Reply to 'To my German Friends'

1. To my French celebrity, Dominique Strauss Kahn,
Assumingyouwrote thatopenletterdirectedtoyourGermanfriendson SlideShare as you were the
one to post it I direct this reply to you. I feel the urge to react although I’m not German. I’m part
Dutch and part Australian. Neither nationality has my preference as I just enjoy the fact that I can
have the best of both worlds.
You start yourletterbystatingthat Hollande standinghisgroundand Merkel facing up to those who
didn’twantan agreementatanyprice was to theircredit.Iwonderwhyit was to their credit but you
do have a right to your own opinion of course. The main reason seems to be that a Grexit was
avoidedfornow.Iwouldputit to youthat avoiding a Grexit is for the benefit of the Euro zone only.
Greece howeverwouldbe inafar betterpositionthanitisnow. It would be free to impose the laws
they’ve proposedtoimposetopreventfurthertax-evasionwhich in turn would help turning around
they deficit their balance shows. Avoiding a Grexit at the dramatic terms that were imposed on
Greece only means that their debt will be raised, the economy will be further downgraded,
unemployment will increase further and overall poverty will spread wider. The last five to seven
years of austerity have proven that without a shadow of a doubt.
Let me state before I continue that I do believe in a future for Europe. It has been there since
Methusalemandthere isnodenyingthat. There has always been a future for Europe ever since the
Romans started conquering it, since the hordes swarmed in from the east. Ever since the Vikings
raided the western shores of Europe and since Dzjenghis Kahn expanded his realm to parts of
Europe. Since the Ottoman Empire did the same and knocked on the doors of Vienna. Ever since
French,Austrian,SpanishandEnglishroyaltyattemptedtorule it.Evenin spite or maybe because of
that historyvarioustribesandnationsmaintainedtheirownculture and their own habits. Their own
nationality if you will. After two world wars there was some kind of consensus amongst European
nationsthat peace was a common goal. As a result the European community for Coal and Steel was
founded. I’m sure you are very aware of all that history and I think I should not go deeper.
I am not rejoicing.Farfromit.But I have to admit that I feel Europe andabove all Greece wouldhave
benefittedmore fromaGrexitthanthis,this...whatwasit? Anagreement?Nothatwouldmean that
all parties would benefit. Or at least have the feeling of benefitting. Greece was coerced into
submission. I hear that Juncker prohibited Mr Tsipras to leave unless an ‘agreement’ had been
reached.Itfeelsasif Hollande,Merkel,Juncker, Lagarde and not least Dijsselbloem and Rutte were
out forrevenge of some kind.Make the Greekshumiliatethemselvesbeforethe worldandsubmit to
whateverthey(the people Ijustmentioned)wouldbe thinking of at that time and in the future. Rip
the Greeks of all sovereignty, democracy as we know has come to an end. No Mr Strauss Kahn, I’m
not rejoicing.
If anything,I’mweepingforthe Greekpeople,weepingforthis very sick joke played upon them and
desperately wondering why this had to be.

