Greek & EU Economic Meltdown: American Taxpayers Don’t Realize They’re Paying for Greece’s Bail-Out, Failure of European Socialism Is Spreading (video)
Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on May 10, 2010
Socialism is destroying Greece, rest of Europe... America isn't far behind, yet American taxpayers are helping to pay for Greece's expensive bail-out
The economic destruction brought on by European socialism is no longer just about the financial meltdown and riots in socialist Greece and the spread of the financial crisis to other parts of Europe… the euro and global financial markets are taking the hit as well. And American taxpayers may not know this, but they’re helping pay for Greece’s trillion-dollar bailout.
Peachy.
Are they printing out enough Monopoly money?
From Reuters, Global markets weekahead: Greek crisis goes viral:
It is no longer just about the euro zone. It is global, hitting financial markets across the board and threatening the general improvement in the global macroeconomic climate. Heading into a new week, there is no comfort for investors either from the indecisive British general election, with its accompanying macroeconomic uncertainty.
But it is Greece that is the domino that has started to topple.
Rioting protestors and burning banks on the streets of Athens have clearly grabbed the limelight the over the past week. But from an investor standpoint, they have simply underlined the growing skepticism about whether the European Union can save the euro zone from a Greek default and spreading debt meltdown.
As a result, the year’s gains in world stocks have been wiped out and the euro is sitting on double-digit percentage losses for the year.
So the issue facing investors now is whether this crisis — the Greek word, appropriately, for judgment — is containable or whether the world is heading toward another financial meltdown akin to the subprime debacle.
“People worry that if Greece is Bear Stearns, Portugal is Lehman and Spain AIG,” BNP Paribas said during the past week, a phrase that gained much circulation.
Initially, the impact of Greece’s struggle with its debt and the fear of a spread to others such as Portugal and Spain, has mainly been seen in European assets. Funds tracker EPFR Global, for example, reports that European equity funds had more than $2 billion in net inflows in the week to May 5, the most in a year.
But other assets are now getting pulled in significantly…
Rep. Paul Ryan on EU Economic Crisis: “What We Are Seeing Is the Failure of European Socialism & the Social Welfare States”
From Gateway Pundit, Paul Ryan on EU Economic Crisis: “What We Are Seeing Is the Failure of European Socialism & the Social Welfare States” (Video)
Rep. Paul Ryan sends a warning:
“I am enormously concerned. First of all, Greek contagion can spread to some of these other countries like you said. What this basically is… It is so ironic coming from the cradle of Western Civilization. What we are seeing is the failure of European socialism and social welfare states. What is basically happening here is this sovereign debt crisis could come over and spread to us. We’ve got to make sure we put in the right kind of fiscal controls, the right kind of balancing to prevent this from happening. Because what’s happening is the markets are questioning the viablility of sovereign debt. The markets are questioning whether or not governments are going to be able to live up to all the promises and debt that they have racked up… Sooner or later you run out of spending other people’s money with welfare states.”
Sooner or later you run out of spending other people’s money.
Attention, Tea Partiers… We’re All Paying for Socialist Greece’s Trillion-Dollar Financial Bailout
From NewsBusters, Tea Party Movement Not Realizing U.S. is Bailing Out Greece, Says CNBC Host:
The European Union and the International Monetary Fund to the rescue! The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) soars and investors breathe a sign of relief. But where’s this $1 trillion in bailout funds for Greece coming from?
On CNBC’s May 10 “Squawk Box,” host Joe Kernen channeled Rick Santelli’s anti-bailout populism, suggesting it was important to note that this bailout was made possible in part by the American taxpayer.
“On one thing, Rick – because you started the whole thing where you said, ‘Are you listening, President Obama?’ about paying for your neighbor’s mortgage,” Kernen said. “Are you, could you really tell the American taxpayer, you can connect the dots between them and Greece? I mean are they paying for some lavish benefits in Greece right now?”
Santelli agreed, but warned there would likely be a call by the IMF for more U.S. tax dollars.
“Well there’s no connect-the-dots,” Santelli replied. “I mean it is a fact. We contribute a little less than 18 percent to the IMF. And the IMF is pretty much using its entire piggy bank, of course to pledge up to €250 billion, no matter how you slice it, Joe. Eighteen percent of that money, or more, because you know, if they go much beyond this, they’re going to have to replenish the coffers.”
