There was a Spanish punk band performing on Saturday at the Anti - Racist Festival and the crowd went wild when they started to play. Took me back, it did, to a time when I moshed with the best of them.
This was taken last night at the 12th Anti-Racist Festival here in Thessaloniki during a theatrical performance. The actors braved it despite the fact that it started raining and later we witnessed a torrential downpour which flooded large parts of the centre. Let's hope that the next two days of the event they have better luck with the weather.
Actually, the whole event is a breathe of of fresh air, a reminder that the clownish local politicians and thuggish right wing politics that the city is identified with in much of Greece do not represent everyone here.
There are plenty of people who care about issues such as ecology, immigration, equal rights etc more than just once every four years when elections are looming, people who are taking a stand against the growing tide of xenophobia and nationalistic conservatism that seems to have gripped the city over the last few years.
Παραστάσεις- Δρώμενα
• Η ιστορία των κρουστών στους πολιτισμούς του κόσμου με ήχους και εικόνες από το Συγκρότημα Κρουστών “ΚΡΟΥΣΤΩΔΙΑ”
• “Σύνορα” , Διαπολιτισμικοί Διάλογοι μέσα από τη Γλώσσα του Θεάτρου από τους/τις μαθητές/τριες του Διαπολιτισμικού Γυμνασίου Πυλαίας, σε σκηνοθεσία. Κόλντο Βίο
• Χοροθεατρικό “La liberta des eskllavos” από την ομάδα Cuba Baila
Προβολές
Προβολές για τα Σύνορα & τους Πρόσφυγες από την Ομάδα Μεταναστών & Προσφύγων
Ντοκιμαντέρ για τις Συνθήκες Κράτησης στις Ελληνικές Φυλακές από την Πρωτοβουλία για τα Δικαιώματα των Κρατουμένων
ΕΞΑΡΤΗΣΕΙΣ: «Τα ναρκωτικά κάνουν… καλό στην πολιτική» του Σ. Κούλογλου - Ρεπορτάζ Χωρίς Σύνορα από το Συντονιστικό ΜΚΟ & Πρωτοβουλιών για τον Κοινωνικό Αποκλεισμό
ΥΓΕΙΑ: «Masters of Life and Death: Doctors in the Third Reich»
των Christopher Paul - Christian Feyerabend / ZDF από το Συντονιστικό ΜΚΟ & Πρωτοβουλιών για τον Κοινωνικό Αποκλεισμό
Συναυλίες
Δυτική Σκηνή
• X-Darawish
• Ensemple Minoria Grande
• Bubasvabe
• Jazz Frenquently Quarted
• Boikot
Ανατολική Σκηνή
• Kappa Band
• Μαρία Φωτίου και Λωξάνδρα
• Φωτεινή Βελετσιώτου – Β. Πρατσινάκης – Γ. Λίζος
• Σαbach
• Χρήστος Μητρέντζης
Εργαστήρια
I came across this article on twitter by Noam Chomsky on the International Herald Tribune website. It is perhaps one of the most lucid analysis of the microblogging service that allows users to post short messages of 140 characters or less.
When I first saw Twitter last year I have to admit that I was less than impressed. It seemed trite and boring, but when the December riots broke out in Greece it proved to be an excellent way of keeping up with events. Nowadays the mainstream media have caught onto Twitter to the extent that it even made the front page of Time magazine.
Now we can follow what is happening in Iran at the moment via Twitter (#iranelection) and at least have an alternative to the official version of events. I have to agree with Chomsky's idea that Twitter is not a medium of organisation, being too limited to the well off and/or techno-literate, but it is an excellent way of connecting local events with the wider international community.
I saw this with my own eyes in December where the use of Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Skype and blogs allowed Greeks to mould the way the riots and protests were seen in the international media and in that way get beyond the local media's message which was that all the trouble was just the work of a few mindless hooligans. As with Iran now the events that shoke Greece following the death of Alexis Grigoropoulos in December were best reported by those on the streets and on the internet.
Likewise a small group of people of no more than a few hundred Twitter users, with a hardcore of less than ten, technically minded users who felt comfortable using English (another big hurdle which those who talk about globalisation seem to forget) were able to get out the news to a global audience. They did not organise or direct what happened but rather were a vital link between the demonstrators on the streets and the rest of the world.
