The head of the IMF, Christine Lagarde, has finally worked out that austerity measures might be bad for national economies. Inappropriate cuts could "strangle" growth she told the goons at the World Economic Forum yesterday. The US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner agreed and added, "There is a risk that every disappointment in growth will be met with an austerity that will feed the decline." No kidding Sherlock. European leaders thought this over, scratched their heads and then demanded that Greece hand over control of its finances to them. Under this proposal a budget commissioner would have veto powers over Greek budgetary measures if they were not in line with targets set by international lenders. Greece would also have to legally commit itself to servicing its debt, before spending any money in any other way. In other words if the Greeks won't beat themselves to death the rest of Europe will do it for them. Not surprisingly the Greek government, having seen the end of its democracy for the foreseeable future, has rejected this invitation to hand over its sovereignty and become a mere colonial possession of the EU.
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