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How the world sees Greece
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Mount Athos through the eyes of Two Muslims
Two Muslims from Turkey, journalist Ertuğrul Özkök and architect Ali Esad Göksel, decided to visit the Holy Mountain or Mount Athos in Northern Greece, called Agio Oros. Ertuğrul Özkök and Ali Esad Göksel describe their experience with a lot of details and reveal information about the everyday life of Mount Athos. What made their visit unique was their nationality and religion. The Ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomew, granted them permission to enter the “Garden of the Virgin Mary” and to spend three days in its monasteries. When they returned to Turkey, they wrote an article, published at the Turkish newspaper, Hurriyet, describing their stay. According to the article, it had been a dream for both of them to visit Mount Athos. They were well aware that they would be isolated for three days there and that they would experience the ascetic life of monks. They were impressed even from the very beginning of their journey, when they were approaching Agio Oros by boat and they admired the picturesque landscape. They were warmly welcomed by the monks, who offered them a glass of raki and a meal. Their first meal included potatoes with eggs, olives, bread, tomato salad and orange for dessert. At half past six in the evening, everyone returned to their chambers and the monastery went to sleep. “Life in the monastery ends early in the evening but starts very early in the morning. We had to wake up at 3am every morning,” reported the journalist.
New benefit to support poorest of Greek households
New benefit to support poorest of Greek householdsKathimeriniAs of September, Greek authorities will be obliged to implement a program to support poor households with a small benefit, according to the bailout agreement. Deputy Labor Minister Vassilis Kegeroglou explained on Wednesday that the recipients will be ...
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.ekathimerini.com |
Does Greece Hate Tom Cruise? An Investigation
Does Greece Hate Tom Cruise? An InvestigationScreenCrushMy first problem: I didn't really know if there was a such thing as a “Greece chat room.” I mean, is there a such thing as a “United States chat room”? Anyway, the answer is there are, in fact, Greece chat rooms — and, not surprisingly, most of the ...
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT screencrush.com |
The Finance Case Of The Decade Will Come Before The Supreme Court Tomorrow
In the name of $1.7 billion, a group of hedge funds has followed Argentina from Ghanaian ports, to Belgian bank accounts, and even into space.
On Thursday, the group will make the final stop on its odyssey: the front door of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Argentina is asking the Court to hear this peculiar case, which stretches back more than a decade, when the hedge fund group first bought debt as Argentina teetered on the brink of financial ruin. The Court will likely make a decision favoring the country or the hedge funds before its session is over at the end of the month.
The group or Argentine bondholders, headed by Elliott Management's Paul Singer, want to be paid 100 cents on the dollar. In response, the Argentine government has called the holdouts "vultures", vowed never to pay them what they're asking, and put on a show of political theater Tony-winning proportions.
Judge Thomas Griesa, of the Second Circuit Court in New York, decided back in November of 2012 that the holdouts were right. "...The fact is that the amount owed to plaintiffs by Argentina is the accelerated principal plus accrued interest," he wrote. "Argentina owes this and owes it now."
Unwilling to cede, Argentina has appealed to the highest court in the United States, again pleading that favoring the holdouts is a violation of its deal with all bondholders. According to its contract, it says, it cannot negotiate the terms of its bond prospectus until the end of 2014, regardless of what the holdouts feel they're entitled to.
So Argentina will not pay now. In fact it believes it cannot pay now, if it is to honor its contract with bondholders who did restructure — exchange bondholders. And it may not pay, ever: In May, a memo between the country and its lawyers leaked. It outlined a plan to avoid paying the holdouts even if the Supreme Court maintain Griesa's ruling.
This kind of intransigence has come with consequences. Despite making inroads paying collapse-era debts to organizations like the Paris Club and making nice with nemesis the International Monetary Fund, this fiasco with the holdouts is still locking Argentina out of international markets. The city of Buenos Aires canceled a bond issue last month as interest rates on the bonds were too high. Argentina's Central Bank reserves are at its lowest point since the last crisis — around $28 billion.
The country thus needs cash now. But as long as Paul Singer is chasing it around the world, it will not have it.
So in the meantime, the holdouts do not get their money, and Argentina's assets are chased all over the world.
You can see how this got ugly.
The Boat
Most people started paying attention to this case in the fall of 2012. That's when the hedge fund holdouts pulled off a spectacle the likes of which Wall Street had never seen. Argentina's naval vessel, La Fragata Libertad, was sitting in a harbor in Ghana. In what was, for all intents and purposes, a total pirate move, the holdouts managed to get a Ghanaian Court to impound it for them as collateral.
For months the ship and its crew sat while the International Maritime Court of the Sea deliberated the issue. In Argentina, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was spitting fire.
And that fire stayed burning.
Almost a year later, in August of 2013, after having to fly commercial to avoid the holdouts impounding her plane, after appealing to courts that the holdouts should not be able to discover where the country's assets were kept outside the United States, she still invoked anger over La Fragata Libertad in one of her most epic speeches ever.
"When we had the issue with our the La Libertad, we held on, and we didn't give an inch to the vultures. When others said, 'pay the vultures to recuperate La Libertad'... to recuperate it with dishonor? Never. And as an Argentine, and the commander of the armed forces, we could only get it back with honor. And for that, Argentines, we must understand that there is a lot at stake."
Meanwhile, in New York...
Argentina appealed to Judge Griesa's Second Circuit, arguing that the court was setting a dangerous precedent for international bond markets. If anyone could just hold out and sue instead of restructuring their debt, why would anyone ever restructure again?
But again, Argentina lost. In rejecting this appeal, the Judge was even more brutal.
"...the proposal submitted by Argentina ignored the outstanding bonds and proposed an entirely new set of substitute bonds. In sum, no productive proposals have been forthcoming. To the contrary... counsel for Argentina told the panel that it “would not voluntarily obey” the district court’s injunctions, even if those injunctions were upheld by this Court. Moreover, Argentina’s officials have publicly and repeatedly announced their intention to defy any rulings of this Court and the district court with which they disagree...
What the consequences predicted by Argentina have in common is that they are speculative, hyperbolic and almost entirely of the Republic’s own making...
The Financial Times' editorial page even joined the chorus — "Ms Fernández has spent too long behaving like a sulky adolescent. It is time to grow up," it wrote.
But there are those who agree with Argentina. While most bond agreements now come with Collective Action Clauses (CACs) that compel all bondholders to restructure if the majority of them do, there are agreements that slip through the cracks.
According to economist Nouriel Roubini, one of those agreements is in Greece. He says that CACs don't go far enough there because they need aggregation clauses — clauses that would apply terms accepted by a majority of creditors across an entire series of debt (think: Argentine bond 1 and then the new reissued bonds). Greece's financial crisis era debt was issued in a number of different jurisdictions, and Roubini believes that makes it vulnerable to a lawsuit like this one.
The International Monetary Fund, while unwilling to file a formal brief on the issue, has said that it "remains deeply concerned about the broad systemic implications that the lower court decision could have for the debt restructuring process in general."
Forks near the end of the road
The only move left for Argentina was to go to the Supreme Court with a two pronged attack — one arguing that the holdouts had to stop chasing Argentine assets around the world, the other asking the Supreme Court to hear its case. Both should be decided by the time the Court ends it session at the end of the month.
