Frustrated with the persistent refusal of Germany to settle the decades long pending WWII German reparation obligations, ordinary Greek citizens have organized a petition and are collecting signatures to demand the long delayed settlement. The ongoing petition at www.greece.org/blogs/wwii/ is receiving support and solidarity from people around the world (over 188,000 signatures by now), which proves the cla ...

The New Democracy “Truth Team” made its appearance before the national elections of 2012. Its official mission is stated as “political analysis”. In reality, it is devoted to political propaganda on behalf of New Democracy, the main party in Greece’s government coalition, aiming at the defamation of the party’s rivals, systematically distorting facts and fabricating so-called “evidence”. Based at New Democr ...

Though Margaret Thatcher is no longer among the living, her ideology lives on. That ideology – known today as neoliberalism, “free market fundamentalism” in a phrase coined by George Soros – is strikingly unique. Apart from religious beliefs, is there any example of an ideology that has been so thoroughly disproven yet maintains an aura of respectability? The basic premise of neoliberalism – that “free mark ...

(Reuters) - The chairman of one of Greece's largest banks and his family took out loans totaling more than 100 million euros to finance an undisclosed stake in the bank, according to audit documents seen by Reuters. Offshore companies owned by Michael Sallas and his two children paid for shares in the Piraeus Bank, the country's fourth-biggest, by borrowing money from a rival bank. Together the shares make ...

Police say at least 20 migrant farm workers in the Peloponnese were injured when employers fired at them.     An employer reportedly opened fire against a large group of about 200 Bangladeshi immigrant farm workers in Nea Manolada, on the outskirts of Ileia in the Peloponnese, on Thursday. The immigrant workers had reportedly gathered to demand six-months’ worth of unpaid wages. Police reported th ...

The horrific bombings of the Boston Marathon produced inspiring images of a spirited, brave Boston refusing to be cowed. Some spectators surged forward toward the danger to apply tourniquets, offer first aid, share blankets, and later to give blood, for the victims. President Obama followed the crisis from its first moments and came out promptly to caution against fruitless speculation as to the perpetrator ...

Over the last 1.5 years, the VU University Amsterdam has been embroiled in a battle against severe budgetary cuts. The university board (consisting of three members, one of whom is the former CEO of a port company and another, the former CEO of a bank), has launched a reorganization program that includes budget cuts of €33 million. This reorganization will result in 500-600 layoffs (a reduction of 350 full- ...

  Nearly six thousand children in Greece live on the street. Little girls and boys who sell tissues and flowers, clean car windows at traffic lights or beg passers-by to make a living. These children are mainly from other countries such as Bulgaria and Romania and have  come to Greece with their families to work. Meni Christidou, a social worker at the independent NGO PRAKSIS that operates especially i ...

Lynne Segal says those eager to dance on Thatcher’s grave have much thinking to do. ‘Margaret Thatcher is Dead: This lady is not returning!’ is one way of the calmer statements celebrating Thatcher’s demise on my Facebook page. I can’t join the clamour singing ‘Ding dong the witch is dead’, trailing as it does its horrific historical sexism. More sadly, I can’t see anything to celebrate. Whilst this once fo ...

Submitted by Charles Hugh-Smith of OfTwoMinds blog, The Real Cyprus Template reveals the core-periphery Neocolonial-Financialization Model in all its predatory glory. Much has been said about "the Cyprus Template" (the so-called bail-in, where deposits are expropriated to recapitalize the insolvent banks), but virtually nothing has been written about the Real Cyprus Template. Longtime correspondent David P. ...