Create your own media message - a community guide

"If we play by their rules we lose, if we create our own rules we have a chance"

Once again the power of of social media can not only be seen in its ability to spread information but also in its power to challenge the way in which the mainstream media sets the agenda on a particular issue, even in places as far apart as The Gaza Strip and Ferguson, Missouri. Despite the vast differences in both geography and cause both cases show that even the most well-oiled media machine can be challenged by ordinary people on the ground using tools such as Twitter, Youtube and Instagram. 

Here are some tips for anyone who wants to use the power of the internet to get their message across and give themselves leverage in their dealings with more traditional forms of media.

1 A community or group should never rely solely on mainstream media to get their message out. It's naive to believe they're are neutral parties in many news events. Remember TV channels and newspapers are often large organisations whose first loyalty is to those who own and/or control them and not to you. In the worst case scenario you are simply another lunch item on their menu, to be consumed today and forgotten tomorrow.

2 Even if the reporter on the scene is sympathetic to your cause, they are often not in charge of how the final story is seen. They may be on your side but as we have seen from coverage in Gaza there is often a massive disconnect between the story reported by those on the ground via Twitter and the one that reaches viewers and readers back home once the editorial line comes into play.

3 Yes, cultivate media who seem sympathetic, but remember media organisations frequently come to a story with their own agenda. Check them out on the internet see if their views and your views coincide. Do not take it on faith that what a journalist tells you is what they are telling their audience.

4 Don't just give the news channels "raw material" in the form of video, footage or interviews without knowing who they are and how they operate. Too many of those in the media see "civilians" as just another expendable resource to be used and then discarded in order to get their story out. Remember once you hand over your material you have no control over how it will be edited and presented. 

5 Use your existing online and offline social networks to communicate your message, share material, produce your own media. The more people who can help you, especially in the beginning, the more others are likely to pick up on it later on and promote your cause. Remember on the internet you have the possibility of contacting sympathetic voices across the globe.

6 Share materials and talent with those around you. If you can, form a group that will allow you to pool talents, materials and resources. Whether it is video footage from a different angle, access to PCs or a gift with writing or photography, your community or group is likely to be a treasure trove as far as material and skills are concerned, it's your job to make the most of these gifts.

7 If a community  or group produces its own coverage (video/pictures/written accounts) it stands a better chance of getting its story out intact.  The more you can do for yourself, the less your have to rely on media outsiders taking your story out of your hands and turning into something you do not recognise. If nothing else you can point people to your version when calling out distorted accounts produced by others.

Video can edited with free tools  with  programs such as Windows Movie Maker which comes pre-installed on many Windows PCs (see here for training video). It allows you to make your videos shorter and more effective and also means you can add media (video, photographs or audio) from many different sources.

8 None of this needs a lot of cash or fancy equipment but it does take time and you will need some technical skills which are well worth learning. A good place to begin is the Witness.org site which is full of practical tips on using video for activism. It is designed to teach those not in media how to cover different events in a professional manner and how to keep yourself and those whose stories you are covering safe. Check out their YouTube channel here. 

If you are going to use photographs rather than video then always remember that a short text describing what is happening in the picture adds to your audience's understanding of the context of the event and also makes your image more credible. 

9 Don't forget to licence your images (be they video, articles or photos) under a Creative Commons licence when posting them online. This means that media outlets cannot just claim that once you posted them you allowed free use of use them to anyone. Of course many will steal your work anyway but at least a CC licence gives you some kind of legal leverage and shows your audience that you are the victim of copyright theft and not just negligent or naive. See more on CC in this video.

What if other nations acted in the same manner as Israel in Gaza?

One of the central themes of Israel's defence of its intervention in Gaza is that if other countries, especially those in Europe or North America, were in its position then, they too would be forced to take similar measures to ensure their security.

Let's take their argument and test its logic. Imagine that during The Troubles the UK government had responded to the the bombing campaign carried out by the Provisional IRA in both Northern Ireland and the British mainland in a manner akin to than being employed by the Israeli Defense Force now in Gaza. (See full size image here).



Just to remember that the often brutal conflict in Northern Ireland cost the lives of 3,530 and left more than 47,500 injured in a campaign that lasted from the late 60's to the Clinton brokered Good Friday peace deal in 1998. The current death toll for The Gaza Strip is 1032 dead after just 19 days of IDF operations.

Laws are silent in times of war - Cicero on Gaza

"Laws are silent in times of war" - Cicero

Killing Kids Is Not Cool - Israel invades Gaza

In Kosovo again

I spent part of last week in Pristina, Kosovo. Despite the fact that the country was involved in a brutal war in  the late 90's the capital shows little evidence of the fighting, and instead is now a bustling, friendly Balkan city.

Thessaloniki - cityscape

And now in colour.

Street portrait - Vasilis

Austerity in action

The Girl In The Yellow Dress

On the war path, protesters against plans to privatise historical market place - Thessaloniki, Greece

The authorities in Thessaloniki want to sell off the historical Modiano market place in the heart of the city.

Greek high school students protest changes in the exam system

Already the changes have resulted in a six-fold increase in those failing certain lessons in northern Greece. As with so many educational systems, the Greek one is used as a political football as new ministers introduce their latest pet projects, often ignoring the disastrous effects of constant change on those trying to complete their studies.

Hearts of Darkness - Thessaloniki's Gay Pride Parade stirs angry response from Church.

 On Friday those opposed to the Thessaloniki Gay Pride Parade gathered in the shadow of the city's Saint Demetrios cathedral to hear speeches by priests and lay people who seem to believe that the parade is part of a wider plot to destroy not just the moral fibre of the nation but also Greece itself. But this is not hate speech, every single participant went to great lengths to say that they did not hate gay people, then went onto equally great lengths to accuse them of being degenerate perverts who were waiting to molest children and destroy everything clean and decent. (Greek speakers can see a video here for a taste of their bigotry).