If the Supreme Court decides to hear Argentina's case, the country at the very least have bought itself time until 2015, when its bond prospectus says it can negotiate with the holdouts. In this case, Cristina Fernandez will probably go on an epic shopping spree.
Most likely, though, the Supreme Court will ask for advice and call for an opinion from the Solicitor General. The Solicitor General has sided with Argentina in the past, but given its leaked memo and continued intransigence, who knows what could happen this time around. This could still be good for the country though, because again, this could buy it more time.
But then there's this: "The worst thing that could happen for exchange bond holders is that the Supreme Court says there's no federal case, no issues, no US government opinion and lifts the stay on payment," says Federico Zaldua an Argentina-based trader on Itau BBA's Latin America bond desk.
In that case, Argentina will find itself either in violation of its prospectus, or in violation of a U.S. Judge's ruling. Think of it like an explosion going off.
"If this happens many questions will be raised," said Zaldua, "but what I'm sure of is that prices will go down very sharply in the beginning and then go up. If the worst case scenario happens I'm buying Argentina bonds."
Zaldua says he'll buy because, while there will be chaos in the immediate aftermath of the decision, eventually Argentina will be forced to negotiate with the holdouts. Being forced to negotiate isn't a violation of its prospectus — but it has to be forced.
Or maybe it won't negotiate at all.
Argentina could — against all rationality — maintain that it will not pay "the vultures." Cristina Fernadez will make some epic speeches, and the few Argentine's left with the stomach for this will be mollified. The country will remain a pariah of international markets, unable to replenish its coffers through bond sales.
"Of course, the disaster window is always open in Argentina," said Zaldua.
All the government has to do is climb through it.
Join the conversation about this story »
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.businessinsider.com |
Advance, F. Greek Development break ground on warehouse in Woodbridge
Advance, F. Greek Development break ground on warehouse in WoodbridgeNJBIZ(Advance Realty). Advance Realty and F. Greek Development have broken ground on a new 190,000-square-foot industrial facility in Woodbridge, where Preferred Freezer Services will operate one of its newest refrigerated warehouses in less than a year.
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Schaeuble: Don’t Expect Greece to Change Policy After Cabinet Reshuffle
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble expressed confidence Wednesday that Greece will continue with its reform path following a cabinet reshuffle, and assured Athens that Berlin is willing to provide additional aid if needed. “The change in the Greek finance ministry position doesn’t mean there will be a change in policy,” said Schaeuble following a meeting with former Greek finance minister Yannis Stournaras, who was nominated earlier this week to become the country’s next central bank governor. Schaeuble lauded Greece ‘s reform efforts and said the country has so far met all requirements for receiving previous multi-billion-euro aid packages from international creditors. “We are willing to think about further measures if conditions…have been met,” Schaeuble said in response to a question about a third aid package following the previous two bailout packages worth a combined EUR240 billion ($326 billion). Stournaras said Greece still has a funding gap, but he is optimistic it will be able to plug this without external aid. He warned that one big problem is the liquidity shortage that plagues many southern European countries, including Greece. “There have been positive steps undertaken by the ECB over the past days which give support to banks and companies,” Stournaras said. (source: Dow Jones)
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Iraqi city of Mosul falls to insurgents
Source: www.wjla.com - Wednesday, June 11, 2014 ATHENS, Greece (AP) - The fall of the major northern Iraqi city of Mosul to insurgents must push the country's leaders to work together and deal with the "mortal threat" facing Iraq, the country's foreign minister said Wednesday. Speaking on the sidelines of an Athens meeting of European Union and Arab League foreign ministers, Hoshyar Zebari said he had assured his colleagues there would be "closer cooperation" between Baghdad and the Kurdistan regional government to push the insurgents out of Mosul. Most of the city was seized Tuesday in a major assault by al-Qaida-inspired militants known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, who took control of government buildings and pushed out security forces as thousands of residents fled. Zebari said it was "dramatic" for a large city like Mosul to fall and the security forces to be overrun, but added he was confident Iraqi security forces, along with Kurdish forces, would be able to push back the insurgents. Speaking to a small number of reporters, he said he had assured his colleagues that there "would be a closer cooperation between Baghdad and the Kurdistan regional government to work together and try to flush out these foreign fighters." Zebari, who is from Mosul himself, said there was no time to waste. "You cannot leave these people to stay there, to entrench themselves for a long time. So there has to be really a quick response to what has happened," he said. The foreign mAll Related | More on Mosul
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Jurgen Klinsmann Is The 10th-Highest-Paid Coach At The World Cup
When it comes to the salaries of the coaches at the World Cup, there is a huge disparity between the highest-paid and those at the bottom of the list.
Jurgen Klinsmann of the United States is the tenth highest-paid coach in the tournament, making $2.6 million per year according to data collected by the UK Daily Mail. But that pales in comparison to Fabio Capello, who is making $11.2 million leading the Russian team.
Here is the salary for every coach at the World Cup:
Fabio Capello, Russia — $11,235,210 Roy Hodgson, England — $5,874,570 Cesare Prandelli, Italy — $4,322,010 Luiz Felipe Scolari, Brazil — $3,973,730 Ottmar Hitzfeld, Switzerland — $3,745,130 Joachim Löw, Germany — $3,602,460 Vicente del Bosque, Spain — $3,386,270 Louis van Gaal, Netherlands — $2,738,060 Alberto Zaccheroni, Japan — $2,727,480 Jurgen Klinsmann, United States — $2,621,740 Didier Deschamps, France — $2,161,000 Paulo Bento, Portugal — $2,160,170 Carlos Queiroz, Iran — $2,098,060 Jorge Sampaoli, Chile — $1,774,960 Jose Pekerman, Colombia — $1,678,450 Ange Postecoglou, Australia — $1,395,300 Óscar Tabárez, Uruguay — $1,258,840 Sabri Lamouchi, Ivory Coast — $1,037,450 Vahid Halilhodžić, Algeria — $1,007,070 Marc Wilmots, Belgium — $864,400 Fernando Santos, Greece — $864,400 Alejandro Sabella, Argentina — $818,240 Hong Myung-bo, South Korea — $795,250 Luis Fernando Suárez, Honduras — $629,420 Reinaldo Rueda, Ecuador — $566,480 Jorge Luis Pinto, Costa Rica — $440,590 Volke Finke, Cameroon — $394,440 Stephen Keshi, Nigeria — $392,420 Safet Susic, Bosnia and Herzegovina — $352,470 Niko Kovac, Croatia — $271,740 James Kwesi Appiah, Ghana — $251,770 Miguel Herrera, Mexico — $209,810Of course, salaries mean different things in different countries. Here is a look at how much each coach makes compared to the average salary in that country via SportingIntelligence.com.
While Russia's Fabio Capello is still near the top, making 763 times as much as the average Russian, that is actually second to Sabri Lamouchi, who makes 795 times as much as the average person in the Ivory Coast.
Join the conversation about this story »
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Grace Mykonos Offers Boutique Greek Fashion Label
This summer, the boutique at Grace Mykonos will exclusively host contemporary Greek fashion label Zeus + Δione, making the luxury hotel the ultimate stylish stop-off for guests and visitors to the vibrant Greek island. Zeus + Δione founders, Mareva ...
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German Spiegel Praises Greek Prosecutors
The German magazine, Der Spiegel made a tribute to the Greek female prosecutors Popi Papandreou, Eleni Raikou and Euterpe Goutzamanis for their services. Popi Papandreou is the right hand of the 52 year-old Eleni Raikou, the Chief Prosecutor for Corruption ...
