The banks just won a huge victory today; one can expect the markets to go up on Monday.  There is a concerted effort by many people to prevent Greeks from electing politicians who support declaring bankruptcy on it’s debts like Argentina and Iceland.  This includes politicians in the EU, international banks, President Obama and other wealthy interests.  And if Greece is able to cope under these harsh austerity measures and remain in the EU … this will be for the benefit of the more wealthy interests in Europe and the United States.  Having said that – it is my personal belief that the Euro is a failed project and it’s only a matter of time before it self destructs.

Reuters has the story HERE:

Official results released by the interior ministry, with 97 percent of ballots counted, showed New Democracy taking 29.7 percent of the vote, with SYRIZA on 26.9. The PASOK Socialists were set to take 12.3 percent of the vote.

Because of a 50-seat bonus given to the party which comes first, that would give New Democracy and PASOK 162 seats in the 300-seat parliament, in an alliance broadly committed to the 130 billion euros ($164 billion) bailout.

Germany signaled there may be some leeway on the timeframe for cuts demanded in return for the aid.

CNN points out HERE:

Meanwhile, the clock is ticking on some key deadlines.

The government must identify additional budget cuts by the end of June to comply with the terms of its bailout program. If it fails to do so, analysts say the European Central Bank could cut off funding to Greek banks, which have already been drained of cash as deposits flee the country.

In addition, Greece is facing a €3.9 billion bond redemption in August.

The nation’s economy is in deep decline, and analysts say Athens is in danger of running out of the money it needs to pay for basic necessities, such as fuel and medical supplies.

The Wall Street Journal points out HERE:

As for Syriza, it may be just as happy losing this round, figuring it can pick up the pieces if the center-right fails again. Its tub-thumping leader, 37-year-old Alexis Tsipras, has been the great beneficiary of Greek rage at an economic program, misleadingly dubbed “austerity,” that has managed to avoid neither recession nor default.

But the apparent plurality vote for New Democracy also suggests that Greeks aren’t eager to follow Mr. Tsipras off the socialist cliff, especially if it means daring the rest of Europe to stop writing bailout checks. Perhaps more Greeks are coming to understand that German Chancellor Angela Merkel might have preferred a Syriza victory as an excuse to cut Greece out of the euro zone. The Germans are beginning to conclude that Greece may be unreformable. A Syriza victory would have been seen as Greece pulling the plug on its own euro membership.

Mrs. Merkel will still face a difficult decision if Mr. Samaras forms a government and then seeks to renegotiate the bailout because he lacks the cash to fulfill its terms. Would the German Chancellor dare to say no, thus becoming the proximate cause of a first euro exit? That would be a terribly painful result for Greece, but as a lesson to the rest of Europe to shape up or suffer the same fate, it would have considerable utility. By itself, the high price of floating sovereign debt doesn’t seem to be scaring straight either the Spanish or Italians.

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