4 ms·

Brazil did this in the 90's but with a twist: they created a transition currency, the URV (Real unit of value), and the people believed when they introduced (1:

Brazil did this in the 90's but with a twist: they created a transition currency, the URV (Real unit of value), and the people believed when they introduced (1:1 to URV) new currency (R$ or Real). http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2010/10/04/130329523/how-fake-money-saved-brazil http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2010/10/04/130329523/how-f...

kokey 11y ago
I think Greece should introduce a currency like that and pay pensions and government employees in it. It should have a floating exchange rate to the Euro. They should call it the 'faux'
- jacobolus 11y ago
  Please don’t bring this kind of comment here. It’s pretty much impossible for a flippant joke about shredding a large group of people’s pensions to result in productive discussion.
  - davidw 11y ago
    Pretty much anything about politics degrades rapidly, which is why politics is 'off topic' in the guidelines.
  - meric 11y ago
    It's a serious idea, presented in a sarcastic way. Defaulting on all Euro debts, exiting Europe, bankrupting the banks, issuing a new currency is a viable solution. Yes it's a horrible hang over to live through but it means removing the horrendous debt burden for the next 50 years. See how Greece is having trouble with every IMF payment in the past few months? If the EU has its way Greece will continue paying chunks of cash like those for decades to come. Better to burn everything down and start over. They might even pick up some Russian and Chinese financial support along the way.
    - deleted 11y ago
      [deleted]
    - pessimizer 11y ago
      If you pegged it to the Euro, it'd be pointless.
      - meric 11y ago
        It should have a floating exchange rate to the Euro. Not pegged, but floating.
        pessimizer 11y ago
        If "floating exchange rate to the Euro" = "floating exchange rate full stop" "floating to", "floating with", "floating against" is a minefield.
    - jacquesm 11y ago
      I highly doubt that's all that would be required. If you assume a level of cronyism/corruption akin to say .ch, .de or .se then it might work. But if Greece otherwise stays the way it is then this would merely be a stay of execution.
      - Symmetry 11y ago
        It's certainly no panacea. Greece has been living beyond it's means and a certain reduction in living standards is going to have to happen. What a bout of inflation allows is resetting everyone's salaries, pensions, etc to a lower level without inducing extra unemployment which requires an even larger correction. There is always the danger that Greece will say "to Hell with it," print money to fund their expenditures, and get hyperinflation. But that's a level of mismanagement even worse than Greece has shown in the past.
    - agapos 11y ago
      "Defaulting on all Euro debts, exiting Europe, bankrupting the banks, issuing a new currency is a viable solution. Yes it's a horrible hang over to live through but it means removing the horrendous debt burden for the next 50 years." If they do not tend the root of the problems, they might as well do this every 50 years. Things like 14th month payments (while it was a thing) or tax evasions that could reach industrial levels on their own will make things hard, even without the IMF or EU interfering.
  - tiatia 11y ago
    They will have to shred this sooner or later. Greeks go super early in retirement and have huge pay outs. This was not a problem in the past, when their currency devaluated every year XX%. After a decade or two your payments were worth next to nothing. But with the Euro this changed and this causes problems. Germans have to work to 69 now and get less than the average Greek retiree.

kokey 11y ago

I think Greece should introduce a currency like that and pay pensions and government employees in it. It should have a floating exchange rate to the Euro. They should call it the 'faux'

jacobolus 11y ago
Please don’t bring this kind of comment here. It’s pretty much impossible for a flippant joke about shredding a large group of people’s pensions to result in productive discussion.
- davidw 11y ago
  Pretty much anything about politics degrades rapidly, which is why politics is 'off topic' in the guidelines.
- meric 11y ago
  It's a serious idea, presented in a sarcastic way. Defaulting on all Euro debts, exiting Europe, bankrupting the banks, issuing a new currency is a viable solution. Yes it's a horrible hang over to live through but it means removing the horrendous debt burden for the next 50 years. See how Greece is having trouble with every IMF payment in the past few months? If the EU has its way Greece will continue paying chunks of cash like those for decades to come. Better to burn everything down and start over. They might even pick up some Russian and Chinese financial support along the way.
  - deleted 11y ago
    [deleted]
  - pessimizer 11y ago
    If you pegged it to the Euro, it'd be pointless.
    - meric 11y ago
      It should have a floating exchange rate to the Euro. Not pegged, but floating.
      - pessimizer 11y ago
        If "floating exchange rate to the Euro" = "floating exchange rate full stop" "floating to", "floating with", "floating against" is a minefield.
  - jacquesm 11y ago
    I highly doubt that's all that would be required. If you assume a level of cronyism/corruption akin to say .ch, .de or .se then it might work. But if Greece otherwise stays the way it is then this would merely be a stay of execution.
    - Symmetry 11y ago
      It's certainly no panacea. Greece has been living beyond it's means and a certain reduction in living standards is going to have to happen. What a bout of inflation allows is resetting everyone's salaries, pensions, etc to a lower level without inducing extra unemployment which requires an even larger correction. There is always the danger that Greece will say "to Hell with it," print money to fund their expenditures, and get hyperinflation. But that's a level of mismanagement even worse than Greece has shown in the past.
  - agapos 11y ago
    "Defaulting on all Euro debts, exiting Europe, bankrupting the banks, issuing a new currency is a viable solution. Yes it's a horrible hang over to live through but it means removing the horrendous debt burden for the next 50 years." If they do not tend the root of the problems, they might as well do this every 50 years. Things like 14th month payments (while it was a thing) or tax evasions that could reach industrial levels on their own will make things hard, even without the IMF or EU interfering.
- tiatia 11y ago
  They will have to shred this sooner or later. Greeks go super early in retirement and have huge pay outs. This was not a problem in the past, when their currency devaluated every year XX%. After a decade or two your payments were worth next to nothing. But with the Euro this changed and this causes problems. Germans have to work to 69 now and get less than the average Greek retiree.