Austerity was supposed to bring down debt levels in Greece, as well as Portugal and Ireland, to sustainable levels but instead they've increased in all three countries. Greece's debt level is especially troubling: it rose to 159.1% of gross domestic product, according to Eurostat, the EU's statistical agency. That makes the IMF's goal of reducing Athens' debt to 120% of GDP by 2020 seem out of reach, analysts say. It is almost like Herakles and the hydra: lop one problem off and more grow in its place.
"There is now broad agreement among eurozone donors and the IMF that Greece will not be able to squeeze more revenue out of an economy that is in its fourth year of recession,"
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Meanwhile, beyond the statistics, ordinary Greeks are suffering badly. Even the IMF, an organization that's not known for its human warmth, acknowledged that much. "Much of the criticism from abroad overlooks the fact that Greece has done a lot, at a great cost to the population," the IMF's chief of mission Poul Thomsen recently told the Greek daily Kathimerini. He was speaking about the wage and pension cuts and tax hikes that have angered Greeks so much that some have even protested violently outside parliament.
Most Greeks don't protest and riot; instead, they have been waiting anxiously for the sacrifices to bear some fruit so the country can have some hope again. As the unemployment rate has doubled, to nearly 19%, and companies are increasingly becoming so broke that they can't pay their workers, many Greeks are frustrated with Europeans saying they're just not trying hard enough.
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Originally Posted by CptSternn
