Greece using alternate currency to cope with economic collapse

[Bitware]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17686384

[Serenata]

Such systems are in effect not only in Volos city. There are other places that have various virtual currencies. Unfortunately Bitcoin adoption in Greece is a bit more than ... none!

[herzmeister]

related thread: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=81500.0

[Cluster2k]

Maybe Greece can follow Russia's 1998 example when things get a bit tight:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/177421.stm

"Teachers in part of western Siberia are being paid in bottles of vodka, because the authorities have no money to meet their wages bill."

"The teachers in the most populous Maima district of the Altai republic are getting 15 bottles each. They have not been paid their proper salaries since February or March. "

Talk about liquid assets!  And if the price of vodka tanks you can at least have a very good time.  Maybe the Greeks can try this with Ouzo.

[Serenata]

Maybe Greece can follow Russia's 1998 example when things get a bit tight:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/177421.stm

"Teachers in part of western Siberia are being paid in bottles of vodka, because the authorities have no money to meet their wages bill."

"The teachers in the most populous Maima district of the Altai republic are getting 15 bottles each. They have not been paid their proper salaries since February or March. "

Talk about liquid assets!  And if the price of vodka tanks you can at least have a very good time.  Maybe the Greeks can try this with Ouzo.

Not enough Ouzo production to cover the need

Seriously now... It's not just Greece's problem. Greece was the first target. If nothing is done centrally within the Euro Zone, in one year's time Spain will be where Greece is now and in two year's time I see France in the same position. The main target is the Euro Zone itself.

[Cluster2k]

Maybe Greece can follow Russia's 1998 example when things get a bit tight:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/177421.stm

"Teachers in part of western Siberia are being paid in bottles of vodka, because the authorities have no money to meet their wages bill."

"The teachers in the most populous Maima district of the Altai republic are getting 15 bottles each. They have not been paid their proper salaries since February or March. "

Talk about liquid assets!  And if the price of vodka tanks you can at least have a very good time.  Maybe the Greeks can try this with Ouzo.

Not enough Ouzo production to cover the need

Seriously now... It's not just Greece's problem. Greece was the first target. If nothing is done centrally within the Euro Zone, in one year's time Spain will be where Greece is now and in two year's time I see France in the same position. The main target is the Euro Zone itself.

That's probably the biggest problem with this crisis.  After the Greece problem is solved (by booting them out of the Euro or throwing billions more towards them) the market will sharpen its knives again and go after the other low hanging fruit: Portugal, Spain, and to a lesser extent, Belgium, Italy. 

In a related matter, it seems like either memories are short or people think they can get out before the next bubble collapses and leave someone else holding the bag.  Iceland is blowing a brand new property bubble:  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-29/iceland-property-bubble-grows-with-currency-controls-mortgages.html

This time it seems foreign investors can't get their money out of Iceland, so they're blowing more bubbles instead.  Bitcoin isn't nearly big enough to smuggle the stranded cash out of the country.

[adamstgBit]

its really to bad they aren't using bitcoin

wheres all the Greek bitcoiners?

[herzmeister]

Also, new Keiser Report: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hhi2BBfbZU8

They suggest a silver standard for Greece. His guest seems to be too old to have heard of bitcoin (or understand it) unfortunately. 

[ZodiacDragon84]

Be nice if we could put together a fund to send some reps out spread the word on bitcoin! (you know, like the Christians did)

[mike.wolf]

Bitcoins waren't invented to be mainstream, the simple fact that there's a limited number of them is a pretty solid clue.

[herzmeister]

they're really so limited? omg 

[Cluster2k]

Also, new Keiser Report: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hhi2BBfbZU8

They suggest a silver standard for Greece. His guest seems to be too old to have heard of bitcoin (or understand it) unfortunately. 

Remember early last year when he suggested everyone go out and buy silver because it was about to boom?  Bring down the big banks holding the price down?  Didn't work out so well.  I used the mini bubble and reports such as his as indicators to sell.  Did rather well.

He seems to have a thing for silver.  No country on the planet is going to link its currency to a commodity that can't be arbitrarily created.  Governments aren't that stupid. 

[Ilikeham]

Bitcoins waren't invented to be mainstream, the simple fact that there's a limited number of them is a pretty solid clue.

Limited how? That little decimal place is quite mobile.

[miscreanity]

He seems to have a thing for silver.  No country on the planet is going to link its currency to a commodity that can't be arbitrarily created.  Governments aren't that stupid. 

It has very little to do with stupidity, and a lot to do with practicality. Storage and maintenance costs are a multiple of that for gold, as are shipping costs; silver also "flows" much more than gold in that warehouses will move more volume of silver for industrial purposes than gold, which can sit indefinitely as a financial instrument.

For those reasons, silver may not be used as a reserve by the majority of national governments, but it will retain a de facto currency status among many populations around the world. Next to gold, silver is the most available and stable commodity currency in existence - that isn't changing anytime soon.

[Boussac]

Just in case Greece opts out of the euro and decides to go with bitcoin, Paytunia is now translated in greek for android mobile phones  

[Yuhfhrh]

If we did send out missionaries and gave everyone who needed one a cheap android phone and 1 bitcoin each, and then told them the value of a bitcoin, it honestly could start something!

[Bitcoin Oz]

Maybe we can setup a greek bitcoin exchange funded by issuing shares on glbse ?

Call it a community outreach program

of course you would probably need a local to perform the in person exchanging and publicity etc.

[Vitalik Buterin]

Also, new Keiser Report: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hhi2BBfbZU8

They suggest a silver standard for Greece. His guest seems to be too old to have heard of bitcoin (or understand it) unfortunately. 

"So in Ireland they're determining whether or not to vote for the European Fiscal Treaty, because voting yes is going to bring stability, like the stability that monarchs and Qaddafi and Ben Ali and Mubarak brought."

Good old Keiser report.

[Stardust]

If we did send out missionaries and gave everyone who needed one a cheap android phone and 1 bitcoin each, and then told them the value of a bitcoin, it honestly could start something!

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