 Where to begin? One earnest young man blamed Elvis for the rot, or rather the TV stations that broadcast him below the waist in the 1950's For the monk(?) who was the headline speaker, the promotion of LGBT rights was just another example of those who wish to impose a New World Order by smashing the moral foundations of nation states. Of course, the plot, according to the monk didn't stop there (it rarely does when it comes to conspiracy loons) as he listed the other elements of the diabolical plan which included, TV, Conchita, black magic,the Dutch, Jews,fanatical Muslims, ex-PM Giorgos Papandreou, George Soros and immigrants.

 

 The speech liberally touched many of the Greek far right's favourite topics such as Kosovo, Ukraine, Kissinger, Germany, the Pope and the ever present threat by One Worlders. All of which would not have been out of place in a Golden Dawn rally, indeed, I'm sure that a fair few of those present in the audience has cast their votes for them. For the attendees the world is a dark, sin ridden place in which Satan and the White House/Vatican/EU and UN work day and night to undermine the Church and the Righteous, using issues such as gay rights as their stalking horse.

 

 It was a vile example of hate speech made all the more extreme by the fact that that the third Gay Pride in Thessaloniki was just a warm, loving affair with a beautiful atmosphere that was a credit to the the city. As the party wound its way through the centre the thousands taking party brought a feeling of hope and optimism sorely missing from the town which has been struggling to survive being in the eye of a six year economic storm. Instead of the stony faced zealots who attended Friday's anti-rally, three - four thousand revellers turned the city streets in to travelling carnival, dancing, singing and helping us forget our woes, if just for one evening.

Rain, rain go away!

Summer storm

This year's June has been full of storms and rain, which is very unusual.

Welcome to Austerity

Free the balloons

Greek 2014 election results - a post mortem

First of all, let's get the apologies out of the way. In the run up to the Greek EU and local elections I predicted that the results might bring about major changes in the Greek political scene, even perhaps national elections. Nothing of the sort happened, the coalition remains in power as do the leaders of both New Democracy and PASOK. So how did I get it so wrong?

I had assumed that the weakest link in this particular chain would be the PASOK vote and that a dire poll result for them would signal the end of deputy PM and party leader Evangelos Venizelos. Venizelos, himself had publicly announced in the weeks leading up to the elections that anything less than a 10% share of the vote for his party would destabilise the coalition, hinting that the party might withdraw form power. The fact that PASOK hasn't polled as high as 10% for years seemed to reinforce the impression that changes were on their way.

Throughout the months prior to last Sunday's vote Greek opinion polls consistently underestimated the PASOK vote, most putting it between 5-7% (they received 8% in the EU vote) and since pollsters have historically always been more lenient towards parties in power I, and many others assumed that the final tally could even be lower. It was a sentiment further strengthened by PASOK's dire showing in the first round of the Athens and Thessaloniki municipal and city elections.

Also the fact that PASOK made almost no effort to advertise or campaign during the elections and even went as far as changing their name to Olive Tree (Elia) just added to the impression of a political organisation on the verge of collapse. Unlike 2009, there were none of the mass public rallies that used to, until recently, be the hallmark of Greek campaigning.

With New Democracy the issue was never one of collapse but rather how wide the gap would be between them and SYRIZA, by May even the most pro-govt pollsters could no longer hide the fact SYRIZA was pulling ahead, the question was by how much. Poll figures which were notoriously inaccurate  in 2012 had to be taken with a pinch of salt. The dream result for SYRIZA would have been one in which their share equalled or exceeded the combined vote of the coalition parties. Then, opposition leader Alexis Tsipras could claim that the government no longer had a popular mandate and therefore demand national elections. In the end neither happened.



New democracy lost by less than 4% and so prime minister Antonis Samaras could sell the defeat as the inevitable price of imposing difficult, but necessary reforms mid-term. Venizelos could argue that the results showed that the fall in popularity PASOK has suffered since the start of the crisis has been halted, and even reversed. In both cases the party base could be mollified with the idea that while not great the outcome could have been far worse.

So business as usual? No, I said that these elections marked the end of an era and that still remains true as the political landscape today is radically different form the one in place during the last European parliamentary elections in 2009. Then both PASOK and New Democracy were unassailable electorally, able to attract tens of thousands to their public rallies. Giorgos Papandreou and then prime minister Kostas Karamanlis could speak in public and mingle with party supporters would give them the kind of reception usually reserved for teen idols such as Justin Bieber. Between them the two parties garnered 70% of the vote and sent 16 out Greece's 22 MEPs to Strasburg. In 2014 most public rallies were marked by small turnouts and extremely tight security measures, the coalition's share of the vote had dropped to 31% and just 8 MEPs.

PASOK has lost much of its clout in the cities, where previously it had been entrenched, replaced by SYRIZA mayors and councilors. On the other hand the Golden Dawn vote  remained high and has weakened New Democracy, despite almost entirely negative press and a legal crackdown on its leadership. Even with no positive TV exposure, the antipathy many conservative voters feel towards the present government outweighed misgivings over Golden Dawn's true identity. Nor was this move right limited to those neighbourhoods hit hardest by job cuts, even in the upscale central district of Kolonaki, Athens, home to many foreign embassies Golden Dawn polled 13.7%.

With popular support at an all time low and a yet more austerity measures set to be imposed the Greek government's slim majority is coming under ever greater pressure, especially as despite all claims to the contrary the real economy is not improving, unemployment refuses to drop from record highs , trade deficit is climbing and the debt continues to balloon in size. While the national leadership may be congratulating themselves on retaining power, the wild last-minute assurances of vast numbers of new jobs and more foreign investments will come to haunt them in future clashes with the opposition who will seize upon such broken promises that the current political elite cannot be trusted.

Nor can such anger be put down as simply a local protest, the elections results across the EU have shown that problems austerity is creating has created a groundswell of resentment against not only national elites but also those operating in Brussels.