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Greek Australians Honored on Queen’s Birthday
During Australia’s public holiday to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s birthday on June 9, nine Greek Australians out of 800 Australians, were honored for their contribution to the community. The greatest distinction, Dame, was bestowed to the Governor of ...
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Chinese Premier to Visit Britain and Greece
Breitbart News NetworkChinese Premier to Visit Britain and GreeceBreitbart News NetworkBEIJING, China - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will pay official visits to Britain and Greece from next Monday to Saturday, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said. Li, who is to attend an annual meeting with his British counterpart David Cameron ...Premier Li's Europe Trip to Deepen Win-win CooperationCRIENGLISH.comLi eyes closer economic ties on Europe tripecnsall 65 news articles »
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Bitcoin Digital Currency Comes to Greece
Bitcoins are now available in Greece. The first Greek Bitcoin trader, the first platform exclusively for Greeks, is now open. The platform is named btcgreece.com and it is a place where one can buy, sell or even transfer Bitcoins to other users. Bitcoins can be used to purchase products and services from all over the world. Btcgreece.com explains that Bitcoins is the first form of digital currency that offers many advantages compared to all other forms of currencies we are familiar with. This emerging digital currency has no physical form and functions with few regulations. Transferring Bitcoins from one user to another is done with no bank interference and transactions can take place even in remote areas. Their cost is minimum while security is maximum. Moreover, these transactions can be completed within one minute.
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Four Young Greeks and a Great Business Idea
A few years back, a group of four friends from Greece came up with an innovative business idea. Following the motto, “even though there’s no money this isn’t an excuse to stop ideas from becoming a reality, the only obstacle is laziness,” — the four pals decided to implement their new business idea in the tourism industry and offer something different that had not been previously seen before in Greece and especially Athens. Andreas, Antonis, Vassilis and Barnabas were unemployed when they started considering various business possibilities. One of their ideas was to rent apartments for short periods of time so that people could opt to stay there instead of booking a hotel. This is how their project, “Live in Athens” was born and implemented. At the moment, they have fixed up and prepared four apartments which are available for rent. According to the four men, many people, especially young people, newlyweds, families and groups of friends prefer to spend their vacation in a cozy apartment rather than a small hotel room. What makes their offer particularly attractive to customers, is that the young men form a more personal relationship with their customers, compared to the impersonal interactions of big businesses such as hotels. They don’t just offer the apartment key to their guests. Their services go far beyond that. The four young businessmen play the role of tour guide for their customers, giving them ideas about what places to visit, where to eat and of course where they can go to have a little fun.
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Miss World Linor Abargil Spoke Up About Being Raped, Now Everyone Can See Her Bravery
Filmmakers Cecilia Peck and Inbal B. Lessner set out on a journey to tell the story of a young woman who was the victim of a horrific rape crime. That woman, Linor Abargil chose to speak up, take a stand, help others and turn her experience into a positive. Brave Miss World, now streaming on Netflix, and in consideration in multiple Emmy categories, became so much more than just one woman's journey and aims to gather an international community with the strength to rise up and say "NO" to rape. They hope that all survivors of sexual assault -- and their friends and families -- will use the film's website as a place to connect find resources for support. If victims are encouraged to speak out and seek help, the silence will end. Together we can change the global dialogue regarding sexual assault.
We met former Miss World Linor Abargil at a coffee shop in West Hollywood in 2008. She had come from Israel to talk about a film on the subject of rape. As a young beauty queen, she had been abducted, stabbed and raped in Milan, Italy, and she had been able to convict the serial rapist. She wanted to tell her story, hoping that it might help other survivors. She was determined to transform herself from being the victim of a horrific crime, into someone who could encourage others to speak out.
During her reign as Miss World, Linor had to testify against the rapist in a difficult, public trial. When the guilty verdict came in, Linor turned to a news camera in the courtroom and said to all the women in Israel that if she could do it, they could too. If something had happened to them, not to be afraid to report. The calls to rape crisis centers rose dramatically that year, and Israel passed legislation protecting the rights of rape victims. Now, 10 years later, Linor was launching a website for other survivors, and was ready to speak publicly again. She wanted to document her journey to see if she could bring about global change. She seemed empowered but still haunted, a kind of wounded hero.
Linor could be any of us. Every day in every city, it happens to someone. Her story is the story of every survivor. The trauma doesn't go away, but you can pick up the pieces and move forward, with the right support. Linor was able to see justice done, but you can't help but wonder: Would she have been able to convict the rapist if it wasn't for the Miss World crown, and the public interest in her case?
We didn't know the film would take five years, or that it would take us to South Africa, Europe, Israel, and college campuses in the United States. A big part of our financing fell out early on, and we had to piece together the funds for every shoot. We were joined by phenomenal EP's: Regina Kullik Scully, Geralyn Dreyfous, Lati Grobman, Irv Bauman, Orna Raiz. We received grants from the Artemis Rising Foundation and the Kroll Documentary Fund. The Women In Film Finishing Fund enabled us to complete the film. Later on, the Fledgling Fund, the Roy A. Hunt Foundation, the Embrey Foundation and the Marc Rich Foundation all provided outreach support.
Things got very challenging along the way. Telling her story and listening to the plight of so many women, men, girls and boys was bringing up Linor's own trauma. She began to experience PTSD, and her hard-fought stability was suddenly in real jeopardy when she learned that her rapist was up for parole. She shut down filming and took a long break. But six months later she came back, determined to carry on. Linor's fight to keep the rapist in prison, while helping other survivors speak up, became the narrative of Brave Miss World. Weaving the diverse voices of those survivors into the narrative was the most challenging editorial balancing act. They act as a Greek chorus, whose stories reflect and comment on Linor's journey.
Brave Miss World premiered at AFI Docs in Washington, and we were invited with Linor to meet Lynn Rosenthal, the President's Advisor on Violence Against Women, at the White House. We've since screened at over 50 college campuses through our #IAmBrave Educational Screening Series. Campus safety is a primary concern of Linor's, who was 18 when she was raped. In the film, a brave Princeton student speaks up about being discouraged from reporting her assault. At UCSB, Linor meets the victim of a very controversial case of rape -- the first time her voice has been heard publicly.
Our screenings give college students a safe space to discuss issues of awareness, prevention, intervention, and reporting. We're hearing from across the country that students do not feel safe at their schools. Mandatory appropriate training for those responding to reports of rape is essential. The first words a survivor hears are so important -- they need to feel support and reassurance that resources are available. We're very encouraged by the recent White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault, and by the work being done by our colleagues Annie E. Clark, Andrea Pino, and the other brave students around the country who have mobilized to hold university administrations accountable.
Awareness of the pandemic of rape is growing, and it's time to shed light on rape crimes. Linor's decision to speak out coincides with a global urgency for more attention to the lack of access to justice for many victims of rape. The outcry in Mumbai, the spotlight on rape in the U.S. military, and the high-profile cases on our college campuses reflect the institutional sanctioning of rape, and underscore the need for more attention to this issue in films, news media, and by law enforcement worldwide.
We set out to follow one woman's story, which led to other stories, and horrors, occurring on our college campuses and around the world. As mothers, daughters, fathers and sons watch Brave Miss World, we hope they follow the path of Linor's outspoken advocacy, and we believe that the film will impact the way colleges, police departments, justice systems, and families around the world respond to reports of rape and assault.
