Best advice on money and riches

God blesses us with riches so that we can;

1. Employ them and
2. Enjoy them.

1. Employing riches

To employ is to put into work (putting the blessings and riches into work). You put to work by not making more money or riches for yourself but by helping others and supporting the work of God. When God blesses you with money and riches, He does not tell you ‘go use what I have given you to make more’.

When He blesses you, do not say, ‘I want to invest there, invest in that and this, start a business here or there, have that car, buy that building, do this and that‘. In business sense, all this ideas are great but in God’s kingdom, this is foolishness.

The rich man (in the rich man parable) was blessed by God and he got more than He had before. Instead of him employing his riches, he chose to save by building more barns. And he said, this will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods (Lk 12:18). And this is the greatest foolish thing he did. God looked at him and called him straight a ‘fool’ (Lk 12:20).

Many of us are like this rich man. We are blessed with money, riches and wealth but instead of employing them, we chose to save in barns; in banks and other places which the world gives. God looks at you, as your money, riches and wealth lies idle in the bank and He calls you a ‘fool’.

You are supposed to employ all the riches which God gives you, and this is the best advice on money, or like the rich man after you have increased your barns (savings) and all are full, He (God) takes away your soul (die). Many of us spent all our life years increasing and saving our riches in the banks and all saving places, but this is so foolish.

We die (God takes away our soul) and all our riches are left to other people who did not even sweat a little to earn them. But God said unto him, you fool, this night your soul shall be required of you: then whose shall those things be, which you have provided? (Lk 12:20).

Share and give to receive more

God looks at many of us and calls us ‘fools’. We are fools. Yes! we are. We are supposed to know that God is the creator, provider and He owns everything. Employing (giving and sharing) what God blesses us with, empties us up to receive more from Him. When we hold, we miss greater God blessings and end up losing what we are holding.

You have riches saved in banks and all other places the world can provide, but in reality you are losing. The world teaches and tells you and me to save, but we are losing from insecurity, illness, unnecessary bills, discarded, emergencies etc. We are fools.

The more you give and share, the more you empty yourself, the more God blesses and gives you. God does not give you to save or make more, but He gives you to share and give. Through sharing and giving, you are blessing and building other people life’s and this is what God wants when He blesses and enriches you.

Stingy people think they are rich but in reality they are poor, only loosing and no blessings coming their way. God tells you to give, give and give. Do not worry about what you eat, wear, live or if you will get more. He created all, He owns all and He will give you more (Lk 20:22-32).

Laying treasure in heaven

We invest or lay our treasure in heaven by giving and sharing but if we do not give and share, we lay treasures for ourselves. Giving and sharing makes us rich towards God but being stingy, hiolding on, make us rich on earth but poor in heaven. So is he that lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God (Lk 12:21).

What to do when blessed

The best thing to do when God blesses you, is to ask Him, ‘you have blessed me, gave me all this riches, what do you want me to do?’ He will definitely show you what He wants you to do. He will show you investments to make that are eternal. Do not hold or stick to what He has given you, blessed you with, but help, share and give. Giving makes man more heavenly minded than He was before.

You can give and share the riches which God has blessed you with and help in sending His word to the world and for other people like you to hear the word of God through this site: Support. Just share this blog link with thise you care and love dearly. 

Be blessed.

Love God, Live Happiness Now...forever

 Proverbs 13:7

There is one who pretends to be rich, but has nothing; Another pretends to be poor, but has great wealth. 

