The thread through a journalist's coverage of Greece in crisis

In May 2011, while googling around obscure Greek blogs in search of a fresh voice to liven up a story I planned to do on how Greeks were coping with the early days of post-bailout recession, I came across the musings of one Yanis Varoufakis.

I sent him a note:

Dear Professor Varoufakis.

I am a reporter for The New York Times and came across your recent analysis on the Spiegel story on Greece and the eurozone which I found interesting.

Would you like to meet for coffee in Athens?

Of course, came the rapid response. A few days later, there he was in a cafe on Syntagma Square, dressed in leather, motorcycle helmet in hand.

A week later I had my story, lit up with pictures by the great Eirini Vourloumis and a juicy set up quote from you know who.

This form of remedy violates two basic economic principles, according to Yanis Varoufakis, an...