Alexis Tsipras speaking at campaign rally in Thessaloniki, Greece

Greek Elections: Round One

With the first round of Greece's city and municipal elections over the government coalition parties and the opposition have being trying to persuade the public that they were the winners in yesterday's vote. However, unlike parliamentary or EU elections the conclusions that can be drawn are not so clear cut for a number of reasons.

First and foremost, local election results in Greece, as in the rest of the world are just as likely to be influenced by local issues such as rubbish collection, state of the roads etc. as they are by the party affiliations of the candidate. This mean clear comparisons between these results and national ones cannot be made so easily, for example in Greece's two largest cities, Athens and Thessaloniki independent candidates came first, but in Crete PASOK retained its lead in the municipal elections and conservatives aligned with New Democracy did very well in Macedonia.

Also the fact that many candidates stood as independents or as members of parties that have no clear affiliation with the national ones also makes more general conclusions difficult to make. While in the big urban areas the candidates favoured by the parties are easy to pick out, in other regions the connection, if any between local political groups and candidates and the national parties is less clear to many voters.

Finally, only one fifth of the contested positions have been decided, the rest will have to wait for the second round next Sunday.

The Guardian talked about an anti-austerity backlash and In Athens and Thessaloniki mayoral elections the candidates supported by New Democracy and PASOK fared badly, though how much of that was due to anti-government sentiment and how much was due to less than stellar contenders is hard to say.

However, all these caveats aside a picture does seem to be emerging that confirms recent opinion polls that SYRIZA is gaining strength and that candidates identified with parties that make up the coalition government. are losing support. The fact that the party has made gains in the urban areas is more proof that its is no longer just a raggedy band of protesters and stands poised to replace PASOK as the main opposition party on a permanent basis. Once PASOK loses its stronghold in local government then its ability to keep intact a party machine that depends more on patron client relations than it does on ideology is severely compromised.

New Democracy's position also seems to be under threat, not only from SYRIZA on the Left but Golden Dawn on the right. Despite the fact that much of leadership is behind bars facing criminal investigation, the neo -Nazi party's level of support was back to 2012 levels. Even in chic upmarket neighbourhoods such as Kolonaki in central Athens, they won 13.7% of the vote, in other poorer districts it topped 20%.

The prime minister's campaign strategy of pulling to the Right and co-opting the rhetoric and policies of Golden Dawn seems not to be paying off. Nor has the anti-Golden Dawn media coverage in the pro-government press seemed to have driven away voters.

The May 25th EU parliamentary vote will give a clearer picture of where Greece's parties stand in the eyes of the electorate when the contenders will be standing on party tickets for the 22 MEP seats. In 2009 PASOK and New Democracy won 15 of those, but this time around they'll be lucky to get half that number and there is a good chance that PASOK will get just one seat.

Already SYRIZA is promoting the idea that the EU vote is a referendum on austerity itself and that a poor showing by the government will mark the end of its popular mandate and so be the reason to hold new national parliamentary elections. On the other hand both prime minister Antonis Samaras and deputy prime minister, Evangelos Venizelos are calling upon supporters to vote for the coalition in the name of stability and so as to save a fledgling economic recovery.

My prediction for next week's EU vote is;

1 SYRIZA 20-25%
2 New Democracy 18-23%
3 Golden Dawn 8-10%
4 Potami (River)  6-8%
5 KKE (Greek Communist Party) 4-5% and Olive Tree (PASOK) 4-6%

Greek PM's stealth election campaign comes to town - Thessaloniki

With austerity polices entering their sixth year the difficulties facing Greece's coalition government partners trying to run an election campaign when money is short and their rising unpopularity makes public rallies next to impossible has grown exponentially. Last night's under the radar appearance by the prime minister, Antonis Samaras in the second largest city, Thessaloniki served to underline this. With little advance publicity, the New Democracy stealth election campaign came to town and in front of an audience of 1,200 party die hards Samaras set out one of his latest public appearance before polls open on Sunday.

How times have changed for a politician and a party that in the past could attract crowds numbering in the hundreds of thousands, especially here in a city of 1.2 million that has been, till recently considered one of its strongholds. Sad to see the leader of a nation of 11 million talk before an audience that is smaller than the number of people who follow me on Twitter. Of course, inside Pavilion 13 the thousand or so attendees were made to look much more impressive as wire-borne cameras waltzed above our heads, avoiding at all costs wide shots. Flags waved, the youth wing chanted out slogans in tempo to the whims of their political handlers and the crowd dutifully clapped when required.



Actually, I had no intention of attending the event which I assumed would be an invitation only affair in which the media (or, in my case, not-quite-media) would be kept at arms length. However, following the lead of some friends who were there legitimately, I managed to get myself past the metal detectors and security checks, which was lucky as I would have had a hard time explaining the gas mask in my bag. I'm guessing that telling the police my allergies were playing up would not have been terribly convincing.

However, once inside the venue I decided to exploit my good luck to get into the swing of things taking pictures of the local conservative nomenclature which has ruled Thessaloniki for generations, noting the preparations being made ahead of the main speech. If only New Democracy paid as much attention to economic policy as it did to the placement of flag waving party workers in the bleachers.

And the crowd went wild! The arrival of the prime minister produced a wave of hysteria as loyalists pushed forward to kiss the the hem of the party leader, imagine a Justin Bieber reunion concert 30 years from now and you'll get an idea of the composition and mood of the audience. Unlike PASOK whose party rallies could be mistaken for a pensioner outing, New Democracy does have supporters  below the age of forty, but how many of them are  there to show their support for a better, more market-orientated Greece and how many are New Democracy youth wing careerists with an eye on a place in the civil service is hard to tell.



Once on the podium Samaras immediately launched into attack mode, tearing apart Argentina's recent economic track record, which seems a trifle off topic till you remember that many in the opposition a few years ago used Argentina as an example of how Greece could uncouple itself from a larger currency (in Argentina's case the US dollar) and survive.

