We do not forget!

Merkler?

IS THE GERMAN CHANCELLOR BECOMING CRAZY AGAIN?

Abstract: Thereafter some inconvenient background for the G8 at Camp David. Who does that Merkler take herself for?
Hitler started his career in 1920 as a pawn of the antijewish plutocrat Henry Ford, and Dr H. Schacht, himself a pawn of JP Morgan. By turning the Peoples of Europe into the serfs of banksters, and of........

The Germans are threatening, but ...

The privilege that Greece has against  Germany is the Berlin report on occupation loan and the war reparations of World War II in Greece
Within the euro zone with Greece is in a state of bankruptcy and complete dependence on borrowing by the Union, Germany has managed to close this front, through the Memorandum 1 and 2. 

Especially in the new Memorandum, which has been voted by the Greek Parliament with 199 votes, compensation for clearance of loans from Europe is excluded. Nevertheless, the German foreign ministry....... 

Reply to the German Foreign Office!

The German Foreign Ministry in a statement yesterday said that for Germany there is no longer war reparations issue. 

The Germans recognize their responsibilities to the ravages of World War II but in the context of cooperation between the two countries within NATO and the European Union for decades, there is no war reparations issue.....

Greece and Germany at war

Germany was committed to the London agreement in 1953 to compensate Greece when  the two Germanys unify. The London Agreement included the requirement, when the two Germanys be unified, to sign the peace treaty necessarily and immediately pay.They were unified in 1989, and were immediately obliged to honor the written commitments and to sign peace with our country.

THE EUROPEAN LEAGUE OF GENEVA

Honorable members of the European Parliament
Honorabler members of the EU Commission

The steering Committee of the ELG, mindful of the duty of solidarity by and equality of all members of the European Union, observes for some time now with dismay the hostile attitude of the officials of the German Government and of the German press and public, against the Greek Nation and the people of Greece in its present difficult situation. It observes that although Greece with a public debt of $532 bln is last in the list of countries with excessive public debt, far after UK ($8,980 bln), Germany ($4,712 bln),Ireland ($2,131 bln) Austria ($754 bln), Denmark ($559 bln), yet it is facing an unprescedented attack against the national dignity of its 

Germany Was Biggest Debt Transgressor of 20th Century

Think Greece's current economic malaise is the worst ever experienced in Europe? Think again. Germany, economic historian Albrecht Ritschl argues in a SPIEGEL ONLINE interview, has been the worst debtor nation of the past century. He warns the country should take a more chaste approach in the euro crisis or it could face renewed demands for World War II reparations.

Albrecht Ritschl: "If Germany paid war compensations, would go bankrupt immediately”

After the Second World War, Germany left behind a Europe essentially damaged. Furthermore, because of frivolous options, the same over the past century,  has gone bankrupt three times. If it were not for the U.S., which helped financially after the war, and countries such as Greece, which never claimed war damages, now my country would not have the economic power it has. I've said it before and am not afraid to repeat to you, Karipidis: Germany is the biggest sinner in the 20th century and perhaps of modern economic history. more...

Instead of another loan, why not get the war reparations from Germany?

It is as simple as it sounds. By now, everybody knows that Germany -as the defeated one- owes Greece (Hellas) war reparations from world war II . By now, every loss payee got reparation except Greece which -by the way- suffered the most, according to the Nazi minister of Economics and President of Reichsbank Walter Funk who stated: "Greece suffered the pain of war and its consequences like -maybe- no other european country". more...

Jacques Delpla: Germany owes Greece €575bn from WWII

Talking to Les Echos the French econonmist Jacques Delpla claims that Germany still owes €575bn as a result of World War. He calls on Greece to respect its engagements with Europe by being serious about reforms and repayment of the debt. And he calls on Germany to keep its engagements with Europe by continuing to support Greece. more...

German War Reparation to Greece!

