A Citizen’s Guide to Greece 2015
0
comments
Freedom here and now
Posted November 18, 2013 by pdcadmin
By Diego Salas Freedom as natural right is what gives every person the capacity to live life the way they want to. This capacity is subject to numerous restrictions, of course. It has moral restrictions, legal restrictions, and, depending on where we’re located, many others. “Our rights end where the rights of others start,” is […]
comments
Things I could not believe about Greece until I got here
Posted November 18, 2013 by pdcadmin
It is said that people have many reasons for being amazed by Greece. Here are mine! How long people stay at restaurants and cafes. At most places in America you receive your meal and the waiter stands by the table waiting for you to finish. As soon as you complete your meal you are […]
comments
Pedro Olalla: a crisis of citizenship
Posted January 24, 2013 by Politis
Pedro Olalla, Spanish author and Philhellene, was Popi Tsapanidou’s final guest on Thursday’s Tora, discussing his experience living in Athens and his attempts to understand the crisis wracking Greek society. He also introduced his new book, Ελλάδος Ελάσσων Ιστορία, published in 2012 by Papazisi, and offered his thoughts on how his native Spain represents what […]
comments
How geeks are taking over government
Posted June 14, 2013 by Politis
A very matter-of-fact clip in today’s Guardian on how open source technology is helping the British civil servants keep up with their work load — through the creation of “compelling digital services for government.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iahpVvPkCf4
comments
Strategic agility in Greek human resource management
Posted December 12, 2012 by DW
By Konstantinos Bouas and Petros Katsimardos Introduction Human Resource Management policy is probably the most important challenge for Greek public administration, given the severe on-going crisis and the need to sharply reduce public expenditure. The high remuneration cost of Greek public servants (13,6% of GDP in 2009, against only 11% of OECD member countries [1]), […]
comments
Look who’s running! (journalists and politics)
Posted April 23, 2014 by Politis
Politis asked Maria Patsarika, Krysta Kalachani, and David Wisner to comment on a recent article on tvxs.gr by journalist Stelios Koulouglou, a candidate for Syriza for the European Parliament. How compelling are Mr Koulouglou’s arguments likely to be among Greek voters? What does the inclusion of several journalists on the lists of the political parties […]
comments
A dark vein of intolerance
Posted January 13, 2013 by pdcadmin
By Ginger Gibson While continuing to identify as a Republican, former Secretary of State Colin Powell on Sunday criticized the GOP for a series of racist attacks against President Barack Obama. “There’s also a dark vein of intolerance in some parts of the party,” Powell said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “What do I mean by […]
comments
Saying of the day: 2/7/13
Posted February 7, 2013 by Politis
“Poverty is the parent of revolution and crime.” — Aristotle
comments
Life at uni
Posted December 2, 2012 by Politis
There has been a lot of talk of late about the future of higher education in Greece. The public universities might appear to some to be a microcosm of all of Greece, in which things are clearly falling apart. Lo and behold, the news is not all bad, however. As the author of a recent […]
comments
What is public television?
Posted April 26, 2014 by Politis
Politis attended an interesting three-day event in Thessaloniki on the future of public television, organized by Filios Stangos and friends at TV100, Thessaloniki’s municipal TV station. Two interventions caught our attention during the session dedicated to the theme “Economic crisis: the challenges on public television.” “As long as you serve the public interest, you are […]
comments
Of technical competence
Posted February 27, 2013 by Politis
What do politicians do when they are not politicians? Or better yet, what did they do before they became politicians? Two scholars, Mark Hallerberg and Joachim Wehner, asked more or less these questions. They were particularly interested in the circumstances when an electorate would choose technocrats to lead a government. Their findings? “Our analysis of data […]
comments
Vandalism and oppression
Posted March 30, 2014 by Politis
Tasoula Karaiskaki has a commentary out in this past Saturday’s Kathimerini English edition relative to the incidence of graffiti in downtown Thessaloniki, partly celebrating the centenial of the founding of Aris football club. This is a subject that has attracted a lot of commentary in the press and on the social media. Excerpts from the […]
comments
Surprise -This is a Great Time for Public Service!
Posted November 18, 2016 by Politis
By Michael S. Dukakis September 13, 1999 Editor’s note. We present here Michael Dukakis’ inaugural address at the Michael S. Dukakis Chair for Public Policy and Service to close out this phase in the life of Politis. We will be back soon with a new look, a new name, and new material, all in the […]
comments
NGOs and learning the ways of the world
Posted March 30, 2014 by KK
By Krysta This story is a little old already, but I am reading about the Greek ngos. I have two experiences of how ngos and think tanks work in Greece… dyed “blue” or “green” or whatever color pays… not the unbiased work I thought they would be doing, but I guess it was part of […]
comments
Around the town: 14/02/13
Posted February 15, 2013 by laura
This weekly feature offers a glimpse of what is happening in and around Thessaloniki. Compiled by Laura Strieth. Now to Sun March 31st– The Telloglou Art Institute of Thessaloniki- will be exhibiting paintings, sculptures, and carvings from the private collection of the Telloglou family. Location: Telloglio Museum, Agiou Dimitriou 159A. Tues, Thur, Fri 10am-1pm, Wed […]
comments
Citizenship in Greece in questions
Posted February 26, 2012 by pdcadmin
By Despina Ventouri Despite the fact that the concept of citizenship has roots in ancient Greece, one must not confuse this with more modern definitions and forms of citizenship. First, citizenship and democracy were invented in city-states, where it was possible for an elite class of citizens to participate directly to the political process. Second, […]
comments
Aristotle scholars head for Thessaloniki
Posted February 7, 2013 by Politis
Aristotle was, arguably, one of the fathers of the idea of public service. With this in mind Politis brings the following announcement to the attention of its gentle readers. “The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH) on Feb. 13 will host an International Colloquium on Aristotle, featuring a series of lectures presented by researchers specialized in […]
comments
Sinking in our own shit
Posted July 18, 2013 by DW
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 […]
comments
College is over, guys
Posted August 1, 2012 by pdcadmin
By Paschos Mandravelis Most people look back on their college years with nostalgia. Those were carefree and uncomplicated days, but three times a year, the sensation of nonchalance was brutally interrupted. In late May, early September and mid-January, the backgammon board, students’ favorite pastime, would slam shut. Traffic at students hangouts would halt. Students would […]
comments
Saying of the day: 5/26/13
Posted May 26, 2013 by Politis
“Truth is, most of us discover where we are headed when we arrive.” — Bill Watterson