Kernen asked why Santelli and the CME Group traders that were instrumental in stirring up the Tea Party movement in early 2009 weren’t more visibly concerned.
“You now what – it’s not been a variable recently,” Santelli said. “They’ve been paying attention to the IMF’s presence in this for the last month and a half. It doesn’t necessarily present the same anxieties as it did the first time around because you know, once you get kicked in the shins every hour for a dozen hours, the 13th hour just isn’t as shocking and doesn’t hurt as much.”
Kernen tried to instigate a more impassioned response from Santelli, but noted that it’s likely a lot of Tea Party activists aren’t realizing American tax dollars are a component of the IMF bailout.
“I don’t think the average Tea Partier knows we’re paying for lavish benefits in Greece for public employees over there, Rick,” Kernen said. “I think maybe you need to tell them.”
Additional reading:
Frugal Café Blog Zone: Obama’s Debt Crisis: Moody’s Anticipates US Debt Shock Could Hit in 2013 Under Obama’s Budget and Who Will Be America’s “Sugar Daddy”? Mark Stein Discusses His Alarming New Book, “America Alone: The End of the World as We Know It” (video) and Obama’s Take on Falling GDP: “I Measure Progress by a Different Pulse” (video) and Obama’s Economy Is a Failure… Per Economist Schiff, America’s in Worse Shape Than Greece (video) and Obama’s Looming Broken Promise: Value Added Tax Is Back “On The Table” (video) and Is Great Depression II Around the Corner? Senate Dems to Push Unemployment Extension, Ignore PAYGO Rules, Rack Up More Debt, Repeat Errors of FDR
Asian Conservatives: Greece required to privatize health care to get bailout
Gateway Pundit: Finally Ohio Libs Focus on Jobs… Lebron’s Job With the Cavaliers (Video) and More Good News… Unemployment Expected to Surge Above 10% Again and Obama Slashes $42 Million From NYC Anti-Terror Funding… But Will Bail Out Greece and Unreal. Obama Lectures Spanish Prime Minister Zapatero on Reining in Debt and EU Unveils Unprecedented $1 Trillion Loan Package and After GDP Drops 2.5% in One Quarter… Obama Says “We’re Heading in Right Direction” (Video) and Redistributor Obama to Wall Street: “I Do Think at Certain Point You’ve Made Enough Money” (Video) and Leading Economist Peter Schiff: US in Worse Shape Than in 2008; We Are In As Bad or Worse Shape Than Greece (Video) and Confirmed: Economists Agree Stimulus Was Largely a Bust and Breaking: Dems Hid Damning Health Care Report From Public Until a Month After Vote! and Obama Drops VAT Tax Bomb and Pelosi: We Are 1 Pillar Away From Completing Obama’s Blueprint For America and Unreal… Obama’s Organizing for America Website Running Astroturfed ‘Letter to the Editor’ Campaign Complete With Instructional Video and Dems Blow Stimulus Cash– Run Out of Money For Obama’s Jobs Bill and Disaster Continues… Obama Economy Loses More Jobs and and Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA): “The Problem With Socialism Is You Run Out of Other People’s Money” (Video) and Dems Lash Out at GOP For Taking Spendulus Cash Despite Fact That Dem Districts Were Gifted Twice As Much Stimulus As GOP Districts and and Confirmed: Roosevelt Ended the Great Depression… When He Died
GayPatriot: Are Tea Party haters aware of worldwide debt crisis?
Diary of a Mad Conservative: Obama To Wall Street: “I Do Think At A Certain Point You’ve Made Enough Money”
Financial Times: ECB warns on sovereign debt crisis
NewsBusters: Chris Matthews: Greece’s Woes the Fault of Right-wing Governance; But Socialists Actually Control the Govt.
Conservative Pup: More on “You’ve Made Enough Money”
Nice Deb: Video: Obama *Really* Doesn’t Understand How Free Market Capitalism Works and Video: Paul Ryan Discusses The Stimulus and Rising Taxes On Hannity
Legal Insurrection: He Who Controls The Health System, Controls “Information”
Hot Air: GDP growth drops to 3.2% in first quarter of 2010
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