Where does Papandreou and his regime truly stand today? Leaving aside the solicited “news” replenishing international wires all the time, and Papandreou’s own incessant, largely purposeless, PR-focused globetrotting, we can offer the following quick list:

1. Greece is going to the polls on November 7 to elect local and regional authorities. Slow to rise at the opening buzzer because of the misplaced certainty that it was unassailable, the ruling Pasok now discovers that a wave of bitter discontent is swelling throughout the country. Many “socialist” candidates are tripping over their own tongues as people want to bash them over the “memorandum government” they serve. Once the greatest (and haughtiest) press-the-flesh artists, Pasok’s crew  are now reluctant to expose themselves during public gatherings or go on walkabouts “to meet the people.” Unpublished polls increasingly suggest Pasok may be in for the rudest awakening in its 36-year long history come the Day of the Ballot.

2. Pasok senior members, including cabinet ministers, are retreating fast from anything that has to do with the election campaign. Papandreou was repeatedly rebuffed in recent weeks by would-be candidate after would-be candidate as he tried to convince old, fat, comfortable Pasokis, most of them happily enjoying the riches of years of access to public money for personal “capital accumulation,” to run in the November elections. Papandreou’s late father, Andreas, the unabashed autocrat, must be writhing in his grave; in his days, the master’s call could be ignored only on the certainty of (political) death.

3. With the Greek economy in its worst collapse since the immediate post-WW2 years thanks to the IMF/EU’s wickedly successful program of destroying via the Papandreou regime Greece’s left-over market sinews -- not to mention domestic consumption -- and with hundreds of thousands of workers meeting the Grim Ripper’s scythe never to rise again in the creaky Greek labor market, which could catch the total of one and one half million lost jobs by the end of 2011, the very breath of the overwhelming majority of Greeks has been knocked out of them. So far, the shock seems to work in “favor” of Papandreou et.al. rushing to complete the genocide as long as the lights are still on. No one though dares to predict what could happen at any moment given the right mix of “spark” incidents or events. Papandreou apparently discounts such a possibility, caught as he is in his sycophant-laden glass tower, and put at (misplaced) ease by being awarded foreign “role model” prizes by Greece’s lenders, but History has a way of paying back those who ignore its telltale rumblings.

4. Already, in the backstage, Papandreou “insiders” are probing to see what the possibilities are for a government of “national unity.” Even a “medium-sized” voters’ backlash on November 7, followed by an equally painful uppercut on November 14, could accelerate the unraveling of the “memorandum government” as harsher and harsher demands are placed upon it by those Papandreou actually lobbied as no one has done before to have Greece put under the yoke of the IMF as they become aware that their chosen cadre may be swept off the decks sooner than they thought by these irrelevant mobs of “average” natives. Not known for either its iron will or its courage under fire, the “memorandum government,” kept on a leash by Papandreou and a small cabal of “coordinators,” could exhibit the symptoms of headlong rout as its men and women -- most sporting the latest fashions and refusing to ride on average wheels -- discover that political survival has become impossible and social unrest begins to take an ugly shape.

5. Somewhat belatedly, Pasok has realized that the opposition’s message, springing from the rejection of the IMF/EU New Occupation, has stolen the ball and is running the whole nine yards with it. Hastily, government propagandists, supported by scores of of “journalists” on the “confidential” payroll, have launched a Memorandum-or-Bankruptcy scare campaign to cower voters into siding with their executioners. Leaving behind its various inane slogans about “local government by local people,” Pasok, huffing and puffing, has rejoined the arena where Papandreou makes true blood flow as millions of families see their livelihoods being destroyed and their future dominated by foreign bondage into the most distant future.

6. The realization that the austerity “package” that has effectively unraveled the Greek economy has had little success in anything other than brutally impoverishing the majority of the people has now sunk in. Foreign diplomats in Athens privately admit that the country’s bankruptcy may be a lot closer than initially thought -- or Papandreou is willing to admit. Already, leaks that the government Keystone Cops “black ops detachment” has failed to quash speak of “unofficial” talks between Papandreou and the IMF/EU for the “extension” of the period of time Greece is allowed to take in order to cover the requisite payments to its lenders (which, ultimately, it won’t be able to fulfill as it produces very little that can generate the rates of mind-boggling income necessary to tackle liabilities emanating from a sovereign debt that could reach €450 billion by 2015). This “extension” even junior bankers recognize as the restructuring of the country’s debt -- which happens with “haircuts” once default has been accepted as the current state of affairs.

7. Papandreou is now firmly known inside his country as the prime minister who has traveled far and wide to declare, like some strange self-flagellating town crier, that the country he leads is among the most corrupt in the world. Indeed, if anyone cares to canvass the Greek PM’s innumerable speeches since he won the election last year, he won’t have any particular difficulty in filling a good many pages with direct quotes where Papandreou describes Greece’s central problem as one of deep corruption and absence of functioning institutions. Being candid to extinction isn’t among the hallmarks of even average politicians; in the case of “our man in Athens,” as the German Financial Times once recognized Papandreou, confirming Greece’s dirty laundry at every whistle-stop has offered this country’s detractors enormous ammunition to hammer at Greece and Greeks with complete abandon. Deservedly, then, Papandreou should receive an electoral bonus from his countrymen for his “veracity” that has brought such heartening enthusiasm among some of Greece’s most vituperative critics plus a mallet to bash in with to boot.  

We suggest that readers print out and keep this list they can revert to for a quick reality check once they have had their latest fill of how the Papandreou regime is “succeeding.”

Readers should also keep in mind that, ultimately, “our man in Athens” won’t hang around for far too long once the floor at the bottom of this benighted country separates itself from the rest of the house. He will be on the first plane out, no doubt still being lauded by the “international community” for, really, “having tried,” and head on to other higher tiers of international government so that he can offer his globally acclaimed services as “role model,” not to mention his personal wisdom, to so many others now suffering and in need of salvation.

How little do we appreciate the human treasures we have...!

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