


Consider this story, for example:A charismatic academic with limited government experience and a one-word slogan (“Change”) was elected to lead his nation.(from ihatethemedia.com, background: National ReviewPrior to that election, the nation’s debt was a very manageable 28.6% of GDP. Yet by the end of the new leader’s first term in office, that ratio had skyrocketed to 54.7% of GDP and by the time his second term in office came to a close, it had reached the mid-80s.
This leader ushered in a dramatic growth of government. He created a new government-run healthcare system, expanded public sector employment, nationalized struggling companies, and increased government handouts.
In the end, his unprecedented government expansion changed the nation’s expectations and attitudes about the role of government in society and sowed the seeds of the nation’s eventual failure.
Now let’s revert to that unique Paul Harvey intonation for the surprise ending:The decade was the 1980’s, the nation was Greece and that charismatic leader was Andreas Papandreou. And now you know (dramatic pause) the Rest of the Story.