The National Herald
THE NATIONAL
HERALD WISHES
ITS READERS A
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
cv
A WEEKLY GREEK AMERICAN PUBLICATION
www.thenationalherald.com
January 1-7, 2011
VOL. 14, ISSUE 690
Bringing the news
to generations of
Greek Americans
$1.50
TNH Man of the Year
Greek Prime Minister
George A. Papandreou
ATHENS – It was the worst of times, it was the worst of times.
That was 2010 for Greece, and Prime Minister George Papandreou, who tried to bring his country through an unprecedented
economic crisis and the worst times that Greeks have faced
since World War II and the 1967-73 Junta years of dictatorship.
There were parallels not just to ancient Greek dramas and
tragedies, but also to Charles Dicken’s Tale of Two Cities, Papandreou perhaps the unwitting protagonist who falls victim
to the wrath of a revolution despite his personal virtuous nature.
He said he inherited the fiscal woes left by the scandal-ridden
tattered legacy of his predecessor Costas Karamalis’ New
Democracy Conservatives, forgetting, as politicians conveniently
do, that it was Papandreou’s PASOK Socialists who - as did
their rivals - fake the figures that helped Greece get into the
Eurozone of countries using the euro as a currency almost 10
years ago, setting the stage for ruin by profligate spending,
packing the payrolls with patronage hires of workers with nothing to do except smoke and drink coffee and ignore customers,
left to wonder what the hell happened when there was no
money left to pay them and he imposed strict austerity measures, pay cuts and tax hikes and pinning pensioners to a wall
of fright and worry.
Winning election in October, 2009 on the back of Socialist
platforms to help the workers and poors, Papandreou had to
abandon his party’s principles to keep Greece from defaulting
and to get out from under a 15.1% deficit and $360 billion
debt that crippled the present and threatened to bankrupt the
future. He almost did it, and for that reason alone – political
courage in the face of generations of political cowardice – he
was not the obvious choice as The National Herald Man of the
Year for 2010, he was the only choice, and nobody else was
AP PHOTO/PETROS GIANNAKOURIS
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou speaks during
the annual economic conference of the American-Hellenic
Chamber of Commerce, in Athens, Nov. 30, 2010.
close. The selection is not made on virtue or for exemplary service, although he is said to be incorruptible even while allowing
those around him to be lesser than him, his Administration
said to be full of the tax evaders who deprive Greece of at least
$30 billion a year while living high above the fray. The Man
(or Woman) of the Year is the newsmaker whose presence
dominates the landscape, and no face was more prevalent in
Greece than his, and, for better or worse, it was also a worldwide countenance as he tried to steer Greece both between
Scylla and Charybdis and the Sirens who beckoned an economic
shipwreck. He’s the Man of the Year not only for his inexplicable
shortcomings, but for his achievements, preaching calm in the
midst of chaos, again extending his reach to Turkey, bringing
his counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Athens, and then
welcoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an
historic visit to Athens – and Chinese Prime Minister Wen
Jiabao to Greece, triumphs that can’t be diminished by the fact
that while he seemed to be everywhere, he was not out among
the people, as any good General would be in a war, as U.S.
President Obama was in Afghanistan.
During a crisis such as this, people need hope and to see
those presumably leading them, to understand that the sacrifices being asked are by all and for all, and not just those who
have no power nor voice nor the access that money can buy,
something Papandreou, for all his pedigree and upbringing,
apparently forgot that when he was having fancy lunches with
influential Greek American businessmen instead of a souvlaki
on the street so he could know what people were really thinking
and feeling, not what his well-off advisors were telling him
what they were. You can’t live on rarified air or joust when
you’re on a high horse, and he shouldn’t let calm be confused
with placid complacency.
THAT SINKING FEELING
The perhaps cruel irony is that Papandreou is dismantling
the system his father and former prime minister, Andreas Papandreou, put in place to improve the lot of the common man,
but by mortgaging the country’s future with social programs
and hiring workers Greece couldn’t afford. History can be cruel
so George Papandreou will be judged not by his accomplishments but for what happens to the Greek economy, whether it
survives, is restructured, or even, as he has repeatedly said
would never happen but which many economic analysts advised
– goes back to the ancient drachma Greece gave up for the
euro that proved too heavy. He stood steadfast in pushing
through the austerity measures Greece needed for a long time,
but refused to lay off redundant workers, making everyone
sacrifice through pay cuts and tax hikes, penalizing the productive while protecting the incompetent to save his party’s
constituency base of voters, allowing him to say he didn’t care
for the political cost of imposing Draconian measures on working Greeks while trying to insure PASOK would go on. That
didn’t sit well even in his own party, with some Socialist Parliamentarians complaining they were just empty seats in a chamber where Papandreou took marching orders from The Troika
– the European Union, European Central Bank, and International Monetary Fund – that loaned Greece $150 billion over
three years so the economy wouldn’t collapse. To get what he
wanted in a 300-member Parliament where PASOK had 156
seats, down after he booted a couple of rebels who didn’t like
being told how to vote, he declared that the laws he wanted to
satisfy the Troika were emergencies, leaving the body little
time to debate and his majority to rubber stamp what became
fiats or Papandreou Bulls. The Vatican could learn from him.