Having seen Twitter in action from street level I do believe that it has the power to change things, however, as a tool, it is liable to manipulation by media literate groups and regimes and that is exactly what I predict will happen soon when Twitter is enlisted in some kind of Wag the Dog scenario in the near future. Imagine the Gulf of Tonkin Incident (which marked the start of America's official involvement in the Vietnam war) using Twitter.
So here is the article;
"Political revolutions are often closely linked to communication tools. The American Revolution wasn’t caused by the proliferation of pamphlets, written to whip colonists into a frenzy against the British. But it sure helped.
Social networking, a distinctly 21st-century phenomenon, has already been credited with aiding protests from the Republic of Georgia to Egypt to Iceland. And Twitter, the newest social-networking tool, has been identified with two mass protests in a matter of months — in Moldova in April and in Iran last week, when hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to oppose the official results of the presidential election.
But does the label Twitter Revolution, which has been slapped on the two most recent events, oversell the technology? Skeptics note that only a small number of people used Twitter to organize protests in Iran and that other means — individual text messaging, old-fashioned word of mouth and Farsi-language Web sites — were more influential. But Twitter did prove to be a crucial tool in the cat-and-mouse game between the opposition and the government over enlisting world opinion.
As the Iranian government restricts journalists’ access to events, the protesters have used Twitter’s agile communication system to direct the public and journalists alike to video, photographs and written material related to the protests. (As has become established custom on Twitter, users have agreed to mark, or “tag,” each of their tweets with the same bit of type — #IranElection — so that users can find them more easily). So maybe there was no Twitter Revolution. But over the last week, we learned a few lessons about the strengths and weaknesses of a technology that is less than three years old and is experiencing explosive growth."
"Lightning is an atmospheric discharge of electricity usually accompanied by thunder, which typically occurs during thunderstorms, and sometimes during volcanic eruptions or dust storms. In the atmospheric electrical discharge, a leader of a bolt of lightning can travel at speeds of 60,000 m/s (220,000 km/h), and can reach temperatures approaching 30,000 °C (54,000 °F), hot enough to fuse silica sand into glass channels known as fulgurites which are normally hollow and can extend some distance into the ground. There are some 16 million lightning storms in the world every year."
"MPs were accused yesterday of a massive cover-up of their expenses after the Commons authorities released hundreds of thousands of claims documents and receipts with huge sections of detail blacked out.
Amid renewed public anger over the scale of Westminster's spending habits, the documents contained enough fresh information to create new embarrassment for senior politicians.
David Cameron was forced to pay back an extra £947, the shadow chancellor, George Osborne, was reported to the parliamentary commissioner for standards and Gordon Brown was revealed to have charged the taxpayer almost £6,500 to green his second home in Scotland.
Even Tony Blair found himself under the spotlight after the documents revealed that he had claimed almost £7,000 for roof repairs two days before leaving office and standing down as an MP.
With MPs reeling from public anger at the extent of their claims, Bill Cockburn, the chairman of the body responsible for setting their pay, chose yesterday to suggest that MPs deserve a pay rise of up to £10,000 a year, arguing that they were underpaid by 10-15%.
It was also disclosed that 184 MPs – over a third of the Commons – have agreed to pay back nearly £478,000 in inappropriate claims, including Brown and ministers Douglas Alexander, Alistair Darling, Yvette Cooper, David Miliband, Ed Balls, Rosie Winterton, Andy Burnham and the former home secretary Jacqui Smith."
|Treasury minister Kitty Ussher has quit the government after further questions were raised about her expenses.
Ms Ussher took the step amid reports she "flipped" the designation of her second home shortly before selling it in 2007, avoiding capital gains tax.
Ms Ussher denied she did anything wrong and said she was stepping aside to prevent the government embarrassment.
The move comes on the eve of the publication of all MPs' expenses on the Parliament website
The Thessaloniki Street Parade wound its way through the centre of the city much to the bemusement and delight of those left in the city. With thousands following a truck with bands playing it was a surreal sight to see all those people dancing and enjoying themselves.
Thankfully the riot police decided discretion was the better part of valour and kept to their buses which followed those taking part at a respectful distance.
