This is by far the best analysis of the debt crisis facing the Greek people that I have seen on the web. By understanding what is currently going on in Greece, one can understand the global impact that neoliberal policies are having on the living standard of workers in many parts of the world including the US. Capitalism is following its inevitable trajectory toward a goal of a few rich creditors amidst oceans of poor debtors. This retired professor of sociology obviously knows of what he writes having been an adviser to Greek Prime Minister Papandreou for three years (1981-84).
Petras starts with a history of debt accumulation under Papandreou, and continues with an examination of how the loans were actually used to enrich Greek elites instead of investments that could have resulted in paying off the loans, an examination of the various components of the Syriza party and the trend toward elite control, and the stakes that European capitalist classes have that inform their insistence that ordinary Greeks and the Greek state must sacrifice more to pay off these illegitimate debts.
It seems that European elites and their American Empire associates are greatly at risk if the Greeks decided to "bite the bullet" and default on the debts. (I just had a nasty thought that I will share with you: this would seem to be a golden opportunity for Russian-Chinese elites to exact some revenge against the Empire's aggressive actions toward both countries by offering assistance to Greece so that they could opt out of the European Union and survive.)
The ruling financial and business elites in Europe and the US prospered through the crises and depression, by imposing cuts in social budgets and wages and salaries. To concede failure in Greece, would reverberate throughout North America and Europe, calling into question their economic policies, ideology and the legitimacy of the ruling powers. The reason that all the EU regimes back the EU insistence that Greece must continue to abide by an obviously perverse and regressive ‘austerity’ policy and impose reactionary “structural reforms” is because these very same rulers have sacrificed the living standards of their own labor force during the economic crises....
