National egocentricism
…Recent developments in the ongoing dispute to decide on a name for the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and the aggravation of Greek-Turkish relations provide us with yet another example of our two main political parties blaming each other for wrong moves – a sign that something is not quite right with our country. We are evidently unable to handle sensitive and critical foreign policy matters correctly and responsibly; we have not succeeded in drafting a common opinion regarding the threat they represent, nor have we managed to make any concrete proposals about how to tackle and resolve them. And this is despite the fact that, in words if not deeds, both major parties have reached the greatest degree of consensus on these subjects… So why is it that the initial reaction of most citizens to every development in domestic affairs is a feeling of betrayal…? We insist on maintaining a dangerous and ineffective national egocentricism as if our circumstances have remained unaffected by the passage of time… We want to believe that we are a chosen people to whom everyone is indebted, that we have national rights that are immutable, and that global changes may have affected everyone except us…