Notwithstanding whether one acknowledges the presence of The Creator- Sustainer of Life, or not , whoever you think you are right now,  just Remember the LORD Your God …  You might say in your heart, "The power and strength of my hands have made this wealth for me."  But remember that it is the *LORD your God who gives you the power to gain wealth* , in order to confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. If you ever forget the LORD your God and go after other gods to worship and bow down to ...

 ``` **God Gives You POWER To Get Wealth!** ``` 

Do you want to get wealth? Yes? Me, too! Who wouldn’t? The good news is: *God is giving you POWER to get wealth RIGHT NOW!* 

Yep. That’s what He says in His Word.

Here’s the scoop about *power to get wealth:* 

I was praying through the  prayers for financial increase today, and I happened to look up the Hebrew meaning of a word in *Deuteronomy 8:18* . When I did, I flipped out!

Why? Because *Deuteronomy 8:18* says:

“ And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is *He who gives you power to get wealth,* that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.” 

In this Bible verse, the word “power” in Hebrew means “vigor,” “force,” or “capacity” (per Strong’s Concordance). My favorite way to understand this verse is using that word “force,” because its meaning in English shows us exactly what God communicates in other places in the Bible.

A “force” is power that comes from one thing *TO* another thing.

For examples:

•If you’re applying force to open the lid of a jar, the force is coming FROM you TO the jar, and affecting change on the jar lid.

•If you’re applying force to move a sofa, the force is coming FROM you TO the sofa, and YOUR force moves the sofa.

•If you apply force to open the door of the refrigerator, the force moves FROM you TO the door of the refrigerator, opening that door and bringing you new possibilities (new food, drink, etc).

So, force moves from the SOURCE to the recipient. And when that force, or power, flows through the recipient, it creates change therein.

GOD is the SOURCE, and He’s moving the force through YOU.

That’s a lot of capital letters, but you’ve got to get this. This is awesome! God is the source of the power. He’s the source of the force. 🙂 And in His goodness, He has sovereignly decided to move through you to affect change.

And the change He’s affecting? Why, making you wealthy, of course.

His own Word says He gives you power to get wealth. In other words, He flows through you–the power comes from Him; He gives it–and the purpose of *that power is to cause YOU to get wealth.* 

Of course, God has other purposes for His power as well; the main one being making you like Jesus Christ. But we’re not talking about those right now; we’re examining the truths from this verse–Deuteronomy 8:18–and Deuteronomy 8:18 says He gives you power TO GET WEALTH.

Yep, that’s right. God Himself flows through you to kick poverty out the door of your life and bring WEALTH in.* 

Kind of goes along with another verse in the Bible about building and increasing, doesn’t it? Like *Psalm 127:1-2,* which says:

 “ _Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain._ 

 _It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep”_ ( *Psalm 127:1-2* ).

God has to do the work through you, and He does. *And you have to work by the power of God too.* 

You have to cooperate with His power and LET Him flow through you. Power only works if it flows. The FLOW is what creates change in the recipient.

If your power weren’t flowing through the sofa, the sofa wouldn’t move. You’d just get a bruised hand from pushing.

If your power weren’t flowing through the refrigerator door, the door wouldn’t open … and you’d just get bigger 💪🏼 biceps  from pulling on that thing. (And you’d stay really hungry too.)

 *God gives you POWER to get wealth.* 

By doing so, He confirms His covenant which He made with your spiritual ancestors, like Abraham:

•A covenant that you’ll bless and be a blessing.

•A covenant that says that in you all the nations of the earth will be blessed.

•A covenant that says He will make your name great.

And He flows through you to do it!

 *If you’re excited about this Scripture too, pray this with me:* 

“Our Heavenly Father God, in Jesus Christ’ name, thank You for this revelation that You’re showing me out of Your Word today! Father, I see now that You are flowing through me RIGHT NOW, this very minute, to get wealth. You are doing this so You can confirm the covenant You made with my fathers.

So Lord, I present myself to You as a willing vessel today! Flow through me and fill me with Your power! Flow through me to bring me wealth, and help me to use it not only to bless myself, but also to bless all the nations of the earth with the Gospel message! You can do it, Lord, and I thank You that Your Word says You will.

Thank You, Heavenly Father! I rejoice in Your promise today. Help me to cooperate in every way, and do whatever You want to do through me! Thank You, LORD! In Jesus Christ's name I pray, amen.”

 *Does this word resonate in your heart? Does it make your spirit leap with joy and excitement?* 

ABC GOD,

Acknowledging

Believing

Confessing

GOD

OUR

DELIGHT.

 Best advice on money and riches ...

What Would Happen If You Drank Rubbing Alcohol?

LINK, click below

