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How the world sees Greece
Thursday, December 5, 2013
In Greece, 3.8m people at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2012
Greece now in 4th place in Eurostat's poverty or social exclusion tables, after Bulgaria (49.3%),...
Samaras’ Waffling Let Golden Dawn Rise Unchecked
Torn between his hatred for Nazis and the need to lure right-wing voters from the extremist Golden Dawn party to his New Democracy Conservatives, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras vacillated before taking action against them until it was too late to stop their rise in popularity, a scathing report in the Wall Street Journal claims. […]
The post Samaras’ Waffling Let Golden Dawn Rise Unchecked appeared first on The National Herald.
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Greece Sets Jan. 1 EU Presidency Agenda: Jobs, Immigration Tops
With beleaguered Greece set to assume the symbolic rotating six-month European Union Presidency on Jan. 1 as it struggles with its lingering economic woes, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said he will try to make it worthwhile and said that it will be one of “opportunities, not a presidency of crisis.” Samaras said the key priorities […]
The post Greece Sets Jan. 1 EU Presidency Agenda: Jobs, Immigration Tops appeared first on The National Herald.
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The Plight of Greece’s Unpaid Workers
With Members of Parliament not missing a paycheck or a perk, a million Greeks are going unpaid or paid weeks, months, or years later, forcing many to struggle to survive, including unpaid workers on ferry boats who say they have to make the ships their homes. The BBC reported their plight and showed how dire […]
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A Great Coin Collection in Athens: The Numismatic Museum
The city of Athens is home to a selection of interesting cultural centers including a number of museums and art galleries, which, aside from the famous Acropolis, are a must-see for visitors. Established in 1834, the Numismatic Museum of Athens is one of Greece’s oldest museums. Today, it is housed in the Iliou Melathron building […]
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Jobless Greeks Re-Connect Shut Power
The tragedy of an unemployed Serbian mother who lost her 13-year-old daughter to carbon monoxide when they had to turn to using a makeshift brazier for heating because their power was turned off shocked many Greeks, and others without work are using underground electricians to unlawfully re-connect their disconnected electricity. Bloomberg reported that there’s widespread […]
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Stournaras Presses For Foreclosures
ATHENS – Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras said even if no deal is reached with international lenders over whether to lift a ban on foreclosures that the government should go ahead with it and let banks start confiscating primary residences next year. Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, the New Democracy Conservative leader, is trying to […]
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Family escapes burning apartment in Thessaloniki
Four people managed to escape unharmed after their apartment in the Kordelio suburb of Thessaloniki, in northern Greece, went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday.
The fire is believed to have been caused by candles that had been left unattended. T... ...
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Anti-terror squad searches homes of Golden Dawn MPs
Members of Greece's anti-terrorism squad on Thursday searched the homes of three Golden Dawn deputies, local media report.
The three ultranationalist MPs – Stathis Boukouras, Giorgos Germenis, Panayiotis Iliopoulos – face charges for participating and man... ...
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Up to 270,000 workers receive less than 500 euros per month, data shows
Up to 270,000 workers in Greece are receiving monthly salaries of less than 500 euros, Labor Minister Yiannis Vroutsis said Thursday.
Vroutsis was quoting figures from the ministry's Ergani database, which records hirings and firings.
According to the sam... ...
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Greece sees return to financial markets next year
Greece will start borrowing on financial markets again in the second half of 2014, the country's deputy Finance Minister Christos Staikouras has said.
“There are strong signs that people's sacrifices have started to yield fruit,” Staikouras said Thursday ... ...
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Psomiadis convicted for match-fixing
A court in Greece has convicted a 58-year-old businessman on match-fixing charges, two years after his soccer club Kavala was expelled from professional leagues.
The court on Thursday sentenced former nightclub owner and newspaper publisher Makis Psomiadi... ...
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Greek Battle Royale Over Foreclosures
A number of lawmakers from New Democracy have said they won’t go along with allowing foreclosures on the homes of people who can’t afford to pay their mortgages because of big pay cuts, tax hikes and slashed pensions implemented by the ...