Then it was onto cruder attacks on the main opposition party SYRIZA, which included the claim that the party was "planning to flood Greece with illegal immigrants", take the country out of NATO and that they would destroy the economy if they ever got into power. This went down well with ultra - conservative audience who lapped it up with abandon, a reminder that Golden Dawn have no monopoly on prejudice or fear mongering.

Samaras is well aware that despite its hammering at the hands of the pro-government media after the murder of activist Paulos Fyssas Golden Dawn still poses a potent threat to New Democracy's share of the vote. Hence the claims that only New Democracy can stop the Reds stealing your homes and bank accounts, only a strong conservative government can prevent foreign hordes from crossing the borders and swamping the Fatherland.



For anyone familiar with Samaras's political past this comes as no surprise, for while he has remoulded himself as a free - market, neo-liberal conservative, scratch the surface and you can still the ultra-nationalist rabble rouser who made a name for himself in the 90's. In times of trouble and electoral doubt his first instinct is always to go further to the right and rely upon dog whistle issues such as immigration, Macedonia (FYROM) and fear of communism to whip up support from an ageing party base. The Iron Curtain may have fallen in 1989 but for New Democracy old school types this was just a respite from the ever present Red Menace.

Speech over, the prime minister surrounded by secret service agents slowly made his way through a throng of party loyalists stopping every metre or so to shake hands or exchange good wishes. In this tightly controlled bubble, surrounded by friendly faces and even friendlier media outlets,  it would be easy to imagine that the good old days for New Democracy are still here, but beyond Pavilion 13 and the security cordon manned by platoons of riot police Greece's second largest city seems to be indifferent to his charms.

Fear and Loathing on the Greek Campaign Trail

If you took away the cordon of riot police surrounding the building, you could be mistaken for thinking you'd stumbled upon the annual conference of South Jersey importer and exporter association sponsored by a fraternal organisation with its roots in Southern Italy. Made men with large cigars and even larger bellies flowed out of the hall and in between them mingled guys who looked like they made their living doing door duty in third rate provincial "nightclubs. All wearing shades, all unshaven, all willing to take offence at anyone whose gaze lingered upon them any longer than was absolutely necessary.

The latest stop of the PASOK party's 2014 EU election campaign had rolled into town, not that anyone apart from the party nomenclature and a few dozen protesters had noticed. Instead of the mass public rallies that in the past attracted hundreds of thousands of the party faithful, Sunday's event was a part of the new trend towards stealth electioneering, attended by a few hundred local functionaries behind closed doors and lines of riot police.

This is in sharp contrast to the campaigns I witnessed in the late 80's and 90's in which leaders of both the socialist PASOK and the conservative New Democracy parties could count on huge turnouts that would flood the centre of Greece's cities, literally a sea of people as the Greek saying goes. People were gripped by an almost religious fervour and you would have thought rock stars had come to town rather than elderly politicians. However those days have gone and in all likelihood will never return, the victim of changing times and most lately, the six year long economic crisis which is proving as severe as that suffered by the US in the Great Depression. 



The ongoing commitment of successive governments to spending cuts, public sector job losses and tax hikes have all but destroyed PASOK and severely wounded its traditional rival, New Democracy. (PASOK, which is now calling itself Olive Tree is now polling between 10 - 15% of its 2009 strength and new Democracy share of the vote has been cut by half). The leaders of both coalition parties dare not risk public appearances unless they are held incognito or under the tightest security, outdoor events having been replaced with tightly choreographed televised shows as is the case with prime minister Antonis Samaras's rare public outings.

The latest revelations in the Financial Times about how EU leaders egged on the then finance minister (and PASOK leadership rival) Evangelos Venizelos to depose Greece's prime minister, Giorgos Papandreou in 2011 after he proposed a referendum on the terms of the bailout deal has just added to public mistrust of the country's political leadership, widely perceived to be more interested in preserving their own hold on power than defending national interests.

Such a feeling is likely to drain still further support for both government parties and make the chances of the coalition staying intact still less likely. With goes the two party system which has dominated Greek politics since the 1980's and a network of corruption, pork barrel politics and crony capitalism which led the country into its present dire state.

Where Have All The Flags Gone? The End of Days For Greece's Post - Junta Political Order.

At least till recently Greek election campaigns have been vibrant. rambunctious affairs, marked by mass public rallies, a barrage of ads on TV and the kind of political theatre long since extinguished in Northern Europe. Yet this year shows that whilst Greece may be steeped in tradition, it has also a long history of radical change and re-adjustment, a legacy of its traumatic modern history which has seen the small Balkan nation undergo invasion, civil war, famine and spectacular economic growth and decline.

In contrast to 2009's hard fought EU election campaign, the current run up to the dual local and EU parliamentary votes on 18th and 25th May have been so low key as to be practically invisible. Gone are the constant TV ads and posters on every major thoroughfare. gone are the large scale public rallies that used to be the trade mark of both New Democracy and PASOK parties.

So why the reticence on the part of a political caste whose one guiding principle is to stay both in power and the public eye? Partly, it is financial, New Democracy and PASOK are bankrupt in all but name, owing between them 250 millions euros to the banks and as their State funding is linked to electoral prowess their steep decline in support means they have little chance of returning to solvency. State allocation for campaign spending (of which PASOK and New Democracy got the lion's share) which reached 65 million Euros in 2010 has now been reduced to 7 million and with so little cash the lavish outlays that allowed Greece's two largest parties to outspend on a massive scale their political rivals has disappeared.

Partly, the anemic campaign is for reasons of self - defence. Ruling politicians are so detested by many of their voters that any kind of large public gathering is next to impossible unless  the image politicians want to project  is one of anger and discontent. Brave is the government minister who'd appear in public unless in front of a crowd of heavily vetted party loyalists. Whilst opposition parties such as SYRIZA and KKE (Greek Communist Party) will be holding outdoor rallies neither the prime minister nor deputy PM dare risk such a move, fearful that they'd be faced with a sea of hostile faces live on TV.



