Commenting on the events in Athens

To the Editor:
I happen to be in Athens, and although I have not as yet witnessed first hand the results of the destruction, nonetheless I was submerged in a state of disbelief for what I was seeing on TV during the last four days. No doubt, the past weighs heavy on the Greek psyche and it is a point of reference to all political parties and factions. Especially for the left, the traumas left from the reign of terror that preceded and followed the civil war by the police and the paramilitary gangs (and tolerated by the government), leave no room for a more balanced evaluation.

The present (moderate) government on the other hand tries to avoid a repetition of past sins of previous right-wing governments: state enforced terrorism and repression. Involved in a cascade of scandals and unable to extricate itself from their deleterious effects to its credibility, it appeared unable (and unwilling) to act in the face of the riotous protests that erupted after the brutal killing of a youth by the police. Unclear yet remains the political identity and objectives of the hood-wearing gangs who, when not acting alone, always seem to infiltrate the ranks of the protesters, who in most instances are law abiding citizens.

As it happens, it is a historical fact that most revolutions and uprisings have occurred in times of seeming tranquility, when the ruling classes enjoy prosperity and prominence but, at the same time, there is an undercurrent of discontent that only needs a catalyst, an excuse, to erupt into an earthquake, to become a human avalanche.

This is what we have witnessed in Athens in the last four days--and maybe beyond.

Orestes Varvitsiotes

~ Greek News ~