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.huffingtonpost.com |
Miss World Linor Abargil Spoke Up About Being Raped, Now Everyone Can See Her Bravery
Filmmakers Cecilia Peck and Inbal B. Lessner set out on a journey to tell the story of a young woman who was the victim of a horrific rape crime. That woman, Linor Abargil chose to speak up, take a stand, help others and turn her experience into a positive. Brave Miss World, now streaming on Netflix, and in consideration in multiple Emmy categories, became so much more than just one woman's journey and aims to gather an international community with the strength to rise up and say "NO" to rape. They hope that all survivors of sexual assault -- and their friends and families -- will use the film's website as a place to connect find resources for support. If victims are encouraged to speak out and seek help, the silence will end. Together we can change the global dialogue regarding sexual assault.
We met former Miss World Linor Abargil at a coffee shop in West Hollywood in 2008. She had come from Israel to talk about a film on the subject of rape. As a young beauty queen, she had been abducted, stabbed and raped in Milan, Italy, and she had been able to convict the serial rapist. She wanted to tell her story, hoping that it might help other survivors. She was determined to transform herself from being the victim of a horrific crime, into someone who could encourage others to speak out.
During her reign as Miss World, Linor had to testify against the rapist in a difficult, public trial. When the guilty verdict came in, Linor turned to a news camera in the courtroom and said to all the women in Israel that if she could do it, they could too. If something had happened to them, not to be afraid to report. The calls to rape crisis centers rose dramatically that year, and Israel passed legislation protecting the rights of rape victims. Now, 10 years later, Linor was launching a website for other survivors, and was ready to speak publicly again. She wanted to document her journey to see if she could bring about global change. She seemed empowered but still haunted, a kind of wounded hero.
Linor could be any of us. Every day in every city, it happens to someone. Her story is the story of every survivor. The trauma doesn't go away, but you can pick up the pieces and move forward, with the right support. Linor was able to see justice done, but you can't help but wonder: Would she have been able to convict the rapist if it wasn't for the Miss World crown, and the public interest in her case?
We didn't know the film would take five years, or that it would take us to South Africa, Europe, Israel, and college campuses in the United States. A big part of our financing fell out early on, and we had to piece together the funds for every shoot. We were joined by phenomenal EP's: Regina Kullik Scully, Geralyn Dreyfous, Lati Grobman, Irv Bauman, Orna Raiz. We received grants from the Artemis Rising Foundation and the Kroll Documentary Fund. The Women In Film Finishing Fund enabled us to complete the film. Later on, the Fledgling Fund, the Roy A. Hunt Foundation, the Embrey Foundation and the Marc Rich Foundation all provided outreach support.
Things got very challenging along the way. Telling her story and listening to the plight of so many women, men, girls and boys was bringing up Linor's own trauma. She began to experience PTSD, and her hard-fought stability was suddenly in real jeopardy when she learned that her rapist was up for parole. She shut down filming and took a long break. But six months later she came back, determined to carry on. Linor's fight to keep the rapist in prison, while helping other survivors speak up, became the narrative of Brave Miss World. Weaving the diverse voices of those survivors into the narrative was the most challenging editorial balancing act. They act as a Greek chorus, whose stories reflect and comment on Linor's journey.
Brave Miss World premiered at AFI Docs in Washington, and we were invited with Linor to meet Lynn Rosenthal, the President's Advisor on Violence Against Women, at the White House. We've since screened at over 50 college campuses through our #IAmBrave Educational Screening Series. Campus safety is a primary concern of Linor's, who was 18 when she was raped. In the film, a brave Princeton student speaks up about being discouraged from reporting her assault. At UCSB, Linor meets the victim of a very controversial case of rape -- the first time her voice has been heard publicly.
Our screenings give college students a safe space to discuss issues of awareness, prevention, intervention, and reporting. We're hearing from across the country that students do not feel safe at their schools. Mandatory appropriate training for those responding to reports of rape is essential. The first words a survivor hears are so important -- they need to feel support and reassurance that resources are available. We're very encouraged by the recent White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault, and by the work being done by our colleagues Annie E. Clark, Andrea Pino, and the other brave students around the country who have mobilized to hold university administrations accountable.
Awareness of the pandemic of rape is growing, and it's time to shed light on rape crimes. Linor's decision to speak out coincides with a global urgency for more attention to the lack of access to justice for many victims of rape. The outcry in Mumbai, the spotlight on rape in the U.S. military, and the high-profile cases on our college campuses reflect the institutional sanctioning of rape, and underscore the need for more attention to this issue in films, news media, and by law enforcement worldwide.
We set out to follow one woman's story, which led to other stories, and horrors, occurring on our college campuses and around the world. As mothers, daughters, fathers and sons watch Brave Miss World, we hope they follow the path of Linor's outspoken advocacy, and we believe that the film will impact the way colleges, police departments, justice systems, and families around the world respond to reports of rape and assault.
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.huffingtonpost.com |
Golden Dawn MP Jailed Pending Trial
Greek prosecutors ordered the detention of Golden Dawn lawmakerNikos Kouzilos, until a trial he and party leaders face on charges of running a criminal gang.
The post Golden Dawn MP Jailed Pending Trial appeared first on The National Herald.
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Schinias Beach – Shhh, it’s a Secret!
There are not many places in Greece where you can enjoy a walk in a forest and a stroll on a beach, but most Athenians know of such a place, even though it has been called “a best-kept secret.” It is Schinias Beach, near Marathon, about 45 kilometers from Athens on the east coast of […]
The post Schinias Beach – Shhh, it’s a Secret! appeared first on The National Herald.
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Festival at St. Connie’s in Brooklyn
BRROKLYN – Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Cathedral of Brooklyn held its 37th Greek festival last week. The celebration of Hellenism and community “brought tasty homemade food and pastries and generous helpings of traditional dance and music, as well as carnival rides, to Downtown,” wrote the Brooklyn Paper, which noted that the operation was “like […]
The post Festival at St. Connie’s in Brooklyn appeared first on The National Herald.
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Greece Called Racist Over ADL Poll
A Member of Parliament for the British Conservative Party, Louise Mensch, launched a tirade against Greece on Twitter, labeling the country "racist".
The post Greece Called Racist Over ADL Poll appeared first on The National Herald.
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World Cup armchair fans give their tournament view: Greece, Iran and Portugal.
Gloucester CitizenWorld Cup armchair fans give their tournament view: Greece, Iran and Portugal.Gloucester CitizenSupporting Greece, Nicki Neocleous, who runs Nicky's Taverna in Westgate Street, said: “Of course we love football in Greece and it will be a big celebration there for the World Cup. “There is a lot of excitement but it will be tough to choose between ...
