Merkel doesn't want Greece to leave the zone, probably out of the fear that others will follow the Greeks out, and the Greeks don't appear to be doing anything other than waiting for bailout money. So why not let the Jerries annex Greece? Headlines would be amsuing: 13:05 Germany declares war on Greece, demands immediate surrender 13:10 Greeks says will hold elections to figure out what to do, then will rehold elections if they voted for the wrong people, will hold new elections if the second elections were again, the wrong people were vote in, then may hold more elections depending on 3rd election 13:15 France surrenders 13:20 Switzerland declares neutrality, will accept all deposits from any and all nations, prefers Nazi gold deposits
Why don't they invade Switzerland instead?. That's where the gold is. Or England, even more gold there.
It may come to that in time. In depressed times people look for "hope and change". A good war will get economy going, unemployment addressed and world overpopilation fixed all at the same time. Iraq and Afganistan wars are little side shows nothing like a full blown Euro war to spice things up.
Largely disarmed, modern milquetoast W. European nations don't invade each other. There won't be another major war over there until they're invaded or the rising Islamaniac classes start one. And that won't be pretty. How in the world did this garbage make it to an "Economics" forum, anyway?
Frankly, I consider myself a pacifist , but when something like what is happening in Greece and Spain threatens economic armageddon on your homeland, whether it's depression or runaway inflation, I can see that war becomes something you consider. But there is no need for a war, you would just put Greece etc. under EU administration, so they actually do cut their budgets drastically and to deal with violent protests, the EU would provide the support of its army.
Yes, they do, it's called "BUNDESBANK", even more dangerous than the nazi cr@p of 60 years ago. +1 The III (european) war is happening right before your eyes.
This thread is proof, if more were needed now that the euro has turned into the disaster it was always heading for, that a currency union is, internally, a zero sum game, and always winds up being a transfer union from the winner out to all the losers. In any currency union, there can only be one ultimate winner. For a nation, an acceptable outcome, perhaps, although not without friction sometimes; but put multiple nations together, and suddenly, not so much. The losers resent losing; the winners resent having to send money to keep the losers from doing something impolitic. The EU becoming a currency union was, simply, a bridge too far.
How much would that army cost though? If the army costs 1 billion euros per day, then after a year you've already spent more money than greece was in debt.