"Θυμάστε πέρυσι το Street Parade και πως τυχαία έπεσα πάνω του; Μη πείτε ότι δεν σας ειδοποίησα. Την Κυριακή 31/5, ακριβώς ένα χρόνο από το περσινό έχουμε πάλι Street parade. Πρώτα συγκέντρωση στο αστεροσκοπείο και συναυλίες εκεί με διάφορα συγκροτήματα της πόλης. Και ύστερα στους δρόμους της πόλης. Ως την Κυριακή πάρτε ένα δείγμα από τις περσινές φωτογραφίες στο flickr.
Supporters of defeated Iranian presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi clash with riot police during a protest in Tehran on June 13, 2009. Hardline incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won a crushing victory in Iran's hotly-disputed presidential vote, according to official results that triggered mass opposition protests.
AFP PHOTO/OLIVIER LABAN-MATTEI (Photo credit should read OLIVIER LABAN-MATTEI/AFP/Getty Images)
Riots in Tehran following the announcement of election results.
For more pictures click here.
Yesterday, me, Lydia and friends drove to Stageira, the birthplace of Aristotle in Halkidiki. He wasn't in so we played in his garden instead.
Professor Edward Birack:
"Let's talk about our beliefs, and what we can learn about them. We believe nature is solid, and time a constant. Matter has substance and time a direction. There is truth in flesh and the solid ground. The wind may be invisible, but it's real.
Smoke, fire, water, light - they're different! Not as to stone or steel, but they're tangible. And we assume time is narrow because it is as a clock - one second is one second for everyone! Cause precedes effect - fruit rots, water flows downstream. We're born, we age, we die. The reverse NEVER happens...
None of this is true! Say goodbye to classical reality, because our logic collapses on the subatomic level... into ghosts and shadows."
This picture reminds of something Diane Arbus would have taken. That wasn't what I had in mind when I took it but looking at the picture now it somehow seems familiar.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diane_Arbus
Σε πανστρατιά, για την ανάδειξη του ΣΥ.ΡΙΖ.Α σε τρίτο κόμμα και την επανεκλογή του Δημήτρη Παπαδημούλη στο Ευρωπαϊκό Κοινοβούλιο κάλεσε ο πρόεδρος της Κ.Ο. του ΣΥ.ΡΙΖ.Α Αλέκος Αλαβάνος κατά την ομιλία του στην προεκλογική συγκέντρωση στην πλατεία Αριστοτέλους, στη Θεσσαλονίκη.
Είπε ότι θα διαψευστούν όσοι τρίβουν τα χέρια τους ελπίζοντας πως οι νέοι θα πάνε για μπάνιο την Κυριακή και σημείωσε ότι οι νέοι δεν θα χαρίσουν το δικαίωμα της ψήφου που κατακτήθηκε με αίμα από τη γενιά του Πολυτεχνείου.
Τέλος, αναφέρθηκε στις οικολογικές ευαισθησίες του ΣΥ.ΡΙΖ.Α, στις μάχες που έδωσε, τις συγκρούσεις με συμφέροντα και τη δραστηριότητα του Δ. Παπαδημούλη στο Ευρωκοινοβούλιο για θέματα προστασίας του περιβάλλοντος.
Επίθεση στις φιλελεύθερες πολιτικές στην Ελλάδα και στην ΕΕ πού όπως είπε οδήγησαν στο ξεπούλημα της δημόσιας περιουσίας , αποσάθρωσαν τις εργασιακές σχέσεις μειώνοντας δραματικά το εισόδημα των εργαζομένων και περιθωριοποίησαν μεγάλα κοινωνικά στρώματα,εξαπέλυσε ο κοινοβουλευτικός εκπρόσωπος του ΣΥΡΙΖΑ Φώτης Κουβέλης από τη Θεσσαλονίκη λίγο πριν την ομιλία του Αλέκου Αλαβάνου.
