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knb comments on Crazy Ideas Thread - Less Wrong
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Greece lacks money, but they do have a whole lot of reasonably large, quite beautiful islands they barely use (only a small fraction of the 1200 islands are significantly inhabited) but which have the ideal Mediterranean climate for human habitation. Selling off sovereignty over these islands to other countries or to new country projects would be a great way to get some quick cash and there might be some downstream benefits, like increased trade in the region.
If you sell land, it's probably lost forever. If you sell land which was once part of your sovereign territory, you will have no claim over it (in contrast to a land which was taken from you by force).
One doesn't have to be a caricature of an ultra-nationalist to dislike the idea of losing something permanently to cure a temporary problem.
What about leasing it instead?
I think you vastly underestimate the power of nationalism. Greece is especially vulnerable to nationalism due to a glorious ancient past and really long Ottoman occupation. Still I think any government who accepted that would be toppled by nationalists.
No, that's why I posted it in the Crazy Ideas Thread instead of the Obviously Workable Ideas thread.
Still, if the austerity gets bad enough and the price is right, Greeks might go for it anyway, as long as the buyer isn't Turkey or Germany.
Now you mention it - I imagine Russia... same religion, always wanted a warm-water port, led by a man who whatever his faults are, does not lack imagination... hmmmm.
This is my official description of Putin from now on.
I should add that I did not mean it ironically. He may be evil but he is not stupid - although lately he seems to be getting too big for his pants i.e. getting boycotted by about 80% of the planet's GDP is not really something to risk easily.
Selling territory is a big no-no, but selling EU citizenship is in fashion.
Selling land is out. "Sell your islands, you bankrupt Greeks" will not play well in Athens now.
What about a face saving land trade? For every island Greece sells it gets cash plus an equal amount of land in Greenland.
Denmark already refused to sell any of Greenland back when there was more on offer, it was much poorer, and it needed the funds much more.
In the eyes of whom would that be anywhere near "face saving"? It would probably be even worse from that perspective than only getting cash.
Years ago I jokingly suggested to sell Crete to Turkey, in exchange for taking over Greece's debt (no doubt Turkey would jump at the opportunity and bend over to do anything possible to meet the debt payment criteria). The reactions I got were predictable, in the vein of "hell would freeze one hundred times over before this happens".
Jokes aside, selling territory (with actual sovereignty transfer, as opposed to simple real estate acquisition) seems to be a bit of no-go in the last decades. Especially selling it under duress for economical reasons.
Selling territory is already impossible politically, but what's much worse is selling over a population of your citizens, or forcing them to relocate. An uninhabited island would be an easier sell, but also of much less value to anyone.