Insolvency constrains possibilities - Greece in turmoil

As the season of goodwill lingers, it might be unsporting to ask those Irish politicians who advocate burning the bondholders what they might do if they were in the position now faced by their Greek counterparts.

At least our representatives have the luxury of presenting diatribe as possibility, but our Greek friends have long since passed that stage and are faced with very difficult and potentially destabilising choices.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has suspended rescue talks with the battered country until after the Greeks go to the polls in a little over three weeks. It is not at all certain that those bailout negotiations will conclude successfully even then, especially if the election result is inconclusive. That possibility might be even stronger if the anti-austerity parties are given a decisive mandate. That prospect is reflected in violent reactions in the Greek markets, where yields on government bonds rose sharply and share prices dropped 7% this week. Bank shares have fallen by even greater margins.