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Greek ferro-nickel producer Larco starts battle to privatise
The privatisation of Greek ferro-nickel producer Larco General Mining & Metallurgical Co is proceeding in the face of a good deal of market scepticism about the move. The company, however, remains optimistic it will attract multiple interested ...
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Unemployed Greeks Reconnect as Underground Electricians Defy Law
BloombergUnemployed Greeks Reconnect as Underground Electricians Defy LawBloombergLike thousands of other Greeks, Ioannidis had his power disconnected because he couldn't pay his bills. He owes 2,700 euros ($3,668) and can't make even the 150 euro monthly payments he negotiated with the power company. When his electricity was cut ...and more »
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Body of British sailor found floating in the Adriatic three weeks after his boat was discovered 280 miles away off the Greek coast
Mark Bamford, 67, from Hinckley, Leicestershire, had been missing since the start of October when he failed to rendezvous with partner Amanda Morgan in Syracuse, Sicily.
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Greek focused hedge fund up 107 per cent in its first year
Hedge fund manager Dromeus Capital Group’s Greek focused fund – Dromeus Greek Advantage Fund – has delivered investors net returns of 107 per cent in its first 12 months. The fund, which was launched when there was still widespread ...
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Greece: Football boss convicted for match-fixing
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - A court in Greece has convicted a 58-year-old businessman on match-fixing charges, two years after his football club Kavala was expelled from professional leagues. The court on Thursday sentenced former nightclub owner and ...
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Greece to issue own debt after June: official
Bailed-out Greece intends to return to borrow more normally on financial markets after June, deputy finance minister Christos Staikouras said on Thursday. "The government is already planning financial techniques that will help Greece return to markets in ...
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With three investigations, Greek chapters back in spotlight for hazing
With three investigations, Greek chapters back in spotlight for hazingGW Hatchet (subscription)The University has investigated at least three chapters for hazing since August, and one is facing formal charges from its national organization. The allegations come after a semester-long effort by Greek leaders and student life officials to educate ...and more »
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Greek police raid homes of extreme right-wing Golden Dawn party lawmakers
Greek police have raided the homes of three lawmakers from the extreme right-wing Golden Dawn party, days before they are to appear in court on charges of participating in a criminal organization.
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Greece: growth in online exposure will see tourism rise 20%
(ANSAmed) - ATHENS, DECEMBER 5 - The increase of online business and information regarding tourism in Greece to the levels of the country's European Union peers should lead to the creation of over 100,000 jobs, a 3% increase in the country's gross domestic ...
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Brussels: Meeting Samaras – Barroso
According to the Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, the Greek European Union presidency would be one of “opportunities, not a presidency of crisis.” The priorities of the Greek presidency are job creation, monetary union, the fight against illegal immigration and Europe’s maritime policy. A joint conference with the President of the European Commission Jose Manuel […]
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FT: The Greek Government Defies Troika
For the first time, The Financial Times noticed a shift in Greece’s stance against troika since the beginning of the rescue program. Greece appeared tougher after submitting the 2014 budget without the approval of the lenders and “has become a source of increasing worry and frustration for EU officials.” According to the article published in […]
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Merchant Marine Academy of Macedonia at a Stalemate
The Merchant Marine Academy of Macedonia, Greece, has reached an operational stalemate. The facilities that are right now accommodating about a thousand students and who will in the future become bridge machinery officers in the merchant marine, are showing static problems that haven’t been repaired for years. The laboratories filled with expensive equipment are abandoned […]
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Malmström Visits Greece to Address Immigration Issues
On Tuesday, the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmström, met with Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and the Minister of Public Order, Nikos Dendias, focusing on the immigration issue in Greece. In particular, they presented Malmström with Greece’s revised system for processing the asylum claims of immigrants and monitoring migration flows. Dendias said the government […]
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942 Illegal Immigrants Deported
The Hellenic Police announced that in November 2013, 942 foreigners returned to their countries of origin. Out of these people, 322 were returned to their countries with the help of the Hellenic Police Aliens Directorate of Attica. Most of the illegal immigrants were deported to Albania, China, Pakistan, Algeria, Romania, Nigeria, Georgia and Iraq. Return […]
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From Battles On the Football Pitch to Battling for Life
Giorgos Karaiskos, a Greek expat and former professional footballer, is struggling to stay alive as he faces a major health problem. Giorgos Karaiskos was born in Budapest on the 10th of August 1954 and came from Hungary to Greece in the 70’s when he was transferred to Ethnikos F.C. The highlight of his great career […]
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Greek PM has defended 2014's budget
Washington PostGreek PM has defended 2014's budgeteuronewsAfter almost three months of negotiations between the troika and the greek government an agreement for the tranche of 1 bn euros and the next of 4,9 bn euros was impossible. However, Antonis Samaras from Brussels said he is optimistic – explained our ...EU, Greek Leaders Predict Deal to Release Aid Payouts by Jan. 1BloombergSamaras in Brussels: Greek EU presidency one of opportunity, not crisisKathimeriniGreek strikes build as austerity talks stalledWashington Postall 41 news articles »
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Healthcare crisis threatens Greece
The country has had to adopt harsh austerity measures, including the laying off of large numbers of government employees. Data provided by charity ... banks are in a shaky position, and pensions and salaries have been slashed by up to 40 percent.
