When young Foreign Secretary Antonis Samaras was calling the Greeks to take the streets for the Macedonian name issue, I was 8 years old. Although my parents used to vote for Socialist PASOK back then, they told me in 1993 that Samaras was a “clean” politician for leaving the Conservative party New Democracy, because of a dispute about the name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Macedonian issue with the Prime Minister at the time Konstantinos Mitsotakis.

               I was sad when in 1999 his party, called Political Spring (POLAN) didn’t make it into the European parliament.  For some years now though the once young and full of hope politician seems to be one of the worst and clearly dangerous Greek political figures.

               Initially Antonis mocked all the former members of POLAN that returned to New Democracy after his…Political Winter. As for himself, he  was saying that he would never return to New Democracy, even as its leader, but a few years later begged to come back. Even so, he never forgave the members of his old party that returned before him…We are counting already 3 changes of principle and position here.

              Later on, as a minister of culture, he appointed people almost only from his hometown Kalamata to the new Acropolis Museum in 2009 – a man who claims to be against corruption… At the same time he was saying that Kostas Karamanlis was such a beloved leader that he would be the first politician to be elected for the 3rd time in a row in Greece. Of course after a very short period he was a candidate and got elected president of New Democracy. Since then he didn’t even want to ask Karamanlis what happened with the Greek deficit. His logic was to cover everything under the carpet…Another 3 changes of principle and position.

              Now some facts that everybody knows: Samaras said no to the memorandum, and threw former Foreign Secretary Dora Bakoyannis, daughter  of Mitsotakis out of the party because she said yes to the bailout. He was screaming that there is “another way” than to follow the memorandum while staying within the Eurozone. After 1,5 years though, he voted for the 2nd memorandum and threw out all of New Democracy MP’s who said no to it. Then he decided to take them back to the party… Now he says there is no other way except for following the new memorandum, claiming that SYRIZA will take Greece out of the Euro with its policies, if the left coalition ever rules the country… Are you dizzy from his position switching? I am, so I stopped counting.

              Apart from the constant position changing though Antonis has another drawback – he is an old style politician in a society that is changing rapidly.

Since he became New Democracy’s President, he decides and rules with an iron feast, speaking only to a couple of his consultants about his decisions. His MP’s are only good for giving him applause, while he never asks their opinion. In order understand his 19th century mentality, look at the positions the other conservative leader, Panos Kammenos of Independent Greeks party, has in terms of calling for electronic referendums as well as the relaxed party discipline of his MP’s. Sometimes it feels like Antonis doesn’t even know what the internet is!

              Let’s take his statements and actions after the elections in comparison to the leader of SYRIZA, Alexis Tsipras. While Alexis doesn’t even breathe publicly without discussing first with his Coalition members, Antonis took and gave back the official mandate from the Greek President almost without asking anybody! Then he started copying badly SYRIZA’s moves by trying to gather all the right wing powers close to him, and talking to his MP’s about the dangers of Greece leaving the Euro if Tsipras forms a government. Again probably he did not ask their opinion about anything. Well done Samaras! Do everything to become Prime Minister even if that means, being totally undemocratic and defaming  the country. Give more hugs to Karamanlis, so that no court will ever call him over about the scandals and the deficits of his era in the government…

              What he doesn’t realise is that these kind of leaders are dead in Greece, since Socialist (PASOK) leader Andreas Papandreou was taken to the cemetery with 1 million people sad on the streets singing his name in the mid 90’s. Since then we had the Olympics of Atlanta, Sidney, Athens, Beijing, and we have reached London Antonis!!! And you still think that you are a charismatic valuable unique leader Antonis!!! Wake up!!!

              Instead of realising that the percentage of his party (from 33% dropped to 19%) fell because of his policy to follow the memorandum and use it as an opportunity to change them, perhaps as the head of an anti-memorandum block, along with Kammenos for example, he insists in punching the knife as we say in Greece. He claims it is a matter of principle not to change his views, but as we have seen, he changes his principles every couple of days…

              Are we going to trust the fate of our country in this Palaeolithic politician who knows only to spread fear and terror towards the people in order to get votes? To an arrogant undemocratic figure who accuses the left of being irresponsible, at the same time that he decided not to unite with Bakoyannis and that’s the main reason that Greece doesn’t have a government right now?

              I say that we need to get rid of him and fast because instead of getting to Agia Sofia in Istanbul, as his political adverts suggest, if he happens to rule we will lose what we have already and maybe more! Samaras is the perfect leader to divide Greek people and maybe lead them into a civil war in order to become ruler. In the next elections, make him disappear once and for all from the political map.



 
        My family used to listen almost exclusively to George Dalaras. In the car, at parties, when friends visisted, or when we had people from abroad visiting and we wanted to show them a little piece of Greek culture. 

