How the world sees Greece
ATHENS — Archaeologists excavating a burial mound in northern Greece have found two marble sculptures of female figures and a large, colored marble panel in what appears to be the antechamber of the main room. The tomb, in the town of Amphipolis, dates between 325 B.C. — two years before Alexander the Great’s death — […] The post The Tomb being Excavated in Amphipolis May be Linked to Alexander the Great appeared first on The National Herald.
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That the latest Israeli assault on Gaza which claimed the lives of close to 2,000 Palestinians (the figures vary depending on which side is reporting) has led to a veritable outburst of anti-semitism in Turkey is not in itself surprising. Ethnic minorities have always been a thorn in the political visions of the founding elites, bent on creating a homogenous nation out of the hodge-podge of different linguistic and religious groups they had inherited from the defunct Ottoman Empire. The Jews were not an exception. Often the target of such Turkification policies as the "Vatandaş Türkçe Konuş" (Citizen, speak Turkish) campaign of the 1930s or the infamous Wealth Tax of 1942, the Jews have also borne the brunt of the Thrace pogrom which began in June 1934 in the northwestern city of Çanakkale and engulfed much of the region within the span of a month, reaching a climax on the night of the 3rd of July, when the houses of the Jews in Kırklareli, located close to the Bulgarian border, were raided. The majority of the Jews who abandoned their homes in 1934 never went back; several others left for good in 1948-49 when the state of Israel was established. Despite their ever shrinking numbers, the Jews, along with other minorities, continued to be the "other" against which (Sunni Muslim) Turkishness has been defined, and the fire of anti-semitism continued to simmer, flaring up every now and then -- be it in the media, political discourse or actual acts of violence Mainstreaming Anti-Semitism? Yet something was different this time around. Something to do with the intensity and audacity of displays of anti-semitism, and the not so covert official backing they received, which was one of the talking points of the recent meeting between U.S. President Obama and Turkish President Erdoğan who discussed, according to the statement by the NSC Spokesperson Caitlin Hayden "the importance of ... combating the scourge of anti-Semitism," among other things. And for good reason. According to a survey conducted by Gonzo Insight, 30,926 messages in Turkish have been posted by 27,309 Twitter users in support of the Holocaust within the span of 24 hours on 17-18 July, ten days after Israeli Defence Forces launched Operation Protective Edge. By then, a famous pop singer, Yıldız Tilbe, had already led the way by sharing the words "May God bless Hitler" with her hundreds of thousands of followers on Twitter -- a tweet which was backed up by Melih Gökçek, the current mayor of Ankara and a senior member of the ruling AKP. Şamil Tayyar, an MP from the same party, joined the bandwagon, howling "May your race be exterminated; may you never lack your Hitler" -- a tweet he deleted later. The notoriously anti-semitic pro-government newspaper Yeni Akit (with a readership of 58,000) was a tad more "creative" (!), publishing a crossword puzzle with Hitler's picture at the center and the slogan "We are longing for you!" which appears when the puzzle is solved. In this context, it was not surprising to hear clarion calls to Turkey's 17,000 strong Jewish community to condemn Israel's military actions, often expressed in "or else" form, or more direct forms of threat such as the one directed at Louis Fishman, an Assistant Professor at Brooklyn College, City University of New York. Fishman who spent several years in Turkey was attacked by another academic, Ali İhsan Göker, the Chair of the Physics Department at Bilecik Şeyh Edibali University. In response to an article Fishman wrote for Haaretz, Göker tweeted the following: "Treblinka will be ready soon. Constructing the railway to transport jews (sic) at the moment", in English, a blatant threat punishable by law. It needs to be added in passing that, instead of being punished, Göker has recently been awarded a research grant by the government-funded The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey, TÜBİTAK). We cannot conclude, on the basis of the above examples alone, that anti-semitism has increased in Turkey, a claim which needs to be substantiated by further research and cross-time comparisons. We can safely stipulate, however, that anti-semitist sentiments are much more mainstream and legitimate than before, given the open backing of the representatives of the ruling AKP, the lack of legal sanctions against hate speech towards Jews (and other minorities) and the general atmosphere of intolerance and polarization which breed these sentiments. Curiously enough, it was the so-called "liberal/democrat" intellectuals who were at the forefront of the campaign against Turkey's Jewish community. Etyen Mahçupyan, an advisor to the prestigious Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV), the former editor-in-chief of the Armenian weekly Agos (and a close friend of the former editor of the journal, the Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink who was brutally murdered on 19 January 2007), is a good case in point. Enter Intellectuals: The Curious Case of Etyen Mahçupyan In an article published on 3 August 2014 in the pro-government newspaper Akşam (in which he has a regular column), Mahçupyan argues that "non-Muslim minorities have always considered themselves to be more modern, developed and civilized" -- hence "superior" to -- the Muslim majority in Turkey. This attitude he claims, leads them to underestimate the "revolutionary change" brought upon in Turkey by the ruling AKP. It is possible to explain the dilemma faced by non-Muslim minorities, Mahçupyan continues, by referring to their ambivalent relationship with the leading "Kemalist nationalist" newspaper, Sözcü: "Today, the majority of minorities, in fact almost all the Jewish community reads Sözcü ... By memorizing the insults directed to Erdoğan ... they reproduce the anger and hatred they have accumulated in years on a daily basis." This way, Sözcü is catering to a "historical psychological need", helping the minorities, in particular the Jews, to resist indigenization, hence remain alien to the society in which they live. It would have been possible to dismiss these highly controversial claims as the musings of a confused mind, had they not come from a self-proclaimed "democrat." After all, the author takes the existence of a minority state of mind, an "essence" so to speak, for granted which equally affects each and every member of the quite heterogeneous and dissimilar Jewish, Armenian and Greek communities. In this view, minorities despised Muslims for more than a century. Yet Mahçupyan provides no concrete evidence for this sweeping claim and turns a blind eye to the vast literature, academic or non-academic, detailing the plight of the minorities