a parasitical business class, and a predilection for clientelism and fraud. Greek consumers will now have to accept reality, and give up childish dreams. We cannot expect to own luxury cars and the latest mobile phones, or to take skiing holidays in fashionable resorts and summer vacations in Mykonos, if we only declare 20,000 euros in annual income. Nor can we expect to retire at 50. For most of us, this kind of lifestyle will necessarily remain beyond our reach.

With the crisis, it is as though the sky has fallen. It has revealed problems, shattered illusions, and uncovered the brutal truth behind appearances. It has forced us to take stock of our responsibilities. If we pretend that nothing is going to happen, the next storm will crush us completely. But if we come together to apply ourselves and share in the sacrifices that have to be made, we can overcome this catastrophic situation to look forward to a brighter future.

Mouthing off

Germans shouldn’t be sermonising

“Those who put Europe to the sword now dare to mouth off! That just tops it all!” rages editorialist Konstantin Roumeliotis in Eleftherotypia in the face of Germany’s reluctance to accept a European plan to bail out Greece. “They plundered Greece in World War II, and now the cover of a popular magazine (Focus) shows the Venus de Milo giving the finger? Besides being in bad taste, it’s simply inappropriate! The €70 billion stolen from Greece has never been returned, and now that we’re in a fix, they refuse to help us out, although German investments are thriving here? Let’s get real, Ms Merkel! Don’t forget your past. This is not the time to mouth off.”

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