I understand that this will have an immediately negative effect on the Greek economy, but he Euro has, to the chagrin of a lot of pro EU Europeans, done lot of damage not just to certain EU economies, but to the very culture of several countries.

When I went to Spain last Summer, I expected a place with cheaper goods for tourists and affordable prices, as they have a weaker economy than a lot of places in Europe. Their economy was visibly much less established than the rest of the EU, and was relatively poor, but everything was expensive. It also seemed the the Spanish people were trying to continue with their simpler lives while fighting to adjust to the Euro. What had once been an affordable vacation spot, was now an overpriced, marginally third world country.

Before the Euro, Spain's culture had adjusted to their own standard of living, and despite being called lazy, had adjusted to their own cultural ways. There's nothing wrong with this, but a place like Spain is easier going, more relaxed and less economically relevant than other EU states like France or Germany.

Greece, like Spain, made a huge mistake in joining the EU. Greece has sold off most of its airlines and food companies, just to compete. The Euro has also killed a huge swathe of its tourism industry and has made it an undesirable place to visit, due to everything being ten times more expensive than when the Drachma was their currency. I avoided Greece altogether, due to the outrageous expenses it would incur. To be honest, I don't even know if Greece can recover, after having sold everything off.

I like the idea of the EU and the convenience of travel it offered, but the reality is that it needs to collapse.