The editors of Kathimerini write in today’s online English edition that “The prime minister knows better than anyone else how difficult the job ahead is, and how many problems he has to deal with… he is making a gigantic effort to hold the country together even though he is dealing with a shattered public administration and […]
By Kevin Featherstone Last week’s dramatic decision to close down Greece’s state broadcaster, ERT answers a question Greece’s political leaders – in and out of government – have lacked the will to confront for a generation. At one level, the move is gesture politics: a sudden, unilateral act intended to impress the Troika (the EU, […]
Peter Economides has a post in praise of Cypriots on his blog. “There is no such thing as a financial crisis. It’s the result of a social crisis, a values crisis, a confidence crisis, a how we feel about ourselves crisis. And I am starting to feel that the current European crisis is a crisis […]
By Claudia Chwalisz Editor’s note: Originally published on policy-network.net as “An Athenian solution to democratic discontent,” February 19, 2015. Reposted by permission of the author. New forms of contact democracy and innovative forums that allow political and economic institutions to deliberate with citizens are important steps in the long-term battle to renew representative democracy for the […]
“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts: therefore, guard accordingly, and take care that you entertain no notions unsuitable to virtue and reasonable nature.” — Marcus Aurelius
By Nikos Konstandaras Groups of left-wing protesters have been fighting to obstruct university reforms which, among other things, will put an end to their lengthy dominance. At the same time, groups of far-right thugs have stepped out of the shadows and can now be heard bragging that the time of their own dominion is coming. […]
By David Wisner The Dukakis Center hosted well-known Greek blogger Kostas Kallergis in April for a talk on lustration as a means of dealing with corruption in Greek politics. Hearkening back to attempts in various countries in Eastern and Southeastern Europe in the 1990s to deal with their former communist past, Kallergis concluded that the […]
By Krysta Kalachani “I hope for nothing, I fear nothing, I am free.” “And what is the highest command? Deny all consolations-gods homelands, ethical, truths – and be left to conjure, with only your power, a world that does not shame you heart … take upon any responsibility…” — Nikos Kazantzakis Sometimes I cannot seem […]
By David Wisner This past Sunday I finally had an opportunity to experience a car-free waterfront. I went down to Leoforos Nikis and sat with some students — young people who were born and raised in Thessaloniki — to enjoy the hush and feel the energy of citadins taking their morning promenade. We got to […]
“Obama is very possibly a world-historical political figure, and until those who oppose him come to grips with this fact, they will get him wrong every time.” — John Podhoretz
By David Wisner Researchers Robert Epstein and Ronald E. Robertson have prepared a paper in which they argue that an Internet search engine, not Google necessarily but “a future Google,” might be able to manipulate search results in such a way as to impact the outcome of an election. “In a controlled experiment,” they write, […]
I recently found myself obliged to spend some time in a public hospital. Aside from the obvious benefits to my health, it was a most revealing experience. Ihave no complaints about my treatment. The rather negative opinion I had formed previously about this particular hospital, based largely on the impression of utter chaos and lack […]
We all know the expression, “Send a letter to your Congressman.” A company in India has just launched a Short Message Service (SMS)-based grievances redress mechanism in India, essentially to do just that. There is no indication yet how frequently citizens will use the service, or how well the system will function.
By David Wisner Here is something I had been thinking a lot about before it happened. We all want action to be taken to avert or resolve a crisis. We all want to believe that we can contribute our small part in the effort to clean up the mess we ourselves may be partly responsible […]
Excerpts from an article by Helena Smith in today’s Guardian about the projected sale of a privately owned chain of islands in the Greek Ionian Sea. “The suitor is one of the world’s wealthiest men; the location happens to be the eurozone’s poorest country. But in an unlikely coming together of economic circumstances, the emir […]
By Mark Lowen, BBC News, Athens It is rare for citizens to try to take their government to court, and even more so for a Western European government to be taken to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. But that is what one group based near the Greek capital is now attempting. And […]
By Krysta Kalachani I was surfing online today, looking to book tickets to see the opera on Tuesday, and I came across this story about unemployed citizens given the opportunity to attend the general rehearsal of Wagner’s “Flying Dutchman” for free yesterday at the Atticus Theater. Good news, right? “In this crisis, at the very least,” […]
From the AP in Davos. “Three women angry over sexism and male domination of the world economy ripped off their shirts and tried to force their way into a gathering of corporate elites in a Swiss resort. Predictably, they failed. The ubiquitous and huge security force policing the World Economic Forum in Davos carried the […]
By Krysta Kalachani Pitsirikos writes for Unfollow Magazine, a pretty decent magazine, although if it was not so leftist sometimes it might be better… Pitsirikos is a blogger known for his sharp way of writing. I am not sure what more there would be to say about the subject of one of his most recent […]
By Krysta Kalachani Very good site! It seems that it will be fully working in a few days, it is very new. Really interesting though. They are trying to bring Corinth’s citizens together, to spot problems in the area and find solutions, or find opportunities worth pursuing, among their goals is to act as mediators […]