They’ve been lobbing firebombs in Greece and its getting plenty of media attention. This is the clearly visible side of a collapse welfare state. But there is plenty of other signs of decay that don’t quite get that attention.
The Greek middle class is now mired in poverty. Homeless rates in Athens are up 20% and the city had homeless problems to begin with. Suicide rates have doubled. According to the European Union, 28% of Greeks lived at risk of poverty or in poverty.
This is clearly not just an economic crisis. It is a spiritual or moral crisis. How do you break out of the culture of dependency? How do you convince people that they can and should learn to take care of themselves? The economic austerity measures are a necessary step to turn around the economic fortunes of Greece. But their also needs to be renewal of the spirit.