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A fresh take on Greek salad
A fresh take on Greek saladVisalia Times-DeltaIf you haven't yet tried halloumi — often also called Greek grilling cheese — let this recipe for a romaine salad be your excuse. Thanks to a high melting point, halloumi can handle just about any heat you care to throw at it. It resembles a block of ...and more »
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Islamist Insurgents Close In On Iraq's Biggest Oil Refinery Day After Assault On Mosul
By Ghazwan Hassan TIKRIT, Iraq, June 11 (Reuters) - Sunni insurgents from an al Qaeda splinter group extended their control from the northern city of Mosul on Wednesday to an area further south that includes Iraq's biggest oil refinery in a devastating show of strength against the Shi'ite-led government. Security sources said militants from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) - Sunni militants waging sectarian war on both sides of the Iraqi-Syrian frontier - drove into the town of Baiji late on Tuesday in armed vehicles, torching the court house and police station after freeing prisoners. The militants offered safe passage to some 250 men guarding the refinery on the outskirts of Baiji, about 200 kilometers south of Mosul, on condition they leave. Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari called on his country's leaders to come together to face "the serious, mortal" threat. "The response has to be soon. There has to be a quick response to what has happened," he said during a trip to Greece. Zebari said Baghdad would work with forces from the nearby Kurdish autonomous region to drive the fighters from Mosul. Baiji resident Jasim al-Qaisi said the militants had also asked senior tribal chiefs in Baiji to persuade local police and soldiers not to resist their takeover. "Yesterday at sunset some gunmen contacted the most prominent tribal sheikhs in Baiji via cellphone and told them: 'We are coming to die or control Baiji, so we advise you to ask your sons in the police and army to lay down their weapons and withdraw before (Tuesday) evening prayer'." The Baiji refinery can process 300,000 barrels per day and supplies oil products to most of Iraq's provinces and is a major provider of power to Baghdad. A worker there said the morning shift had not been allowed to take over and the night shift was still on duty. The push into Baiji began hours after ISIL overran Mosul, one of the great Sunni historic cities, advancing their aim of creating a Sunni Caliphate straddling the border between Iraq and Syria. <--------------------------------------------------------- For a map showing al Qaeda's affiliates and areas of operation: http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/RNGS/2014/JUNE/QAEDA.jpg ----------------------------------------------------------> DOMINANT PLAYER ISIL has become a dominant player in Iraq and Syria where it has seized a string of cities over the past year, often fighting other Sunni groups. An estimated 500,000 Iraqis have already fled Mosul, home to some 2 million people, and the surrounding province, the International Organization for Migration said on Wednesday. The fall of Mosul is a slap to Baghdad's efforts to quash Sunni militants who have regained ground and strength in Iraq over the past year, seizing Sunni towns of Falluja and parts of Ramadi in the desert west of Baghdad at the start of the year. The United States, which pulled its troops out from Iraq to and half years ago, pledged to help Iraqi leaders "push back against this aggression" as the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki asked parliament to declare a state of emergency. It said Washington would support "a strong, coordinated response", adding that "ISIL is not only a threat to the stability of Iraq, but a threat to the entire region". ISIL control in the Sunni Anbar province as well as around Mosul in the north, would help the Islamist group consolidate its grip along the frontier with Syria, where they are fighting President Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Shi'ite Iran. Fleeing residents said ISIL fighters were leaving their stamp everywhere in the cities they seized, planting their black flags and banners on police stations, army barracks and other government buildings. "They are all masked, but they don't do us any harm," said a 13-year old schoolboy, describing the militants who pushed into his hometown of Mosul. A 40-year old man who fled Mosul with his family said: "We are frightened because we don't know who they are. They call themselves the revolutionaries. They told us not to be scared and that they came to liberate and free us from oppression." KURDISH HELP? Critics say the failure of Maliki, a Shi'ite Muslim in power for eight years, to address grievances among the once dominant Sunni minority led to a rise in Sunni militancy and pushed Sunni groups and tribes to rally behind ISIL. Many Sunnis feel disenfranchised and some have made common cause with foreign Islamist radicals, first against the U.S. troops that overthrew Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003 and now Shi'ite-led Iraqi forces. Most families fled north towards the nearby Kurdistan region, where Iraq's ethnic Kurds have autonomy and their own large and disciplined military force, the Peshmerga. Some officials in Baghdad spoke of seeking help for Mosul from Kurdish Peshmerga, which have long been a force in the jockeying between Shi'ites, Kurds and Sunnis for influence and, especially, for control of oilfields in the north of Iraq. Two officials in the ministry of Peshmerga said on Wednesday that there was no military coordination between Baghdad and Arbil, but that on the ground locally there was some coordination between Iraqi army and Kurdish forces. Peshmerga now control the Rabia area on the border with Syria after the Iraqi army allowed them to deploy there and also the Kusk base, 45 km west of Mosul, and some other brigade headquarters Asked whether the Peshmerga would try to enter Mosul, Halgurd Hikmat, media officer at ministry of Peshmerga, said that depended on the President of the region and that a formal request would have to be made by Maliki, who is commander of the Iraqi armed forces. ISIL, led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, broke with al Qaeda's international leader, Osama bin Laden's former lieutenant Ayman al-Zawahri, and has clashed with al Qaeda fighters in Syria. The group, originally rooted in austere Sunni groups like the Tawhid, fought US and Iraqi forces after Saddam's fall and the Shi'ite rise to power that ending decades of Sunni rule. ISIL regards Shi'ites as heretics. ISIL posted photographs of its fighters wearing black balaclavas on its "Nineveh State" Twitter account, interspersed with verses from the Koran. The group dubbed the Mosul offensive "Enter Upon Them Through The Gates". In a newsletter, ISIL enjoined Sunnis to join them in the fight against Maliki's "Safavid" army - a reference to the Persian dynasty that promoted Shi'ite Islam. "Join the ranks oh brothers!" ran one slogan. "Maliki's tyrannical strength no match for pious believers." In the province of Salahuddin, they overran three villages in the Shirqat district, torching police stations, town halls and local council buildings before raising the ISIL banner. Nearly 800 people were killed in violence across Iraq in May - the highest monthly death toll so far this year. Last year was the deadliest since the sectarian bloodletting of 2006-07. (Additional reporting by Raheem Salman; Writing by Isabel Coles; Editing by Samia Nakhoul and Anna Willard)
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Climate Change Will Alter Weather Conditions in Athens
Life in Greek and Mediterranean cities in general will become more difficult in the future, in terms of weather conditions. High temperatures, low levels of rainfall, frequent extreme weather phenomena, fires and the continuous rising of sea level, are some of the consequences of climate change. This is expected to be the future of Mediterranean cities, including Athens and other Greek cities. However, the choices societies will make and the policies they will choose to follow in the coming years will define how serious the situation can become. The impact of climate change in cities with Mediterranean climate and the appropriate strategies taken by the state, was the main objective of an international conference held in Athens. The conference was under the auspices of the rotating European Union Greek Presidency and the General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT). It was organized by the European Commission, the Mediterranean Consortium for Climate Change, the Eurisy, the Mariolopoulos-Kanaginis Foundation for Environmental Sciences, the Research Centre for Atmospheric Physics and Climatology of the Academy of Athens and the Justus-Liebig University of Germany. The Secretary General of Research and Technology, Christos Vasilakos, indicated at the conference that the Mediterranean cities are some of the most vulnerable regions exposed to the impacts of climate change. The fragile environmental stability of the region was in danger, he said, due to the gradual desertification of the south coast and as a result, to the increase of migration pressures in north European coasts. He added that the prospect of adverse environmental changes that threaten international security, undermine economic growth and increase the possibility of international conflicts over natural resources. That’s the reason why the enforcement of a multilateral and European cooperation is essential, he stated. Weather in Athens, in particular, according to climate models illustrated at the conference, will experience an increase in temperatures, more often extreme weather phenomena, as well as heavy rainfalls during autumn in the coming years. In addition, a survey of the Institute for Environmental Research and Sustainable Development of National Observatory of Athens, showed that due to climate change there will also be an increase in ozone pollution, a greater risk of forest fires as well as a rise in death rates caused by heat stress and heat waves. The German climatologist and member of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Thomas Stocker, reported that in the next years the amount of rainfalls in the Mediterranean area, Greece included, will decrease by 20-30%, which will eventually lead to increased drought in the countryside regions and an increase in the temperatures of cities. According to figures issued by the United Nations, urban population is expected to reach five billion persons by 2030 and more than 6 billion by 2050. Therefore, cities with Mediterranean climate conditions, being the most vulnerable, have to get motivated and adopt policies against the impacts of climate change in order to develop economically and socially.
