Greece on Survivor mode - support your caste.

With the advent of the television reality show Survivor people in Greece have lost interest in politics and found a new distraction. A distraction from what though? Why would anyone prefer watching two teams compete for food in what is probably the most inhumane reality show ever? The answers to these questions and more probably lie in the Greek media culture and its imposed caste system on our culture. Thus the two teams competing on the show are the "famous" vs. the "fighters" (note: titles mention famous players by their first and last names while the not so famous fighters are mentioned by first name only).

In what is a seemingly unrelated event almost a month before Survivor went on the air a spectacular accident caught on camera. Certainly a shocking crash and one that is in regular motion. According to early reports here in Greece the culprit was a tire blow out that sent the Porsche reeling off the highway and into the public toilets. Also there was an attempt to blame the ill design of the toilets, bad highway maintenance, road conditions, anything but the driver. The press would have stuck to their story too if it wasn't for public outrage on the internet. People seemed to think that speed and the driver's negligence had something to do with the accident and were very vocal and abusive towards the press. So after airing the 5 or so seconds of impact consecutively 100 times or more, the idea that excessive speed may have been the culprit surfaced in the news. Reporters were very careful not to lay blame on the driver but did mention that after 100 feet of skidding the car entered the pull off at a speed in excess of 180 km/hour (estimators put it at 280km/h). At this point, a couple hours after the accident happened, they also mentioned the name and identity of the driver. The unlucky man was the young son of the owner of Jumbo, the largest toy store chain in Greece. Media was trying to protect and stay loyal to their biggest advertising customer.

Jumbo's advertising campaign for summer may include this spot complete with a sexy "accident". Yes a little slip of the pillow and maybe some flesh will be exposed. You may think this is a tacky and tasteless ad for a company to run but these are mere details in the face of profits. Going back to the first accident you will notice in the video that there is a car parked at the toilet stalls that is obliterated during the accident. A man exits the toilets to see his vehicle in flames. His family (wife and three year old child) perished at impact. Seems that everything is ok now and we may see an ad with the lighter side of "accident". This is just one more symptom of the apathy that is growing amongst some circles in our little country. It is also what happens when you allow the press to play the role of a moral guide and advisor. Like mixing Brahmins with Pariahs all consideration for the truth and morality is lost in an attempt to guide and manhandle public opinion.

Listening to the news on private television one gets the impression that Greece has slipped into third world status. Looking at the numbers on ELSTAT, the official Greek statistic service, things are bleak but have leveled off and are now improving. Unemployment is still hovering above 20% and poverty is also at the same high level. Child poverty for the month of March, according to the news, is touching 45%. Greece is very much a country in crisis. The new year has brought in more taxes and most households are now bankrupt, the country has been bankrupt since 2010. Officially we are in bailout mode but the reality is we are in Survivor mode. Eight long years of this fake economic crisis have left us penniless (centless) and senseless. Antonyms for famous include: common, contemptible, inferior, ineffective, regular, obscure, normal, insignificant, weak, stupid, unimportant, unimpressive, usual, unremarkable, little, powerless, and bad. The famous are members of the tv culture whereas the fighters, their antithesis, are picked from amongst all of us, the supposed antonym of famous. I think the show will end up proving the opposite; it is the common man or woman that shines like a diamond. It is the "upper" caste that is the true Pariah. Calling yourself "famous" doesn't make you better.


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Imagine Obama.

Imagine if Obama had been as aggressive on delivering his promises as Trump is. Imagine him passing executive orders one after the other to challenge the rotten, ineffective and unfair system that had evolved. Certainly no man can live up to all his promises but to fail and fall this short of the mark is rare indeed.
 

Just take a look at lobby groups. Obama was the first president to be elected without relying on them for funding. Does anyone even remember that now that Trump is the second to be self and crowd funded. No five dollar button here, anyone can express their support to Trump at anytime in large amounts and without the trouble of hiring a lobbyist. Imagine if Obama had rid Capitol Hill of all these special interest groups who enjoy such close ranks with power. Imagine him giving glowing speeches about Republicans who wrap themselves in the flag while burning down their own country. "Fake patriotism" he'd call it and then would tear through their ugly party history.

Imagine a decree or executive order suspending the operating licence of any hospital that turns away patients that are in labor or bleeding to death. Wow, that would be better than "obamacare", with a name like that nobody else will support it. Canada is so close by; he should have used that example. He needed to give direction on medicare as humanitarian and totally necessary.