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/05/26/fact-check-alcohol-based-hand-sanitizers-not-spark-car-fires/5247418002/

Let's learn safety first.

Leaving ABHS in your car can make it less effective. Alcohol Based Hand Sanitizer (ABHS).

Storing hand sanitizer in a car for more than a few hours can lead the alcohol to evaporate, which can make it less effective.


“If you want it to remain effective, in terms of killing the virus or bacteria, you wouldn’t want to keep it in your car anyways,” Verzoni said.

Dr. Greg Boyce, Florida Gulf Coast University department of chemistry and physics associate professor, said hand sanitizer should not be kept in a car for more than a few hours during a March 26 interview with ABC.

“If you are running errands and want to keep it in the car, that’s fine,” Boyce said. “But you shouldn’t be leaving it in the car indefinitely.”


 Alcohol is the name given to a group of molecules called
hydrocarbons. *The alcohol present in drinks is ethanol.* These hydrocarbons contain many chemical bonds and in turn a large energy potential. When the the alcohol is lit by a another source of
energy (lighter) the bonds break rapidly releasing energy in the form of heat. Fossil fuels such as petroleum and coal contain hydrocarbons. As a point of interest, internal combustion engines do not efficiently harvest the energy contained in fossil fuels and hence pollute the atmosphere. In a similar comparison our bodies extract energy from similar bonds such as carbohydrates (sugars) and lipids (fats).


 *Rubbing alcohol is flammable because it contains isopropyl alcohol* which is a volatile and flammable organic compound. The fumes of the alcohol will catch on fire if they come into contact with flames.

Drink safely, not all alcohol is suitable for human consumption.

In the 1970s and '80s, parents stuck bright green mad-faced "Mr. Yuk" stickers on poisonous household items—including rubbing alcohol—to warn vulnerable children and adults against consuming or inhaling the toxin. The poison-awareness stickers eventually proved to be ineffective with kids, but the visual is still in many people's minds: rubbing alcohol is a poison.

Individuals with chronic alcohol use disorder, however, probably aren't thinking about those poison awareness stickers. Those struggling with alcoholism or addiction might see that rubbing alcohol has "alcohol" in its title, know that it's cheaper than fermented or distilled ethanol alcohol, it's widely available over-the-counter (and under-the-counter, as many people store it under kitchen and bathroom sinks, particularly when there's no risk of small children accidentally ingesting it), and drinking enough of it can lead to intoxication. The side effects of rubbing alcohol poisoning mirror those of a drunk person, however, it's not even close to being the same alcohol you purchase at liquor stores. This substance is a poison. Drinking just a small amount can result in fatal consequences.

Ingesting or inhaling rubbing alcohol can quickly lead to alcohol poisoning—even death.

There are three types of alcohol classified by chemists: isopropyl, methyl and ethyl alcohol. Most types of rubbing alcohol are made from isopropyl alcohol, with concentrations of 68-99 percent alcohol in water. It's colorless, tastes horrible, smells like fingernail polish remover and can be found in antiseptic hand sanitizers, antifreeze, household cleaners, paint thinner, personal care products and sterilizers commonly used in medical settings (it's nicknamed a "surgical spirit" in the United Kingdom). In order to make this substance unpleasant to drink, isopropyl alcohol is spliced with chemicals in a laboratory to give it a bitter taste.

Methyl alcohol, methanol and wood alcohol—named because it was once produced as a byproduct of the destructive distillation of wood—are all the same type of alcohol. Methyl alcohol is commonly found in paint remover/thinner, carburetor fluid, antifreeze, windshield wiper fluid, octane boosters, copy machines, canned fuels for boats or camp stoves, or—very commonly—converted to formaldehyde. It's colorless, flammable, smells strong and can be absorbed through the eyes, skin, lungs and digestive system. Symptoms of ingesting the substance include difficulty breathing, blurred vision or blindness (formaldehyde can damage optic nerves), low blood pressure, fatigue, and damage to the nervous system, stomach and intestines.

Ethyl alcohol, widely known as ethanol, grain alcohol or drinking alcohol, is found in alcoholic beverages. It's colorless, flammable and—when denatured (think: chemicals added to discourage recreational consumption)—can be used as a fuel additive or topical antiseptic. Ethanol is the scientific name for the intoxicating agent produced when sugar is fermented by yeast. Even though you can drink ethanol when diluted, it's not completely foolproof.

According to the Alcohol Content Database, alcoholic beverages have the following concentration of alcohol:

• Beer: 3-10 percent
• Wine: 8-14 percent
• Fortified wine: 16-22 percent
• Liqueurs: 15-25 percent
• Hard liquor: 40 percent on up

In contrast, store-bought rubbing alcohol is 70 percent isopropyl alcohol, or 140-proof when measured in ethanol terms. It's metabolized differently, causing the body to become overwhelmed by the toxins.

How Dangerous Is It to Consume Rubbing Alcohol?

