Letters to the Editor
I always look forward to Alexis Papachelas’s column in the English edition of Kathimerini. In reference to his most recent commentary (September 5), it has long been obvious to me that, regarding conspiracies, Greeks and Americans share the same continuum. Americans never accept that, internally, there are ever any conspiracies and to merely imply so immediately discredits the speaker. Greeks, on the other hand, believe that absolutely everything, even evolution I suppose, is a conspiracy. Of course, they are both wrong. Papachelas is right to ridicule some of the Greeks’ pathological conspiracies regarding the fires. In any premise, the extreme is rarely the case. Henry Kissinger famously said that: «Even paranoids have enemies.» It is a different matter to refute that some, or many, of the fires were set on purpose in an organized manner by individuals with ulterior motives. Papachelas has written incisively about the Greek character. Saddest of all perhaps, and quite true, is the fact that in certain intrinsic aspects of the Greek character (and within the historical structure of Greek society and organization of the Greek state) lie the sparks that lit the first flames of those fires that threaten the very physical existence of Greece. Absurdities must be exposed for what they are, and Papachelas is doing precisely this, but core issues of self-destruction must be addressed thoroughly, honestly and relentlessly or this country will not survive. I believe, rightly or wrongly, that nothing less is at stake. Greece disappeared from the world for four centuries. The next disappearance will be permanent. PETER KIRK Stoupa, Messinia
As a Greek living abroad, I would firstly like to express my deepest sympathies and condolences to all those compatriots who have lost their loved ones or their homes and businesses. They are the ones who need our reassurance and support. Reading your newspaper, and various other sources, I am surprised that after such an ordeal people are already starting to blame the government of the day for this situation. I am surprised that there are still some people in Greece, including some of your journalists, who complain and condemn the ineffective state apparatus and its response to the fires. Some have complained about the armed forces not being used in time. This unnecessary blame game will not assist in healing this burnt land and nation. It continues to surprise me that a large section of the Greek populace look to blame others when things go wrong. It heartens me to read that there are still many examples of brave individuals who realized that it is up to them to make a difference. I fear though that these examples are few and far between. The ineffectiveness of the State is a chronic problem in Greece that has not improved since New Democracy came to power nearly four years ago. The ineffectiveness had existed before that though. I remember when the Express Samina tragedy occurred in 2000, when PASOK was in power, how Greek citizens complained about the ineffective state apparatus. It is clear that governments of the past have contributed to the chronic problems of the State. However, it is imperative for Greek citizens to realize that they themselves are a part of the State. When will they realize that when they dodge their tax payments and give and take bribes, they contribute to these problems? When will common sense, decency and respect for our fellow human beings prevail in this country? One can only hope that with this disaster Greek society will pull itself together. Greek citizens should take heed of these problems and learn from them now. Should they fail, another even greater disaster will befall this ancient land. I have been impressed by the present government and its reformist agenda. Things are moving in the correct direction, but unfortunately these reforms do not cut deep enough. For this to be achieved, a major change in mindset is necessary. Can this occur in Greece? If not, one can only live in fear of the next disaster. One can only hope that, if and when this occurs again, society will then be able to adapt itself to change. VASILIS PETROLEKAS London, UK
I am writing to you, the editors of this fine newspaper, to make a voice in the Greek American wilderness heard. We witnessed the fires in Greece from our televisions and heaved a communal sigh of sadness and anger. The sadness was obvious but the anger was aimed primarily at those who caused the fires, those who allowed them to take over the country and to those who took advantage of them for political purposes. I think all Greeks, in Greece and abroad, felt this collectively and identified the enemy as ourselves. The following is a letter I wrote to my cousin who seemed to be my only real connection to what was happening over in Greece. Unfortunately the media in the United States all but overlooked the national catastrophe by pushing news like football player Michael Vick’s mistreament of dogs or some other nonsense involving Paris Hilton. Please consider publishing my letter as a reminder to all Greeks that fires eventually burn out but the embers of future catastrophe continue to smoulder. Dearest cousin Tasos, I am glad the fires are over and that with prayers and some luck there will be no more fires. I read the news links you sent and the photos; I am sure we are only seeing a fraction of the devastation. I don’t know what to say. If this is all about greed and politics, shame on those responsible. It is now in the hands of those who believe in justice and truth to take over the policies and organization for the future of Greece. We have had enough of the thieves and liars. Greece cannot afford to take one step into the future and two steps back into the past. It is bad enough that our enemies wait for an opportunity for us to make mistakes, but now we give it to them on a golden plate. It sounds like a cliche but the honor of what it meant to be Greek is slowly fading. It is time to draw a line in the sand and be decisive about who we are as Hellenes. To be proud to be Greek is not to be a neo-Nazi psychotic. To be Greek is not to be a self-styled anarchist. To be Greek is not to be a greedy goat herder who ferries cheap Albanian labor over the border. To be Greek is not to sit in luxury cars and leather chairs sipping champagne while poor people burn in their homes. To be Greek is not to pimp Russian girls in Athens’s red light district. To be Greek is to be responsible for a name and a heritage, to be proud of a future as well as a past, to live life with spirit and joy and without fear of death, to take responsibility and care for others and to honor them as we do our own family. To be Greek is an honor and a privilege and not a word that can be tossed into the flames like a worthless rag. I am not a nationalist or racist, I am actually only half Greek in blood, but my soul and my heart beat with more Hellenic spirit than all the fakes walking their poodles in Kolonaki. As an immigrant’s son, I am in contact with many Greeks from Australia, England and Spain and they all feel the same. Perhaps our fathers took with them, when they left, the best that was Greece, because what is left now in modern-day Greece is too sad for words. I had hoped that Greece would never change from those days I remember in the 1970s but all that is gone. Time to build a better future. KONSTANTINOS ALEXIOU Astoria, New York, USA
