Free Republic

A recent poll says 51 percent of Germans now believe Germany would be better off without the euro. The Emnid poll for the Bild am Sonntag mass circulation weekly showed 51pc of Germans believed Europe's top economy would be better outside the 17-country eurozone. Twenty-nine percent said it would be worse off, AFP reports. The survey also showed that 71pc of Germans wanted Greece to leave the euro if it did not live up to its austerity promises. Economy Minister Philipp Roesler told Bild am Sonntag there were "considerable doubts whether Greece is living up to its reform promises." Implications...

San Bernardino, California – On the front door of the San Bernardino city hall is a sign that reads: “Out of Order.” Broke city, broken door: There’s a certain pleasing symmetry in the fact that the San Bernardino city council meets behind a door that, like the city government itself, does not work and is in need of replacement. On this particular evening in late July, the council has met to make public what everybody already knows: Intellectually bankrupt, morally bankrupt — the city is under criminal investigation for sundry financial shenanigans — San Bernardino is above all old-fashioned bankrupt...

Everyone knows Europe faces the potential for Greek financial collapse, with serious ramifications for the euro zone and its financial institutions. Less discussed is the Greek impact on another key European institution, the less restrictive border regime instituted under the Schengen Treaty, and the danger of failure of constitutional democracy in an EU member state. Perhaps the smartest thing modern Greece ever did was join the European Community (now the European Union) in 1981. The Greeks’ dumbest move was to join the euro twenty years later. The EU gave their Third World economy a First World lifestyle. This miracle was...

ATHENS, Greece – Triple jumper Voula Papachristou was expelled from Greece's Olympic team Wednesday for her comments on Twitter mocking African immigrants and expressing support for a far-right party. The Hellenic Olympic Committee said Wednesday that Papachristou had been excluded from the team "for statements contrary to the values and ideas of the Olympic movement." Papachristou is in Athens and has not responded to calls from The Associated Press. The committee said she was to travel to London shortly before the track events start. Papachristou's Twitter account ((at)papaxristoutj) contains several retweets and postings of YouTube videos promoting the views of...

Triple jumper Voula Papachristou was expelled from Greece's Olympic team Wednesday for her comments on Twitter mocking African immigrants and expressing support for a far-right party. The Hellenic Olympic Committee said Wednesday that Papachristou is "placed outside the Olympic team for statements contrary to the values and ideas of the Olympic movement.

Alexander the Great is portrayed as a legendary conqueror and military leader in Greek-influenced Western history books but his legacy looks very different from a Persian perspective. Any visitor to the spectacular ruins of Persepolis - the site of the ceremonial capital of the ancient Persian Achaemenid empire, will be told three facts: it was built by Darius the Great, embellished by his son Xerxes, and destroyed by that man, Alexander. ~~~snip~~~ He razed Persepolis to the ground following a night of drunken excess at the goading of a Greek courtesan, ostensibly in revenge for the burning of the Acropolis...

Longtime Israeli military Ally Turkey sanctions a run by avowed terrorist group Hamas at a three year long blockade of the Gaza shore maintained by its non NATO Ally Israel. A bunch of goons and stooges embark upon a provocation of Israeli Defense Forces in the clear belief that the United States under Obama has clearly signaled that the time has come to end the Zionist entity. President Obama who has to this date only allowed an erstatz Birth Certificate to be released verifying his status as a "natural born citizen" is conveniently off on Holiday with his pal Louis...

On May 3, Moscow criticized Turkey’s plans to explore natural gas deposits around the divided island of Cyprus, under the protection of Turkish naval and air power. Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry’s chief spokesman, Aleksandr Lukashevich, cautioned Turkey that its actions “may exacerbate the situation on the territory of Cyprus” (Rossiskaya Gazeta, May 4). The Greek Cypriots and Israel are coordinating their plans to develop offshore gas deposits and export the product in partnerships with international companies. One export route under consideration would run via mainland Greece into Europe. The Republic of Cyprus, Greece and, recently, Israel are all involved in...

After weeks of the geopolitical equivalent of friendly fire casualties, Ankara has finally allowed U.S. aid to move to Northern Iraq. Two weeks earlier, and after lengthy delays, it permitted the U.S. Air Force to use Turkish airspace for strikes against Iraq. This saved about $1.6 billion in aid to Ankara, but it was too little, too late. At the critical juncture in a run-up to the war, the Turkish government failed to pass the authorization for the use of the Turkish air bases and for transit of the crucially necessary U.S. 4th Infantry Division through the Turkish territory. Despite...

The European Union on Tuesday rejected Israel's request that it categorize Hizbullah as a terrorist organization. Cypriot Foreign Minister Gujarat Cossack-Marcolis, who presently holds the EU's rotating presidency, said "there is no consensus on the issue, because Hizbullah also has an active political arm." She added that the matter is open for reconsideration if "tangible evidence" that Hizbullah is involved in terrorist activity can be brought. .....