Imagine an executive order suspending entire police stations while investigating trigger happy cops who shoot unarmed minors, or break their backs, or kill them with their bare hands. For any number of violent cop crimes that are now investigated under the watchful eyes of the local chief of police. Cooperation it is called.

Imagine the Arab Spring having been seen as the opportunity to democratize and bring the Arab world up to date. A chance for Muslims to truly blossom and develop worldwide. Instead it has been seen as an opportunity to rape and divide further the Arab world. There is no denying that the ongoing wars in all the former Soviet aligned Arab nations is anything less than the neoliberal achievement of Clinton and Merkel. Just follow the money and weapons trail to the Saudis and back. Almost forgot, follow the cheap ISIS crude trail to German interests as well.

The democrats are going to pick really loud politicians to lead the "fight" against Trump but I mostly suspect that it is a wall of smoke. Backroom deals, old boys and golden boys clubs, business as usual, that is the order of the day. How else will Democrats, politicians that is, preserve the butter on their bread? Don't despair though; we may still see a woman in the White House.

An Indian in Greece.

Greek is a funny language at times. Certainly it is rich, ancient, colourful, accurate to the human condition. I should think it will become the official language of the EU now that BREXIT is slothly taking shape. I digress, it is the use of the word Indian in the Greek language I want to discuss. Ινδιάνος, indianos, is used for native American Indians as opposed to Ινδός, Hindi or East Indian, for the people of India. Greek is like that. You can spend a lifetime tryng to figure out what something means in English and in Greek it is crystal clear. Probably the reason most medical and scientific words have Greek roots. So it is very clear to a Greek what an Ινδιάνος, native American Indian, is. As with other words in a language this one too has taken on an extra meaning, to describe those things that remind us Greeks of American Imdians.

The Honda 250 Enduro from the 70's, especialy the red ones, and later on all 650 enduros of any manufacturer where considered "Indian" bikes. To any owner of an Indian motorcycle this may sound odd but I will explain some of the reasons. One is the logo Honda used that resembled the wing of a bird, possibly an eagle, something reminiscent of native headdress. The sense of freedom and the ability to go anywhere as well as its resemblance to a horse all these things earned these bikes the honorary title of "Indian". A Honda screaming up Patission avenue doing a wheely while the driver shifts through all the gears, what could be more Indian than that?

Certainly a motorcycle revving and standing on its rear tire only is reminiscent of an Indian charging on his stallion. Indianos many time refers to the underdog, to the man taking on a task against impossible odds, to the brave and rightous.

 Tomorow, December 6th, is St. Nicolaos day, patron saint of the navy and protector of all sailors. It is also the day that the US law enforcement units at Standing Rock are to remove all protesters. I believe that the Sioux have every right to defend their lands, their water, their burial grounds and their future. An uneven fight, a huge corporation backed by the entire dirty political and financial elite taken on by a handful of natives and misfits, can't get more "Indianos" than that. Pray with me that there will be a peaceful resolution at Standing Rock, that the people will bring the nescessary change, that St. Nicolaos will intervene for the sake of Natives and their water. Let us stand with Standing Rock.

Now I am not sure how Obama's official visit to Athens could be called Indian. Maybe it is that one hour long speech he gave at the Niarchos foundation. It is so refreshing to hear a US President talk about the need for inclusive democracy and so on. Certainly a man that has taken on a tough job and up against impossible odds. His visit to Greece a message to the world about the values of Democracy and solidarity with refugees. Many references where made by the President to the brave people of Lesvos and other Greek islands who jumped into the waters of the Aegean in order to help refugees trying to cross over from Turkey. To my neighbour, a sweet little old lady on her way to water her fields, and to many other Greeks I talked to his visit signifies something else. Behind the glowing words a new arms deal and an impending war in the Aegean. I hope the elders are wrong.
Let us also sign a petition to put an end to another dirty deal. The EU Turkey refugee exchange scam. For every Syrian Greece deports to Turkey a Syrian will enter Europe directly from Turkey. The agreement puts power in the wrong hands. The hands of Erdogan. Please copy the link to learn more and sign if you like.
https://www.change.org/p/european-union-save-shabbir-and-stopthedeal-between-the-eu-and-turkey?recruiter=376568872&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink

Trumpence, a definition.

Having been overpowered and beaten by nothing or by something of little or no value.

