Jun
21
2011
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou’s government faces a confidence vote today, and the international finance community is watching. His government is likely to survive, although an overwhelming 80% of Greeks are opposed to his capitulation to foreign financial powers and ongoing austerity measures. The so-called Greek crisis has been sending markets into a tizzy on-and-off for months. In the last few days Greece has refused to submit to further austerity measures in order to receive its latest loan payment from the International Monetary Fund. The conditions of receiving the $17 billion installment include privatizing public assets. However, the austerity measures already imposed on Greece have been severe and Greeks are suffering. Economist Mark Weisbrot puts the Greek situation into perspective, by translating it into dollars and cents. In his recent article for the Guardian Wesibrot writes that Greece has already cut its deficit by the equivalent of the US slashing domestic spending, and raising taxes, to reduce our deficit by $800 billion. Weisbort reminds us that a couple moths ago the US budget battle over deficit spending ended with just $38 billion in spending cuts, an amount considered unacceptably high by many.
GUEST: Mark Weisbrot, Co-Director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research
Find out more at: www.cepr.net
