That the Treaty of Versailles, with its failure to reach an
agreement on reparation and Article 231, (the War-Guilt Clause), would play a leading
role in starting the second world war, only a few people considered possible. One of the few was Economist John Maynard
Keyes, who thought the ordinances set down in the Versailles Treaty too harsh. Keyes considered that treaties overlooking the
food, fuel, and finance would exacerbate the situation.1
Keyes was right. For many Germans, to this day, the Treaty of Versailles broke
their necks while humiliating and stripping them of their pride.
This year, 2015, that same wind blows, not in Germany but
Greece; not because of war, but because of the economic collapse of Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac, in the United States, in 2008; which led to the Great
Recession. The corrosive nature of that
recession has put Greece in the begging role and subjects them to the hands of
non-compromising politicians, whose main concerns are securing their own
country’s safety, instead of the welfare of their sister nation, Greece.2
Soup lines, homeless sleeping on streets, beggars pushing
carts, begging, while the initial instigators of their presence crisis discuss
how to repay a debt that began with the negligence to institute proper
controls, just as the Treaty of Versailles neglected to devise a method that
would ensure that the German people survive with their self-esteem intact.
The Greek debt must be paid, but does this mean humiliating the
Greek working class who has no millions stashed away in bank accounts in
Luxembourg or Switzerland or on the Cayman Islands.
The question should not be whether or not the Greeks pay
their debt, but whether they will be allowed to pay it back with dignity and
room to breathe. History has shown us
repeatedly that when the feet of those who have much hold down the feet of
those who have little rebellion comes. Will history repeat itself, once again?
Will we ever learn?
Shalom,
Pat Garcia
1. The Treaty of Versailles and its Consequences. Europe Between the Wars Dr. Julian Casanova, University of Notre Dame, 16 December 2001. James J. Atkinson ↩︎
2. The Political Consequences of the Great Recession in Europe. EuroCrisis in the Press ↩︎
I've been dismayed at how little we learn from the past. We repeat the same things over and over. People panic unnecessarily in the same way repeatedly. Watching what's happening with Greece has been sad.
ReplyDeleteHi Shannon,
DeleteOh how I can identify and agree with what you're saying. It seems as if we repeat the same mistakes over and over.
Thank you so much for dropping by and sharing your thoughts.
Shalom,
Patricia
Excellent piece Patricia thank you ...
ReplyDeleteHi Susan,
DeleteThank you so much for dropping by.
Shalom,
Patricia
I agree with Shannon, Patricia. There IS a way to compromise; I have heard leaders of some nations speak of it. One is to forgive the Greek debt and to allow them to move forward responsibly. To lose Greece from the EU, relative to history and posterity, in my opinion, is unforgivable. When will they ever learn? Europeans have been playing Pacman for over 100 years -- well, hundreds more, actually. Thanks for addressing this crucial issue.
ReplyDeleteShalom
Hi Samantha,
DeleteYes, you're so right. There is a way to compromise but does Europe want to find a compromise or exercise its strong muscles. At the moment, it seems as if the European Union is determined to humiliate Greece to put a scare on the other countries that could fall into the same situation.
Thank you so much for dropping by my dear and sharing your thoughts.
Shalom,
Patriciqa
It's important to remember the Treaty of Versailles, and the bitterness it created, the fertile ground for dictatorship.
ReplyDeleteToday's economic system of exchange works with virtual assets and debts, needs debts to function at all, complex, interdependent and eingewickelt. Not just Greece, we all live a borrowed life on borrowed funds. If one country is made a scapegoat then the cracks of this weird global system where conglomerates rule, will show.
Hi Ashen,
DeleteAgreed the world economic system of exchange works with virtual assets and debts and that all of the countries are living on borrowed funds but the problem becomes detrimental when those countries that have developed to a certain degree of economical wealth begin to hoard the resources and exercise or imposed rights upon other countries at the exclusion of themselves. They have their piece of the pie and are unwilling to relinquish any of it or to adjust their own standards of living because they are only looking out for the welfare of their own country.
Thank you so much for dropping by and sharing your thoughts.
Shalom,
Patricia