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Bananas

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Posts posted by Bananas

  1. I was all for giving Lucas another chance, but if he keeps this up he'll have to go.  This is where Savvidis really needs to have a talk with him behind closed doors.  Tudor can only do so much.

     

    If I was Savvidis I would tell Lucas, I expect you while you are at the club to give it 100%.  If a fair offer comes in you can leave, but until then you need to respect the club, fans and your contract.  If you are doing this to cut a cheaper deal with Depor, I will sell you on purpose to any club except them, even if it's for less money.

  2. Right now, I'd love to see all their *************.  I'll cool down soon ... I think.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Moderator: I know you don't mean it literally but it in these times we shouldn't make statements that can be misconstrued as threats.

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  3. I don't think so Akritis, but I'm only speculating.  I can only go by what I'm thinking, and right now, I feel betrayed by Tsipras.  If I was a voter in Greece, I would have voted for Syriza, as an alternative to the duds of yesteryear of course.  But right now, I wouldn't vote for him.  After today, he's done nothing different to what ND or PASOK would have done.

     

    Having said that, who the hell knows.  Maybe in 2, 3 or 5 years from now we might turn around and say that having the EU control the Greek economy helped fix it.  Or Greece may be worse off.  I really don't know.  I'm pretty sure the IMF and EU don't know since their 1st bail out turned into a 2nd, and now a 3rd.  Will there be a 4th ?

     

    F*** PASOK.  F*** Papandreou.  F*** the Junta.  F*** ND.  F*** Karamanlides.  F*** Tsipras.  F*** them all.

     

    Can you tell I'm a little angry ? :)

     

    P.S.  F*** Schauble and Merkel too.

  4. Rise of the extremists will occur

    KKE or XA

     

    I can see XA getting a larger share of the vote, if things don't improve.  It's too early to say, but if in 2 or 3 years from now, Greece is now 500 billion in debt and on the verge of requiring a 4th bail out, then yes, XA could very well become a contender.

     

    Syriza had a chance to do something historic.  All they had to do was have the guts to issue IOU's on the day the ECB cut off liquidity.  But, it's a gamble.  I get it.  It could have failed and the consequences could have been dire.  But if you're not willing to roll the dice, don't play the game and sign the document put in front of you a few weeks back.  You F***wits.

     

    Schauble and Merkel must be laughing at our incompetence.

  5. Bravo Tsipras.  I never had you on a pedastal, but neither did I have you in the special club of Greek politicians I hold in contempt.  However today, you have completed the requirement for joining the special club.  No balls.  No brains.  To be fair, balls without brains doesn't get you far, but if you're going to try scare the EU, at least have an ace up your sleeve.  Stooge.  Going to be interesting how Syriza do at the next election.

     

    Welcome to Greece, Germania Minor, jewel of the Aegean.

  6. I want to know what is worth $50 billion Euro in Greece.  We don't have enough yogurt and Feta Cheese for that.

     

    Only private property.  Maybe the Greek government can forcibly take ownership of everything, and everyone can pay rent to the new landlord of Germany. :)

  7. I agree with France and Italy.  They are supporting Greece because they know they are next so they want to set a precedent when it comes time for their bailout.

     

    I can't say that the "Euro" is a failed project.  I mean its fairly young and their are a lot of bumps when you create a new currency with different countries.  Right now I would rather be in the Euro then on the outside.  You don't really see any weak countries in Europe saying we don't want to be in the Euro.

     

    The other problem with Greece is that nobody ever comes together.  Always fighting internally with everything.  Its ingrained in the culture.  During a time of crisis, we are still fighting like cats and dogs (We as in the elected government officials).  Too much hard ideology and nobody wants to compromise for the better of the country.  The government right now is in a mess and will have to be reshuffled or new elections must be held. Enough already. 

     

    Agree with you on France and Italy.  They are worried that in time, they will be forced to cede control of their economies entirely.

     

    As for the Euro project, I consider it a failure.  It doesn't have any way for a country to get out of trouble, other than through devaluation.  This has always been it's major weakness.  It can't work without a central authority, which countries were never willing to sign on to.  In simple terms, its too inflexible.

     

    Greece is better off with out it.  Leaving the Euro will mean incredibly harsh times for the first 2 years or so.  Maybe in 5 years from now, we'll be where we are now economically, but from there onwards, especially 10+ years from now, Greece will be infinitely better off with its own currency.

  8. By Paul Krugman,

     

    Anger at the demands on Greece, gathered on social media under the hashtag #thisisacoup is gaining traction.

     

    Nobel laureate economist, Paul Krugman, has lambasted the summit developments in his column at the New York Times, and thrown his support behind #thisisacoup.

     

    Suppose you consider Tsipras an incompetent twerp. Suppose you dearly want to see Syriza out of power. Suppose, even, that you welcome the prospect of pushing those annoying Greeks out of the euro.