According to the Paris Peace Treaties (Paris 1947) Germany owes Greece War Reparations estimated (with the interests) about one (1) trillion euros! The issue came up the past few months along with the so called bankruptcy and became a popular demand (the payment) after the unacceptable articles, shows and commercials in Germany attacking Greeks showing them as the corrupted, lazy Balkanian living out of the "German tax payer" money. more...

It is time to pay Greece now!

Took them a while, but Germany has finally finished paying off reparations for that nasty bit of business almost a century ago.Germany was forced to pay the reparations at the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 as compensation to the war-ravaged nations of Belgium and France and to pay the Allies some of the costs of waging what was then the bloodiest conflict in history, leaving nearly ten million soldiers dead.The initial sum agreed upon for war damages in 1919 was 226 billion Reichsmarks (about 750 billion US dollars), a sum later reduced to 132 billion (about 400 billion US), £22 billion (roughly 37.5 billion US dollars) at the time. more...

German economy under the IMF

How the Greek tiger learnt to roar again...

...and Germany shot itself in the foot. A futuristic fable with a moral for those who want Athens out of the euro.

04 Apr 2012
Stephen King, Group Chief Economist

At the end of 2015 the Greek Government could look back with some satisfaction at its recent achievements. The outside world, once so despairing of Athens, now regarded Greece as the "Hellenic tiger". Its stock market, which had fallen by 90 per cent from its 2007 peak through to the early months of 2013, was roaring back. Interest rates, once in the financial stratosphere, were now much lower than in Italy or Spain. And while growth wasn't quite in the double-digit range, Greece was giving China and India a run for their money.

Having severed its links with Europe in response to what had become known as "the calamity," Greece's future now seemed assured, reflecting its growing connections with the world's more dynamic economies. Even as its former European partners walked away, Greece had found new sources of financial support, thanks to the deep pockets of the Russians – who were planning to build a giant gas terminal in Thessalonika at the end of a new pipeline – and the Chinese.

Even during the calamity, China had shown its enthusiasm for all things Greek: the operation of Piraeus's container terminals had been transferred to China's COSCO Pacific Ltd and the port had established itself as the hub for Chinese goods going to southeast Europe, the Levant and North Africa (much to Turkey's irritation). Meanwhile, Greece had cornered the rapidly growing Chinese market for olive oil, undercutting its southern European rivals thanks to a much more competitive exchange rate.

Athens' decision to leave the eurozone – and the EU – had been made with a heavy heart. The Greek people wanted to be part of Europe but had increasingly felt abandoned in an economic wilderness. Admittedly, some of their politicians had been economical with the truth and their wealthiest citizens had found ways of escaping the taxman's clutches but, after three years of devastation, with income down 25 per cent from the peak, it was time to move on.

At first the introduction of the "new drachma" looked like a disaster: those Greeks sufficiently fleet of financial foot removed all their money from the Greek banking system in an attempt to prevent their euros being swapped into devalued drachmas. In response, the new currency halved in value against the euro. The Greek economy shrank by a further 8 per cent as the banking crisis went from bad to worse. Yet with the introduction of capital and exchange controls – mimicking an approach seen in the fast-growing emerging world – Greece could soon insulate itself from the ups and downs of international capital markets. Within a handful of months, domestic economic collapse had been halted.

Inflation threatened, rapidly rising import prices brought big domestic wage demands, but in the absence of support from its former European partners the Greek Government persuaded its people that austerity and wage restraint were necessary for a vital one-off improvement in competitiveness. Within months there were signs of an export recovery. The economy was slowly being rebalanced.

Politicians had repeatedly warned Greece about the costs of leaving the eurozone and the EU, yet it seemed as if it had emerged smelling of roses.

But that was only the beginning. After the exchange rate collapse, and the final debt swap, Greece had rapidly established itself as an extraordinarily attractive destination for foreign investors looking to get a foothold in a dynamic part of the world, particularly after reforms stemming from the Arab Spring. As the investment came in, opposition from domestic Greek unions collapsed: admittedly, workplace practices had to adjust but no one could afford to ignore the sudden and welcome reduction in unemployment thanks to an influx of foreign money.