under successive governments. The same goes for the main thesis on which the article is based, that "almost all the Jewish community read Sözcü", a claim which could only be verified by an extensive survey (apparently, a trivial matter for the purposes of the article's underlying logic) -- not to mention the politically dangerous and morally problematic way out of the purported dilemma, "indigenization", whatever that term means. Unfortunately, we do not have the luxury of ignoring these claims for two reasons. First, Mahçupyan is one of the contributors to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's presidential vision statement, hence an informal -- at least by the time of the writing of this article -- advisor to the current regime. Second, as a Turkish Armenian himself, Mahçupyan is writing from "within", with an authority that few non-minority intellectuals can muster. This position of authority turns Mahçupyan's claims into highly explosive material that could detonate at any time, opening fresh wounds within an already torn community. That this is not a distant risk is made clear by an open letter signed by several prominent Turkish Jewish academics, professionals and journalists who felt the need to publicly denounce the calls to condemn Israel's actions by stating that "No citizen of this country is under any obligation to account for, interpret or comment on any event that takes place elsewhere in the world, in which he/she has no involvement. There is no onus on the Jewish community of Turkey, therefore, to declare an opinion on any matter at all." The Turkish government and its "organic intellectuals" have been stoking the fire of polarization and exclusion for quite some time now. Yet the fire of anti-semitism, and more generally racism, bears few resemblances to other fires. When it gets out of control, it burns not only a particular community, but a whole society.
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Canadian “Ottawa Magazine” (September 2014 issue, an insert in the “Ottawa Citizen” newspaper) praised Greek wines. Leading Canadian wine ...
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NY1 VIDEO: The 44th annual Greek Festival kicked off this weekend. Holy Trinity St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church hosted the event, featuring ...
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Both the Interfraternal Council and the Panhellenic Council reported an increase in new members following the recruitment processes at the ...
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But there were also dizzying peaks of bureaucracy — Californian and Greek — that we had to surmount before we could travel halfway around the ...
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“The left arm of one and the right arm of the other are raised in a symbolic gesture to refuse entry to the tomb,” the Greek Ministry of Culture said in a ...
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Greek scientist and businessman Dimitris Papanastasiou has been awarded the 2014 Curt Brunnee Award at a special ceremony during the 20th ...
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Good food and dancing form the backbone of the Cheyenne Greek Festival, ... Cheyenne has a long tradition of Greek culture, dating back to the ...
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Eurozone finance ministers would be prepared to grant Greece an extension to its funding “either via a new program or through the extension of the current one if Greece asked it,” a senior eurozone official said on Monday in Brussels. He went on to say th... ...
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Another Russian tour operator, the St Petersburg-based Solvex-Tourne, went bankrupt on Monday, stranding between 3,000 and 4,000 Russian visitors in Greece without service. The Association of Hellenic Tourism Enterprises (SETE) issued a statement stressin... ...
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Greece is slipping into a "danger zone" without the funds or resources to handle a fast-growing wave of refugees trying to enter the European Union from war-torn countries like Syria and Iraq, the government warned on Thursday. A surge in people fleeing ...
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Greece has asked the troika to approve a plan that would allow taxpayers to pay off their debts to the state in 100 or more installments, Kathimerini understands. Sources said that the government is hoping that the troika will allow up to 108 installments... ...
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The looming crisis in relations between Greece and Turkey is now official following the Sept. 5 historic meeting END .article-big-block ...
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Benedict Cumberbatch would like to see an openly gay president in the White House. "You need to have a female president next, and then after that, a gay president. That’s the full journey from Obama’s legacy onwards," the Emmy-winning "Sherlock" star tells Daily Beast writer Marlow Stern. "There’s a great Morrissey lyric from 'America Is Not the World' from 'You Are the Quarry' that goes, “In America, the land of the free, they said/And of opportunity, in a just and truthful way/But where the president is never black, female or gay, and until that day/You’ve got nothing to say to me, to help me believe.'" He went on to note, "It’s quite an old song from before Obama took office, but you’ve done black, then you need to do female, then the next, gay." Cumberbatch, 38, returns to the big screen as Alan Turing, the British mathematician and World War II codebreaker who was convicted of "gross indecency" after engaging in a same-sex relationship, in the highly anticipated new film, "The Imitation Game." The movie, which debuted at the 2014 Toronto Film Festival, has already been hailed as "the best British film of the year" and is currently slated for a November release. One of the film's most noteworthy sequences depicts Turing's chemical castration, which the mathematician accepted in lieu of a custodial sentence before committing suicide in 1954. Cumberbatch, who says he witnessed "incredible homophobia" while attending an all-boys' boarding school as an adolescent, compared Turing's sentence to the types of reparative, or "ex-gay," therapy methods which still exist today. "There are courses and doctors and meds handed out to 'cure' people of their homosexuality, and it’s shocking that it still goes on," he noted. "It’s also shocking that any time there’s any kind of hardship, the minorities are immediately scapegoated—and that includes homosexuals in Russia, the Golden Dawn in Greece ... it's terrifying." Read the full Daily Beast interview with Cumberbatch here. Watch the trailer for "The Imitation Game" below:
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The Hellenic Museum of Melbourne will host the exhibition “Gods, Myths and Mortals: Greek Treasures Across the Millennia” which opens on Wednesday, September 10. The inauguration of the exhibition, which comes from the renowned Benaki Museum in ...