     America has lost to a candidate that plans to make her great again through isolationism, rascism, xenophobia, protectionism and elitism. Values that are nowhere to be found in the constitution or in the conscience of Americans. They are values that appeal to those that have been cheated out of their position in society, that have had their future stolen from them as the middle class shrinks. They are also values that appeal to those that remain a part of the shrinking middle class but feel threatened as their values are not mentioned anywhere. Values that go against the very grain of the American constitution that was laid down in respect of the basic human rights of the individual. Prolifers, bigots, closet gays, misogynists, overachieving immigrants, the NRA, misanthropes and religious zealots alike all embrace the rhetoric of hate and even hate itself. Values adopted by a portion of the elite that sees a clear opportunity to rule with fear, the old fashioned way. No need for an evil empire or terrorism now, fear of your neighbour is much more convenient for the system.

     Trumpence overcame the much more experienced and "liberal" Clinton. Hillary managed to alienate her grass roots support by usurping the Democratic Party nomination from Bernie Sanders with the extensive use of superdelegates in a manner that encroaches on election fraud. Certainly undermined the spirit of the primaries and to make things worse assumed she would be the next president. Many times she would use the expression "when I take office", or "under my presidency". She dismissed Trump as inappropriate and thought the election was in the bag. There is a high price for arrogance and the Democrats are paying it. Stepping all over basic protocol and running a smear campaign of their own with all the media and Hollywood to back them. Also a legacy of  mistakes (Benghazi), interventions (Syria, Libya), scandals (Podesta emails), lies (intolerance of Wikileaks) and a general war mongering killhappy personna does not earn one the progressive vote. It did earn her the "crooked Hillary" title that Trumpence gave her although Killary might have been even more apropriate.

     The big loser of this election however is overseas. It is frau Merkel that not only lost a close friend and ally but has had all her plans of domination foiled. No longer can Germany continue its austerity experiment in the rest of Europe while relying on its trade with the USA to take up the slack. Her plans for the middle East and the Ukraine have been dashed along with the development of further escalation in the Baltic states. No chance of an open conflict with Russia now as Trump and Putin will probably sit at the table and hammer out a new world order. One that may well not include the imminent wars that Merkel and Clinton were so intent upon. If Trump can manage to de-escalate tensions on the global chessboard, if he can end ISIS with Russian help while excluding Turkey from the conflict in Syria, stop NATO drones from flying over Russian airspace in the Baltics, recognize the need for the Russian anexation of Crimea, control or limit Ukraine's involvement in NATO, and generally limit US intervention then he will be a better diplomat than a businessman. He will have also offered a greater service to humanity than any damage his eristic language may have brought at home. In fact I believe his eristic language may well bring many problems that continue to persist back into public view and discussion. Not a bad thing if the American people finally start some navel gazing and self critiscism instead of always telling the rest of the world how they are so much better, blessed and #1.
     The EU is doing damage control over this election result. They are not very good at it. The "end of history" is no more and the "brave new world" of bankers and lawyers is lost. I am at the least amused and at times pleased to see the suits in Brussels issuing statements about "democratic values" and so on. It is funny when little miss May (PM) from Britain while congratulating Trump makes a statement about US-British relations how they, (EU technocrats), in a panic point out that there is no special status there. Jealous, fearful, their comfort zone in the midst of a hurricane, the ground under their feet at 8+ richter the European bureacratic class is once more exposed as the bunch of self serving clowns they realy are. Merkel and the European gang of anti-democratic henchmen offer personal freedoms and individual rights in trade for their elitist control of everything. Watching the German satellite channel today I heard the biggest joke of all time, the notion that Germany will have to take the place of the USA as world guarantor of stability and freedom. Boy those Germans.
     Here in Greece, as in other countries, the extreme right considers Trump to be their champion. Both Golden Dawm and the New Right hurried to congratulate him as did Le Pen in France and the fascists of Hungary and Austria. I am not sure if they can be called fascists yet but they are certainly bigots, xenophobes and fascist wannabees. Trump's response to the show of support from this political spectrum around the world will be an indicator of his intent. Will he be a great leader or will he stick with that which has defined him, bully tactics and mistreatment of the weak. His record so far, as would most peoples, falls short of the mark. May the wisdom of his years overcome his rashness and egocentric behaviour as Donald finaly finds a cause greater than himself he can selflessly serve, albeit his posthumous fame, which may fulfill his need to serve both his ego and humanity at large. At least he is not hindered by political ties, "experience" or party politics and obligations. I await to see a presidency at least as great as Obama' in the knowledge that as Obama failed Trump may fail as well and see none of his great plans materialize.
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My heart is Berning.