Europe looked upon this rebirth with a mixture of envy and alarm – politicians had repeatedly warned Greece about the costs of leaving the eurozone and the EU, yet it seemed as if it had emerged smelling of roses.

After Greece's success, all hell had broken loose in the eurozone's financial markets. Germany was still demanding austerity from the likes of Spain and Italy, even as their economies faced a fourth year of contraction. As investors priced in the possibility of a Spanish or Italian departure from the euro, borrowing costs for the southern European nations rose dramatically. The contrast between Greek success and Spanish and Italian failure was obvious, so much so that the Spanish and Italians began to demand their own version of the Greek escape.

The Germans, meanwhile, began to wonder what had gone so badly wrong. They thought that austerity would fix all ills. They believed the fiscally recalcitrant could be brought to heel. The Bundesbank had vehemently opposed any programmes offering support to the weaker members of the euro, fearing fiscal backsliding. Yet, with the prospect of the euro disintegrating, the risk for Germany was obvious – a huge increase in the value of its currency on the foreign exchanges sufficient to wipe out vast swathes of German industry.

Angela Merkel, now the grande dame of European politics, recognised the danger. Forcing Greece out of the euro had, it turned out, been a mistake. The costs to Greece had been outweighed by the benefits. Parts of the eurozone, however, were still mired in recession. Ms Merkel faced a choice: push for a fiscal union that would lock in for ever the transfer payments that, in Greece's case, she had so strenuously opposed; or head for a euro exit, with all that entailed for German industry.

Germany's gamble had failed. In the attempt to punish Greece, it had ended up with an impossible choice: creating a fiscal union or huge currency upheaval. Berlin had taken aim at Greece but shot itself in the foot.

This fantasy is hardly an orthodox view. There is no particular reason why the events described will happen (although the bit about COSCO taking control of container ports in Piraeus is true). But the idea that Greece can leave and that the rest of the eurozone will then live happily ever after – a view that is quickly becoming the conventional wisdom – is surely wrong. Departure might eventually be an answer to Greece's difficulties but it only asks questions of everybody else.

Stephen King originally wrote this article for The Times newspaper, published on 4 April 2012.


source:http://www.hsbcnet.com/gbm/global-insights/insights/2012/stephen-king-how-greek-tiger-learnt-to-roar-again.html?WT.ac=CIBM_gbm_ban_hom_ban00_On

The Antikythera Mechanism

Antikythera mechanism replicaby Hublot

Hublot has worked closely with the Antikythera project, and has created a miniaturized version of the mechanism that fits on a wristwatch. The mechanism is to be displayed at the 2012 Basel World Expo. Here’s a short documentary on the project.

Tale of a clockwork computer

Andrew Robinson¹

BOOK REVIEWED-Decoding the Heavens: Solving the Mystery of the World's First Computer

by Jo Marchant

William Heinemann/Da Capo Press: 2008/2009. 330 pp/ 288 pp. £12.99/$25

It is appropriate that Arthur C. Clarke recommended this book before his death in March 2008.

Greece and Germany at war

Germany has not signed the peace treaty

Germany was committed to the London agreement in 1953 to compensate Greece when  the two Germanys unify. The London Agreement included the requirement, when the two Germanys be unified, to sign the peace treaty necessarily and immediately pay.They were unified in 1989, and were immediately obliged to honor the written commitments and to sign peace with our country.
Germany refused to sign the Peace Treaty with Greece. This means that from legal and formal terms, Germany is continuing the wara gainst Greece.

Unfortunately this war, the Greeks have experienced and are experiencing is confirming the dictum of Komnenos Pyromaglou in the Greek Parliament in 1959 who stated:

"Germany when a war ends, at first shows a regret, but soon finds a way to continue the war by other means."