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The European Court of Justice on Monday heralded a new fine against Greece for violation of European regulations, noting that the country has failed to enforce a six-year-old ruling ordering it to “adequately treat and dispose of urban wastewater.” Greece... ...
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Citizen Information Centers, known as KEPs in Greek, are to be given further resources with the aim of making them the only point of contact between Greeks and the public sector, according to Administrative Reform Ministry plans. There are a total of 1,06... ...
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At 8 p.m., both Greeks and non-Greeks stormed through to the Adanti Student Center ballroom to enjoy the evening's festivities. Each organization ...
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The Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius ruled from 161 to 180 AD, and has maintained the reputation for being the ideal wise leader Plato termed the "philosopher king." His book "Meditations" has inspired leaders for centuries because of its timeless wisdom regarding human behavior. It's a collection of personal writings that he wrote during the chaotic last decade of his life. This turmoil inspired him to develop his interpretation of Stoic philosophy, which focused on accepting things out of one's control and maintaining mastery over one's emotions. We've taken a look at a section from Book 11 in which Marcus writes reminders to himself on how to be a great leader. Using Gregory Hays' accessible translation of the ancient Greek (Marcus used the language of his philosophical heroes), we've broken down his 10 points into further simplified language, contextualized by the rest of Marcus' ideology. Here are 10 things every great leader should know: 1. Understand that people exist to help each other. Marcus believed that even though there will always be people who live selfishly and those who want to destroy others, mankind was meant to live in harmony. "That we came into the world for the sake of one another," he writes. And within society, leaders such as himself emerge. And it is their duty to be the guardian of their followers. 2. Be mindful of others' humanity. Remember that every one of your followers, every one of your superiors, and every one of your enemies is a human being who eats and sleeps and so forth. It sounds obvious, but it is easy to belittle or to magnify the importance of others when you are making a decision about them. Remember that every person has dignity and pride. 3. Realize that many mistakes, even egregious ones, are the result of ignorance. When a person makes a decision that offends you, Marcus writes, first consider whether they were "right to do this" in the sense that they are acting in a way that is morally acceptable, even if it is against your own self-interest. In that case, do not spend energy complaining about it. If, however, they are behaving in a reprehensible way, consider their actions to be based in ignorance. It's for this reason that many of these offenders "resent being called unjust, or arrogant, or greedy," Marcus writes. When dealing with your followers, punishment or chastisement should thus be done in an educational way. 4. Do not overly exalt yourself. It is true that leaders should take their leadership roles seriously, but not in a way that makes them feel godlike in some way. Remember, "you've made enough mistakes yourself," Marcus writes. "You're just like them." And if you've managed to avoid some of the mistakes your followers make, then recognize that you have the potential to falter and do even worse. 5. Avoid quick judgments of others' actions. Sometimes what you initially perceive as your followers' or your competition's mistakes are more wise and deliberate than you think. "A lot of things are means to some other end. You have to know an awful lot before you can judge other people's actions with real understanding," Marcus says. 6. Maintain self-control. While it is natural to react to an offense by losing your temper or even becoming irritated, it is in no way constructive. To maintain control over your emotions, Marcus writes, remember that life is short. You can choose to spend your time and energy languishing over things that have already happened, or you can choose to be calm and address any problems that arise. 7. Recognize that others can hurt you only if you let them. Think about a time when someone insulted you, for example. You made the decision to let their words hurt you, when you could have instead pitied them for being ignorant or rude. The only actions that should truly hurt you, Marcus writes, are things you do that are shameful, since you are in control of your own self-worth and values. 8. Know that pessimism can easily overtake you. It is common to have strong emotional reactions to disasters, but behaving in this way only keeps you from addressing the challenges that arise and fills you with powerful negative thoughts. "How much more damage anger and grief do than the things that cause them," Marcus says. 9. Practice kindness. Sincere kindness is "invincible," Marcus writes, and more powerful than any negative transgression. It takes a strong leader to set aside ego and base emotions and behave with compassion. "What can even the most vicious person do if you keep treating him with kindness and gently set him straight — if you get the chance — correcting him cheerfully at the exact moment that he's trying to do you harm," Marcus says. 10. Do not expect bad people to exempt you from their destructive ways. While great leaders can do everything possible to behave in a constructive and compassionate manner, they must also understand that there are those who find meaning in destroying others. It is not only foolish, Marcus writes, but "the act of a tyrant" to think that you can try to change these kinds of people or persuade them to treat you differently.SEE ALSO: 7 Timeless Lessons From 'Philosopher King' Marcus Aurelius DON'T MISS: Here's How Marcus Aurelius Got Himself Out Of Bed Every Morning Join the conversation about this story »
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The Greek bourse had an uneventful start to the week, as its benchmark posted negligible losses, the blue chip index remained unchanged and turnover was almost half the amount seen in Friday's trade. The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended at 1,19... ...