Case in point has been the election campaign of PASOK leader and deputy prime minister, Evangelos Venizelos. Appearances so far have so been held behind closed doors in meetings held for hard core party cadres rather than rank and file supporters. In each case demonstrations by sacked public sector employees and other disgruntled groups means that such events are marked by high levels of security, further heightening the image of a political elite cut off from the rest of the nation.

For the prime minister's New Democracy's conservative party the picture, whilst not pretty, is nowhere near as dire as that of PASOK but they too are saddled with massive debt load which has severely curtailed their spending. Though much of the mainstream media continues to support them,  a serious decline in TV ratings for the most partisan pro-austerity channels and the collapse in newspaper readership has lessened their ability to set the political agenda.

While the polls show wildly divergent predictions for the results, two things can be widely agreed upon; firstly, that even the support of the country's oligarchs may not be enough to avert SYRIZA becoming the largest party in EU elections (local election results are less easy to use as an indicator for national party support as candidates are forbidden by the constitution to run under national party tickets,). And secondly PASOK will be wiped out, lucky if it elects even one euro MP. A long, inglorious fall from the time it dominated post Junta politics in the 1980's and 90's.

If the results prove particularly disappointing for government coalition partners then there is most likely to be quick and fundamental changes in the party leaderships as different groups vie for power and seek to avoid loss in support.



Venizelos has already warned that anything less than 10%  share of the vote for PASOK Now renamed Olive Tree) will threaten government stability. A strange statement given that the party has not polled as high as 10 percent in years. Nearly all polls show that likely their share will be  be between 3 and 7 percent and that even their recent name change will do little to avert the inevitable

The prime minister is faced with a similar dilemma as a severe defeat at the polls will weaken his position and give ammunition to internal opponents already unhappy with his promotion of far right elements to top party and government posts. Many are suspicious that once again Samaras will lead New Democracy to electoral defeat as he did in the mid 90's when he left the party to set up Political Spring, an act many Karamanlis loyalists still see as an act of betrayal.

The fact that the Greek supreme court has ruled that Golden Dawn can run for elections despite the fact that many of its MPs are facing criminal charges. Must give New Democracy even more reason to fear defeat as both parties have been actively cultivating far right polices in the hope of winning ultra-conservative voters. Problem is that unlike Golden Dawn, the prime minister's long series of u-turns and policy flip flops have disillusioned many on the Right.



Golden Dawn may have been vilified by both local and foreign press for its racist activities,  but there are still many Greeks who will use the party as a vehicle for their anger at the existing political set-up, which is widely perceived as both corrupt and out of touch. Even the media campaign that followed the fatal stabbing of activist rapper Pavloss Fyssas by Golden Dawn members has ended up backfiring as the pro-government stations fall victim to their desire to  please political goals of their owners at the expense of credibility.

The arrival of the Potami - River party formed by former journalist Stavros Theodorakis promises to make firm predictions over the exact result even more difficult. Theodorakis recently set up the party as  non-political alternative to the traditional ones of Left and Right. Initially polls showed support as high as 15% but since then these numbers have dropped significantly especially as questions of how the party has been financed remain unclear and the fact that he was till recently a senior reporter in the pro-government MEGA channel.

However, whatever happens the political landscape forged in the aftermath of the Regime of the Colonels in the 70's is now almost at an end; PASOK, the child of left wing firebrand Andreas Papandreou is all but spent as a major political force, a victim of its adherence to hated austerity policies.



Their eternal rival, New Democracy, also created in the ashes of the Junta is riddled with dissent and after six years of grinding economic decline caused by austerity. Even among the party's core demographics the cuts in pensions, endless list of taxes on property and spending cuts have taken their toll with levels of support now at less than half those of pre-crisis elections.

Finally, next Sunday's vote also marks the death knell for the family dynasties that dominated so much of public life in modern Greece, the latest generation of Karamanlises Mitsotakises and Papandreous both took the reins of power riding to victory on name recognition and achievements of their father's and grandfathers, only to be found wanting as the crisis upturned so many of Greece's political shibboleths.

Konstantinos Karamanlis (nephew of New Democracy founder Kostas Mitsotakis and nephew of previous prime minister Konstantinos Karamanlis) won two terms in office but left behind a heavily indebted economy and a party image battered by string of corruption and influence peddling  scandals.

Similarly, Giorgos Papandreou's (son and grandson of previous Greek prime ministers) time at the helm was no less disastrous than his equally privileged predecessor, faced with an unprecedented economic downturn his vacillation turned a major setback into a full-blown meltdown, eventually leading to him being deposed in a "palace" coup by Evangelos Venizelos when Papandreou threatened the EU and IMF with a referendum over austerity.

Though neither will be missed by most voters, like so many failed leaders of the past they hang on like Banquo's ghost ever ready for a call from the Greece's voters to come back and save the nation. It's a call they are unlikely to receive.

Riot police units in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki deal with protester outside election meeting for the government coalition party ,PASOK.

Street photography in Greece

Another Greek success story

May Day in Greece

Easter in Greece - in black and white

Easter in Greece - in colour

Journalism 101. The dead deserve respect, the living the truth.

Angie Through The Looking Glass - Merkel visits Athens

Greek recovery is back. The news story that refuses to die no matter how many times the predictions are debunked.

Photo I took during Merkel's 2012 visit to Athens.

Once again the world's press and a large chunk of the nation's police force descended upon Athens in anticipation of the visit by German chancellor, Angela Merkel to beleaguered Greek prime minister, Antonis Samaras.

Bathing in glow of German praise for his government's austerity policies and the a successful five - year bond auction the fragile coalition government and its supporters in the the media were certain that this marked the end of a six-year economic downturn that has not been seen in a developed European country at peace since the Great Depression. Nor was such optimism limited to local reporters and analysts, foreign outlets such as the BBC also waxed lyrically that Greece had finally turned a corner.