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Amanda Seyfried Has The Hair Of A Mythological Greek Goddess
Amanda Seyfried Has The Hair Of A Mythological Greek GoddessHuffington PostIf we could click our heels and get one beauty wish, it would probably be to get Amanda Seyfried's hair on our own heads. (Sounds creepy, but we're being dead serious.) It's luscious and shiny, thick but not frizzy and always bounces in just the right way.
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Greek women add luncheon and vendors to bake sale
MERRILLVILLE | St. Helen’s Philoptochos Ladies Society of SS. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral will host its 11th annual Christmas Bake Sale from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday and 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday at the Hellenic Cultural ...
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Eat & Run: Greek influence obvious at Falmouth House of Pizza
And many of the pizzas have a Greek flair. The specialty pizzas are especially creative. The Acropolis has marinated and grilled chicken breast, broccoli, fresh garlic and breaded eggplant. The Peleponnesian vegetable has broccoli, spinach, artichoke ...
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Annual Greek Sing takes place tonight in Eisenhower
Aside from four scheduled rehearsals with the Greek Sing Executive Committee, triads hold weekly practices on their own throughout the semester in order to learn songs and choreography ... 865-1828. Follow her on Twitter at @gmsanto3.
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Greece Struggles to Outlaw Its Golden Dawn Fascist Party
That night at 3 a.m., a gang approached a house occupied by Egyptian fishermen. "Come out and let us show you what Golden Dawn means," one man shouted, according to Egyptian brothers Ahmed and Saad Abou Hamed, occupants of the house who have ...
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Witness The Brutality And Awe Of Greek Mythology In Apotheon
Indie StatikWitness The Brutality And Awe Of Greek Mythology In ApotheonIndie StatikA lientrap Games made one of my favorite 2D action games of recent years; it's called Capsized. I loved it for how it gave you a set of tools with which to make your way across the hostile alien environments. You had so many options right from the very ...and more »
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Greece's million unpaid workers
Greece's million unpaid workersBBC NewsThe employees of the Penelope are some of the one million private sector workers in Greece who go unpaid. The Labour Institute of the Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE) found this week that one in every two companies was not paying its staff on time.
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Greek Shipowner Enters a "New Era" with Eco-Bulker Orders
Greek shipping company Euroseas Ltd. [NASDAQ:ESEA] (Euroseas) has entered a "new era," ordering two eco-design Ultramax drybulk vessels, its chairman and CEO, Aristides Pittas, said in a statement. "This deal underlines our continued commitment to the ...
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Greece still gripped by cold snap
No major disruptions have been reported in flights, but rural roads in mountainous areas in northern Greece, the Peloponnese peninsula and Crete Island require snow chains and a dozen remote villages have been cut off. The thermometer has dropped to minus ...
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Can Portugal survive without financial support or is it another Greece?
FirstpostCan Portugal survive without financial support or is it another Greece?FirstpostLisbon, Portugal: Portugal wants to look like Ireland, but it can't disguise its resemblance to Greece. Inspectors from Portugal's bailout creditors arrive in Lisbon on Wednesday for a regular check of the country's fiscal health and its compliance ...and more »
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Pope Francis calls for prayer for dozen nuns kidnapped in Syria
MAALOULA, Syria, Dec. 4 (UPI) -- Pope Francis Wednesday called on everyone to pray for the release of a dozen nuns forcibly removed from a Greek Orthodox monastery in Syria.