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Even though the Animal Welfare movement’s win against the man who fatally wounded a small dog in Nea Styra, Euboea, cannot bring the dog back, it was a great feat. Regional authorities in central Greece ratified the administrative 30,000-euro fine to a restaurant owner from Nea Styra, while a criminal investigation on the case is also expected to take place, after a file was formed against him by the area’s port authorities. The restaurant owner had protested against the fine but his request was rejected since the Veterinary Faculty of the Department of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine of the Region of Central Greece decided that he had to pay the fine on Friday, September 5. The unfortunate dog named Maggie was euthanized because it was impossible to treat the trauma she had suffered when the restaurant owner hit her with a chair. The killing of the small dog caused strong reactions, both in the region and across Greece, leading to protests in front of the offender’s restaurant.
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The Communist Party-affiliated labor union, PAME, is organizing a rally in central Athens for November 1. The event, to be held in Syntagma Square, will be a protest against “the policies of he government, the European Union and capital,” the organization... ...
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A 77-year-old ethnic Greek from Russia and a male relative have been arrested in Athens on suspicion of abusing a disabled woman they were meant to be caring for. Authorities said that the 36-year-old victim was confined to a wheelchair and had spent most... ...
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State hospital doctors are to stage a four-hour work stoppage from noon on Wednesday to protest plans to tighten control of public hospital finance. The protest is being timed to coincide with a vote in Parliament on a government bill foreseeing the creat... ...
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A 27-year-old man was to face a prosecutor on Monday after he allegedly admitted to posting messages threatening firefighters and police officers in the prefecture of Ilia, in the Peloponnese, on the social networking website Facebook. Officers of the pol... ...
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The Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE) warned of the danger from further Russian tour operators bankruptcies threatening the Greek tourism market, after the bankruptcy of major Russian tour operator Solvex Tour. St. Petersburg-based Solvex Tour has shut down, leaving 9,000 customers stranded abroad, mostly in Bulgaria and Greece. First data indicates approximately 3,000 Solvex Tour customers have been stranded in Greece. The tour operator should not be confused with Moscow-based Solvex Travel, which continues to operate. SETE reiterates that priority should be given to aiding Solvex Tour customers in Greece until they can return to Russia. SETE also notes that aid must be extended to companies suffering from these developments. Finally, SETE expressed hopes that the Ukrainian crisis will soon be over, bringing along a stabilization in EU-Russia relations, as Russia represents a sizeable share of the Greek tourism market, expected to yield around 2.5 million tourist arrivals by 2021.
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Rural Development Minister Giorgos Karasmanis inaugurated on Sunday an exhibition on the oriental tobacco in Greece. The event took place at Piraeus Bank’s Congress Center in Thessaloniki. The exhibition entitled “Tobacco/101 notes on oriental tobacco ...
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Tommy Karakostas is on a roll. He opened his popular Lakewood eatery Greek Village Grille — voted Best Greek Restaurant by Scene readers — in 2009. He followed that up with a new Greek Village in Broadview Heights in 2013. This week he opens his third ...
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Archaeologists excavating a burial mound in northern Greece have found two marble sculptures of female figures and a large, coloured marble panel ...
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The Eurogroup meeting to be held on Friday in Milan will discuss the progress in the implementation of the Greek program following the Paris discussions. It takes place ahead of the Troika’s arrival in Greece, later in September, a senior Eurozone ...
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The best military orchestras from countries around the world, including Armenia, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Kazakhstan, China, Mexico, Russia, Switzerland and Turkey, took part in the festival held at Moscow’s iconic Red Square.
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The Greek Communist Party (KKE) has commemorated its late wartime leader Nikos Zachariadis, whom it had denounced in 1957. During a ceremony in Surgut, in Russia’s Siberia region, where Zachariadis had spent the last years of his life, a KKE delegation headed by the party’s former General Secretary Aleka Papariga unveiled a commemorative plaque at the Department of Water and Forests where he was working as a clerk. Zachariadis was the General Secretary of the KKE from 1931 to 1956. As a leader of the Democratic Army of Greece (DSE), he was a prominent personality of the Greek civil war. After the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953, Zachariadis clashed with the new Soviet leadership. In May 1956, during the 6th Plenum of KKE’s Central Committee, the Soviet Union Communist Party ordered his expulsion from the post of General Secretary. In February 1957, Zachariadis was also expelled from KKE. He spent the rest of his life in exile, in Siberia, initially in Yakutia and later in Surgut. Zachariadis committed suicide in the age of 70, in 1973. In 2011, KKE’s National Conference fully rehabilitated Zachariadis as General Secretary.
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SEPT 9, 1922: Turkish nationalists won their three-year war with Greece after capturing Smyrna – a city that they were later accused of setting ablaze ...
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Responding to Muiznieks, Greece Merchant Marine Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis said, "He is suggesting we proceed with an 'a la carte' enforcement ...
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Nearly three years after it was first brought to parliament, Greek MPs are poised to pass an anti-racism bill which human rights groups say still falls far short of dealing with an epidemic of racist and homophobic violence in the country, writes The ...