Alas, as with so many similar predictions made in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, the facts, on closer examination do not bear out the basic assumption that a successful bond sale signals growing confidence in Greek economic performance and hence represents the end of the downturn in the real economy. Unemployment still remains high at 26.7% and 20% of those in employment remain unpaid for at least three months, often for much longer. Exports have dropped and GDP is still more than 25% less than it was in 2008. The government is mired in scandal over its connection with Golden Dawn and during the last austerity vote saw it's parliamentary majority drop to just one MP in the 300 seat house.

As if to underline the growing sense of unease, a massive car bomb went off outside the Bank of Greece building in central Athens a day ahead of Merkel's visit. Although police were quick to claim it was probably the work of anarchists, the sophistication and scale of the attack is completely unlike the kinds of attack such groups usually carry out. As yet no individual or group has claimed responsibility.

Yet none of this could puncture the joint Hellenic-German display of  mutual appreciation on display, and to make sure that that would remain so 5000 police officers were on duty to enforce a ban on any form of demonstration in the centre of the Greek capital. Strange that a leader who compared the NSA with the East German secret service (Stasi) for tapping her phone had nothing to say with a display of state strength that Erich Honenker would have gladly approved of.

In keeping with the authoritarian spirit of the day, the Greek state run press Agency APA doctored the chancellor's speech, deleting all reference to austerity in their translation which was released to the local press. Unnecessary given that both state and private broadcasters (which are owned by country's oligarchs with close ties with the ruling parties) went to extraordinary lengths to make sure the prime minister's version of events got as wide and uncritical a hearing as possible.

On  the other hand reactions to Merkel's appearance in Athens on Twitter were almost universally negative, with many comparing it to the visit of a monarch to a newly acquired colony and seething at the revoking of basic civil rights for the duration. Abroad, financial analysts were less giddy with excitement over possibilities of a Greek recovery given that fact that none of the economic fundamentals which are crushing development have changed.

So what was the point? Economically almost none, but politically the return of Greece to the money markets is being sold as a indication that the austerity policies which have brought many European economies to their knees is finally paying off. This is a message we are going to be hearing repeatedly over the next few weeks as EU countries go the poll to vote in European parliamentary elections in May and while this media narrative may play well in Germany throughout the rest of Europe the response could be more muted.

Usually, EU elections are marked by indifference both among the public and the media, but given the growing unpopularity of parties implementing austerity and the rise of the far Right this year's vote is the nearest thing the continent will have to a referendum on the dominant austerity narrative. In the UK, the Conservative/Liberal coalition government is nervously facing the prospect of a spike in UKIP support at their expense. Hollande's position in France would also be seriously weakened if he has a repeat of the debacle his party suffered in the recent local elections.

As well as EU vote Greece will also have local elections in May and the reality is that it will mark the end of a political era with PASOK being ousted from power in many districts, a fall from political grace that has seen its share of the vote drop from 43% in 2009 to around 4%, if recent polls are to be believed. That will probably signal the downfall of deputy PM and PASOK  leader Evangelos Venizelos's time as party leader, even his blustering, bullishness will not be able to keep in check anger at how the party has been destroyed by its leadership's commitment to austerity policies.

Similarly, the prime minister's New Democracy party is also growing restless, unhappy with the coterie of far right advisors and politicians that surround the leader, also worried that they too, may eventually suffer the same fate as PASOK as their power is challenged by SYRIZA on the left and Golden Dawn of the right. A poor showing in May elections may also trigger a challenged to Samaras's leadership.

This is why the visit of Angela Merkel and the bond auction was so vital to a political leadership, desperate to convince the public that despite all the evidence to the contrary the Greek economy is on the right track. Whether this will be transformed in votes in the polls is another matter.Putting aside the growing anti-German sentiment in Greece, the statistics and indicators being used by politicians and media to make the case for recovery are, at best tangential to the everyday struggle for survival many Greeks face. Spreads, yields, and bonds will not make finding a job any easier, reduce skyrocketing tax bills or stop the flood of young people leaving the country.

Thessaloniki's ninth annual Alexander The Great marathon

All The Prime Minister's Men - Top aide to Antonis Samaras reveals his close ties with Golden Dawn

Perhaps one of the worst kept secrets in Greek political life came to light when Golden Dawn MP Ilias Kasadiaris released a video (transcript in English here) which revealed just how close the party was to Takis Baltakos, cabinet secretary to both the prime minister, Antonis Samaras and Deputy PM, Evangelos Venizelos. The tone and content of the conversation underlined what many had suspected that instead of being stalwart foes, the ruling New Democracy party and the avowed political outsiders Golden Dawn party were in fact working closely together.



This is doubly embarrassing for the prime minister as it not only undermines New Democracy's policy of presenting itself as a moderate bulwark against extremism on both the Left and the Right (the so-called Theory of the Two Extremes) but also shows just how little independence the Greek judiciary has in the country's political system. According to Samaras's right hand man, the prosecutions of senior Golden Dawn figures and the imprisonment of its MPs was based on the threat they posed to New Democracy's poll share and not because of their string of violent attacks on immigrants and political opponents.

Despite the fact that the neo-Nazi party had racked up an impressive record of violent racist assaults for years prior to 2013's clamp down the real trigger was, according to the secretly recorded video, their rise to 14% in the polls. Taking advantage of the murder of rapper, Pavlos Fyssas by Golden Dawn members in the port city of Piraeus, Greek police arrested top members of the party and charged them with being part of a criminal conspiracy.According to the transcript, this decision was not based on evidence linking local party supporters involved with the national leadership but rather political pressure brought to bear on judges involved..



Before that, however the Greek prime minister was quite happy to play a double game, on the one hand condemning Golden Dawn as a threat to democracy (especially when abroad) but on the other using their language and ideas to win back conservative voters with anti-immigrant policies taken straight from the pages of the Golden Dawn playbook. Also, when necessary using the threat of an alliance with the party to rein in Democratic Left, the junior party in Greece's (then) three-party coalition government when it threatened to vote against the government over the closure of the state broadcaster, ERT,.