Retirement In Germany May Rise To Age 69 While Greece Is At Age 58 A senior German retailer pointed out to me that the current economic environment in Europe is unfair and that retirement age for workers should be higher – not lower as the situation exists for workers in Greece. He believes that a productive country is a healthy country. He is pessimistic for the near term outlook of retail trade in Europe, saying that any bailout will lead to higher taxation and depress sales. In 2007 Germany raised its retirement age from 65 to 67 and the German...

Germany has clearly taken the decision to expel Greece from the euro, whatever the new Greek government does. Vice-Chancellor Philipp Roesler says the "horror" of Greek exit has worn off. The markets will hardly miss a beat when the day comes. Greece has already failed to complete 210 targets imposed by the EU-IMF Troika. "Unfortunately it is likely that Greece will not be able to fulfil the requirements. And I say quite clearly, if Greece fails to comply, there should be no more payments to Greece. I have to say I am more than sceptical," he said. Before we all...

The German news magazine Spiegel reports that the IMF has told the EU it will provide no additional funds for Greece. The report has sparked fresh fears that Greece could fall into bankruptcy by the autumn. A report by a German news magazine on Sunday sparked fresh concerns about the possibility of Greece being forced into insolvency. In an article published on its website, Spiegel cites unnamed senior European Union sources in Brussels who told the news magazine that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had signaled it would not contribute to any further aid for Greece.

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) — The International Monetary Fund is set to stop aid payments to Greece, raising the odds that the nation will become insolvent as early as September, according to a German press report Sunday citing unnamed European Union officials. The “Troika” of international groups overseeing Greece’s aid — the European Commission, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank (ECB) — are due to send inspectors to Athens this week to gauge progress toward the requirements of its assistance program. However, Der Spiegel reported that it’s “already clear” to the Troika that the Greek government won’t be...

Cyprus is preparing to assist with the evacuation of as many as 200,000 European Union and third- country nationals in Syria if violence in the country escalates, the government said. “We have plans to enable the evacuation not only from Syria but also other countries in the area,” Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou-Markoulli told reporters in Nicosia today. People fleeing the upheaval will reach Cyprus “by plane or by boat and will remain in Cyprus 48 hours before they are transported to their country”. The plan is similar to the one applied in 2006, when 65,000 citizens from the EU and...

Greek island wants to join Austria Posted By Joshua KeatingWednesday, July 18, 2012 - 12:11 PM Share German MPs provoked outrage in Greece in 2010 with a somewhat tongue-in-cheek suggestion that the coutnry shoudl consider selling off some of its islands to settle its accounts. But it appears that some residents of the island of Ikaria is looking to leave the country unilaterally:

Italian premier Mario Monti is mulling emergency action to take direct control of Sicily’s regional government before the island spirals into a full-blown financial crisis, fearing contagion to the rest of Italy. A woman begging in the street in Sicily. Regional councillor Andrea Vecchio has warned the island has run out of money Mr Monti held an “urgent” meeting with the country’s president Giorgio Napolitano on Wednesday to grapple with the constitutional issue after it emerged that the region faces a deficit of up to €7bn (£5.49bn) this year and is in danger of default without sweeping cuts. Sicily’s regional...

California is our Greece, the most fiscally irresponsible of U.S. states – and now it has another fiscal fiasco on its hands. A recent report about the state-sponsored “bullet train to nowhere” calculates $68 billion as the total sum to be spent on a high-speed rail line to run between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Passengers are supposed to be able to travel up to 220 miles per hour in two-and-a-half hours. A plane flight is less than an hour – not counting drives to and from the airports. Voters approved the rail project by a 53-47% margin, in a...

Dogs played a special role in ancient Greek society and mythology; Cerberus guarded the gates of Hades, the goddess Artemis used dogs in her hunt, and Greek citizens employed dogs for hunting and protection. To the ancient Greeks, picking your new pup was an important decision, just as it is today. But, according to Stanford University researcher Adrienne Mayor, writing for Wonders & Marvels, the process could have been just a little bit different. Like moderns, the ancients looked for an adventurous and friendly nature, but one test for selecting the pick of the litter seems rather heartless today. Let...

After all that I analyzed above, and hereby invoking the last article of the Constitution I declare the following: a) Faced with the choice not to eat for three (3) months or to pay the tax you’re demanding I’ll choose not to pay a single penny. b) Faced with the choice to commit suicide or become a murderer, I’ll choose to murder you. c) If you have not made an error with this Income Tax Assessment Notice that you’ve sent me, then you’re a bunch of cheats and scoundrels and thieves.