Swimming With Sharks

Why does a country that is full of ship need yet another bailout from the EU's International Monetary Fund? The clear-as-water answer is that its shipping industry is too big to fail. In the words of Greek shipowner Nicos Vernicos, "Ninety-five percent of all goods transported in the world today are carried by ships, and Greeks own 17 percent of those ships."

Somehow, the only percentage that seems to matter when huge bailouts are involved is one percent. You guessed it, the Greek shipping magnates number about 1 percent of the country's populous.

Greece's 900 ship-owning families, not surprisingly, prefer to keep income carefully hidden, but the annual gross revenues are estimated at $60 billion according to a recent article in Town & Country magazine. Unfortunately, concealing income while bragging about how little taxes are paid in this country of titans is not mythology. What is touted is the jobs that Greek shipowners are sustaining and the foreign money brought into the country via shipping fees.

Obviously, Greek shipping and U.S. banking strategies are propelled by the same greased engine. Keeping the Greek merchant marines and the U.S. financial executives at the helm while draining economic harbors of financial security is the new international law of the seas. These cradles of democracy are threatened by big spoiled babies. Ports in the storm of a worldwide economic maelstrom are drying up, forcing rescue missions to run aground without goods being delivered to the hoi poloi.

Sounds more like piracy, to me, with the markets held hostage. Note to self: Invest in police gun boats or never invest in anything that looks like it could be swimming with sharks.

Is Greece guilty of anything the U.S. isn't floating these days? Is their crony oligarchy of no more than 10 families and 10 unions any worse than our crony capitalism? Are they to be buffeted by waves of criticism while we merely pay the ransom?

At least Greece admits, however boastfully, that they are full of ship.