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Magnitude, ML 2.2. Region, DODECANESE ISLANDS, GREECE. Date time, 2014-09-08 12:50:02.3 UTC. Location, 36.20 N ; 25.21 E. Depth, 11 km.
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The island of Santorini, located in the Cyclades archipelago in southern Greece, is often said to be one of the world's most beautiful. But although it may be paradise on earth for tourists, it is less so for local residents. Our Observer there explains ...
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The glories of the ancient past remain perhaps the greatest source of national pride in Greece. And in the past, the government could support archaeological research and digs. But the debt crisis and subsequent austerity budget has slashed the Culture Ministry’s budget in half since 2010. So more and more, Greek archaeologists are scrambling for private funding to underwrite their work, npr.org says in a recently published article. They face strict laws mandating national ownership of the country’s 19,000 archaeological sites. And these days it’s hard to find sponsors, who have also been hit by the recession. Archaeologist Xeni Arapogianni made an important discovery in Ancient Thouria, a city-state referenced by Homer and located near the southern Greek city of Kalamata. But, facing austerity budget cuts, she is struggling to finance her work. “We don’t have any support from the state or the Greek archaeological society,” she says. “So we have to get all of our support from private sources,” including a tobacco heiress and local donors from Kalamata, she mentioned to npr.org in an article under the title “Archaeologists Chase Private Funds To Preserve Greek Antiquities.” It’s enough to pay for a couple of workers. Arapogianni, who was forced into early retirement in 2011 because of austerity measures, works without pay. She says she is looking at another site, Ancient Messene, about 18 miles north of Ancient Thouria, for inspiration. Theban general Epameinondas founded Ancient Messene in 369 B.C. after defeating the Spartans. Petros Themelis began excavating there in 1986, almost exclusively with private funding. It’s now one of the most popular sites in Greece. “You can’t excavate without private funding,” said Themelis. Running the site costs more than 500,000 euros a year. Half of the funds come from the European Union, but the rest comes from bank foundations and ship owners courted by Themelis. “They come here during the summer, they visit me here,” he said, passing an ancient road and a nearly Christian basilica. “I guide them, they are very enthusiastic.” Then he sends them applications to fund excavations and restorations. Themelis is also partnering with Costa Navarino luxury resorts so tourists can pay to work as “archaeologists for a day” at Ancient Messene. And he rents out the ancient theater for events, such as a recent staging of “The Woman of Zakynthos” by Greek writer Dionysios Solomos. After the play, a tall, bearded olive-oil exporter named Giorgos Dinardakis walked out of the theater impressed with its condition. “I’ve been at other sites, such as Sparta, and they’re abandoned,” he said. “This site looks alive.” Dinardakis added he’d even like to see private companies managing sites, especially those that aren’t as well known. But he noted that most Greeks don’t trust the private sector, even as their faith in the state is at an all-time low after the economic crisis. “They think a private company would hike up admission prices or allow inappropriate activities or generally disrespect the antiquities in favor of profit,” he said. That’s also the line of the Central Archaeological Council of Greece, which essentially enforces the country’s laws on antiquities. Earlier this year, the Union of Greek Archaeologists condemned a detailed privatization plan by Stephen Miller, a renowned American archaeologist who runs the Ancient Nemea site in the northeastern Peloponnese. Like Themelis, Miller has also spent years raising private funding to support his site but has long been frustrated at the lack of state resources for antiquities. Miller proposed allowing private companies to develop, promote and secure under-used sites in exchange for tourism-generated revenue.
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Daniel J. Graeber BAGHDAD, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- The Iraqi government revealed Monday it started legal proceedings against a Greek company responsible for exports of oil from the Kurdish north of the country.
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Greece is confident its European Commissioner, Dimitris Avramopoulos, will get the new job of overseeing immigration and human rights. The post Greece Expects EU Migration Post appeared first on The National Herald.
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Two Female Statues Found In Biggest Greek Tomb Yet ... Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras refers to the tomb and the caryatids as "very ...
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Researchers have recently discovered two stunning caryatid statues in an ancient tomb in Greece's northeast, the country's culture ministry said on ...
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Two splendid caryatid statues have been discovered at the entrance to the largest ancient tomb ever found in Greece, the AFP reports. Archaeologists ...
