Our Brussels man on the spot called just a few minutes ago laughing like the dickens. There have been some non-believers out there who have opined that the Euros really don't want a Greek deal at all and are just going throught the motions to buy as much time as possible before the enevitable occurs. Perhaps they have been correct all along for what seems to have just occured is near-confirmation of that view.
Apparently, a high-ranking official in the Italian Government has announce that in his opinion the Euro zone could very easily do without Greece without causing much upset. Now that idea has been bandied about by all sorts of folks for a while now but when someone at this reported level (I have no confirmation as to the individual reported) joins the forum, something may well be up. More importantly, you might remember that the Troika had expressed the view that some form of oversight of Greek government activities might be a requirement for disbursement of funds along with an escrow account? The Dutch this evening upped the ante: not only would oversight be required but an actual Troika presence in the country for the purpose of managing Greece's financial affairs. I simply cannot see the Greeks agreeing to anything like that and if the Dutch (and anyone else) are serious about this as a condition, the deal is as dead as Marley's Ghost. They're still talking but I'm out of action for the rest of the day and most of the evening so I'm going to have to wait for tomorrow.
President's Day over here and most things are shut down except for Trouble and Strife who is attempting to visit every President's Day sale in a 60 mile radius. In 24 hours, I may look like Greece.
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