GDP Growth since Euro introduction in 1999 for

France
Germany
Euro area
Italy
Greece


GDP = f(year)

GDP 1999=100

source: Bloomberg

http://i68.tinypic.com/2llyalc.jpg

Apart from their tradition for tax fraud/evasion, does anyone know why the Greek disaster has been so striking? Cause I hear they actually work harder than the French.
Fact is working harder doesn't necessarily mean smarter, far from there.

Italians perform that average only because they often annoyingly show off their oh-so-precious Italian pride so loudly, which is awkward and tiresome in the end. If only all these proud people from the south side, dads and mothers of our civilization could acknowledge that a bit of that new-school northern discipline ain't so bad, we'd all be much better off.

I guess the French are bashing and beating up themselves a bit too hard after all.

Greece had not the industrial base to resist the crisis, they were hugely dependent on foreign investments and overall market confidence, that´s why they benefited so much when they joined the euro but were hit so hard once their fake public financial data came out to light and the world crisis squeezed capital