On leadership, Orwell?s elephant, India
It is sad to see that the current crop of politicians in Greece, Europe and much of the developed world lack the leadership abilities to talk plainly and truthfully to people, and to create a vision and a plan for fixing the problems that exist. The current crop of politicians have lived in a world that has prospered under a long-term peace, under the influence of technological change and greater trade, interdependence of nations and globalization — which have created much more wealth than has ever existed.
Unfortunately, these politicians have seen the wealth as an opportunity to create a myth about personal success, a personal or party brand to create a «cult of personality,» and the opportunity to help their friends in the corporate and financial worlds. Now that financial times are bad, they do not take responsibility for their share of the trouble and they continue to support their wealthy friends — not going after wealthy tax dodgers in Greece — and continue to take the banks? and corporation?s side before the peoples.
They tell the people that sacrifices need to be made, but expect none from their friends. They put on «shows» to convince people they care, but like any other show, when the audience leaves reality kicks in.
Today’s politicians lack the courage to face the electorate on truth, and they lack the ability to solve problems. Today’s politicians are only concerned about keeping their jobs; they do not understand that they are there to act in service for people, and lack the capabilities that are necessary for making difficult decisions in order to govern. They play games to ensure the safety of their livelihoods, yet these same games compromise the safety of the state, and the future of the citizens that they are responsible for.
Angelo Arvanitis
Not India
Of course Greece does not grow at the rate India is growing. At the same time Greece doesn’t have around 50 percent of its population living below the poverty line. No, of course Greece cannot afford to launch satellites to no avail, neither India. The situation in India is a crying shame, a minority of people are extremely wealthy while the rest struggles to survive every day, often living off what Greeks sent them every month via one NGO or other.
Io Qui
Regarding ?Orwell’s Elephant?
It isn’t Orwell’s elephant, but the elephant in the room that everyone is trying to ignore in the current financial crisis.
No one seems to mention the fact that the greed of the financial markets, which invested in Greek bonds for a better profit margin (over other Western European bonds) are now refusing to acknowledge their fault in this mess. Greece’s partners are not bailing out the Greeks, they are bailing out their friends who invested in Greece. Let?s not pretend any longer that «our partners» really do care about whether Greece makes it or not — they only care about their own financial institutions surviving and not whether Greece and the Greeks survive.
Angelo Arvanitis
