Ideas radicales, hoy en el FT:

I am attracted to Professor Martin Feldstein’s idea (Financial Times, February 17) of a temporary euro exit for Greece followed by re-entry at 20 or 30 per cent below the present level. But if that occurred there might not be a euro to rejoin. So it is a last resort. There is an alternative to try first, which might be called an internal devaluation. When Margaret Thatcher was struggling to wean her colleagues from pay and price controls she at one stage considered a compromise: a temporary wage freeze – in an emergency – after which normal negotiating procedures would be restored. In the case of Greece today it would have to be not just a freeze, but a negotiated reduction in nominal wages. Such a course would cut against Greece’s fiercely independent habits and traditions. But surprises can always occur.

Finally, an offbeat idea which is not an alternative to the others, but can run alongside. Countries in the Middle Ages often operated with two or more currencies: an international one such as the ducat or florin, and local currencies with more restricted use. Could not such a local currency, whether or not called the drachma, emerge in this way with or without the sanction of the Greek government? It would surely be better than being crucified by the international financiers.