        I used to think that he was a great artist until I was 14-15 years old. I remember the last album that I liked was the one with the songs of Goran Bregovic. I was excited how the rhythm was going faster in the song: “Nyhta” (Night).

        After that I began to hate him. Partly in response initially to my family, where everyone always knew everything better than me, because I was the youngest. I remember we went to see him playing with the band called Pyx Lax, and I told my parents that I was coming along only to listen to Pyx Lax, a small band at the time! He wasn't that bad that night...

        The next year we went to see him again, played with the band called Kitrina Podilata (meaning Yellow Bikes). He wasn't good ... I remembered after the concert that we had seen him in the castle of Lefkada island once during the summer time, where again he wasn't good ... Well these 2 performances, as well my teenage age, the Bregovic songs that are the same in different languages, some things that comedian Tzimis Panousis said, and then I decided: Dalaras was finished for me. 

        Later in my life I realized why I dislike him till now. Dalaras is the symbol of everything bad in the modern Greek, after the Junta. The poor person who is now posh, but makes his money by singing revolutionary songs, betting on the memories of Greeks, the right-winger (at least life style-wise) with the left-wing past, the sold out person, etc. In general consider him a hypocrite.

       Moreover, I thought he was to blame for many problems of the Greek music. He has “stolen” the songs from every Greek artist. This pissed me off and still does! 

       I had decided not to pay ever for his concerts, albums or anything else that he was involved, and usually the shows I listen to on the radio do not play his songs, EVER! 

       Living abroad, purely by chance I found several non-Greeks who spoke to me about Dalaras. Turks, Yugoslavs (I still call them that, because that's how I was taught to call them) Israelis and Arabs. I always said: "He has an amazing voice, but I can't stand him!"

       And honestly I really couldn't bear to listen to him! The people who are listening to him fanatically are those who are leading Greece into destruction. The generation of the resistance in the Athens Polytechnic School against the Junta in 1973, the people who made a lot of money in the 1980's, who packed Athens, made illegal villas with swimming pools, inflated tax evasion, wanted to place their children in the public sector and were obsessed with getting them into University, voted PASOK (Papandreou's so called Socialists) and forgot where they were coming from. The only thing that this generations was left with was the voice of Dalaras. These people were listening to him and crying while they were drinking whiskey in very expensive bouzoukia nightclubs ...

       Now this generation votes for memorandums, and betrays her own struggles of the past as well as her children. The fact hat the wife of Dalaras became a politician with PASOK and voted for the measures and the cuts for the Greek people gave me another reason to hate him ...And once I learned about these free concerts that he is giving at the moment in Athens, I disagreed. 'He should be ashamed,' I said ' to play political songs about poverty, while his wife is killing people 2 years now by voting for the measures in the parliament."

        But seeing the picture in Ilion, really hurt my heart. And that weight made me write today. Because I still think about, 36 hours after I saw ayoghurt thrown at him while being on stage, and him not leaving. I was moved ...

        I felt like my father was being attacked, whom I criticise from morning till night - and those that are like him! And I wanted to defend him.

        That scene made me fed up and shocked me. The guy who went up on the stage wearing a helmet scared me. Dalaras did not leave even then, although he could be harmed. This picture reminded me of Christ in the Last Supper and later on the Calvary, although I hate all religions. I admired him.

         I don't disagree with the throwing yoghurts at politicians, businessmen who want workers to be slaves, journalists and publishers, who delibrately hide the truth. Quite the contrary, I would throw them a yoghurt myself if I had the chance.I also don't disagree with invading the parliament, throwing stones at the cops, the attack on Marfin Bank, the burning of the Christmas tree, throwing Molotov cocktails. In fact, I want us to take up arms and make a deep class, social and political revolution in Greece.

         But attacking an artist, I find it ugly, profoundly wrong and fascist. I doesn't express me and I would preferred if it had never happened. I realized that I started to like George (as Panousis calls him) by his reaction. Then I heard his interviews in the past few days, and I liked him even more, unlike his wife...

          I realized something else as well: these songs that Dalaras sings symbolize all the negatives that I mentioned above, but their meanings could also become a symbol for a new beginning for us, the younger generation, who have passion and soul and want to change the establishment in Greece.

          This does not mean that Dalaras did not screw up in the past in his life and career, and also it doesn't mean that I agree with him on the "inevitability" of the memorandum, etc. I'd prefer if he was along with people like Mikis Theodorakis and Alkinoos Ioannidisin street marches in the last 2 years, and not silent till today. Dalaras instead decided to organise these free concerts for the people and that's his choice.

          As it is my choice to disagree with them, and now that I changed my mind , it is to support them! I wish I was in Athens in one of his following concerts, to applaud him, defend him and congratulate him in person. For now, I look forward to Dalaras coming abroad, so that I can shake his hand, only for his reaction during his latest consert.

GreekRagnaroker

Postscript: I will continue to love and listen to Tzimis Panousis on the radio every day, because this is the Greece that expresses me more