When it comes to drinking rubbing alcohol, the digestive tract suffers the most, even when only swallowing a small amount. The body metabolizes these extremely high alcohol levels into acetone. If consumed to intoxication, the substance can lead to organ damage. Because it's a central nervous system depressant, side effects can include dizziness, headaches and inebriation. Because it's a gastrointestinal irritant, it can cause nausea, abdominal pain and vomiting blood. In addition, "due to having a higher molecular weight than ethanol, isopropanol, is more intoxicating than ethanol and can produce an altered sensorium, hypotension, hypothermia, and even cardiopulmonary collapse. Hypotension is associated with severe overdose and related to a mortality rate of nearly 45 percent," according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI).

Symptoms of isopropyl alcohol poisoning include:

• Slurred speech
• Stumbling
• Sedation
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Dehydration
• Low blood pressure
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Difficulty breathing/pulmonary swelling (due to the excessive fluid in the lungs, leading to inflammation)
• Severe abdominal pains
• Shock and respiratory failure
• Bleeding in the stomach and intestines
• Internal burning
• Psuedo-renal failure/bladder rupture
• Coma
• Organ damage
• Death

Treatment/management

After being raced to the hospital, the following tests or procedures may be performed:

• Blood and urine tests
• Intubation (breathing tube)
• Chest x-ray
• EKG
• IV fluids
• A tube through the nose, into the stomach, to help pump the stomach/empty contents
• Dialysis for kidney protection

Overdosing on Rubbing Alcohol: Can You Die from Drinking It?

For someone who wants to get drunk as fast as possible, yes, isopropyl alcohol will do the trick. According to the NCBI, "nearly 80 percent is absorbed [into the bloodstream] within 30 minutes of ingestion." The effects kick in rapidly.

Odds are high that the individual won't only get drunk on this dangerously toxic beverage, they'll black out and possibly even die.

According to Livestrong.org, "The approximate lethal dose of 90 to 100 percent isopropanol for human adults is only 250 milliliters, or about 8 ounces." Eight ounces. To put it in perspective: the average shot glass is 1.5 ounces. A can of Coke is 12 ounces. Ingesting only eight ounces of rubbing alcohol can kill you.

If a person drinks even a small amount and has any of the above-mentioned side effects, call 911—medical attention is necessary immediately. Do not induce vomiting. The caustic nature of rubbing alcohol can cause chemical burns to the esophagus. If rubbing alcohol was inhaled, move to fresh air. If the substance is on the skin, flush with water. Before calling 911, know the person's age, weight and condition; name of the product; time it was swallowed and how much was swallowed.

Under no circumstances is rubbing alcohol intended for consumption. It is not a substitute for alcohol, wine or beer. It is toxic. If you suspect someone has isopropyl alcohol poisoning—whether by accident or on purpose (desperation, experimentation)—call 911  
,and the American Association of Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222.

If in Singapore, 
Police 999.

If you know someone considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

If in Singapore, Emergency Ambulance 995.

If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol or other drug addiction, call us at 1-800-831-5700.

In Republic of Singapore, The National Addiction 
Management Services offers advice on all types of  addiction problems. This service is located in Buangkok View and can be contacted on 6389 2387. 

Welcome to Alcoholics Anonymous Singapore

How to Contact Us?
By Phone: +65 8112 8089
By WhatsApp: +65 8112 8089 
By Email: help@singaporeaa.org

Under no circumstances is rubbing alcohol intended for consumption.

The Sky Gets Dark, Slowly

Start Slowly. 

The Sky Gets Dark, Slowly

Mao Dun literary prize winner Zhou Daxin’s latest novel to be published, “The Sky Gets Dark, Slowly”, is a sensitive exploration of old age and the complex, hidden emotional worlds of the elderly in a rapidly aging population.

In it, he writes, “…Many elderly speak as though they know everything, but of old age, they are in fact as ignorant as children. Many elderly are in fact, completely unprepared for what they are to face when it comes to getting old and the road that lays ahead of them.

In the time between a person turning 60 years old, as they begin to age, right until all the lights go out and the sky gets dark, there are some situations to keep in mind, so that you will be prepared for what is to come, and you will not panic.

ONE 
The people by your side will only continue to grow smaller in number. People in your parents’ and grandparents’ generation have largely all left, whilst many your peers will increasingly find it harder to look after themselves, and the younger generations will all be busy with their own lives. Even your wife or husband may depart earlier than you, or than you would expect, and what might then come are days of emptiness. You will have to learn how to live alone and to enjoy and embrace solitude.

TWO.
Society will care less and less for you. No matter how glorious your previous career was or how famous you were, aging will always transform you into a regular old man and an old lady. The spotlight no longer shines on you, and you have to learn to contend with standing quietly in one corner, to admire and appreciate the hubbub and views that come after you, and you must overcome the urge to be envious or grumble.