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President Barack Obama has become the fourth straight president to order military action in Iraq. His airstrikes have destroyed American military equipment captured from the U.S.-supplied Iraqi army, which a decade ago American forces defeated and disarmed. The last president who didn't bomb Iraq, Ronald Reagan, acted as a de facto ally of Baghdad in the latter's aggressive war against Iran, which ultimately encouraged Saddam Hussein to invade Kuwait. That in turn led to the first Gulf War, years of sanctions and periodic bombing, the 2003 invasion, and now the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Unless President Obama pulls back quickly, his administration risks becoming absorbed in another interminable, unnecessary war in Mesopotamia with unpredictable but almost certainly negative consequences. ISIL's rise is both a geopolitical failure and humanitarian disaster. However, so far the organization threatens the security of other nations, not America. Nor does the president have legal authority, necessary from Congress under the Constitution, to go to war again in Iraq. Yet President Obama plans to unveil a detailed new war plan on Wednesday. The temptation to act is strong. After all, the Islamic State exists because of prior misbegotten U.S. actions. And the usual Greek Chorus is singing ever more loudly one of its many paeans to war. Just give war another chance. Originally President Obama defended limited airstrikes "to protect American personnel" involved in "a humanitarian effort" to help Yazidis trapped by ISIL forces. Even then the initial strikes were suspiciously broad--not on forces attacking U.S. personnel, but on artillery firing on Kurdish forces defending the Kurdish city where U.S. personnel were located. Then the president gave another address promising more attacks if ISIL "attempted to advance further." Since then airstrikes have been used to support more general Iraqi and Kurdish military operations. The president did insist that he would "not allow the United States to be dragged in fighting another war in Iraq." He later reiterated that commitment, stating that "there's no American military solution to the larger crisis." However, Pentagon officials referred to ISIL as "the enemy" and in a New York Times interview last month President Obama indicated his willingness to consider joining a refashioned Iraqi government in "pushing back" the group. Now the administration is vowing to "crush" the organization. In fact, it is not easy to be just a little bit pregnant in combat. Unfortunately, even a lot of bombs might have limited effectiveness, as was evident even during the desert conflict in Libya. The president insisted that "combat troops will not be returning to fight in Iraq," but airpower is unlikely to suppress a religiously motivated insurgency against the corrupt, incompetent Iraqi authorities. Moreover, any military involvement puts U.S. credibility at stake, encouraging the administration to ever escalate to rescue a failing policy. Any involvement threatens blowback--more than the murder of errant journalists to fall into ISIL's hands. For years U.S. bombing appears to have created more enemies of America than it has killed. The 13-year-long Global War on Terrorism destroyed the international al-Qaeda organization but spawned a multitude of al-Qaeda-like national splinter groups. Until now ISIL has sought to become a de facto government and state, not a terrorist organization. That establishes an "address" for retaliation, giving ISIL an important incentive not to follow al-Qaeda's anti-American raison d'etre. If Washington becomes a belligerent, ISIL's international aspirations are likely to change. An even greater danger is turning Washington into a participant in Iraq's complicated sectarian struggle. Today former Baathists and Sunni tribes, some of which worked with U.S. forces against Al-Qaeda in Iraq during the "Sunni Awakening," are loosely allied with ISIL against the Shia-dominated national government. Washington should not turn millions of Sunni Iraqis into enemies. Nor is it easy to resolve a regional conflict by intervening in one small place in Iraq. ISIL established its fighting prowess and gained much of its materiel from the ongoing Syrian civil war. If the administration is going to risk U.S. involvement in the fighting, it will be hard to confine military action to one small part of the multi-national battlefield. Which is why the administration is considering bombing Islamic State forces in Syria. But that would greatly complicate its efforts to oust the Assad government. Creeping escalation would risk a repeat of the president's predecessors' mistakes in Iraq. Absent a quick exit, the president may face an expanding conflict which comes to divert his personal attention, absorb his political capital, and taint his legacy, just as Iraq did to George W. Bush. The administration hopes to avoid repeating history by relying on other nations to do most of the dirty work. But Washington still would be deeply involved and viewed as the principal enemy by ISIL. President Obama still has time to step back before the U.S. becomes a formal belligerent. Washington should emphasize that the Islamist Sunni insurgency is a problem made in Baghdad. The U.S. invested heavily in a military which became a sectarian tool of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. His misrule encouraged Sunni tribes and former Baathists to journey back into the 7th Century with ISIL in order to oust their Shia oppressors. A political modus vivendi, whether a more inclusive national government, radical federalism, formal partition, or something else is necessary to split the coalition between Islamic extremism and everyday sectarianism. The administration also should revisit policy in Syria. The Obama administration believed President Bashar al-Assad to be a "reformer" before declaring him to be international enemy number one. It turns out that he's somewhere in between. His regime is vile, but ISIL is worse. Equally important, the Assad government poses no active threat to important U.S. interests. Far more dangerous would be a regional ISIL "caliphate." Washington should stop trying to overthrow the Damascus regime. The U.S. also should drop the ISIL problem into the laps of neighboring countries. For instance, members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, led by Saudi Arabia, have funded extremist factions fighting Assad and Turkey has allowed movement of ISIL fighters into Syria. These nations must recognize the danger of blowback if ISIL succeeds in destabilizing much of the Middle East. The Sunni Arab regimes need to help delegitimize ISIL. The pleas of Christians, Yazidis, Kurds, and Shiites are not likely to shake the movement's followers. Other Sunnis may be more effective in reducing the Islamic State's appeal, especially to those who today have allied with extremists for purely tactical reasons. These