'No Alternative' to EU Austerity Measures

This is a clearer explanation of what is taking place with Greece and the deal it is trying to arrange with their private investors. This is not about a solution, it is about buying time, "To kick the can further down the road." The fact is that Greece is completely insolvent and the EU commissioners as well as the ECB and IMF are buying time to allow Italy and Portugal to rebound with the austerity measures that they have already imposed. These measures will make it possible for Greece to have an "orderly" default and would be in the best interest of the entire Eurozone. If Greece were to default now, it would mean a "disorderly" default, meaning, a likely run on the banks, a banking credit freeze, and a collapse of the entire European Economy.

This is why we are seeing meeting after meeting with the leaders in the EU and the central banks. Desperate times call for desperate measures; in this case, austerity essentially means the people pay the price for government misdeeds and are forced to bail them out. Austerity also means higher taxes, deep wage cuts and massive job loss in the public sector. Tell me, how would you feel as a citizen if this happened to you in this country?

By the way, one of the deeply disturbing comments made here is the goal to deregulate both the labor and product markets. In my estimation, that is a very dangerous idea. While it might work well for the financial sector, it will not bode well for the average worker. What it means to deregulate labor is not explained here. It will be interesting if we hear more about this in the coming weeks. My guess is that it will be glossed over.

Note: I particularly like the interviewer in this segment. He asks the tough questions and does not let his guest get away with pat answers or cliche's. I wish we had more of this type of interviewing here in the U.S.