THREE. 
The road ahead will be rocky and full of precarity. Fractures, cardio-vascular blockages, brain atrophy, cancer… these are all possible guests that could pay you a visit any time, and you would not be able to turn them away. You will have to live with illness and ailments, to view them as friends, even; do not fantasize about stable, quiet days without any trouble in your body. Maintaining a positive mentality and get appropriate, adequate exercise is your duty, and you have to encourage yourself to keep at it consistently.

FOUR. 
Prepare for bed-bound life, a return to the infant state. Our mothers brought us into this world on a bed, and after a journey of twists and turns and a life of struggle, we return to our starting point – the bed – and to the state of having to be looked after by others. The only difference being, where we once had our mothers to care for us, when we prepare to leave, we may not have our kin to look after us. Even if we have kin, their care may never come close to that of your mother’s; you will, more likely than not, be cared for by nursing staff who bear zero relation to you, wearing smiles on their faces all whilst carrying weariness and boredom in their hearts. Lay still and don’t be difficult; remember to be grateful.

FIVE. 
There will be many swindlers and scammers along the way. Many of them know that the elderly have lots of savings, and will endlessly be thinking of ways to cheat them of their money: through scam phone calls, text messages, mail, food and product samples, get-rich-quick schemes, products for longevity or enlightenment… basically, all they want is to get all the money. Beware, and be careful, hold your money close to you. A fool and his money are soon parted, so spend your pennies wisely.


Before the sky gets dark, the last stretches of life’s journey will gradually get dimmer and dimmer; naturally, it will be harder to see the path ahead that you are treading towards, and it will be harder to keep going forward. As such, upon turning 60, it would do us all well to see life for what it is, to cherish what we have, to enjoy life whilst we can, and do not take on society’s troubles or your children’s and grandchildren’s affairs on for yourself. Stay humble, don’t act superior on account of your own age and talk down to others – this will hurt yourself as much as it will hurt others. As we get older, all the better should we be able to understand what respect is and what it counts for. In these later days of your lives, you have to understand what it means, to let go of your attachments, to mentally prepare yourself. The way of nature is the way of life; go with its flow, and live with equanimity.

Adults in the Room

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Yanis Varoufakis, Adults in the Room. My Battle with Europe’s Deep Establishment (London_ The Bodley Head, 2017).pdf

Giorgio Baruchello

 

 Yanis Varoufakis, Adults in the Room. My Battle with Europe’s DeepEstablishment (London: The Bodley Head, 2017)the crisis’ burden got shifted from the private to the public sector, “PIIGS” and “profligate”States became the new target for media-fuelled public anger. Later still, it was the turn of foreign migrants coming from countries that had already been squeezed in previous decadesby unsustainable debt, the IMF’s heavy-handed technical advice, and the dubious wisdom of currency unions (e.g. the French-Franc-tied CFA currencies in Central and Western Africa).In an eerie recurrence of the 1930s, “the deepening crisis would produce a xenophobic,illiberal, anti-Europeanist nationalist” reaction (482). To add scorn to injury, “it is one of history’s cruel ironies that Nazism is rearing its ugly head in Greece” with the electoralsuccess of the ultra-right Golden Dawn party (215). As a scholar and a citizen of Iceland, which despite its geographic isolation and economicpeculiarities (e.g. energy security by geothermal power) experienced a complete financialcollapse immediately after the 2008 credit crunch, Varoufakis’ account of the recent “Greek tragedy” flags out significant differences worth thinking about (49; Iceland’s woes havebeen covered extensively in

 Nordicum-Mediterraneum

, especially issues 6(1), 7(1) and 8(1)).Iceland, after a failed attempt at rescuing its national banks, opted essentially forletting them go bankrupt. Greece and the whole European Union committedthemselves to saving them at any cost, even if it meant letting Greek pensionersstarve, Greek citizens die because of unaffordable healthcare, and Greek homelessnessexplode (i.e. the “humanitarian crisis” denounced by Varoufakis, 37).“[C]apital controls” were reintroduced in Iceland “in the wake of its own financialcollapse in 2008” and kept in place for a decade in order to prevent capital flight andallow the Icelandic State to have a manageable monetary mass whereby to restart andreorganise the national economy (121). The European Union did nothing of the sort,and actually allowed financial speculation between member countries to take place aswell as the continued siphoning of large amounts of money into non-EU countries andtax havens (cf. the recent Panama Papers and Paradise Papers scandals). A new Icelandic government not tainted by collusion with the banking sector cameeventually into power in 2009. Their role was to clean up the mess left by theconservative parties that had always claimed to be the business-savvy ones. The newIcelandic government proved genuinely disposed and overall adept to serve thecommon good, even if it meant conflicting with the IMF or pushing for what RachaelLorna Johnstone and Aðalheiður Ámundadóttir call “progressive regressive measures”,i.e. austerity for the better off so as to pay for the welfare needed by the worse off intimes of dwindling resources (“Defending Economic, Social and Cultural Rights inIceland’s Financial Crisis”,

 