governments already have begun to act against ISIL supporters within their borders. The Gulf States also could provide aid to those displaced. Military support for Iraq and the Kurds would be helpful as well. More directly, nations on the group's target list should take the lead in offering military assistance to the Kurds and Iraqi central government, and intervening directly. Israel could act unofficially, disguising its efforts where possible. Iranian involvement is hardly problem-free, but Tehran has an interest in preventing an ISIL conquest of Iraq. Amman has a professional air force and an incentive to stop the Islamist group before the latter reaches Jordan. Turkey has an even larger military. Ankara so far has focused on ousting the Syrian government, but a collapse of Iran's Kurdistan could trigger large refugee flows into Turkey's Kurdish areas. Nor is ISIL likely to stop its subversion at Turkey's border. Ankara needs to change its priorities. Given the Erdogan government's improved relationship with Kurds in both Turkey and Iraq, Ankara could offer military assistance to Kurdistan. And Turkey, not America, should be launching air strikes against Islamic State forces. While ISIL is a critical problem in the short-term, it may be self-correcting in the long-term. It is one thing to overrun a wide expanse of territory poorly defended by ill-coordinated and ill-prepared forces. It is quite another to consolidate control and actually rule. Clashes already have been reported between ISIL fighters and Sunnis who want to live in the 21st Century. Enhanced political cooperation in Baghdad, more responsible behavior by ISIL-enablers like Saudi Arabia, military involvement by such threatened nations as Jordan and Turkey, and an allied shift away from the anti-Assad campaign could generate an overwhelming coalition against ISIL. Without requiring the direct U.S. military involvement envisioned by the administration. Washington has spent decades attempting to micro-manage the Middle East. Virtually every U.S. plan has misfired, collapsed, or exploded. Perhaps nowhere have American officials done worse than in Iraq. ISIL would not exist but for George W. Bush's misguided invasion of Iraq. Heck'uva job, George & Neocon Co.! Still, perhaps most striking is how little the consequences usually affect the U.S., except when Washington chooses to make the problems America's own. The impact looks especially modest compared to the negative results of constantly intervening. It turns out that being a superpower has at least one big advantage: other nations' misfortunes usually don't have a significant impact. There still are well-founded humanitarian desires to help in Iraq and elsewhere. Unfortunately, however, options today are limited. Instead of jumping into another unnecessary and counterproductive war, Washington should step back, temper its ambitions, and place responsibility on regional players with more at stake in the conflicts and greater ability to solve the problems. The third time definitely isn't the charm for war in Iraq. This post first appeared at Forbes online.
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SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras reiterated he will try to block naming of a Greek President in 2015 to trigger early national elections. The post Tsipras Sees 2015 National Elections appeared first on The National Herald.
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Rolling business and financial news, as the latest Halifax survey shows house price growth running out of steam in AugustLatest: Lagarde tells Germany to spend moreSentix: Eurozone recession fears growScottish fears knock two cents off sterlingSpanish house prices show first gain since 2008Halifax: UK prices up just 0.1% last monthAnalyst: prices will keep rising at restrained paceIntroduction: Pound under pressure 1.03pm BST Over in Greece, prime minister Antonis Samarass promise of tax cuts and growth this year have failed to wow his critics.The reality is that nearly two million are unemployed, 6,500 have taken their own lives, pensions and wages have been cut dramatically, insurance funds are collapsing and people are losing their jobs. These cuts, which wouldnt even take effect until 2016-1017, bear no connection to any of that. We all believe that elections will be early and this is part of blackmailing Greeks into thinking that this government not only offers stability but something even better.Nothing could be further from the truth. 11.57am BST Christine Lagarde, head of the International Monetary Fund, is going round Europe trying to stir up enthusiasm for a German investment splurge to help the eurozone.Lagarde told daily Les Echos in an interview the process could be aided by Germany, which is borrowing at record-low rates and on track to record a public sector surplus for the third year running. We think that public or private investment (in Germany) to finance infrastructure would be welcome, she said, stressing this did not mean making the German economy less competitive.I think structural reform is necessary in terms of labour market regulations, excessive regulations in some areas, of areas of economic activity that are too protected and which need to be opened up to competition.This goes for everyone... its true for France, its true for Germany, its true for Italy. 11.54am BST Irelands Finance Minister Michael Noonan begins a long week of lobbying across Europe this week.Noonan and the Fine Gael-Labour coalition believe that if Ireland is allowed to repay the IMF bailout bill first before paying back loans from the European Central Bank it could result in annual savings of 375m to the Irish Exchequer.His logic is that with Ireland now enjoying low borrowing costs on the international markets -a sign of renewed global investors confidence in the Republic - Dublin should be allowed to go first to the private markets to pay off the IMF side of the debt. The IMF debt burden is greater than that Ireland owes to the ECB. 11.08am BST Currency trader tells me that selling off the pound is like shooting ducks in a barrel today. "Wonderful few hours" of trade, he says 10.58am BST The selloff in sterling has deepened, as Scottish independence jitters reverberate around the financial markets.The pound is down two cents against the US dollar, to $1.6118, cementing its position as the weakest major currency today. Thats a new 10-month low.The rationale behind Scotland continuing to use the pound is to promote stability and remove uncertainty for trade. Domestically that might be true, but internationally the opposite is happening. Markets dont like uncertainty. We can expect at least a 5% drop in the pound in the face of Yes vote and it could be considerably more.The prospect of protected negotiations will create a period of volatility in exchange rates, bonds and equities which will continue until concrete decisions over debt and currency are made. 10.39am BST This is worrying. Economic confidence in the eurozone has fallen sharply, as the European Central Banks efforts to stimulate growth and inflation fail to calm the region. The Sentix research group reported that morale among investors slumped this month, to -9.8 on its index. Thats the lowest reading since July 2013, and a big drop on Augusts 2.7.Thats remarkable because ever since President (Mario) Draghi took office, the ECB has always managed to boost investors economic expectations with a variety of measures. This doesnt seem to be working anymore.The indicator points to another recession in the euro zone, it added. 