Development and Crisis: The Turbulent Course of Greek Capitalism

Abstract

This paper offers an explanation of the current Greek crisis, it disputes the mainstream “debt crisis” explanation and argues that it is a twin crisis: a crisis of capital over-accumulation aggravated by the participation in the European Union. The second part analyses the turbulent historical course of Greek capitalism through the main phases of its development, their crises and resulting restructurings. In particular, it pinpoints its status as a second-generation middle-range capitalist country with limited imperialist abilities. The third section analyses the position of Greek capitalism within the European imperialist bloc and the advantages but also the dangers stemming from its participation in it. The fourth section focuses on the current global crisis and how it has been expressed in Greece. The last section concludes with the current situation of the Greek economy after the imposition of the IMF-ECB-EU Memorandum.

Keywords:

• Greece
• economic crisis
• capitalism
• European Union