Long lines of pensioners jostling to get into a limited number of banks opened specially to pay out retirement benefits have become a powerful symbol of the misery facing Greece and the problems mounting for Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. With banks closed down and capital controls imposed to shield the financial system from collapse, the depth of the problems facing the country has become clearer each day. Tsipras’ leftwing government came to power in January vowing to protect pensioners and much of the breakdown in relations with international creditors centered on its refusal to accept the cuts in pensions that the lenders demanded. Mindful of the fact that many older Greeks do not use credit or debit cards and so do not have access to cash machines, it has ordered 1,000 banks to open across the country to pay out a maximum of 120 euros and issue cards. […]