Europe’s economies have been on a fiscal collision course for years, what with more people taking from the various socialist systems around the continent than paying into them. But Greece and Spain are probably the closest to the abyss, economists warn, and are liable to plunge off the cliff any day now.
In Athens, where elections on June 17 will decide the country’s place in the eurozone and, maybe, its future as a viable nation, the choices are not good. Voters and politicians must decide to accept painful, deep austerity measures aimed at reducing the country’s massive debt or dropping Europe’s shared currency. But so far the only thing certain about Greece is its paralysis and indecision, both characteristics of which could plunge it into chaos and calamity any day now.
