Hmm, you do have a valid point. Guess I was too caught up in defending "how the financial system works is logical" that I ignored your main point - that it is still far from being transparent or fair to the many, many regular folk caught by those decisions. I guess the financial and political elite in my country are doing a (reasonably) good job managing our system, which is why your argument didn't immediately appeal or make sense to me. Thanks for clarifying!

In my view, being "deeply entrenched in financial logic" (as you put it) simply means having a basic understanding of how our financial system works. Whether we feel the current crisis is a "sellout" or take the stance that Greece is getting exactly what they deserve is beside the point. Markets are indifferent to such opinions - the trick is to learn how to navigate and make the most of the (admittedly) broken system we have.

In that respect, I feel yellowoftops post is spot on. Tsipras never really had a choice. Is it fair that Greece is at the mercy of creditors today? Well, about as unfair as the cheap credit Greece received for no reason other than their initially joining the Euro. Is it fair that the current government is burdened by the past administration? Of course it is - government debt carries over, no matter which party is in power. That's just the way it works.

So, yes - I can sympathise with the flood of news that's surely to continue coming about ordinary Greeks suffering. But blaming the "system", instead of the Greeks themselves, seems to me at least like blaming predatory lending for one's own poverty. The fact that no one forced Greece into the Euro makes this an issue of ignorance more than malice, and such ignorance is not wont to go unpunished.