     

    Even if all of that is true, this Eurogroup list of demands is madness. The trending hashtag ThisIsACoup is exactly right. This goes beyond harsh into pure vindictiveness, complete destruction of national sovereignty, and no hope of relief. It is, presumably, meant to be an offer Greece can?t accept; but even so, it?s a grotesque betrayal of everything the European project was supposed to stand for.

  9. Well it's been an interesting pre season. Some observations ... not necessarily correct.

    The change to 3-5-2 seemed radical to begin with, but kind of makes sense. I can only guess that Tudor doesn't believe we have the strength to play with 2 CB's, so he wants a 3rd CB to compensate for that. Scoring all those own goals was kind of comical though. If he wants this to be our main system for the majority of the year, we'll definitely need to sign 1 more CB for depth, unless he plans on using Skondras there full time.

    Speaking of Skondras, where is he ? Has he been playing ? I wonder if Tudor doesn't want to use him on the flank ie. he doesn't rate his attacking abilities as good enough. Skondras was one of our better players last season, so it would be a shame if he couldn't find a role in this new system.

    I like Tudor's emphasis on set pieces. This is professional football 101.

    Pelkas has bee a revelation and it's great to see another kid from the academy might be a permanent part of the team!

    Who the hell is Mystakidis lol. Again, great to see.

    Charisis seems like he might be the real deal. Good to see.

    Rats ? Does he have a role in this system ?

    Tudor seems to be favouring wingers over wing backs, although it's too early to say really. It's only pre season. If that is the case though, we are sorely lacking in wingers. Only Mak is an out and out extrem.

    With the return of Pelkas and Lucas, it's like we've signed 2 players. Hope they both keep up the good work. I really hope Lucas stays and can produce the sort of form he had in Spain in the second half of the season.

    Glykos. Hope he bounces back from the injury. We need a solid backup keeper.

  10. I'm still undecided on how to answer this question, because I don't know and no one does, to what lengths the Germans will go to make Greece suffer to get the result they want.  The ECB pulling the pin on liquidity was unexpected and changed everything.  It was the nuclear option.  Other potential EU candidates must be jumping up with joy at joining such a nice club.

  11. it looks like we should have been more brazen & bold 5+ years ago...we held more cards. 

     

    i don't blame varoufaki. he made proposals - from ecb bonds to finance growth in s. europe to debt write-off. all were rejected. 

     

    the eurogroup are turning the screws because they know we don't want to exit. the paradox of the referendum's results & the peoples' desire to remain in the ez have hamstrung everything.

     

    dumb move and we called it prior to the dhmopsifisma.

     

    if schauble wins and greece gets booted, will greece still carry out painful reforms? they have no other choice.

     

    Great post.  Especially the comment about the schizophrenic position of the greek population ie. they want the Euro but without austerity.  One comes with the other, it's that simple.

     

    I think the meeting today was just the entree.  The real meeting is coming where the political heads as opposed to the finance ministers will do the talking.  I still think the German position of accepting a Grexit is a ruse.  But, tomorrow or this week I could be proven wrong.  Schauble proposing a 5 year temporary exit and the "acquisition" of 50 billion in assets (maybe they can liquidate all the periptora in Greece) was out of left field.  That took me by surprise.  I'd accept his offer on two conditions.  First, it's permanent as opposed to 5 years, and second, we send him 50 billion "F*** you" messages instead of giving him 50 billion in Greek assets.

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  12. Well there are Nobel winning economists who think a Grexit is better in the long run. So it's not necessarily a crap idea. It's at least worthy of consideration ...

    The problem with all this is that agreece should have gotten prepared for a EZ exit. Have the money printed. Have your plans organised. And if all else fails you can get the ball rolling quickly. But, this is Greece we're talking about.

  13. So basically going back to the dpx can't happen because logistically we can't print the money and get the job done quickly enough. What is to stop Greece from getting more presses ? Heck, we could even buy some German ones. Their machinery is reliable after all ;)

    But, the point is moot anyhow, since the greater majority of Greeks still want to use the Euro. The sad fact of the matter is that the only way Greece or any other country can leave the EZ, is with Germany's permission. At the end of the day, the EU is not a Germanic hegemon but it's damn close. They have by far the most influence and say, and the Euro being valued where it is, is a delight to the German economy. If they ever returned to the Deutschmark, it would quickly rise in value and their export oriented economy would face difficulties.

    This is the main reason why Germany doesn't want a Grexit. The monies owed to them by Greece is a pittance compared to the competitive advantage they get by having a devalued Euro, relative to a hypothetical Deutschmark.

    If hypothetically Greece left against Germany's will, and returned to the dpx, Germany and through their influence other EZ members, would do everything in their power to make sure the Greek economy didn't succeed. To be fair, we would probably ruin it of our own accord, but you can be sure they would make every effort to also make it fail. A resurgence of the Greek economy post Grexit, would be the ultimate German nightmare, as it would give other countries the courage to leave also. So, trying to make a new dpx succeed is difficult enough, and unknown, coupled with the fact that Germany would be their to bury you at every opportunity, doesn't sound appetising.

