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Fitschen had met in Athens with representatives from the finance, industry and maritime industries. "I asked my counterparts who the people are who they would trust to lead the country into a new era, in whom they trust to ensure the country can be a treasured member of the eurozone," he said. "The number of names they offered was unfortunately very limited." Dimitrios Tsomocos, an economic adviser to Antonis Samaras, the leader of the New Democracy party, rejected a "failed state" label for Greece and said it was "counterproductive," while emphasizing that Greece was committed to collaboration with its European partners. Despite Europe's financial crisis, Greece is still providing "reasonable" levels of security, rule of law, political participation, respect for human rights and other services, according to Robert Rotberg, founding director of the Harvard Kennedy school's Program on Intrastate Conflict. "Compared to Congo or Zimbabwe, Greeks are still 'reasonably' well-served. Soon, if they return to the drachma and turmoil, they may suffer inflation and months during which those political goods (essential services) vanish," Rotberg wrote in an email. "But, and here is the big
'but,' all failed states must by definition be involved in civil war. Greece is not yet there. Hence it is certainly a weak state getting weaker as opposed to a strong state like Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland. Its weaknesses are palpable and apt to worsen." In an article on the Greek crisis two years ago, author Mylonas explored theories about why state dysfunction is especially pronounced in Greece, citing the possible impact of: Centuries of Ottoman rule that encouraged corruption and delayed the growth of strong national institutions. Political polarization that sometimes exploded into violence, as during the 1946-49 civil war. Developmental funding from Europe that ended up supporting patronage systems of traditional politicians, whose parties plunged in popularity because of the current economic upheaval. A culture of impunity that fueled tax evasion and helped drive the country into debt. Mylonas said a crisis was brewing in Greece long before the financial chaos hit the headlines, noting a "mentality" whereby people were heavily reliant on the state, not so much for the effective regulation of society, but for the material rewards that it dispensed when times were good. "People considered it a success to enter the public sector, and even doing business in the private sector was very much linked to the government. The term
'entrepreneurship' had gotten a negative connotation," he said. "That is something that is not healthy, at least in a capitalist economy."
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