Rather than wondering when Greece will renege on its debts and what the consequences would be, try the opposite question: what would have to happen for Greece to avoid default? The essential condition would be that the forthcoming general election, the second in a space of six weeks, would lead to the formation of a government capable of negotiating a less onerous refinancing deal with the country’s eurozone partners. What is not widely understood is that such a Greek government would get a sympathetic hearing.

A woman points at the parliament building during a protest in front of the Greek parliament near Athen’s Syntagma square in April 2012, in reaction to the suicide of an elderly debt-ridden Greek man. An elderly man shot himself in the head on April 4 in Athens’ central Syntagma Square, a focal point of anti-austerity protests, crying out that he did not want to leave his children in debt. The man killed himself outside the Syntagma metro station, around 100 metres from parliament, which for two years has been the main rallying point for demonstrations against government austerity measures. Pic/ AFP Photo