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Charles Moskos Chair Dedicated
CHICAGO – On April 29, 2014, Northwestern University posthumously paid tribute to the accomplishments of distinguished sociology professor Charles C. Moskos, Jr. with a ceremony inaugurating the Charles Moskos Chair. Numerous faculty, staff, friends and family, including his widow, Ilca Moskos and son, Peter Moskos attended the ceremony which was held at the Guild Lounge […]
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Obama is Gerald Ford, Not Abraham Lincoln
Apart from their color, former President Gerald Ford and current Commander-in-Chief Barack Obama are the same under the skin - profiles in mediocrity.
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Cyprus Readies Surprise Market Return
After asking international lenders for a 10 billion euro bailout to keep its economy from collapsing, Cyprus is getting ready for a bond market issue.
The post Cyprus Readies Surprise Market Return appeared first on The National Herald.
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Tsipras Tells ECB’s Draghi Greece Needs Debt Cut
The head of Greece’s major opposition Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) party Alexis Tsipras told European Central Bank President Mario Draghi the country can’t afford to pay back what it owes international lenders – including the bank.
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17 Daily Habits My Dad Insists Will Make You Happier and More Successful
Want to improve your life, one daily habit at a time? My dad offers some pretty good advice.
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UK jobless rate falls to five-year low, but real wages shrink again -- business live
The UK unemployment rate has fallen to just 6.6% <- new readers start here
But average earnings only grow by 0.7% -- well behind the inflation rate
TUC: Cost of living crisis continues
David Cameron hails jump in employment total.
Delayed bonuses in 2013 partly responsible for wage growth slide
1.51pm BST
Bad news -- it appears that UK productivity may actually have fallen, even while the economy was creating more jobs
Today's report (online here) shows that the total number of hours worked in February-April rose by 1.5%, compared to the previous quarter.
Total hours worked in the quarter to April up 1.5%, NIESR estimate GDP growth at 1.1% in same period. Bad news for productivity if so.
1.22pm BST
Here's a reminder of the key points in today's unemployment data:
1.16pm BST
Just noticed that the Office for National Statistics has produced a short video outlining today's Labour Market survey:
12.37pm BST
Looking for a round-up of expert reaction to today's unemployment data? Look no further:
12.36pm BST
Over in Greece, employees who lost their jobs at the state TV station a year ago have just held a protest in Athens.
"The new government station is nothing like the old one."
12.28pm BST
Starbucks has now responded to EC's probe into its tax affairs (along with Apple and Fiat, as explained earlier).
The coffee chain said:
"We will cooperate with the Commission's state aid investigation of the Netherlands.
We comply with all relevant tax rules, laws, and OECD guidelines in the 64 countries in which we operate.
12.23pm BST
Huge cheers from Conservative benches as PM mentions unemployment figures #PMQs
He didn't mention falling real wages, though
12.19pm BST
In Parliament, David Cameron has declared that the UK has reached an "important milestone", with two million more people in work in the private sector since the last election.
12.09pm BST
The Resolution Foundation has also produced a chart, showing how self-employment levels grew steadily through the crisis, while the number of employees has picked up more recently:
The volatility of earnings figures, rising and falling at different points this year, only underlines the imperfect nature of what we know about average pay. Distorted by the bonus picture in 2013, and missing the growing pool of 4.5 million self-employed workers, the best we can say about these latest figures is that 2014 has yet to live up to its promise of being the year of the pay rise.
The positive picture on employment with a strong rise in the number of both employees and the self-employed should eventually help to push up average wages. But theres no sign of it happening yet.
12.06pm BST
Back to this morning's UK jobs data, and this Bloomberg chart shows how total wage growth has subsided steadily since the financial crisis:
11.54am BST
A big story has been breaking in Brussels this morning, where the European Commission has opened investigations into tax deals involving Apple in Ireland, Starbucks in the Netherlands, and Fiat Finance and Trade in Luxembourg.
The probe will investigate whether the three companies' corporation tax arrangements violate European state aid laws.
In the current context of tight public budgets, it is particularly important that large multinationals pay their fair share of taxes.
Under the EU's state aid rules, national authorities cannot take measures allowing certain companies to pay less tax than they should if the tax rules of the Member State were applied in a fair and non-discriminatory way."
Short @AlmuniaJoaquin: we've gone after nat'l tax schemes in past, so that means we have legal authority to do it. #Apple #Starbucks
Is @AlmuniaJoaquin going after @Google on tax advantages, too? "This is the beginning of our work, not the end," he says.
11.30am BST
Here's our news story on today's unemployment data:
11.29am BST
Martin Beck, senior economic advisor to the EY ITEM Club, is also struck that wage packets aren't benefitting from the recovery in the labour market:
The stark contrast between a robust jobs market, but meagre wages growth continues.
Despite the three months to March seeing the largest gain in employment since records began in 1971, there is no sign of a slowdown in jobs growth in todays data."
11.13am BST
The Unite union has welcomed the fall in unemployment, but is worried by the rise in self-employment (up by 337,000 to 4.54 million in the last year)
Unite general secretary Len McCluskey isn't holding back, saying:
Precarious self-employment is soaring, while the continuing wage siege feeds a fall in living standards not seen since the Victorian era leaving the finances of ordinary families on a knife edge.
11.08am BST
The FT's Sarah O'Connor wonders whether the weak wage growth shows that the UK labour market has been changed by the financial crisis.
Given plummeting unemployment, the question for the UK labour market has to be: has something structural happened to wages?
Ouch! The April regular UK pay numbers at 0.4% year on year growth were the weakest I can see in that series (Jan 2001) #notgood #GBP
10.48am BST
And here's David Cameron, tweeting the good news that thousands more people are joining the labour force each day.
Today we reached a major milestone in our #LongTermEconomicPlan: 2 million new private sector jobs since 2010. More security for people.
A record rise in employment for last 3 months. 5500 more people in work each day. All with the security of a pay packet and brighter future.
10.47am BST
Rachel Reeves MP, Labour's Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, says:
"While this fall in overall unemployment is welcome, working people are over £1,600 a year worse off than when David Cameron came to office and pay has fallen behind inflation.
"Thousands of people who work hard are struggling to make ends meet because of the government's failure to tackle the cost-of-living crisis and make work pay. Thats led to a staggering 60% increase in the number of working people claiming housing benefit because they can't afford their rent, costing taxpayers an estimated £4.8 billion.
10.40am BST
Wage inflation fall exacerbated by comparison with last yr (end of 50p tax; bumper pay). But trend still v weak. Pay crisis not over yet...