2. What isso wrong withsome kindof nationalism?The Netherlandshave twelve provinces andtheyall
have theirown‘culture’if youwill. Attempts from the government to redesign the provinces into a
couple of super provinces meet some very strong opposition. Why? Because people identify
themselvesingeneralmost strongly with their own close environment. Do you really think there is
something like a European culture? I can assure you it doesn’t exist as such. There is a difference
however between Europe and the USA, or Europe and Central America, or Europe and Asia. In that
sense there can be a united Europe as it existed before some megalomaniacs decided it should
become the European Union, led by a European Committee with a parliament that we can vote for
but onlyona national level. Then there are several rules to prevent kindred minds to form a single
‘party’ in that parliament. I for one would have voted for a party that wasn’t Dutch if I had the
chance.Does this insight make me short-sighted? Why? Because I have an idea of what the people
could want?
Thenthe long-sighted.Whyare theytoowrong intheirassumption that a united Europe as the EU is
proclaimingitshouldbe isa dreamthat cannot be made reality? Europe is manipulated outside the
influenceof itcitizens,isitnot?Whenthe peoplesof France and the Netherlands made it clear they
were against the European constitution, some sentences were changes, the title ‘Constitution’
scratchedand it became a treatyso thatthe people couldbe disregarded.Ineffect,that constitution
came to be afterall.Whenthe Danishpeople were giventhe righttodecide if theywantedtobe part
of the Euro zone or not, opposition from the EU against a referendum was huge. And when the
Danes voted against the Euro, the whole thing was repeated in an attempt to force the Euro down
theirthroatregardless.Doyouthinkthat wouldhave happenedthe other way round if the Euro had
been accepted?
Fact is Mr StraussKahn,that Europeanslove Europe,theylove travelling free and merry through our
continent but they also love to have their own identity. Something that makes us French, German,
Brit, Dane, Spaniard, Italian, yes and, God forbid, Greek! Part of that identity can be a currency like
the Drachma. That’s something a lot of Greeks are craving after all these years of hardship and
humiliation.
Mr Strauss Kahn, I like to think that I’m neither short-sighted nor too long-sighted as you put it. I
believeinaEuropeancommunity which is a far cry from a European Union. That is what we all once
wanted,those firstten,fifteenyearsafterthe last WorldWar. I’dlike tothinkwe all wantedfreedom
to trade to enhance our economies, freedom of speech, and respect for each individual. I do not
believe that a European culture exists in the sense that we are all to be the same. In any case it
cannot be enforcedbysimplycreating one currency and then stating we should all hail it en submit
to itsrules.The relativelyshorthistory if the Euro has proven as much. You use beautiful words and
submit wonderful act from our joint history, state our common goals but something is lost in
translation. You obviously see a demon that makes us repeat our mistakes but any good history
teacher could have told you that.
Thenyou talkof the amateurismof the Greek government. That, Sir, is beyond my comprehension.
Mr Varoufakishas brains, is honest, to the point, has submitted various initiatives to empower the
Greekgovernmentandtake control of justthe items that the rest of the European people are being
toldthe Greekshave no control over. I meanlegislation to get hold of the rich Greeks who flee with

3. theirfortune tootherEuropeancountrieswhere theyeitherdon’t or nearly don’t have to pay taxes.
Grab companiesthat earn money in Greece but have a fake head office elsewhere to evade paying
tax in Greece. All vetoed by the EU. How come amateurism? Or is this the demon you mention?
Money talks, money rules?
True, various Greek governments have been slacking ever since the military where replaced by
democracy. Corruption flowered lusciously. The EU knew about it and managed to manipulate that
country of eighteen years ago (and longer) to qualify for entry into the Euro. Everybody knew they
shouldn’t but hey, it looks good if they’re in. The same is valid for Italy. The same again for Cyprus.
Cypruswas a great testcase:can we letan EU-membergoto hell andgetaway withit? Then there is
Spain and there is Portugal. Both still in the danger zone. Then, not the least, there is France, a
country with a notorious reputation of not meeting the Euro requirements and with a history of a
currency that is constantly under pressure to devaluate.
Withthe introductionof the Euro,Europeanshave beenrobbedof about five to ten percent of their
income andtheirsavingsbecause theywere trickedwiththe exchange rate. I worked in a large bank
at the time and saw that coming. In the EMU it still looked reasonable but when we finally got the
actual banknotesandcoinsavailableitbecame clear.The Euroexistsforthe gloryof politiciansandis
useful forcorporations.The value forEU citizensissolelyin the fact that we do not need to take any
exchange rate into account anymore which is unfortunately so convincing that most of us consider
the thing a blessing. Those who look further can come to the conclusion that we are being conned
EU-wide.
If anyone involved in the EU would just admit, Mr Strauss Kahn that the EU forgot what brought us
togetherandisknowonlyan entitybeing manipulated by corporations and blackmailed by the USA
(TTIP) with one sole drive: money. The people are left out of the equation as the referendum in
Greece showed. The verdict was clear: yes to Europe, no to austerity. What happened? Europe
(Hollande, Merkel and the other goons) showed them the European middle finger and opted for
further extortion of Greece. A more obvious disqualification of the EU cannot be imagined.
Who in the world would trust Europe after this? Right! All those regions you mention in Asia and
North America would trust the EU. Why? Because the EU shows it is very eager to disregard its
citizens and to offer them as modern day slaves to the corporate world. Do we want to be one of
those players?Ourcorporationsprobablydo,congratulations!The people however, if they realized
the hidden agenda here would rather opt out.
You tell a great story, Mr Strauss Kahn, I almost fell for it.