Paul Mason on Golden Dawn

It would be a good thing if the leaders meeting in Brussels today were to take reports like this one seriously.

20 replies on “Paul Mason on Golden Dawn”

Why are golden dawn growing? Because in a country undergoing economic collapse with very high unemployment the suggestion that there should be a temporary halt on all unskilled inward migration isn’t even allowed in orthodox politics. As long as the capitalist option of breaking Greece as a state rather than allow private/state investors suffer a loss and simply solve the problem of labour by letting Greeks emigrate cause no problem any future labour requirements can be met via immigration then you are going to have parties saying the unthinkable and regretfully doing the unconscionable.

That’s a shocking report from the bbc. It seems that Greece is falling apart and the latest news that Germany has agreed to release the next tranch of money, to be held in escrow…obviously to ensure the Greeks implement the austerity cuts, can only exacerbate an already dangerous situation. Angela may get her cuts-but at what cost?

Well in fairness things are much more civilized on the Greek Islands.

However underneath the veneer of the Balkan skin a deep darkness can lurk. Greece has a complex history with communism.

The Bosnian war was not that long ago. The strength of will among the Greek people should not be underestimated.

German paratroops who conquered Crete in WW2 had a terrible time trying to control the island, such was the ferocity of the Cretan partisans.

However the events in Greece are a good example of how far a democracy can be pushed, before it breaks down and the biggest thug on the street takes over.

Looking forward I don’t see any leadership coming from Brussels. If things get really out of hand I would imagine the US and EU will conspire for the Greek Military to take temporary control.

As for Ireland, I could see civil unrest breaking out, we have 13 ~ 14 billion to go, and then we have to start paying it all back.

This recession / depression has a long way to go yet.

What is the possibility that the German or EZ governments would be influenced in any way by the Greek ‘Golden Dawn’ thugs?
They have already replaced one Greek government with a technocratic government. The next step would be, as @Sporthog points out, a deal with the very powerful penniless Greek military.

The report that will scare the EZ leaders more is the the Bertlesmann report
http://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/cps/rde/xbcr/SID-E2CD3D00-A595DEB9/bst_engl/xcms_bst_dms_36654__2.pdf

It is probably designed to do just that.

The body language between Merkel and Hollande (RTE News) does not bode well for anything from this summit or for Europe in general.

Meanwhile, Ireland, is still concentrating on its best strategy, ‘lying on the ground, begging’ (@Seafoid).
Ireland should use ‘the June piece of paper’ to save itself some money. Simply announce that it wishes to protect its sovereign creditors and in view of the uncertainty regarding the June ‘agreement’, it will suspend all further payments to unguaranteed bank bondholders.

Xenophobic violence , anti-leftist violence, cops bent by establishment, lumpen nationalism in defense of ‘the way things were’ – couldn’t happen here. Oh no.

Rough as it is, these are mererly predictibable outcomes of the failure of politicos to stand up to and place some manners on the dodgy nature of the financial system.

Not too late yet …

The discussion on Newsnight was interesting. The simplistic statement from the Greek analyst:

“The EU have imposed this austerity on Greece”

is worthy of the addition: “discuss: (45 marks)”

That is very serious.

The Greek economist on Newsnight said this is what happens when you have 25% unemployment and middle class Greek people left, right and centre are losing their property.

I think that is the key. when the middle class is dragged into the melt-down they don’t take it lying down. Long held personal ambition, expectations of comfort and aspirations to wealth turn to other action when thwarted.

The middle classes do not react the same as those who have been struggling all their lives and who do not expect comfort but rather fear poverty. For them poverty is a possibility they have always known they might have to bear.

@zhou
Re your most recent coment – Us in say 2 years time?

Re Greeks and taxes etc..
A recent visit to Crete by a very regular visitor there says that the view on the ground is that the Germans are totally to blame for their plight,they still refuse to pay their taxes and as for big-fat-Greek weddings?3,000 atendees,total donations – in cash of course – 98,000 euro to the happy couple.
(The bride had already spent 18,000 euro on her trouseau,paid for by the m-in-l as is the tradition – still behind the Quinn’s splash on wedding cake etc though!)

@vinny

I daresay there’s a few Greeks and a few of any other named nation that don’t pay their taxes. What I find quite funny though is non-elected EU politicians and IMF wallahs – both on tax free salaries – telling them they should!!

@PR Guy

@vinny

I daresay there’s a few Greeks and a few of any other named nation that don’t pay their taxes. What I find quite funny though is non-elected EU politicians and IMF wallahs – both on tax free salaries – telling them they should!!

It is a beauty all right.

Wealthy unelected public official on large tax free salary announces other people need to make painful sacrifices to allow his badly conceived project to succeed.

It is understandable that Lorenzo Bini-Smaghi is in hiding in the US, sooner or later the agents of neoliberalism in the EU are going to be introduced to some pain of their own.

Do people understand that current public policy is fueling the resurgence of groups like this?

No mainstream politicians are addressing the very real issues facing the poor and middle class. Mortgage cramdowns – off the table. Helicopter drops of money to the people – off the table. Increased gov’t spending to stimpulate the economy – off the table. Maintaining or increasing the social safety net – off the table.

Instead “serious” politicians discuss raising taxes on the poor and middle class, reducing benefits, slashing spending, shoveling yet more billions into banks.

So if the “serious” politicians aren’t going to do it for people, people will move on to the “not-so-serious” ones. The fact that those politicians are dangerous is likely not a fact that escapes people, but a fact that does escape “serious” politicians is that the current leadership is *also* dangerous.

The current economic policies in Greece and in Ireland and across Europe (even Germany) are harming the middle class and the poor. They are dangerous policies.

And they’re going to change one way or the other. That’s not a question, the question is will they change for the better or for the worse. Golden Dawn would be the latter; someone should present the option of the former.

I see the Golden Dawn as a Greek national solidarity movement and from some I’ve spoken too so do many Greeks. Their established politicians are viewed as being responsible for the countries mess.

> Patrick Says:
>November 10th, 2012 at 2:27 pm

>I see the Golden Dawn as a Greek national solidarity movement and from >some I’ve spoken too so do many Greeks. Their established politicians are >viewed as being responsible for the countries mess.

I think you meant say “I see the Golden Dawn as a Greek national socialist movement”
Of course national socialists are not socialists at all but fascists. This is exactly what Golden Dawn are, without exaggeration. If you consider them to be sympathetic or acceptable, I’d be very concerned about your own political orientation.

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