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Greek Now Ellinika tora 1+1
A successful method for an easy training on the Greek as a second language, with dialogues and texts in a living language such as it is used in the every day life. It covers levels 1, 2 and 3. The first part is dedicated at the basic structure of the ...
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Historic Boston Greek cathedral celebrates 110th anniversary
Katherine Karagianis, a 95 year-old grandmother, woke up on a recent Sunday true to a habit that lasts for 80 years. Many things have changed in her life and in Boston over the passage of the last decades, but as Karagiannis recounts, she never stopped to ...
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Notes: Move is Greek to O-line; Pollak responds off bench; Zeitler rehabs; Tez ...
Notes: Move is Greek to O-line; Pollak responds off bench; Zeitler rehabs; Tez ...Bengals.comNotes: Move is Greek to O-line; Pollak responds off bench; Zeitler rehabs; Tez, Whit limited. Posted 3 hours ago. Geoff Hobson Editor Bengals.com Follow Me Blog. a; a. The key man in the potential Bengals offensive line shuffle could be guard Mike Pollak.and more »
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Trio found guilty in Greece triple homicide
Trio found guilty in Greece triple homicideRochester Democrat and ChronicleAfter two months of testimony from 65 witnesses, a federal jury needed only three hours Wednesday to find three men guilty of a March 2010 triple slaying in Greece. The jury found Andrew Wright, Aston Johnson and Richard Emanuel Anderson guilty of the ...and more »
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Greece's Comeback Year
Greece's Comeback YearHuffington PostWhile headlines from Greece tend to focus on economic and political uncertainty, a positive trend has been largely overlooked: tourism in the Hellenic Republic is booming. According to Greek Minister of Tourism Olga Kefalogianni, 2013 has proven to be ...More people visiting GreeceOpodoall 2 news articles »
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Hagia Sophia Mosque? Turkish Leaders Call For Conversion Of Istanbul Landmark, Alarming Religious Minorities
ISTANBUL (RNS) In this ancient city, there are few sights more iconic than the dome of the Hagia Sophia, towering over the old city for more than 1,400 years.
But recent conversions of former Byzantine-era churches from museums into mosques, encouraged by religious and political leaders, have caused alarm among religious minorities and Turkey’s Christian neighbors.
“We currently stand next to the Hagia Sophia Mosque,” Turkey’s deputy prime minister, Bulent Arinc, remarked last month during a dedication of a museum of Caucasus carpets and rugs in the Hagia Sophia complex. “We are looking at a sad Hagia Sophia but hopefully we will see it smiling again soon.”
Arinc, also a senior Cabinet minister from the ruling Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party, mentioned two recent conversions of smaller Byzantine-era museums — in Trabzon in the northeast and Iznik near Istanbul — that have become working mosques.
The speech was just the latest call for the building to be converted into a mosque after a sermon in October by the imam of the neighboring Sultan Ahmet mosque. He told worshippers a conversion must take place, echoing a campaign launched by the far-right National Turkish Student Association.
Reaction from the Greek Foreign Ministry to the Arinc speech was swift, calling the speech “an insult to the religious sensibilities of millions of Christians and actions that are anachronistic and incomprehensible from a state that declares it wants to participate as a full member in the European Union.”
“If it is to reopen as a house of worship, then it should open as a Christian church,” the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew — the Archbishop of Constantinople — told Turkish newspaper Milliyet in February, saying that the Hagia Sophia had served as a Christian church for hundreds of years before Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453.
“It was built as a church and not a mosque,” he added.
The Hagia Sophia has been standing since 360, when the first church was constructed soon after the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity. Two more churches were built on the same site in 415 and in 532.
The Ottoman conquerors refurbished the building into a mosque in 1453. It became a museum after a decree by the founder of Turkey’s secular republic, Kemal Mustafa Ataturk, in 1935.
