The last couple of months has seen Greece grabbing the headlines with its economy going in a downward spiral and talks about its imminent exit from the Euro Zone. As I write this post a crisis of enormous proportions appears to have been averted, in the eyes of the world at large, including you and me, although it remains to be seen for how long and the ultimate price Greece will have to pay for it.
All along, we have been led to believe by the media, at large, that the economic crisis was precipitated by the reckless spending by the Greek Government on its people; that the banks generously gave money to the Government, but that the Government grossly mismanaged the situation. However, a recent article by Mr. Chris Kanthan (nationofchange.org) has turned on its head, the entire theory so far propounded by the mainstream media. The points that he has articulated, if true, are very very disturbing, to say the least.
According to him banks and corporations have systematically brought about this situation to pass which, according to him, has been tried and successfully tested in Asia, Latin America and Africa, and which situation Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Italy also find themselves in at the moment.
According to Mr. Kanthan a 4 stage strategy has been adopted to bring about this situation:
Stage 1:
The financial crisis of 2008, in which sub-prime mortgages were doled out to odd and sundry and these were then packaged into Mortgage backed Securities with the active connivance of rating agencies such as Standard & Poor, Fitch and Moody’s, who added sheen to these worthless products, which were then passed on to unsuspecting takers, including pension funds, municipalities and countries across Europe, including Greece.
Stage 2:
When the meltdown actually happened, with the explosion of these virtual time bombs, resulting in the dramatic collapse of large financial institutions and banks, all the investors, including the Greek government, saw the values of their investments evaporating within no time. By a strange irony, the very players who had brought about this situation, i.e. the big banks and corporations, demanded a bail out from the very citizens whose lives they had destroyed. In the case of Greece, its tax payers had to dole out USD 30 billion.
Stage 1:
The financial crisis of 2008, in which sub-prime mortgages were doled out to odd and sundry and these were then packaged into Mortgage backed Securities with the active connivance of rating agencies such as Standard & Poor, Fitch and Moody’s, who added sheen to these worthless products, which were then passed on to unsuspecting takers, including pension funds, municipalities and countries across Europe, including Greece.
Stage 2:
When the meltdown actually happened, with the explosion of these virtual time bombs, resulting in the dramatic collapse of large financial institutions and banks, all the investors, including the Greek government, saw the values of their investments evaporating within no time. By a strange irony, the very players who had brought about this situation, i.e. the big banks and corporations, demanded a bail out from the very citizens whose lives they had destroyed. In the case of Greece, its tax payers had to dole out USD 30 billion.
Stage 3:
In this stage, Mr. Kanthan says, the banks, prominent amongst them being Goldman Sachs, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank) forced the governments (including Greece) to raise money by way of debts by having them issue bonds. Having done so, they then proceeded to downgrade these bonds, thereby making it difficult for the countries (including Greece) to borrowing further amounts at unaffordable rates of interest. Between 2009 and mid 2010, he states, that the yields on 10 year Greek bonds almost tripled, which gives an idea as to the exorbitant rates at which the Greek government was forced to borrow monies from these banks to the tune of 110 billion euros. Their stranglehold was such that in 2011 when the then Prime Minister refused another bailout, he was promptly removed and replaced by the then Vice President of the European Central Bank. Within a day’s time Italy suffered a similar fate when its Prime Minister was replaced by yet another banker/economist of their choice. By the year 2012 the yield on Greek Bonds had been increased to 50%, which in turn forced the Greek Government to agree to another bailout, larger than the previous one. Mr. Kanthan points out that these loans are not simple loans given by banks as one would imagine them to be. These loan agreements contained very onerous covenants that demanded privatization of the borrowing country’s assets.
Stage 4:
This is the stage at which these banks moved in for the kill, so to speak, with the Governments, including that of Greece being forced to sell many of its profitable assets to oligarchs and international corporations, which resulted in the privatization of key Governments departments such as water, electricity, post offices, airport services, national banks, telecommunications and port authorities. This would automatically reduce the government’s revenue, thereby forcing them to borrow further amounts. As a solution to the problem, the Government would be forced to spend less, which translates into laying off workers, cutting minimum wages, cutting down pensions (social security), cutting down on public services and to top it all, increasing taxes. Mr. Kanthan ranks the Greek crisis as being far worse than the Great Depression in the 1930s.
In this stage, Mr. Kanthan says, the banks, prominent amongst them being Goldman Sachs, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank) forced the governments (including Greece) to raise money by way of debts by having them issue bonds. Having done so, they then proceeded to downgrade these bonds, thereby making it difficult for the countries (including Greece) to borrowing further amounts at unaffordable rates of interest. Between 2009 and mid 2010, he states, that the yields on 10 year Greek bonds almost tripled, which gives an idea as to the exorbitant rates at which the Greek government was forced to borrow monies from these banks to the tune of 110 billion euros. Their stranglehold was such that in 2011 when the then Prime Minister refused another bailout, he was promptly removed and replaced by the then Vice President of the European Central Bank. Within a day’s time Italy suffered a similar fate when its Prime Minister was replaced by yet another banker/economist of their choice. By the year 2012 the yield on Greek Bonds had been increased to 50%, which in turn forced the Greek Government to agree to another bailout, larger than the previous one. Mr. Kanthan points out that these loans are not simple loans given by banks as one would imagine them to be. These loan agreements contained very onerous covenants that demanded privatization of the borrowing country’s assets.
Stage 4:
This is the stage at which these banks moved in for the kill, so to speak, with the Governments, including that of Greece being forced to sell many of its profitable assets to oligarchs and international corporations, which resulted in the privatization of key Governments departments such as water, electricity, post offices, airport services, national banks, telecommunications and port authorities. This would automatically reduce the government’s revenue, thereby forcing them to borrow further amounts. As a solution to the problem, the Government would be forced to spend less, which translates into laying off workers, cutting minimum wages, cutting down pensions (social security), cutting down on public services and to top it all, increasing taxes. Mr. Kanthan ranks the Greek crisis as being far worse than the Great Depression in the 1930s.
In his article he implores the people of Greece to give a NO to austerity in the then forthcoming referendum. The Greeks duly obliged with a resounding NO to austerities, only to see their Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras do a volte face days later and agree to austerities, which is being seen as an act of betrayal by the people of Greece.
Mr. Kanthan then goes on to encapsulate his point of view in the following words – “This is the essence of the New World Order – a world owned by a handful of corporations and banks; a world that is full of obedient, powerless debts serfs.”
For those who know about the term New World Order will instantly know that Mr. Kanthan has merely scratched the surface in terms of it actually entails. Those who have the inclination and the time to explore what the term New World Order ‘actually’ beholds, the internet is waiting to tell you all that you need to know.
Mr. Kanthan then goes on to encapsulate his point of view in the following words – “This is the essence of the New World Order – a world owned by a handful of corporations and banks; a world that is full of obedient, powerless debts serfs.”
For those who know about the term New World Order will instantly know that Mr. Kanthan has merely scratched the surface in terms of it actually entails. Those who have the inclination and the time to explore what the term New World Order ‘actually’ beholds, the internet is waiting to tell you all that you need to know.
Only time will tell what the future portends for Greece...... and for the rest of the vulnerable world.
