When the going gets tough
As we prepare to slide into summer insouciance, it is useful to ponder what our political and economic expectations are for the coming winter. What this country needs above all is a government campaign to purge the political system of graft and corruption. The conservative administration must make sure that the long shadow cast by the Siemens bribery scandal will be lifted. Moreover, the country needs a great deal of political courage in order to implement the reforms that have been voted through Parliament and to take additional measures that will prevent Greece from lagging further behind. Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has proved to have the requisite political instinct for crucial times. Right now he is the sole protagonist on the political stage, leading a party that won a second mandate thanks to him alone. Decisions will not be easy and there are many tough dilemmas ahead but, as the saying goes, when the going gets tough, the tough get going. His burden of responsibility is enormous.
