Greek Update ... So Far, So Good for the "Austerity" Coalition and the Euro

Greek Conservatives Appear to have Edge has the updated story on the Greek bailout vote:

"Greece's conservative New Democracy party appears to have eked out a narrow lead in Sunday elections and may be able to form a pro-bailout coalition government with the Socialist Pasok party—if they reach an agreement—final exit polls showed. The outcome is likely to ease fears—at least temporarily—of a Greek exit from the 17-nation euro zone.

According to the exit polls shown on the state-owned NET television channel less than two hours after the ballots closed, New Democracy was leading with an estimated 28.6% to 30% of the vote, or 127 seats in the 300-seat Parliament. The radical left Syriza party was second with an 27.5% to 28.4% of the vote or 72 seats. Earlier exit poll result had shown the two parties in a statistical dead heat.

 

Despite the apparent close outcome, New Democracy could benefit from a 50-seat bonus in Parliament if the exit-poll results are confirmed.

A win by New Democracy, if confirmed by final results, could set off a relief rally on global financial markets Monday after weeks of uncertainty over Greece—and by extension, the euro zone—stoked investor fears over the future of the currency bloc. In the past few weeks, Europe's debt crisis has spread to Spain—the euro zone's fourth largest economy—forcing it to seek a bailout for its banks, and threatens to engulf Italy, severely testing the bloc's financial ability to handle the crisis.

New Democracy's 61-year old leader, Antonis Samaras, has been an unequivocal backer of Greece's euro-zone membership, even though he says he wants to tweak the austerity program Greece has promised its European and international creditors that comes with the country's €173 billion ($218.6 billion) bailout package."

Summing Up

So it looks about as good as possible for now.

Still, that's not good.

We'll comment on all this tomorrow as the dust settles.

For now, don't confuse Greece or other European countries with the U.S.

We're one society of equals and we're all Americans. We don't don't identify ourselves as only Georgians, Texans, Illinoisans and such.

Europe is a place --- a piece of geography and there are no Europeans. The people in Europe don't think of themselves first as Europeans but instead as Greeks, Italians, Germans and such.

In the U.S. we're free individuals with an independent streak.

They're primarily of a collectivist or socialistic mind-set.

We bailed them out in both World Wars I and II.

We have a great future, and they have a dismal one.

That's enough about our differences for now.

Happy Father's Day.

Thanks. Bob.