Der Spiegel Calls on Greece to Default Because the Bailout Was a Failure

Aug. 16, 2012 (EIRNS)–Germany’s leading news weekly, {Der
Spiegel} declared that the Greek bailout policy is a total
failure and that therefore, Greece should be allowed to default
and be free to have a fresh start.
{Der Spiegel}: “If it was ever the goal of Merkel and her
allies to rescue Greece from bankruptcy, then they have failed.
The only thing the drastic austerity measures have done is to
exacerbate the economic crisis and push Greece’s debts even
higher. Nevertheless, the creditors have insisted on moving
forward with their plan — even though it already became clear
long ago where it was heading… The end of this approach now
appears to have been reached. Neither euro-zone countries nor the
IMF can provide Greece with more aid without sacrificing their
own credibility. Given these circumstances, there is only one
option left: Greece must go broke.”
The magazine writes that European leaders continue to play
for time, but, “the new permanent bailout fund, the European
Stability Mechanism (ESM), which is supposed to cushion the
economic impacts of a Greek bankruptcy, has yet to be in force,”
implying that it may never.
While a Greek bankruptcy could cost Germany 80 billion
euros, writes Spiegel, “Lest this figure climb any higher, the
right thing to do would be to finally make that one fateful step.
No matter how unpredictable the consequences of a Greek
bankruptcy might be, it appears to offer the only chance to
resolve the messy situation. In this way, Greece would be free of
its debts and would have a chance to make a fresh start — either
as part of the euro zone or not. And the creditors in Berlin and
Brussels could finally free themselves from the spiral of threats
and rescue actions that they have gotten themselves into.”