Der sündige Grieche rechnet sich

Die Kolumne 20. Mai 2011

Thomas Fricke

Kurios, aber wahr: Wohl keiner verdient durch die Krise so viel Geld wie die Bundesregierung. Es ist Zeit, mit diesem Gewinn von rund 10 Mrd. Euro endlich die Zweifler zu beruhigen.

Für Theatralik sind die Griechen zuständig. Die Deutschen können das allerdings auch – wenn es darum geht zu wehklagen, wie viel der deutsche Steuerzahler noch für Griechenland zahlen muss. Und Abgeordnete im Bundestagsrücksitz meckern, dass sie nicht mehr zustimmen könnten, weil unsere große Hilfsbereitschaft jetzt die Schmerzgrenze erreiche.

Das muss so eine Art Phantomschmerz sein. Bis dato hat ja nur der Grieche mehr Steuern zu zahlen, auf Tabak, Wein und überhaupt jeden Mehrwert sind es 23 Prozent, auf Druck der deutschen Kanzlerin. Bei uns liegt der Mehrwertsteuersatz dagegen unverändert bei 19 Prozent. Und in der Koalition wird wieder von Steuersenkungen geredet – nicht von Erhöhung.

Und das ist kein Wunder. Bei genauerem Hinsehen haben die Deutschen ja nach wie vor nichts bezahlt. Im Gegenteil: Wir kriegen sogar was, und die Krisengewinne werden größer. Vielleicht wäre es fürs allgemeine deutsche Bauchgefühl hilfreich, wenn der Finanzminister seinen Griechengewinn da einfach mal ans Volk ausschüttet, sagen wir, an jeden „Bild“-Leser einzeln. Und die FDP.

Gefühlte deutsche Armut

Kleine Erinnerung: Die Griechen haben 2010 via Hilfspaket 110 Mrd. Euro an Krediten zugesagt bekommen, weil vor lauter verselbstständigter Marktpanik keiner mehr griechische Anleihen kauft. Davon tragen die Deutschen nach üblicher Gewichtung gut 22 Mrd. Euro. Und auch das ist nicht geschenkt. Auf den Kredit muss der gebeutelte Grieche Zinsen zahlen, nach Logik der ökonomischen SM-Szene sogar besonders hohe. Was die Lage für das Land de facto nur noch schlimmer macht.

Nur für den deutschen Kreditgeber nicht, der, Gewinn damit macht. Die KfW hat im Auftrag der Regierung in den ersten zwölf Monaten 8,4 Mrd. Euro Kredite an Griechenland verkauft. Zu einem flexiblen Zins, der über fünf Prozent liegt, damit ist aktuell die Rendite gut zwei Prozentpunkte höher als auf deutsche Staatsanleihen. Wunderbar: Das macht immerhin schon knapp 500 Mio. Euro Gewinn, die von der KfW nach Abzug üblicher Gebühren an den Bund überwiesen werden.

Peanuts für den Finanzminister Wolfgang Schäuble, klar. Nicht aber für den – sagen wir – „Bild“-Leser, der sich vor lauter Griechenland-Berichten ohnehin schon ganz arm fühlt. Bei zuletzt noch knapp 2,9 Millionen Auflage täglich und gerechter Aufteilung des Gewinns bekäme jeder Käufer des Informationsblatts 157 Euro.
Und das ist lange nicht alles. Der deutsche Finanzminister profitiert mit jedem Monat Griechenkrise zusätzlich davon, dass Anleger aus den Krisenländern in vermeintlich solide deutsche Staatsanleihen fliehen. Das drückt die Schuldenlast und erklärt, warum die deutschen Defizite so viel besser aussehen. Auch dieser Krisenbonus lässt sich – grob – schätzen. Im Aufschwung 1999/2000 lag der Langfristzins schnell bei 5,5 Prozent (siehe Grafik), im Boom 2006/07 immer noch bei 4,5 Prozent. Jetzt ist das Wachstum höher, was für stärkere Kreditnachfrage und höhere Zinsen spräche. Die Zinsen sind aber nicht einmal auf 3,5 Prozent gestiegen, in der Krise 2010 zeitweise sogar auf knapp über zwei Prozent gefallen – ein Geschenk des Himmels. Für uns.