The symbols plus(+) and minus(-), the two poles of a battery, the anode, and the cathode, there is no circuit without these. Light and shadow, how could there be photography without this contrast, how would even our very vision work? Try turning down the contrast on your TV or monitor to zero and see (or not see) what happens. The very nature of life itself, the yin and the yang, is founded on the duality of the sexes, male and female. So how can it be that American politics got so watered down by vested interests, hidden agendas, lobby groups and the top 1% that it is nearly impossible to seperate the GOP from the DNC? Acronyms do not mean much if their content can't be distinguished. That is why today, at five am local time, I was so happy to see a standing ovation for Bernie Sanders and an exhilerated, emotional audience. His speech was honest and straightforward, his expressions simple and communicative. "I think it is fair to say that nobody is more disappointed by this outcome than I" his comment on Hillary's candidacy. Support with terms, how will he enforce them I do not know. In every case it is Bernie that is setting the progressive agenda in America, not Hillary. It is Bernie who is the light to Trump's darkness. It is Sanders that seeks to contain Wall street and the top echelons of society. He is the one who talks about politics in simple terms. His speech focuses on greed, hate, compassion, generosity, the human condition. How can he endorse a war monger I don't know. I think it is time to take the risk and become the third party, the other pole, the only opposition to the rising power of the oligarchy. Can Sanders do it? Unfortunately it seems not!

Err do gun - Ergo done

Erdogan solidifies his power. Who would attempt to overthrow the government on a Friday night in a city of two continents and two bridges? It is summer and people need to get home and then along comes a military imposed curfew. Like a twilight zone episode tanks blocking traffic and helicopters flying overhead. Typically enacted in the wee hours of a Sunday or Wednesday morning before people leave their residence this must be the most ill planned coup in history. It is difficult to impose a curfew when everyone is trying to get home. Then, like a twilight zone episode, whilst the TV is playing announcements from the coup leaders messages start appearing on peoples phones urging them to disobey and resist, to take to the streets and stop this coup de tat. Cell phones still up and running? Some shots are fired and a few people, including some soldiers, are killed. Arrests follow, the beating of coup leaders, one is missing an ear, and on camera confessions. Nothing coerced here. Certainly the most amateur, ill-planned, coup attempt in modern history. Nothing even comes close. Followed up by the most meticulous well-planned response ever! 6500 arrests in the first 48 hours and 65000 detentions before week's end, including everyone from judges to teachers, the press and intellectuals. Amazing, a world record for sure. Martial law, the concentration of all executive powers to the president, a three month state of emergency and an ongoing discussion in parliament of the return of the death penalty. Turkey has withdrawn from the European Human Rights Commission, all this and not even a week has passed. With German engineering precision Erdogan has become the most powerful leader of Turkey since Kemal, or Suleiman, depending on your perspective. So bravo then Erdogan on a job well done, the leaders of the west and east will be envious of your endeavours!

The EU Bremains the same...

Someone has rung the division bell and its sound ripples across the continent. We are in for a pickle with the leaders we have in the world today. So out of touch with reality, divorced from the people and absolutely unaware of everyday problems. The elite have been padding their butts and protecting their comforts for years now. Will the results of this plebiscite shake them up abit? Not! Just look at the response of the "stuffed men" of Europe to the results of the referendum. Tusk, Junker, and the merry men calling for a "quick divorce" and the enactment of article 30 "as soon as possible". Emotional responses from leaders of the EU. Now that the vote is in they meet without UK representation even though the results have not been voted on or ratified in any parliament of the UK.

As for the “hollow men” there is not much to be said of the politicians of Britain. For years the top position in Europe have been occupied by everyone but the British. Let us be fair though, remember the Bremain campaign? Neither do I. Good people who wanted to argue in favor of the European project, of unity, of a better future for all, simply abandoned by a self serving system. Immature and childish leaders on both sides deciding the fate of the world. What is becoming abundantly clear is that in Europe only the Germans ever had a plan.

Funny how every time I sit down to write this blog I draw a blank. The moment I get up ideas storm my brain. So many things are wrapped up in this one plebiscite. Again I draw a blank as though it was a vote held prematurely, as though 2017 should have been the date. Why the rush tough? What forces in Europe have pushed the British to abandon? Seems everywhere in Europe today right wing extremists want to deconstruct Europe. Is there a profit to be made in her dismantlement? Why is Europe being run by bureaucrats? What is the role of the European Parliament? Does it pass legislation of any kind? Can it change the structure of the EU? Brexit brings questions. Like a Pandora's box once opened and out come self doubt, lack of identity, fracturization...The evils of a failing Union. Our European elite have again raised their ugly head in multiple proclamation of a quick and easy divorce.