Dimitrios' World

The closure of the public broadcaster, ERT, in Greece and the ensuing debate reflects the reality of the country today where the public space has been so totally politicized by all the political parties, including those in the opposition, and their powerful unions to the point that their collective vested interests have converted the public good that ERT is supposed to represent into one more public enterprise that existed to propagandize in favour of the powers that be and as another vehicle of the patronage system that so effectively was put in place by the political parties representing Greece's representative democracy since the return to democracy in 1974....where patronage equates with providing jobs and political favors to relatives, party diehards and others that needed to be included in order to keep the system and the ensuing vested interests in place....the financial and economic crisis has brought about the biggest challenge to this self perpetuating system as it bei...

The street protests in Greece are raising a big debate about their purpose, their cohesion and their effectiveness. After the initial feeling of elation that comes with a spontaneous expression of discontent with the state of the country and the ineffectiveness of the political system much ado is being made as to whether this largely heterogeneous mass of citizens with very disparate perspectives can actually express a cohesive platform of positions and possibly even evolve into some sort of political movement. Herein the danger. The street protests are meant to mobilise the political elite into taking action but as long as the governing and the main opposition parties are ineffective (or perceived to be ineffective) in leading, the street protests will quickly disintegrate into an unruly mob with an anti West, anti EU, anti IMF, anti anything that is not Greek populist movement. The presence of many Greek flags (a sign that the lines between patriotism and nationalism are...

The feeling of outrage is growing among the professional political elite in Greece. It can be easily understood -- they have been running this country for over 35 years (and some for much more) and now the people they represent or at least a part of them have been taking to the streets to protest! What ires the despondent and indignant politicians is that the people in the squares and streets are not protesting within the organised confines of the unions and political parties that have been formed to allow citizens to vent their anger and to to be co-opted but, how dare they, these new protests have been taking place without the approval of the party machines! Even worse, whenever anyone shows up waiving the symbols of any of our benevolent political formations, they are derided and threatened. As a result of this growing phenomenon, the politicians feel the very core of their existence under threat. If they cannot govern as they have to date with their vested interests, ...