One way to look at this phenomenon of Greece’s government selling off the country is that this is the mechanism by which Greece financed its bloated bureaucracy and welfare state. Greek citizens are consuming their country bit by bit so they can retire early on state-provided pensions with all sorts of welfare benefits, too…all administered by an inefficient and overpaid bureaucracy. Becoming a member of the eurozone helped conceal the ill effects for many years and speed along the process. Here’s my advice for the Greeks, which applies equally well to all other members of the EU, plus America, plus Japan:
Time to get back to work, reduce one’s standard of living, and start saving.
Patrick Barron