10.39am BST
Today's weak earnings figures show that Britain's cost of living crisis isn't over, claims TUC General Secretary Frances OGrady.
She's worried that families will face more pain if the Bank of England were to start tightening monetary policy by raising borrowing costs:
Pay packets have nosedived since the government prematurely declared an end to Britains cost of living crisis last month.
Its great that more people are joining the workforce but hugely worrying that workers are still not getting the decent pay rises they need to get by.
Excluding bonuses, wages rose just 0.4% in year to April (single month figs). Lowest annual rate on record! pic.twitter.com/FZfFMTzYmI
10.33am BST
Rob Wood of Berenberg Bank reckons pay growth will rise over the next few months as the distortion caused by the cut in income tax from 50% to 45% in April 2013 fades away.
As Wood puts it:
Pay was shifted from early 2013 to April to take advantage of the cut in the higher rate of income tax.
As a result, finance pay fell 6.1% yoy in April, construction was down 4.6% yoy while manufacturing and wholesaling slowed sharply.
10.27am BST
This chart confirms that average UK pay packets failed to keep pace with inflation (yellow), whether you include bonuses (dark blue) or not (light blue).
Changes in the UK labour market over the past year - in one handy chart pic.twitter.com/NnJsInSwae
10.15am BST
Jeremy Cook, chief economist at the currency company, World First, is concerned to see that wage growth has slumped, even as employment increased strongly:
That means interest rates won't rise for another year, Cook suggests:
Wage growth has fallen to 0.7%, vs 1.2% expected, and this is still a major cause for concern. As a result I am still expecting the Bank of England to hold policy right through into the second quarter of 2015, mainly courtesy of the lack of real wage increases.
10.13am BST
ITV's Joel Hills points out that the UK state sector workforce has shrunk since April 2013, while the private sector has swelled:
Number of people employed in public sector (5.4m) has fallen by 280,000 in last year. Number employed in private sector up 1m to 25.1m.
10.08am BST
Ian Stewart, chief economist at Deloitte, reckons the weak wage growth in the last quarter is good news for the Bank of England (!).
He says:
A powerful labour market recovery is delivering remarkable job growth and rapid falls in unemployment. Self-employment is booming and full time employment is also growing at the fastest rate in nine years.
The good news for the Bank of England is that this broad-based jobs recovery shows few signs of generating inflationary wage pressures.
9.58am BST
Today's report confirms another trend -- the recent steady fall in unemployment has partly been driven by a big rise in self-employed workers.
The ONS explains that since February-April 2013:
9.56am BST
You can read today's labour market report yourself, here.
9.53am BST
Here's Press Association's early take on the news that Britain's jobless rate has fallen to its lowest rate since 2009, while wage growth slowed sharply.
9.48am BST
UK #unemployment rate down to 6.6%, lowest in 5+ years. Charted here against Eurozone and US data pic.twitter.com/HtADev81r6
2.16 million people are unemployed in UK. Down 347,000 on a year ago but around 500,000 higher than before financial crisis began.
Due to the tax dodging (50%) bonus payments of last year average UK wages were 1.7% lower in April than in April 2013. #GBP
woooah really sharp slowdown in average UK weekly earnings. Now at +0.7% from +1.9%. Lowest since March last yr
9.46am BST
Today's jobs data shows that average earnings actually *fell* by 1.7% in April alone.
That's why total pay growth in February-April fell to just 0.7%, from 1.9% in January-March.
9.34am BST
BREAKING: Britain's jobless rate has hit a new five-year low, but real wages are shrinking.
The UK jobless rate has fallen to just 6.6% in the three months to April, which is the lowest since early 2009. That's down from 6.8%, a bigger fall than expected.
9.05am BST
Just 25 minutes until we get the latest UK unemployment data.
Britain's "cost of living crisis" will return to the fore today when official data shows real wages falling again.
Pay growth briefly edged higher than inflation in the spring, marking a break in years of falling real wages and providing a boost to the Conservatives as they seek to take the squeeze on household budgets off the pre-election agenda. Labour has argued that what it calls a cost of living crisis is far from over.
In fact over the last eleven months the decline in jobless claims has more or less averaged around 30k a month, a pretty good sign of an economy that appears to be humming along nicely.
8.51am BST
Germany's Lufthansa just startled the Frankfurt stock market with an unexpected profit warning, sending its shares tumbling 9%.
Other airline shares have also been hit, after Lufthansa slashed its operating profit forecast by a third, to 1bn, from up to 1.5bn before.
Reason for lowering the forecast is a weaker than expected revenue development in the passenger and freight businesses as well as negative result impacts from strikes and the devaluation of the Venezuelan Bolivar.
Lufthansa dragging down the sector with IAG down 3.5%, Air France down 3.5%...
Carnage in Lufthansa shares this morning, after surprise profit warning: pic.twitter.com/1L3BG5z4BZ
8.39am BST
Europe's stock markets are open, and the main indices have fallen by around 0.2%-0.3%.
The FTSE 100 is down 13 points, pulled down by heavyweight Vodafone going ex-dividend (ie, it's too late to qualify for the next payment to shareholders).
King sticks by like for like sales slightly up this year. Q1 up against tough year-earlier when horsemeat scandal boosted Sainsbury sales.
8.31am BST
Hungary has slipped into deflation, after its Consumer Price Index showed that prices fell by 0.1% over the last 12 months.
And another one bites the dust. Hungary joins negative inflation club, -0.1% yoy. #deflation
8.30am BST
Hold onto your hats, folks. An inquiry into the Payday loan market has discovered that it's uncompetitive.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has concluded that a payday customer could typically save around £30 to £60 per year if the market worked properly.
Wonga did not create modern Britain; modern Britain created Wonga.
8.14am BST
The World Bank also warned that the global economy is not "totally out of the woods yet". Governments need to prepare for further trouble ahead:
Kaushik Basu, the bank's senior vice president and chief economist, said:
A gradual tightening of fiscal policy and structural reforms are desirable to restore fiscal space depleted by the 2008 financial crisis. In brief, now is the time to prepare for the next crisis."
World Bank: 'Now is the time to prepare for next crisis' http://t.co/ecSxZZ4Ju3
7.58am BST
Overnight, the World Bank warned that growth in the euro area is "tepid", having emerged from recession a year ago.
The Euro Area is still in the early phases of recovery. GDP and private consumption spending in some periphery economies remain nearly 10 percent below pre-crisis peaks and investment is 40-50 percent lower in Spain, Portugal and Ireland. To date the recovery in the periphery has been driven by exports, reflecting competitiveness gains earned painfully through weak or even negative wage growth that have brought down unit labor costs.
Competitiveness gains continue to remain strong, supporting underlying activity. Encouragingly, there are signs that the labor market may be bottoming out, with unemployment rates throughout the Euro Area beginning to inch down, albeit from extremely high levels. Financial conditions have also eased considerably, reflected in the fall in periphery sovereign debt spreads to pre-crisis lows.
7.47am BST
WH Smith also reported underwhelming results this morning, driven down by a 4% decline in sales on the high street.
Total takings across the newsagent group were flat in the last 14 weeks, while like-for-like sales (a better measure of performance) fell 2%.
March-June WHSmith High Street total sales down 4%, like-for-like sales were also down 4%. When was the last time you went to WH Smith?
