This could be done through a standstill in repayments, extension of maturity, interest-rate cut or, in the most severe cases, the dreaded haircut.Other measures were designed to make this prospect seem even more distant.
For those unable to make the trek through the standstill Lagos traffic, have no fear.
Bus and car traffic was reported at a standstill through much of the hardest-hit areas.
During some episodes the instruments slither around as if in a contrapuntal free-for-all, or break into frenetic busyness, or bring time to a standstill through hazy, hovering chords.
"Before bringing this nation to a standstill through means of a work stoppage or lockout, we encourage the parties to exhaust all means available to them to settle this dispute," Peter J. Hurtgen, director of the mediation service, said.
As a consequence, disgruntled young Bougainvilleans brought the mine to a standstill through acts of sabotage in late 1988.
Many countries have been brought to their knees as the banking system has been brought to a standstill through fear, causing economies to stagnate and governments to indebt themselves in massive ways.
The prospect for a big breakthrough in economic policy seems low if the two parties battle each other to a standstill through the 2012 presidential election.
Cars inch forwards on gridlocked streets, slowing to a standstill to wait through a fifth or sixth light change before joining the queue beyond.
In Iraq, shipments through the Persian Gulf were interrupted for a time on Tuesday after the Iraqi government received warnings of possible attacks, and exports from the country's northern pipeline through Turkey are at a standstill.