Es spricht viel dafür, dass die Zinsen ohne Griechenkrise mindestens einen Prozentpunkt höher wären, wenn nicht so viel Geld aus den Krisenländern umgeschichtet würde. Schon ein solcher Aufschlag hätte den deutschen Finanzminister bei einer Anleiheemission von 350 Mrd. Euro (letzte Meldung 2009) entsprechende 3,5 Mrd. Euro Zinslast gekostet. Stattdessen gibt es einen Griechenbonus in gleicher Höhe, den der deutsche Steuerzahler nun spart.
Dazu kommt als Krisengewinn, dass auch Europas Zentralbank hohe Zinsen kassiert auf die Anleihen, die sie den Griechen abgekauft hat. Wenn das in der Größenordnung von 20 Mrd. Euro lag und die Zinsen zehn Punkte über dem Rest der Euro-Zone, macht das einen Gewinn von 2 Mrd. Euro, von dem die Deutschen gemäß ihrem Anteil am EZB-Kapital ein Viertel bekämen: also noch eine halbe Milliarde.

Dazu kann man dann noch rechnen, dass der Euro ohne Griechendrama sicher heute um einiges teurer wäre. Und der EZB-Leitzins ohne Südländerkrise mindestens einen Dreiviertelpunkt höher läge, wie Holger Schmieding, Chefvolkswirt der Berenberg Bank, schätzt. Das bremst Investitionen und kostet 0,3 Prozent Wirtschaftsleistung, von denen knapp die Hälfte in Form von Steuern und Abgaben einem gewissen Herrn Schäuble entgeht.

Nimmt man das alles zusammen, ergibt das locker 10 Mrd. Euro Griechenbonus für uns. Selbst wenn Schäuble davon nur die Hälfte rausrücken würde, bekäme jeder „Bild“-Leser mal eben 1700 Euro – direkt vom Griechen sozusagen. Was für eine wunderbare Vorstellung (FTD-Leser haben so etwas natürlich nicht nötig). Bei voller Ausschüttung könnte man sinnvollerweise gleich noch all jene zum Rechen- und Ökonomiekurs schicken, die gerade die Überlastung deutscher Steuerzahler herbeifantasieren. Und wenn das gut klappt, könnte man sogar noch die FDP dort anmelden. Daran ändert auch der Verweis nichts, dass die Deutschen künftig zum Kapital des Rettungsfonds ESM mehr Geld beitragen sollen. Das ist eine reine Vermögensübertragung – kein Geld, das futsch ist.

Jetzt werden Sie sagen, dass das alles kippt, wenn der Grieche Pleite macht. Mag sein. Nur machen wir trotzdem bisher Gewinn. Und die Erfahrung lehrt, dass ein Staat wie Deutschland über den Vorrang als Kreditgeber eher gut bei einer Insolvenz wegkommt.

Abgesehen davon hängt die Pleite davon ab, wie konsequent andere den Griechen helfen und Garantien gegen Pleitegerüchte geben, statt jede potenzielle Hilfe zu beweinen und zu konditionieren. Nur so ließe sich auch die absurd gewordene Marktpanik stoppen. Und die Griechen könnten wirtschaftlich wieder wachsen, statt an absurd hohen Strafzinsen zugrunde zu gehen. Da muss man in Sachen deutsche Hilfsbereitschaft nur noch ein bisschen nachhelfen: mit dem Griechenscheck vom Finanzminister.

source: http://wirtschaftswunder.ftd.de/2011/05/20/die-kolumne-der-sundige-grieche-rechnet-sich/