Some critics say the spate of conversions of Byzantine-era Christian houses of worship from museums to mosques reflects the government’s payback against Turkey’s former secular military elite, which has historically jailed leaders of religious parties and staged coups against elected governments.
“It is mostly a challenge to the secular rulers of Turkish republic,” said Engin Akyurek, a professor of Byzantine art at Istanbul University.
The government “re-converts church-mosques which were used as museums during the republican era so it is related to the domestic politics,” he said.
Still, despite concerns, the conversions continue.
In recent weeks it was announced that the Monastery of Stoudios — the largest Byzantine-era monastery in Istanbul — would be converted into a mosque next year. Part of the former monastery complex became a mosque in the 15th century but fell into disrepair, and after being gutted by two fires, it was abandoned in 1920.
Historians say this will destroy one of Istanbul’s earliest Byzantine monuments.
“To use this building for some function, a mosque or anything else, would mean to reconstruct almost 80 percent of the building,” said Akyurek. “So, it will not be a fifth-century building anymore. It will be a catastrophe for that building.”
With provincial elections slated for March — and expected to be a crucial test of the government’s decade-long rule — some see the museum-to-mosque conversions as a way for the Justice and Development Party to shore up its religiously conservative base, especially in the face of large protests earlier this year challenging its conservative policies, such as a tightening of the sale of alcohol.
Still, others are wary that the party’s political strategy to court religious voters will do irreparable damage to the country’s cultural and religious monuments and antagonize other religions.
“Supporting the reopening of Hagia Sophia has become the litmus test of the true believer,” said Professor Robert Ousterhout, director of the Center for Ancient Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. “Protests by the academic community have fallen on deaf ears.”
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Europe's Way to Destruction (?)
Having recently had a most interesting interview with the European Commission's president, José Manuel Barroso, I realized how much Europe struggles to tackle contradictory interests and views in a unified framework of solidarity among European members' states. What I noticed then was that the word "solidarity" was mentioned several times by Barroso while we were sitting across from each other. He seemed determined to give no excuse to countries, like Germany, which are not utterly devoted to the efforts of keeping Europe a common union. A common union in which rules are not imposed by the one who is politically and economically in charge. However, Barroso avoided referring to the real problem that Europe has been facing for a long time, making people throughout the european continent feel very frustrated.
The current image of the Troika-led Europe, managed by Brussels-based bureaucrats with no constant accountability to people, has nothing to do with the real goals and priorities of Europe when it was founded more than half a century ago. Every day the quality standards of living for millions of Europeans is affected today by hard austerity policies which are not defined by the respective national governments but are imposed by few non-elected and well-paid bureaucrats in Brussels. During the period of time I was working there as a foreign correspondent, I realized that what is called "European family" is actually just a "clique" consisted of employees enjoying special privileges and doing a lot to broaden the gap that exists between the European institutions and people.
I was taken by surprise last year when I was walking over the European Commission building and I saw there a lot of its employees be on strike and protest against cuts on their wages paid by the European budget. Pay close attention to this oxymoron: the European Commission employees refuse to accept reduction in their salaries when at the same time their institution introduces austerity policies for public and private sector employees in many European countries in the name of "competitiveness."
Europe is suffering not only by a lack of democracy in the way of its internal function, but also by a lack of morality. It is immoral for the European Union to be working under blackmail and ultimatums to member states, as we have seen this happening in Greece and in other countries which are under a bailout program. It is unethical from the European Union economic policy issues to be managed by some appointed technocrats in "Troika," who are behaving like local dictators in the countries replacing the role of elected national governments. Greece is an example since the so-called Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and the New Democracy-PASOK governmental alliance do not actually rule the country, as the Troika is that which takes the decisions. Ιt is immoral the European Union to divide its member states between economically strong and weak, between superior and inferior countries.
I went to Brussels as a pro-European, but I left much more euro-skeptic than I have ever been. If Europe wants to stop its dismantling, it should start from scratch. But I have my reservations whether there is time for that or Europe's way toward its self-destruction is simply irreversible.
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Big taste at Little Greek
There is a tendency among foodies, this reviewer included, to dismiss chain restaurants with disdain. This feeling is not without some merit, stemming from countless greasy and cheese-soaked meals at lowest-common denominator restaurants like Chili's or ...
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