Given Samaras's past as a ultra-nationalist in the in 1990's and the fact that he has surrounded himself with a coterie of far right politicians that this group has close ties with Golden Dawn should come as no real surprise. The ideological overlap between the clique that forms the heart of New Democracy's leadership and the Europe's most far right parliamentary party is much greater than either would like to admit (as least in public).

So, it seems the love that dare not speak its name has become a matter of public record as Greece's creaking coalition govt hangs on by a thread with a majority of one following the expulsion from PASOK of a senior MP who voted again the latest round of austerity laws imposed by Athens's creditors.

In May Greece goes to the polls to vote in European parliamentary, local and if one cabinet minister is to be believed national elections that promise to recast a political landscape that was formed in the 70's. The once powerful PASOK party is likely to be trounced, lucky to elect even one Euro MP whilst its last remaining stronghold in local government will be severely weakened by a drop of 90% in popularity since 2009.



For New Democracy the other traditional party of power the fall has been less crushing but still severe enough to possibly warrant a challenge to the leadership by a party base unwilling to follow PASOK's example and march themselves off into political oblivion.

Now the prime minister's problem is how to manage the decline and turn defeat at the hands of the main opposition party, SYRIZA into a minor victory. If the gap between the two in polls is a matter of a few points Samaras may be able to convince the party base that it was the necessary price to push through unpopular, but much needed policies. If, however, the gap is larger and conservative voters pick Golden Dawn in sufficiently large numbers then Samaras's position will be untenable, leading to a fierce scramble for the leadership within the party and the almost certain end of the unholy alliance between PASOK and New Democracy so putting an end to the coalition government that has governed Greece since 2012. That in turns means new round of national elections in which none of the old political paradigms will apply anymore.

Whilst this is bound to create uncertainty, not least within financial markets, it will signal the end of a era of graft, clientalism and pork barrel politics in which both PASOK and New Democracy officials from the top to the very bottom treated the State as their own private fiefdom and turned a blind eye to the actions of  handful of extremely rich men who used their political connections to wield enormous, and often unseen influence over the economy and lives of millions of Greek citizens.

On the front line in the Austerity Wars - Greece

Greek independence day - Thessaloniki, Greece

This Machine Kills Fascism

This Machine Kills Fascism, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Use, abuse, spread and believe.

Print it out, put it on your computer, camera, tablet or phone.

Anti-fascist day - Thessaloniki Greece

Anti-fascist day - Thessaloniki Greece, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Anti-fascist day - Thessaloniki Greece

Anti-fascist day - Thessaloniki Greece, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Turkish PM bans Twitter

Turkish PM bans Twitter, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Alternatives to Windows. Zorin OS 8 (Linux) - How to install Linux on your Windows computer

Part 1 - getting started. How to create a bootable USB drive.

Part 2 - installing Linux on your Windows PC.

 


This is a step by step guide on how to try out Zorin OS 8 (Linux) on your Windows PC without changing permanently your computer. If you don't like it all you have to do is turn off the machine, pull out the USB flash memory and your computer will be exactly the same as it was beforehand.

To get the installer program you will need to visit Pendrivelinux.com

For the Zorin OS 8 software download page click here.

 You'll need

1 A reasonably modern Windows PC (5 or 6 years old).
2 Access to the internet.
3 Either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox browser.
4 A USB flash memory stick. Minimum 2GB.

 Zorin has created a wonderful system that works very smoothly on more modern hardware. If you wat to try out Linux but don't want to change your computer's settings permanently, these videos will help walk you through the process. Must be remembered that by running Zorin (or any other kind of Linux) from a USB stick nothing will be changed or lost on your computer. To get back to the way it was then all you need to do is switch off your device and remove the USB stick. Once you switch it back on it will exactly the way it had been before you started.

For older machines I would suggest using Zorin OS 6 (lite) which demands less in terms of hardware. I installed it on my aged and much battered 2005 Acer 2300 laptop and it worked just fine.

Greek teachers protest latest round of job cuts.

Greek teachers protest latest round of job cuts., a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Now for something completely different.

Once again Kathara Deutera (Clean Monday) is approaching and since I'm feeling in a festive mood I'm going to embark on a two day cooking binge preparing for the traditional start of Lent for Greek Orthodox Christians. So, goodbye to meat and hello to a plethora of seafood and salad recipes, hard to believe this is meant to be the start of a fast with so many delicious things to eat.

So what's on the menu?

Mussel pilaf (mydia pilafo)

Yellow split pee puree (fava) - a lot better than the English translation suggests.

Deep fried battered fish fillets (basically, fish cooked like fish and chips).

Spicy feta cheese dip (xtipiti or tyrosalata).

Broad beans in a rich tomato sauce (fasolada).

Deep fried battered courgettes (kolokythakia tyganita).

Pickled sardine fillets (sardelles marinates)

Tomato and feta salad (well, you know what I mean).

I'll be posting recipe, pics and video over the weekend. Till then I suggest you check out this wonderful blog, My Little Expat Kitchen to see what you're missing.

George Orwell's 1984 is sponsored by GCHQ and Yahoo

George Orwell's 1984 is sponsored by LG: "The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it,", a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Yahoo webcam images from millions of users intercepted by GCHQ.

"Britain's surveillance agency GCHQ, with aid from the US National Security Agency, intercepted and stored the webcam images of millions of internet users not suspected of wrongdoing, secret documents reveal."

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/27/gchq-nsa-webcam-images-internet-yahoo

Traditional Greek bell ringers - Thessaloniki, Greece

Traditional Greek bell ringers - Thessaloniki, Greece, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Greek farmers protest over new tax laws

Greek farmers protest over new tax laws, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Your silence will not protect you - Audre Lorde

Your silence will not protect you - Audre Lord, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

"Your silence will not protect you."

