One positive thing about the crisis in Europe is that, unlike many earlier occasions on which neoliberalism has been imposed by financial coercion, this one is calling forth a serious response from the left. Hopefully, we'll see a victory for Syriza in tomorrow's elections in Greece. In the meantime, check out their economic program. Good stuff.
UPDATE: Well, that was disappointing. The Guardian says it was moral victory; perhaps we'll get a Greek perspective here in the next week.
In the meantime, the question has been raised, what do I specifically like about this program? Well, let's be honest, beside the tone of it -- which is wonderful -- it's not everything one might hope for. But it's a small party in a small country, putting together its program in a short time under extreme conditions. That said, I think the focus on tax reform, and on taxing the rich -- including the Church -- is important. Unlike Spain or Italy or Ireland, Greece does have a genuine fiscal problem. Resolving that in a progressive way is important. And if it does turn out that GReece leaves the Euro -- I won't guess how likely that is -- capital flight is going to be a huge problem. Putting in place the institutions now to capture the wealth of that fraction of the Greek elite that abandons ship strikes me as very worthwhile.
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