Hi there, it's Barnie back again... you remember, Barnie from the E.U.

Remember some days ago I wrote about the E.U. Interior Trade Commissioner "Barnier" who along with the E.U. Finance Commissioner suggested that the American Rating Agencies must be "smashed" ?
Remember good old Barnie ? Well he's back again with another of his fabulous ideas:
This time these Rating Agencies must be "forbidden" to publish their ratings about any E.U. Country which is in difficulties. The Country may of course be permitted to get into financial difficulties by spending year after year after year more, much more money than they can raise through taxation of their poor citizens. That's Okay. But don't anybody dare to talk about it. Don't anybody dare to say: You keep amassing these deficits and subsequent debts, and your credit rating will suffer. Oh No, the "drunken sailor syndrome" must be hidden to make sure that international lenders don't know about it and keep on lending money to these spendthrifts who under no circumstances will be able to repay such a loan.
Barnie mellows his demand somewhat by suggesting that this reporting prohibition "could be temporary"...
Barnier suggests something which under any circumstance will be extremely difficult, if not impossible:
The European Union should, so he says, forbid an American private company to follow its legal undertaking.
Good Old Barnie, he must be the one with the Dunce Cap standing in the corner, has given us, once again, the benefit of his thoughtful mind.

Now a few observations about the circumstances in Greece.

If what I read in todays paper is true I can only shake my head and wonder how the leadership of a country can be so utterly stupid:
In order to increase its Income, the Greek Government has increased the income taxes of a family of five, earning a total of 25,000 Euros per annum from the earlier 390 Euros to a staggering 2,970 Euros. An increase of, get this, 661 %....
At the same time, the Income Taxes, payable by a married couple earning 100,000 Euros per annum, will increase from 31.600 to 32,420 Euros. An increase of a measly 2.6%.
How does anybody justify this? No wonder that in Athens the masses are on the streets again.
But something is curious about this whole "let's demonstrate and smash store windows and burn cars, even if we don't know whose store window it is or to whom the car belongs...... makes no difference, let's just riot...
and who is moving against each other more than anyone else?  The Communist lead Labour Unions are battling agains the Anarchist Chaots.... Yes, you read this correctly: The Anarchists are fighting the Communists...

Only in Athens, you say ?
Bertstravels.