Intellpuke: The following commentary was written for Spiegel Online by Christian Rickens and was posted on the German's magazine's edition for Monday, February 20, 2012. Greece is bankrupt and will need a 100 percent debt cut to get back on its feet. The bailout package about to be agreed by the euro finance ministers will help Greece's creditors more than the country itself. E.U. leaders should channel the aid into rebuilding the economy rather than rewarding financial speculators for their high-risk deals. First things first: this commentary isn't directed against Greece. It's got nothing to do with all the talk in Germany about Greek citizens not paying their taxes, Greek civil servants who don't work or Greek politicians who break their promises. This commentary has a clear and simple message: The second Greek bailout of €130 billion ($172 billion) that euro zone finance ministers are expected to agree on Monday afternoon should not be paid out. Sure, Greece will need help from the other European Union member states for years, possibly even decades, and Germany shouldn't refuse that help. Europe will likely end up pumping far more money into Greece in the coming years than the fresh aid now being discussed in Brussels. The mistake isn't the size, but the construction of the bailout package. It isn't geared to the requirements of the people of Greece but to the needs of the international financial markets, meaning the banks. |