The sad thing is that, despite the prudent moves by the UK (to not join the Euro) and, more likely, Ireland (to cut their deficit), it seems that both will pay to bail out Greece.

For the PIGS (Portugal, Italy/Ireland, Greece and Spain), their fast growing economy, subsidy and being members of the Euro created a bigger artificial economic high and bigger potential crash. While Ireland, Portugal and Italy have weathered the storm, Spain isn’t doing great, and Greece has had the same kind of financial mismanagement as the UK, only without the ability to devalue currency, as they don’t control it, but some Germans in Frankfurt do.

Sadly the response from the EU to this big problem is more centralisation to make sure it doesn’t happen again – less centralisation would have meant that this issue wouldn’t exist. Then again, the unelected European Commissioners and most of those elected to take part in the pig-trough talking-shop that is the EU parliament, wouldn’t vote for less power – but they’d happily vote for Europe-wide taxation without representation (I don’t think electing MEPs to a parliament that can only amend or veto legislation, with the appointed (mostly on the basis of getting rid of awkward political figures, or giving jobs to non-entities that won’t get elected) Commisson being the executive and primary legislative).

Greece isn’t a political time bomb – it’s just a sick person from the disease of the EU – there’s a far bigger bomb going to go off at some point.

Greece has been a parliamentary state for 53 of the last 60 years and has a per capita income similar to that of the United States in 1970. Its current public sector deficit is (in comparison to its domestic product) not much larger than our own. It has a ratio of public debt to domestic product of 1.2; our is 0.8. A few years ago, our ratio was 0.4. Irresponsibility? Washington is ruled by Barack Obama, Peter Orszag, Timothy Geithner, Barney Frank, Rahm Emmanuel &c. Greece is not a banana republic; it has a senile political economy very much like our own; what separates us from Greece is about three or four years.

You get your jollies trafficking in Mad Max scenarios; are you preparing to live in one?