10.17am BST The oil price has just slipped to its lowest level in 14 months. The cost of a barrel of Brent crude is changing hands for $99.96 per barrel, the first time below the $100 mark since June 2013. 10.05am BST British banks have been warned against dodging the EUs bank bonus cap.Michel Barnier, a vice-president of the European commission, has threatened the City with a a co-ordinated policy response, if they circumvent rules banning staff from bonuses worth more than 100% of base salary, or 200% with shareholders permission. 9.52am BST While Britains housing boom slows, Spains long property slump may be over.House prices in Spain rose by 0.8% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2014, the first annual rise since the financial crisis began six years ago. 9.52am BST The pounds 1% tumble against the US dollar makes it the worst performing major currency today.fastFT adds:If one includes exotic, tiny currencies then only the Afghan afghani, Sierra Leones leone, the Tongan paaanga, the Vanuatu vatu and the Malawi kwacha have done worse than sterling today, according to Bloomberg data. 9.36am BST Heres another sign that Britains housing market may be easing: more than half of the most expensive houses put up for sale in London recently have been withdrawn, due to weak demand.The Financial Times reports:Tax rises on high-value properties, along with the prospect of a mansion tax and the uncertainty caused by a looming general election, have made homes that are worth more than £2m much harder to sell, according to research for the Financial Times.More than half of all properties in Londons most expensive central areas have been withdrawn unsold in the six months to the end of June, the research by the property data company Lonres and analysts Dataloft shows. 9.30am BST 6 of top 10 biggest fallers on FTSE this morning are Scottish based - RBS, Weir, SSE, Lloyds, Standard Life, Aberdeen Asset Management 9.30am BST One last word on Scotland... this chart, from Neville Hill of Credit Suisse, shows how the Citys fears over independence are interlinked.A potential Scottish negative feedback loop, by @NevilleHill pic.twitter.com/ZMiSQ7oCli 9.16am BST Sterling continues to be hit hard by the prospect of Scotland voting for independence, falling to a four-month low against a basket of currencies.As this chart shows, the pound remains at a 10-month low against the US dollar at $1.6175.#Cable #GBPUSD absolutely smashed when Asia woke up last night. About 160 points lower than Friday close now at 16160. #indyref to blame 9.06am BST The surge of support for Scottish independence has sent jitters through the stock market this morning.Shares in companies with large Scottish interest suffered sharp falls in early trading, my colleague Fiona Walsh reports:Royal Bank of Scotland was the biggest faller in the FTSE 100, falling more than 3% in early trading. Energy group SSE (Scottish & Southern Electricity) were down 2.5%, Lloyds Banking Group dropped 2.2%, Standard Life were down 2% and Aberdeen Asset Management fell 1.5%.The FTSE 100, which last week reached a 14 year high, was down 18 points, at 6837. Biggest fallers today on #FTSE, Standard Life, Lloyds, RBS, Babcock, Scottish and Southern and Weir Group in wake of w/e #indyref poll 8.56am BST Halifax also flags up that Britain is (not before time) building more homes. Although probably not at a fast enough rate to tackle the demand shortages.The number of new homes built in April-June was 7% higher than in the same period last year, it reports.A continuation of this upward trend in housebuilding could also help to bring demand and supply into better balance. 8.50am BST Despite Augusts slowdown, house prices are still up by 3.0% over the last quarter, according to Halifaxs survey.Halifaxs monthly data can be a little erratic, but Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight reckons a slowdown is underway:The Halifax data tie in with our view that house prices will keep on clearly rising overall through the coming months, but at a more restrained rate.Halifax: Annually, house prices were 9.7% higher in the three months to August than in the same three months last year 8.36am BST After a strong run, Britains housing market took a breather last month with prices barely rising.Halifaxs monthly survey of the sector found that prices inched up by just 0.1% in August, sharply down on the 1.2% recorded in July.Earnings growth that remains below consumer price inflation, and the prospect of an interest rate rise at some point over the coming months, are likely to curb demand. 8.36am BST Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the financial markets, the economy, the eurozone and business.Coming up today..... a new house price survey from the Halifax building society will show whether Britains housing boom is running out of steam. 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The curators brilliantly mix up the types of art he experimented with, without making judgments about the 'real' Turner Turner blossoms late at the Tate in picturesThe twilight of the gods has come to Tate Britain. Like a Wagnerian opera painted in mist and fire, the late works of JMW Turner rise from silence to throbbing power, wheel out their visionary leitmotifs, and crash in apocalyptic frenzy.Wagner and Turner have a great deal in common. Both are artists of myth on a grand scale who wallow in magnificent ambiguities and lashings of atmosphere. In Turner's 1837 painting The Parting of Hero and Leander, a lover is drowned in a boiling roiling sea while heavenly fire glows red above a Greek city that hubristically totters on a mountaintop. How Wagnerian is that? It is all an allegory of doomed desire, a grandiose illumination of Turner's long, unreadable poem The Fallacies of Hope (again like Wagner, he wrote his own libretto). Continue reading...
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Provides an overview of Greece, including key events and facts about this European country
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SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras has once again indicated that his leftist party will try to trigger early national elections in Greece by blocking the conservative-led government’s nomination for a new President of the Republic. “In the begging of 2015 we wi... ...
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