    There is also the political cost. EZ members wouldn't exactly be keen to support Greece with any issues with our neighbours. We would be quite isolated.

    There are only two ways that Greece will ever get its own currency, and both scenarios are years away. The first is Greece keeps spiralling downhill, and the EU get to to the point that Greece has to leave the EZ. In this case, it would be with Germany's permission, and it would be coordinated and infinitely less chaotic. The second way is other nations find themselves in trouble and Germany isn't just dealing with an insolvement Greece, but a Spain or an Italy as well. But again, this is a long way away if ever.

    Note that when I say Germany's permission, that doesn't mean the German government. They will never ever willingly let Greece go. What I mean by Germany's permission is that the German people are so fed up with the situation that no politician will be willing to wear the political cost of keeping Greece in the EZ.

  14. The EU as an economic entity is run essentially by people who still think of economics in terms of the gold standard.  To them, it feels right. But, there's a reason why the gold standard was dropped.  It was inflexible, and so is the Euro.

     

    Once a country gets into trouble (regardless of how they got into trouble and who is at fault), the only solution is deflation.  And, as the world has gotten to see over the last 5 years or so in Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece, deflation is a nasty beast that feeds on itself.  It feels right to balance the budget by say slashing government employees or wages, but the flow on creates more deflation.  Greece is a bad economic manager but the EU is probably just as bad.  The problem with the EU is that the Germans have the most influence, and they have such a phobia of inflation that it's ridiculous.

     

    Seriously, they are sitting there wondering why Greece hasn't recovered after 5 years of their "remedies".  Fools.

     

    As heavy as the pain will be for Greece, having your own currency is the only solution.

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  15. Considering the ridiculous transfer fees in the EPL for players that are really pretty average, Kace should be worth at least 4+ million.  Sometimes you can just tell when a player "has it", and he's one of those players.  He's not going to suddenly go backwards and we'll look back and think it was just a purple patch.  Agree with Serraios, around $2M feels low considering his potential.

  16. Forcing Greece to accept the same terms would just go to show how bad an institution the EU is.  It would also be the end (and rightly so) for Tsipras and Syriza.  Having said that, we still don't know what game Tsipras is playing.  If it comes to it, will he back down to the EU or will he tell them where to stick it ?  I'm expecting a "retreat and declare victory" moment from both the EU and Tsipras.

  17. Tsipras is saying it all depends on the EU, but the EU is saying it all depends on Greece.  It's quite possible the EU aren't concerned about the referendum result, and it's business as usual as far as they are concerned.  My guess is the fact that 75% of Greeks still want to be in the EZ gives the EU the impression that Tsipras won't use the nuclear option ie. issuing "temporary" IOU's, but who can tell ?

     

    The EU doesn't want to yield too much because that would set a bad precedent, and Tsipras can't yield too much either.  There will just be some tweaking at the edges and Greece's long term situation will still remain unresolved.  I can see Golden Dawn doing well in the next election.

  18. Varoufakis was poised to go back to work today so I find it quite interesting he resigned. Is it just me or do I smell some blackmail coming from the troika to get rid of Varoufakis in order to reach an agreement? It is clear as day that they did not like Varoufakis for who knows what reason (pretty sure it's because he stood for everything they hate). In any case, the negotiation position for Greece has greatly been elevated and public opinion, not only in Greece but in the rest of the EU, has shifted in favor of no more austerity. If  the troika wants to get rid of Greece, so be it. It will suck for us, but the Germans can kiss their dream of a unified EU with a single currency goodbye!.

    It will be interesting to see how the Spanish elections later this year turn out. If they get a party that is anti-austerity as well, the EU will have a real problem on their hands. Greece on it's own will never bring down the EU, not even close, but it could be a catalyst. Throw in an angry and defiant Spain into the mix, and the EU will be seriously worried.

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  19. Varoufakis runs away at the key moment in true Greek style.

     

    Yeah .... nah.

     

    When Varoufakis was asked by Tsipras to be the Fin Min he stated :-

     

    - he has no desire or wish to become a career politician.

     

    - he doesn't agree 100% with Syriza's political views but felt he must help the nation to the best of his abilities.

     

    - his ideal scenario with Greece's debt would be that Greece defaults within the EZ.

     

    - his ideal scenario with the EU is that it gets a massive wakeup call, because the way they are running things (austerity, austerity, austerity) will lead to the eventual disintegration of the EU.

     

    As far as I can tell, Varoufakis achieved all of his goals.

     

    At the very least he's irritated the hell of out the Germans and EU and for that alone he deserves a bronze statue!  :D

     

    I wouldn't be surprised if he had the idea to resign at the same time as the announcement of the referendum.  I wouldn't put it past him.

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