German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended the harsh austerity policies implemented in the debt-ridden countries of the euro zone claiming she did “the right thing.” She even presented herself as a “victim”, complaining about being target of insults in Greece and Portugal. In a self-righteous and self-pity performance, she insulted the millions of struggling Greeks, Portuguese, Spanish and Irish claiming that she suffered from the insults but in the end she managed that the austerity-ridden Europeans started to like her like again.
“If you look at Ireland, Portugal … Spain [things] are better and even in Greece things are improving,” Merkle said in an interview with the German state broadcaster ARD on Sunday night.
She complained that she received a lot of insults in Greece and Portugal for “doing the right thing,” with regards to the euro crisis, as she claimed.
“I have suffered so many insults in Greece, so many insults in Portugal,” she said. “And a few years later, I was just in Portugal. There was an excellent atmosphere, I went for a ride with the Portuguese Prime Minister in Porto along the river..” she reckoned an idyllic atmosphere with many German investments in the country.
Claiming that German investment in Portugal was due to “shortage of specialized staff in Germany,” Merkel defended her disastrous policy in the usual self-righteous way with a bold touch of self-pity:
“So sometimes you have to go through a difficult period of time to become sympathetic again. You have to do the right thing. And during the crisis in the eurozone, I also got many opponents. But I think that if you look at Ireland, Portugal, Spain [things] are better and even in Greece things are getting better, ” she insisted.
Of course, Merkel was addressing the German public that is obviously very concerned about the hardship and the suffering of its Chancellor trying to do the right thing. Thank Goodness, every child and grandpa, every jobless mom and low-paid dad in the crisis countries now likes if not loves Merkel.
Phew! The image of the Good German is restored across the austerity-ridden Europe…
BTW: Merkel and the managing director of the international Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, are scheduled to meet in Berlin at 5:00 pm local time on Monday to discuss the Greek debt and the role of the IMF.
Riding with the Prime Minister in comfort in Portugal or anywhere would not give PM Merkel a balanced picture of the country. However, if she chose to ride on a local transport with the public she would get a clearer view, after standing in the heat waiting for the bus, if she was able to elbow her way onto the overcrowded vehicle, standing room only and squashed like sardines in a can. She would then rub shoulders with the longsuffering passengers. If she got talking to some of them they could help her understand the pain and stress they feel on a daily basis because of EU mismanagement of EU money. German investment in countries means profit for Germany more than a presumptious attempt at charity toward any poverty stricken country, while local shops and family run companies rapidly disappear from the streets. False economy in the longterm.