"History of course
repeats itself, but, as usual, the second time as farce. Greece’s 2015 is not
its 1981, and Alexis Tsipras is not Andreas Papandreou. He lacks the social,
professional and political experience that is necessary for the task he is
called for; is mostly adept at low-level party politics, but still leads a
motley coalition of forces he is not in complete control of; and, for all his
genuine wish to put an end to austerity and hardship in Greek society, he lacks
a concrete plan of action for achieving it. For, it is one thing in politics to
say what you want to pull down, but an entirely different thing to explain what
you are going to build up instead, and how".
I concur. 100%
ReplyDeleteHe is certainly promicing everything to everyone. On that he is certainly Andreas Papandreou. The only thing he hasn't promiced yet, is more fish for the fishermen.
ReplyDeleteThere is also a difference in the way he conducts his campaign. Andreas Papandreou, was a very smart and highly educated man, who didn't need others to write his speeches, he could actually have a speech with no text. He also knew the greek language much better than Tsipras and despite his politically ruthless ways, he didn't do "mistakes" like the one that Tsipras did yesterday, trying to make a game of words, to say that when he wins, he will "f word" his opponents. Such "out of speech" moments where he gets carried away, show the way Tsipras thinks inside his head and remind of teenagers.
ReplyDeleteI am refering to Tsipras saying while in Rhodes: "Here is Rhodes and here is the jump, some say. Well, yes! Here is Rhodes. And the jump will come in a few days, with the push of the people".
First, "some say". Typical of Tsipras' lack of education, he thinks that this is some weird saying. It is actually an ancient greek saying that has remained in modern greek and everyone who was paying attention to his teachers knows that it was from Aesop's boastful athlete tale. So it's not something that "some say", it's a tale about an athlete who was boasting about how long he could jump.
Tsipras, ignoring the tale, maybe in his mind believing it's a dirty joke for Rhodians, continues with a modern greek inuend, where "jump" means metaphotically the sexual act. So he promices that in a few days, some (his political opponents), will be "jumped".
No, in that, he is not similar to Andreas Papandreou, he was maintaining a certain decorum in his political campaign and respect towards his institutional opponents.
Googling for the aggressive professor, I could not find much academic performance. Why should anybody listen to him?
ReplyDeleteH. Trickler
http://uom-gr.academia.edu/TakisPappas
DeleteAt 258 citations on Google Scholar, he is well above the average for Greek professors. On the other hand, mine are at 1,700 and I am rather disappointed that they are not higher. It's all a matter of perspective, really.
ReplyDeleteMaybe his plan is not to mention his plan? To be honest i am not a leftist nor a fan of Syriza, but maybe their rise in the political scheme is not by accident? Others have come and gone during this period and have not maintained such a good overall image. His job is to be a politician and be there and talk his way into and out of circumstances. lets not come to compare A. PAP with A TSIP. It is like comparing Maradona with Messi. Different times different circumstances.
ReplyDeleteV
When a crisis arises, people seek solutions to the existing parties. SYRIZA was the logical choice for PASOK voters to go, as the only other alternative, was...KKE. And later, A.N.T.A.R.S.I.A (M.U.T.I.N.Y). It's not that suddenly 20% of Greeks became radical leftists, just like it's not that suddenly Golden Dawn found itself from 0,3% to 8% because it said something new or because its leader became more charismatic overnight.
DeleteIs this Alexis Tsipras 2014 or George Papandreou 2009???
ReplyDeleteMr: Kastner, have your wife translate this video for you.
http://www.protothema.gr/politics/article/444384/deth-2009-2014/