7.42am BST
Sainsbury isn't immune to the shockwaves reverberating through Britain's grocery business -- its sales have fallen for the second quarter in a row.
Like-for-like retail sales fell by 1.1% in the first three months, excluding fuel.
Lower food price inflation and reduced fuel prices are a welcome respite to customers finances but they continue to spend cautiously, leading to industry growth in the quarter being the slowest in a decade.
Justin King's last figures before he steps down as Sainsbury's boss. He's been capturing the moment with his team... pic.twitter.com/cn6JRpPY8w
7.36am BST
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the financial markets, the economy, the eurozone and business.
Quite a lot going on in the UK this morning -- starting with the latest unemployment figures, at 9.30am BST.
Bad weather in the US, tension in the Ukraine, the slowdown in China and political strife in countries such as Turkey will all delay an expected pick-up in activity, the bank said in its half-yearly Global Economic Prospects.
Its president, Jim Kim, expressed disappointment at the prospect of a third straight year of sub-5% growth in the developing world, which he said was insufficient to meet his aim of eradicating extreme poverty by 2030.
Continue reading... |
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Get ready for 'Taste of Greece' Greek Festival in Saginaw Township
Get ready for 'Taste of Greece' Greek Festival in Saginaw TownshipThe Ann Arbor NewsSAGINAW TOWNSHIP, MI — Those looking for Mediterranean delicacies can satisfy their appetites this weekend in Saginaw Township. The 36th annual "Taste of Greece" Saginaw Greek Fest starts noon Friday, June 13, at the St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox ...
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UPDATE 2-Greece appoints austerity stalwart to be central bank chief
ATHENS, June 11 (Reuters) - Former Greek finance minister Yannis Stournaras, who spearheaded Greece's return to economic stability after it nearly crashed out of the euro zone, is to become the next Bank of Greece governor, the central bank said on Wednesday.
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Rally for One Year Since ERT’s Closure
June 11 2014, marks one year since the sudden closure of Greece’s public broadcaster ERT by the government. The decision had stunned the nation and caused widespread reaction among the journalism community. The spokesman of the Greek government, Simos Kedikoglou, that afternoon, announced ERT’s closure and talked derogatorily for its employees At 11:15 p.m. ERT was shut down, after the last newscast was broadcast as normal at 9:00 p.m. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has expressed its support of the protests held by Greek journalists to mark this day and to remind the government that it has failed to fulfill its promise to restore a new independent public broadcaster. “One year on, we have seen no efforts from the government to restore an independent public broadcaster to serve the public interest,” said Mogens Blicher Bjerregård, EFJ President. “Yet, we have witnessed the efforts made by ERT journalists who are doing their utmost to uphold the country’s democratic values by continuing to broadcast information to Greek citizens,” he added. Journalists across Greece will participate today in a four-hour work stoppage across all media from 12 a.m. to 4 p.m. as a sign of solidarity to the fired ERT employees. At noon, journalists will march from the National Union of Journalists (JUADN) headquarters in Athens to the Ministry of Finance. A demonstration will also be held outside the broadcaster’s headquarters in Agia Paraskevi, Athens, at 7 p.m. The Journalists’ Union of Macedonia and Thrace Daily Newspapers (ESIEMTH) will also hold a protest rally at noon and will join ERT journalists, who are occupying the ERT3 building in Thessaloniki, to broadcast via live stream a program marking the anniversary, that will be aired from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Athens will follow by broadcasting live the massive rally that is planned outside ERT’s building. On May 4 2014, the Greek government officially launched the New Greek Radio, Internet and Television (NERIT) that was designed to replace ERT. The new public broadcaster, which employs 132 journalists, has been criticized for its lack of transparency in the hiring procedures and is accused of following an Athens-focused media agenda that fails to service the general Greek public.
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Mykonos: Super Paradise Vs Tropicana
The owners of the two major clubs on the Greek island of Mykonos, “Super Paradise” and “Tropicana” are starring in a fierce conflict that is causing a lot of talk on the cosmopolitan island. Threats, insults and attacks in public places are on the daily agenda. The Court of Syros has ordered the two opponents not to approach each other at a distance less than 50 meters to avoid tension before the tourist season begins in Greece. The conflict of the two businessmen, Iakovos Xydakis, owner of “Super Paradise,” and Stamatis Daktylidis, owner of “Tropicana,” began about a year ago and resulted in courtrooms in April. Xydakis applied for injuctions when on March 29, while sitting in a local cafe with his friends, he was attacked by Daxtylidis. Allegedely, Daxtylidis tried to hit him and threw a glass ashtray at him. The perpetrator then left, but the attack was recorded on video and submitted to the police. However, Daxtylidis presented to the court a completely different version of the story. He claimed that his life and business are being threatened. He argued that their conflict has deeply upset him given that Xydakis is his cousin and in the past they had excellent relations. In late May, Daxtylidis was arrested by the local authorities on charges of unprovoked physical act of aggression, insult and threat. The reason for his arrest was a lawsuit filed against him by Nikos Xydakis relative of the owner of “Super Paradise,” and sanitation employee for the Municipality of Mykonos. Nikos Xydakis claimed that he was working when Daxtylidis approached him and started hitting him over the head and body. “He tore up my shirt and even though I was lying on the ground he continued to hit me,” he said. The owner of “Tropicana” denied all accusations and claimed that he never hit Nikos Xydakis.
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New York’s Chobani Greek-Style Yogurt Maker Reorganizes
Greek yogurt maker Chobani says it will have more full-time workers after cutting about 100 jobs at its upstate New York plant and adding jobs in other locations.
The post New York’s Chobani Greek-Style Yogurt Maker Reorganizes appeared first on The National Herald.
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Stournaras Named Bank of Greece Governor
Greece’s former Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras on June 11 was appointed Governor of the Bank of Greece for the next six years, taking over from George Provopoulos, who had wanted to keep the job. “It is announced that the General Council of the ...
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com |
Stournaras Named Bank of Greece Governor
Greece’s former Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras on June 11 was appointed Governor of the Bank of Greece for the next six years, taking over from George Provopoulos, who had wanted to keep the job. “It is announced that the General Council of the ...
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com |
Falling prey to the beast of populism
We have been caught up in a vicious circle and I don’t know if or how we can get out of it. While we constantly complain about the quality of those governing and representing Greece, we go on to elect the worst the country has to offer to the European Par... ...
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Iraq's foreign minister: Iraq's leaders must work together to deal with 'mortal threat'
by
Associated Press
Iraq foreign minister: Iraq faces 'mortal threat'
Associated Press - 11 June 2014 06:21-04:00
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Iraq's foreign minister says the fall of the major northern city of Mosul to insurgents must push the country's leaders to work together and deal with the "serious, mortal threat" facing Iraq.
Hoshyar Zebari made the comments in Athens Wednesday on the sidelines of a meeting of European Union and Arab League foreign ministers. He said he assured his colleagues there would be "closer cooperation" between Baghdad and the Kurdistan regional government to push the insurgents out of Mosul.
Most of the city was seized Tuesday in a major assault by al-Qaida-inspired militants known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Zebari said they could be pushed back "by the Iraqi security forces in cooperation with the Kurdish peshmerga forces," adding that the response had to come "soon."
News Topics: General news, Government and politics, International relationsPeople, Places and Companies: Hoshyar Mahmud Zebari, Iraq, Athens, Europe, Greece, Middle East, Western Europe
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