The Greeks are protesting on the streets because they can smell a rat before they even see it. Their instinct tells them that the fine detail of the austerity measures will inevitably lead to incredible hardship, belt tightening and long term debt servitude. Their sovereignty and hence their freedom and future will be greatly restricted.

Moreover they realise that the rescue package is nothing more than a belated attempt by the strong men of Europe and the IMF to save the collective bacon of the other PIIGS rather than to bring Greece back from the edge of the abyss. In fact Greece would have been cut loose had it not been for its potential to contaminate the whole system.