The Yearbook of Polar Law,

3, 2011: 454-77). Syriza’s newand largely untainted government in Greece, under its creditors’ enormous pressure,

 

 Yanis Varoufakis, Adults in the Room. My Battle with Europe’s DeepEstablishment (London: The Bodley Head, 2017)did much less to alter the regressive-regressive measures that the previous twogovernments had already enacted. Varoufakis regrets that his own achievements asfinance minister were, in this respect, meaningful but scarce, given the extent of hiscountry’s gruelling humanitarian crisis (e.g. the prepaid “plastic card[s]” providing forthe needs of the poorest families, 476).Iceland’s currency could be devaluated and was devaluated, first by sheer speculativepressure and then by central bank’s

 fiat

, thus making the nation’s export goods andincoming tourism more attractive. Greece’s Euro, which is also the currency of itschief creditor countries with a very different set of post-2008 problems, could not andwas not devaluated.In Iceland, the new government, the central bank, the trade unions and theindustrialists’ representatives participated in largely cooperative and constructivebehaviour to keep unemployment in check and favour the nation’s recovery. In Greece,not to mention within the EU, bitter divisions affected all interest groups andprevented the same synergy from being firmly established. The pulverising atomism of selfish

 furbizia

trumped comprehensive cooperation: the common good, consequently,agonised.Debt bondage by foreign loan or so-called “rescue packages” became a likely outcomeof the Icelandic crisis too. The international pressure towards this dubious solutionwas noteworthy, as epitomised by Gordon Brown’s Labour government invoking in2008 the UK’s anti-terrorism legislation so as to freeze the assets of all Icelandicnationals and businesses based on British soil. Against all odds, the Icelandic nationrejected debt bondage, i.e. getting loans to repay other loans to repay other loans torepay other loans and so on

ad nauseam

 (French economist Gérard de Bernis used tocall it “the usury model” of State funding: cf. his 1999 essay “Globalization: Historyand Problems“). This refusal occurred

via

two referenda promoted by a president of the republic in search of lost popularity—this long-time president having been too vocal a cheerleader of the banks that, a mere five years after their privatisation, hadbrought the country to its knees. Only one allegedly ‘populist’ centre-right partysupported the rejection of the “Icesave” agreement with the Dutch and Britishgovernments on both occasions (i.e. the Progressive Party), while the self-proclaimed“responsible” parties spoke favourably of it, on either occasion (e.g. the Left-Greens)or even on both occasions (e.g. the Independence Party). In 2015, the people of Greece voted by a sizeable majority against the third bailout agreement that the Syrizagovernment had itself opposed but ended up accepting nonetheless—a U-turn that Varoufakis defines aptly as “the overthrowing of a people” (467). Varoufakis’ new book is most interesting, well-written and, above all, it constitutes a

 

 Yanis Varoufakis, Adults in the Room. My Battle with Europe’s DeepEstablishment (London: The Bodley Head, 2017)political memoir that future scholars, politicians and activists should consult in order to beready for the next major crisis that, sooner or later, will come to pass. On top of that, it is anapology, in at least two senses. First of all, it is a self-defence by a politician who, in thepanic and confusion of the Greek depression, has been accused of all sorts of nasty schemesand treacherous actions, sometimes grotesquely. Secondly, it is a token of self-promotion,for Varoufakis has now a Europeanist party to sponsor, with the aim of making Europeaninstitutions much more democratic and considerably less technocratic. Apologetic partiality aside, there is no doubt that the conversations and the events reportedin Varoufakis’ book did occur as we are told, or at least the vast majority of them, as therobust critical apparatus of the book can help confirm. Any person interested in currentsocio-political affairs should read them and meditate upon the astounding amount of deceitful cynicism, harmful cleverness and obtuse pride that they display. Every attempt atimproving the world’s economic order and political praxes—and Varoufakis’ book spots goodwill, intelligent leadership and responsible policy too, in both Nordic and Mediterraneannations, as well as on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean—is bound to have to face and,hopefully, surmount such obstacles. Varoufakis, on his part, has been trying hard for years,but to no avail.

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