Η ψήφος στον ΣΥΡΙΖΑ δυναμώνει τη φωνή των εργαζομένων και αποδοκιμάζει τον δικομματισμό και την πολιτική της ΝΔ ανέφερε ο κος Κουβέλης.
www.athina984.gr/node/53299
Billed as a protest against excessive car use, cyclists, wheel chair users and even skateboarders with their dogs rode through the centre of Greece's second city, Thessaloniki drawing amused glances and cheers from local residents. Although called the naked bike ride, most of those taking part choose a more demur approach, using body paint and swim wear to avoid antagonising the local authorities who last year used riot police units in an attempt to stop the parade.
The event, which was designed to raise awareness of the environmental and social effects of excessive car use in urban areas was a mix of serious activism and party aesthetics. The impact of cars is particularly acute in Greece' major cities leading to some of he highest levels of air pollution in Europe.
Since the first Naked Bike Ride in 2004 the event has grown to include 50 cities worldwide with tens of thousands of people taking part every year.
Last year's event proved more eventful when riot police units clashed with participants following the arrest by officers in plain clothes of a British cyclist who they claimed had been fully naked. The local public prosecutor had announced that nudity would not be tolerated and backed up his warning by setting up police blockades just outside Thessaloniki's city limits. Despite tense scenes the cyclists were eventually allowed to continue their ride.
Ποδήλατα παντού στη Θεσσαλονίκη
Περισσότεροι από 200 γυμνοί και ημίγυμνοι ποδηλάτες έβγαλαν από τους ρυθμούς της τη βασανισμένη - και από τα έργα του μετρό - πόλη και για λίγο έκλεψαν τη «δόξα» από τα αυτοκίνητα, που με το καθημερινό μποτιλιάρισμα έχουν οδηγήσει τη Θεσσαλονίκη στις πρώτες θέσεις των πιο ρυπογόνων πόλεων της Ευρώπης.
Χρωματιστά ποδήλατα, πατίνια, skateboards, ακόμα και αναπηρικά αμαξίδια, στολισμένα όλα με λουλούδια, μετέφεραν το μήνυμα ότι μπορεί να υπάρξει ένα καλύτερο μέλλον με περισσότερα ποδήλατα και λιγότερη μόλυνση.
Η πορεία ξεκίνησε από την περιοχή του Βαρδάρη, διέσχισε την Εγνατία, πέρασε από την πλατεία Σιντριβανίου και την πλατεία Αριστοτέλους και κορυφώθηκε μπροστά στο Λευκό Πύργο, χωρίς εντάσεις ή συλλήψεις, όπως στο περυσινό πρώτο βήμα.
Amidst torrential rain and lightning, Greek prime minister Kostas Karamanlis spoke to New Democracy supporters in the northern port city of Thessaloniki last night as part of the country's European election campaign .
Stressing foreign policy issues such as relations with Turkey and Greece's northern neighbour, Macedonia, Karamanlis sought to deflect criticism of the government's domestic record and play down the effects of a series of damaging corruption scandals which have rocked Greece over the last year.
Despite massive publicity bad weather and a general sense of disappointment with the performance of both major parties in the Greek parliament meant that turnout for yesterday's rally was lower than expected.
With the European elections just days away, the leaders of Greece's main political parties are feverishly touring the country in order to persuade voters to cast their ballot
The cost of organising the elections is expected to top 150 million euros, more than double the 60 million spent holding national elections in 2007. Although public interest in European issues is low, Sunday's vote is widely considered to be a litmus test for the ruling New Democracy party's standing.
This picture was taken last night during a KKE( Communist Party of Greece) rally in the centre of Thessaloniki. It is party of the final days of the election campaign for the European elections which will take place on Sunday.
Tonight Giorgos Papandreou, leader of the main opposition party, PASOK will also be addressing the party faithful in Aristotelous square.
Tomorrow it is the turn of Kostas Karamanlis, prime minister and head of the conservative New Democracy party. That should be eventful as whenever he appears there are widespread protests. Whatever happens the security measure are sure to be tight so I'll have to have my wits about me.
Actually, all these party rallies are a pale shadow of the events that took place in the 90's and before. Then party leaders could expect to address crowds numbering hundreds of thousands. With the growing importance of TV and the withering of the major parties reliance of local branches ten thousand is considered a big turnout.
Still, none of this matters as the spectacle is designed to look good on TV. For that purpose a crowd of 10,000 is just as useful as 100,000.
