What happened to the cradle of Western Civilization? The new austerity measures designed to deal with the debt crisis in Greece is being protested with a national strike, riots, and localized anarchy, which have already resulted in three deaths:
Greece’s 24-hour nationwide general strike brought much of the country to a standstill, closing government offices and halting flights, trains and ferries.
At the same time, tens of thousands of protesters marched through Athens in the largest and most violent protests since the country's budget crisis began last fall. Angry youths rampaged through the center of Athens, torching several businesses and vehicles and smashing shop windows. Protesters and police clashed in front of parliament and fought running street battles around the city.
Witnesses said hooded protesters smashed the front window of Marfin Bank in central Athens and hurled a Molotov cocktail inside. The three victims died from asphyxiation from smoke inhalation, the Athens coroner’s office said. Four others were seriously injured there, fire department officials said.
A police spokesman said eight fires in Athens office buildings and bank buildings had been brought under control.
Later Wednesday, black smoke billowed from fires on one of Athens's main shopping streets. Glass shards and smoldering garbage littered the sidewalks.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou condemned the violence. “Everyone has the right to protest,” he said in a statement to parliament. “But no one has the right to violence and especially violence that leads to the death of our compatriots.”
Wednesday’s protests were sparked by Greece’s weekend agreement to adopt austerity measures in exchange for a €110 billion ($143 billion) bailout loan from the European Union and the IMF. Unions challenged Greece’s parliament, which could consider the measures as soon as Thursday, to vote them down.
via Europe Crisis Deepens As Chaos Grips Greece – WSJ.com.
So Germany and other economically stable countries agree to bail out Greece. But the general public refuses to accept the terms, which require fiscal discipline from the government. The unions are demanding that the parliament refuse to accept the conditions! So what do they think would happen then?
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