Stocks retreat amid Greek impasse

Stocks are giving back some of yesterday's gains as attention returns to the Greek debt impasse. S&P 500 futures are down 0.6 percent, similar to ...

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Greece leaving the euro might not be a bad thing, says Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett, the billionaire chief executive and chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, has said a Greek exit from the eurozone could be constructive for ...

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No Deal in Greece-Troika Reform Talks, More Set

Talks between Greece and its creditors have wrapped up for now without a deal to unlock remaining Greek bailout funds urgently needed to stave off a potential default, leaving Greece and limbo and heading toward going broke. The post No Deal in Greece-Troika Reform Talks, More Set appeared first on The National Herald.

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World Press View: It’s Getting Ugly Fast For Greece

Greece's new Radical Left SYRIZA-led government is spinning its wheels and going nowhere fast in a bid to keep loans coming, the world media says. The post World Press View: It’s Getting Ugly Fast For Greece appeared first on The National Herald.

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Argyris Sfoundouris: The Man Who Reminded Germany the Nazi Crimes at Distomo

Argyris Sfoundouris was only four years old on June 10, 1944. He was playing with his three sisters in his home in Distomo, in central Greece, when suddenly some men in uniform broke down the door, dragged his parents out in the yard and shot them to death. The men were an SS battalion who entered the village that summer day and started executing indiscriminately men, women and children, 218 in all. Little Argyris and his sisters were lucky to survive the massacre by the Nazis. Thirty members of their family were killed that day, including their parents. The four kids ended up in an orphanage in Piraeus. Due to his fragile health, Argyris was transferred to a smaller one in Ekali. Then, about four years later, he ended up at the Pestalozzi Children’s Village in Trogen in Switzerland where he grew up and went to school. Then he studied mathematics, nuclear physics and astrophysics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ). In 1994, on the fiftieth anniversary of the tragic event at Distomo, Argyris Sfoundouris organized “Peace Conference” at the European Cultural Center in Delphi. In 1995, along with his sisters, he took legal action against Germany for the massacre of his family and his fellow villagers. Sfoundouris’ action to ask for compensation by the German government was followed by 290 relatives and descendants of Distomo victims, starting an ongoing legal, and moral, battle. Today Argyris is 75 years old and hasn’t given up the cause. He knows he is morally right and continues the struggle. A few days ago German public television show “Die Anstalt”, highlighted the issue of German atrocities and the moral responsibility of the German government to compensate the Distomo victims’ families for the crimes committed by the Nazis. His appearance at the end, juxtaposed with the black and white picture of the 4-year-old boy, made some members of the audience cry. The satirical show started with a Greek tavern owner depicting Greece and three men representing the troika of international lenders. The sketch presents the absurdity of the arguments the three men use in favor of austerity. Then the sketch turns to the issue of the war reparations and the weakness in the arguments from the German side. With humorous and concise examples, the writers of the show make a case in favor of the Greek requests, at least on moral grounds. Argyris Sfoundouris is the living proof of the Distomo massacre and Greece’s righteous request. “I feel vindicated, but I’m also surprised by the ardent interest by major European media for the war crimes in Distomo and German compensation. In the past week I have given as many interviews as I have given in the two decades I struggle,” the massacre survivor told Eleftheros Typos newspaper. Speaking of the ZDF show he appeared on, Sfoundouris said: “The guys did a great job. They did the research on their own and it is absolutely faithful to reality. I did not expect such a reception by the German public, which actually paid to come and spontaneously applauded when I appeared. At the end I had to bow three times after all the hot and loud applause. I was really touched.” “I won’t stop the fight until justice is done. It is time for Germany to stop claiming ignorance and branding “war measure” a crime against humanity,” Sfoundouris said. Finally, when asked what Germany should do, the lucky massacre survivor replied quoting Greece’s lenders on the sketch: “Rules are rules; debts must be paid off, no tricks.” Watch video here:

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Greek Government to Examine Memoranda Period; Austerity Measures

The newly elected leftist-led Greek government coalition is expected to submit a proposal for the creation of a committee to examine the previous governments’ handling of the country’s debt crisis. Specifically, according to government sources, the so called «memorandum examination committee» is expected to question the practices of those governing during the past five years, since 2010. This topped SYRIZA’s pre-election campaign. The proposal is expected to be submitted within the day and it will constitute of several experts that will be tasked with assessing whether the previous governments upheld the interests of the Greek people by signing two agreements with the European Commission (EC), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) troika. Both agreements pledged austerity measures in exchange for some 240 billion euros each in bailout funds. The government’s proposal is expected to have the signatures of all MPs belonging in the governing parties SYRIZA and Independent Greeks (ANEL). «SYRIZA’s Parliamentary Group will submit today a proposal to establish a committee, which will examine Greece’s inclusion in the status of memoranda and surveillance as well as any other matter related to the memorandums implementation,” SYRIZA Parliamentary Secretary Christos Mantas explained. “We are fulfilling our commitment and the social demand, with no intention of revanchism nor criminalization of the political life in order to explore the causes and responsibilities of an unprecedented crisis that devastated the vast majority of society,» Mantas added. On May 2, 2010, the so called «troika,» responded to the Greek crisis by launching a bailout loan to rescue the country from default and cover its financial needs under the condition of implementing austerity measures, structural reforms and privatization of government assets. The second bailout program was finally ratified by all parties in February 2012, and extended the first program, meaning a total of another 240 billion euros were to be transferred at regular tranches between May 2010 and December 2014.

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First Cruise Ship Opens Season for Thessaloniki

The arrival of MS Hamburg cruise ship in Thessaloniki port on March 31 marked the beginning of the cruise season for the popular Greek city. More than 30 ships are expected to arrive in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, throughout the season. The number of tourists that arrive from cruises to the city is expected to increase in 2015 compared to 2014 as the city is gradually being integrated into Mediterranean cruise routes. The first cruise for 2015 carried 375 passengers — mainly Germans tourists- and 150 crew members. The ship arrived in the northern Greece port after crossing Dardanelles, formerly known as Hellespont and the north Aegean Sea. From 9 am until 4:30 pm tourists roamed the streets sightseeing and visiting the city’s museums while others were transferred to the archaeological site of Vergina via buses. Around 4:30 pm the cruise ship departed for the Greek city of Volos. The 2015 arrivals schedule, which is still under development, includes 31 confirmed cruise ships, a number which is possible to increase as the season progresses. The schedule provides that the last 2015 arrival will take place on October 31. The next arrival is expected on Easter Monday, when the cruise ship Europa will arrive in the Thermaic Gulf, while Saga Sapphire will arrive on April 19.

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