The EuroZone and Greece

First of all, the Greeks did it to themselves.

Second of all, the European creditors made it worse--much worse.

How many times did we see something like "stocks soar on Greek debt solution"?  Everyone knew nothing was solved.  It was just a band aid.  Still, the bankers had no problem sending tax payer money to a country that was broke so they could make money off of it. They were enablers and they they dared to make the last bailout sound like an ultimatum.

They ordered Greece to cut pensions and raise taxes. Greece decided to hold a referemdum because they, like the rest of the European Union, is a democracy.

The creditors, living in allegedly democratic countries, got mad.

Greece got mad too and voted NO.

Now the EuroZone might fall apart.  The European Union has been trending away from democracy and more toward autocracy and no one seems too happy.  If Greece is this big of a problem, then imagine what is going to happen when Spain or Italy start to go under.

The European Union might be better off without Greece and the Greeks might be better off without the European Union.  The arrogance shown by Brussels in presuming that the EU is unbreakable, infallable and all-knowing is its undoing.  Some humility and accountablility is in order for both Brussels and Athens.

In the meantime, get the drachmas ready.  Greece has five days to come up with a plan.

Let's see if "stocks soar" on Monday.

Westward ho!

Iowa landscape

Or Mid-West at any rate!

Michelle and I went north and west to places we have not been before.  We ventured northwest past familiar places like Greensboro, NC and into the "Lizard Tail" part of Virginia. We went up and down a bunch of mountains in West Virginia before reaching something I had seen before--the Ohio River! There was no Monongahela or Allegheny to see but the Ohio is still the Ohio.  We went into Kasich's state and arched across past Cincinasty, flipping off the Bengals stadium along the way, towards Indianapolis.  After spending the night in Greensburg, Indiana, we continued west, across southern Illinois and reached the mighty Mississippi River.  We crossed into the Western US and descended into Iowa.

Iowa was a great place!  We made it into a place called Newton.  We ate at a place called Taco John's and noted how the Iowa Hawkeyes college football team has uniforms that look a lot like the Steelers.  We went further west until Des Moines and decided it was time to come back east. 

We moved with a speed that would have brought a smile to a Mongol in the 1200s, and got as far as Rockville, Indiana where got to watch the back end of a domestic dispute in a parking lot.  After that, we ran alongside the Ohio river, jumping back and forth between Ohio and Kentucky.  We even saw the birthplace of US Grant, who was born on the southern most part of Ohio and within sight of what would be the Confederacy....ironic....

Back into West Virginia we went and went into a pizza place where there were a lot of people wearing "Pitt" stuff.  Everyone agreed  that we were happy about the return of the "script" . We made it back home just in time to feed Michelle's cats, who, I might add, had plenty of food.

They like the canned stuff more.

Next time we go to the Pacific!

Alexander the Great--Greek or Macedonian?

I have heard this question asked in some form or another for a long time.  My answer has always been that Macedonians were Greeks, just a little out of the Athens-Sparta-Thebes mainstream.  Today's Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia calls itself a Slavic nation and claims Alexander as its national hero.  I don't blame them, but back we go to the original question--Were Alexander's Macedonians Greek or something else?

I was reading Arrian,s Campaigns of Alexander detailing Alexander's conquest of Persia and invasion of India.  In it I find an interesting passage, a letter from Alexander to the King of Persia at the time, Darius: (emphasis is mine)
       "Your ancestors came to Macedonia and the rest of Greece and did us great harm, though you had suffered no harm before then." (Arrian, 2.14.4)

It sounds as if the Macedonians considered themselves Greek and, of course, most of Aleander's army was Greek.  Sparta's attack in 333 BC on Antipater back in Greek while Alexander was crossing into India seems to fit the pattern of Ancient Greek history where the reigning hegemon is attacked when preoccudied somewhere else.

Something to think about as another thunderstorm rolls in!

Happy Memorial Day!

Thank a vet!!!!

V-E Day

In 1945, the Soviet Union and United States were on the same side of  an alliance that defeated Nazi Germany.  Then there was the Cold War, ending in a Soviet collapse in 1991.  There was a an uneasy relationship for a while but since the Crimea operation last year, US-Russian relations have fallen down hill.  It is almost like its 1965 all over again.

It is a shame but this might be the new norm for a while.  Continued hostility toward Russia and meddling in Ukraine will only push Moscow and Beijing together to the detriment of American interests.

Snubbing the Russians on V-E Day will not make anything easier.  Better to celebrate the great victory of 1945 and try to use this as a way to find common ground.

Chronia Polla!

HAPPY ORTHODOX EASTER!

Don't go too crazy with the discounted Easter candy and red eggs!

PizzaFest!

Food of the gods!

Back on April 2, 2007, I gave Michelle her ring in front of Heinz Field. To celebrate in 2015, we ate a ton of pizza!  No better way to celebrate, well, anything, other than with pizza!

I felt vaguely sick and sleepy afterwards but I would do it again!

Peperoni and sausage pizza cannot be beat!