Audre Lorde

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audre_Lorde

No More lies - Greece

No More lies - Greece, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

With the crisis dragging on in Greece, voters are growing ever more angry at the lies and spin the government coalition parties employ to distract from their corruption, incompetence and lack of vision for the future.

In May the country will vote in both local authority and European parliamentary elections and if current opinion polls prove correct, then this mark that end of the monopoly on power the nominally socialist PASOK and far right New Democracy parties have held since the late 70's.

PASOK in particular, is likely to hardest hit with possibility that its share of the vote will be as low as 4%, a startling decline from the 44% it won in the 2009 general elections. New Democracy's base is also shrinking as people,sick of austerity and endless finance scandals turn their back on them, many changing allegiance to the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party .

The position of the two main parties is not helped by the fact that between them they have 270 million euros in non-performing loans, which have been serviced since January 2013, making them technically bankrupt.

With the prime minister announcing new taxes on food, property and cigarettes, the chances that his New democracy party will fall from second place to third place behind SYRIZA and Golden Dawn should not be ruled out.

Whatever the final tally is poor results in May's elections will further increase pressure by party supporters and backbench MPs on PM Antonis Samaras and deputy PM Evangelos Venizelos to step down, so opening the way to more instability and the possibility of new national elections in the summer.

The Day We Fight Back. February 11 2014

The Day We Fight Back. February 11 2014, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

"In January 2012 we defeated the SOPA and PIPA censorship legislation with the largest Internet protest in history. Today we face another critical threat, one that again undermines the Internet and the notion that any of us live in a genuinely free society: mass surveillance.

In celebration of the win against SOPA and PIPA two years ago, and in memory of one of its leaders, Aaron Swartz, we are planning a day of protest against mass surveillance, to take place this February 11th.

Together we will push back against powers that seek to observe, collect, and analyze our every digital action. Together, we will make it clear that such behavior is not compatible with democratic governance. Together, if we persist, we will win this fight."

thedaywefightback.org/

Lord save us from the fury of the Northmen; The official EU prayer(southern version)

Lord save us from the fury of the Northmen" The official EU prayer (southern version), a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

The traditional Catholic prayer from the 9th century

"A furore Normannorum libera nos, Domine"

Anti-austerity demo in Thessaloniki, Greece

Anti-austerity demo in Thessaloniki, Greece, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

The Day We Fight Back. February 11 2014

The Day We Fight Back. February 11 2014, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

"In January 2012 we defeated the SOPA and PIPA censorship legislation with the largest Internet protest in history. Today we face another critical threat, one that again undermines the Internet and the notion that any of us live in a genuinely free society: mass surveillance.

In celebration of the win against SOPA and PIPA two years ago, and in memory of one of its leaders, Aaron Swartz, we are planning a day of protest against mass surveillance, to take place this February 11th.

Together we will push back against powers that seek to observe, collect, and analyze our every digital action. Together, we will make it clear that such behavior is not compatible with democratic governance. Together, if we persist, we will win this fight."

thedaywefightback.org/

"12 dead on Farmakonisi. Coast guard = Murderers"

"12 dead on Farmakonisi. Coast guard = Murderers", a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

"Amnesty International expresses its profound concerns over the loss of life of migrants and refugees
including several small children near the island of Farmakonisi on 20 January 2014. In the early hours of
Monday, 20 January 2014, a fishing boat carrying 28 migrants and refugees including many small
children capsized and sank near the island of Farmakonisi. The group consisted of 25 Afghans including
ten children aged between one and nine years old and three Syrians. "

Amnesty International

www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR25/002/2014/en/60426d...

"By order of Samaras 3,000,000 uninsured" Greeks protest health cuts

"By order of Samaras 3,000,000 uninsured" Greeks protest health cuts, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

Under the leadership of prime minister Antonis Samaras 1 in 3 Greeks are now unable to access basic public health care as they no longer have health insurance.

Staff and protesters demonstrate against health care cuts - Greece

Staff and protesters demonstrate against health care cuts - Greece, a photo by Teacher Dude's BBQ on Flickr.

1 in 3 Greeks are now unable to access basic public health care as they no longer have health insurance.

Beyond The Computer Revolution - How the 1970's predicted the rise of the NSA

Whilst browsing through an old copy of National Geographic from November 1970, I came across this quote from an article entitled, Behold The Computer Revolution.

"What if computer-equipped authority, insufficiently restrained, should turn hyper-inquisitive someday? If every purchase one makes, down to the last 10-cent newspaper, is recorded by a computer, showing where it was made and at what time; if millions of telephone conversations can not only be recorded daily but instantly scanned to pick out key words considered alarming by the surveillance officers…. The implications surpass the horrors of George Orwell’s 1984.

Dr. Jerome B. Wiesner, Provost of MIT, has said that the computer’s potential for good, and the danger inherent in its misuse, exceed our ability to imagine. Wouldn’t that be the worst it could do—to become an instrument of tyranny, propelling mankind into a new Dark Age?"

That frightening glimpse into a nightmarish future has become reality with government organisations such as the NSA and GCHQ using computer systems millions of times more powerful than the lumbering beasts depicted in the article, systems so powerful that they can hoover data in the form of phone calls, emails, internet surfing patterns and the like from the entire planet. 

Yet such data is collected and used with no thought given to the rights of US and non-US citizens alike, it's scale so vast and so inclusive that such oversight has become, in the words of Wiesner, "an instrument of tyranny".

Alan F. Westin, Professor of Public Law and Government at Columbia University, quoted in the article did have an interesting suggestion to counteract this growing electronic suppression of our rights as individuals, an idea that goes back to the very dawn of the English legal system,

“Perhaps the greatest legal device to facilitate the movement from subject to citizen in England was the writ of habeas corpus—the command issued by the courts to the Crown to produce the body of the person being held, and to justify his imprisonment.

“Perhaps what we need now is a kind of writ of ‘habeas data’—commanding government and powerful private organizations to produce the data they have collected and are using to make judgments about an individual, and to justify their using it.”