I was away for most of yesterday but I was glad to see in retrospect that the majority of observers have confirmed my suspicions that the 'Greek deal' is a non-deal which simply puts back the inevitable day of reckoning. Richard North offers, via The WaPo, a summary of views from a variety of economic swots all of whom come to the conclusion that this particular European Zeppelin will not fly, indeed, the hissing sound you can hear is that of escaping gas!
However, Richard North, as is his frequent habit, asks the really pertinent question - what is it that we have missed?
Now, if this bailout is so awful that even the BBC can see it, and we know that the "colleagues" include amongst their number some extremely bright cookies, the fatal weaknesses of the deal must be obvious to them as well. So who are they trying to fool?
Therein lies the mystery. One should always beware of the obvious, and with so many commentators patting themselves on the back for their perspicacity – including me – there is the danger that we are missing something.
He is entirely right. The 'collegues', as he calls them may be wrong-headed about their European project but they are not stupid:
That "something" is the next step. The "colleagues" really are not that stupid, and if it is so transparent to us all that the deal cannot work, they surely must have something in reserve … a "plan B".
An alternative, of course, is that there really is nothing left in the locker - that this is the last, despairing fling to stave off the inevitable. But, with their Houdini-like skills for escaping from impossible situations, it is hard to believe that. It is all very well, therefore, for these clever people pontificating about how bad the bailout deal is, and how certain it is to fail. Even the dimmest of us knows that by now. Thus, the question stands: what have we missed?
Is that a fat lady I can hear singing? Nah! Just the wails of anguish emanating from Greece.
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