Greece is not a true Democracy, as the head of PASOK’s Parliamentary group, Christos Protopappas, noted when he said:
PHOTOS: TNH ARCHIVES
The smiles of Rodia and Elena Kalamara grace the scene dominated by the proud Evzones of the Greek Presidential Guard during the raising of the Greek Flag at Bowling Green in Manhattan,
April 16, 2010, before Greek Independence Day celebrations.
Greek Orthodox faithful carry icons as they participate in the
service of Great Vespers during a rally near Ground Zero in
New York City to try to get St. Nicholas Church, destroyed in
the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, rebuilt near where it stood.
Greek America in 2010: Scandal, Shame,
Defeat, But Hope and Charity Too
For Greek Americans like the
rest of the Diaspora, from Johannesburg to Melbourne and back,
2010 was the year when they had
to sit on the sidelines and watch
as their home team, Greece, was
trounced 2010-0, routed at every
turn, and all they could do was
wring their hands, sigh, try to explain to friends not all Greeks are
like that. It was almost enough
to take their minds off all the
troubles at home, especially a series of sexually-tinged scandals in
the Church that left the faithful
shaking their heads and wondering what was going wrong. The
most sensational – and tawdry –
tale involved allegations against
Metropolitan Paisios, a cofounder of the St. Irene Chrysovalantou Monastery in Astoria,
N.Y., who resigned hurriedly and
went to Greece just before
charges by a nun under his
charge, and Bishop Vikentios, his
associate there for 40 years, that
Paisios was running more of a
brothel than a House of Worship,
a seamy story that allegedly involved sexual affairs with young
men and women. The Patriarchate, which had jurisdiction, initially offered ecclesiastical le-
niency and accepted Paisios’ resignation, but then suspended him
and Bishop Vikentios from any
further involvement with the
Church.
TNH’s intrepid religion reporter Theodore Kalmoukos also
uncovered the Church of America’s refusal to take on the case
of two 10-year-old twin boys from
the Peoples Republic of Congo;
the issue of whether or not Archbishop Demetrios, 83, would
leave his position and other sexual molestation accusations, in
Texas, against Deacon Bithos, as
well as the unpopular decision of
Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver to
divide the Holy Trinity Cathedral
parish in Salt Lake City in Utah
into two. Detroit's Annunciation
Cathedral celebrated its 100th anniversary in one high note for religion, but the Church’s woes continued with the long-running
drama of St. Nicholas in New
York City, destroyed in the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 and
which officials promised to help
rebuild. Nine years later there’s
not even an agreement or a blueprint as both sides charged each
other with bad faith, all while
Muslims were getting a green
light to build a mosque near
Ground Zero, not far from where
St. Nicholas’ was felled. Even
protests and the presence of Archbishop Demetrios in one demonstration on the site didn’t sway
New York and New Jersey Port
Authority officials to do anything.
It was not a good year for
Greek Americans in politics either,
with Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe
initially voting to extend unemployment benefits for the jobless
before changing her mind, and
then with the defeat of three
hopeful candidates for higher office, including two for U.S. Senate, Democrat Alexi Giannoulias
for U.S. President Barack
Obama’s old seat in Illinois, and
Independent Charlie Crist, the
Florida Governor who switched
from the Republican party when
it became apparent he wouldn’t
get the nomination. Harry Wilson, a Wall Street whiz, couldn’t’
parlay that experience into winning the job as New York State
Comptroller, and the three defeats were particularly bitter as it
seemed Giannoulias and Wilson
especially had a strong chance for
victory, while Crist hoped he was
cresting toward the end of the
campaign.
But Greek American businessman George Maragos began his
tenure as Nassau County Comptroller in New York and Ted Gatsas became New Hampshire’s first
Greek American Mayor when he
won in the state’s biggest city,
Manchester.
Assemblyman
Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) won
a spot in the New York State Senate; Aravella Simotas won his old
State Assembly seat, where she
was joined by Nicole Malliotakis.
George Sava lost to fellow Greek
American Dean Skelos in a bid
for his NY State Senate Seat and
Vermont elected Jim Condos as
its Secretary of State.
Thankfully, Greek philanthropy continued, with the Hellenic American School in Lowell,
Massachusetts getting a $280,000
grant from the Stavros Niarchos
Foundation, which also gave a
$750,000 grant to the Cathedral
School in New York and everyday
Greek Americans kept showing
they were hard working, decent
people dedicated to their Church,
families and community, celebrating festivals and life, so even as
they were taking shots, they kept
giving.
The Stormy Year of 2010 Changed Greece
– and Greeks Lives, But Not For Good
By Andy Dabilis
ATHENS – What a year. Lighting
struck again and again and again
in Greece. Scandal. Austerity
measures. Another scandal.
More austerity measures. Another scandal. Pay cuts and tax
hikes. Another scandal rekindled.
More pay cuts and higher taxes.
Another old scandal resurfaces.
Riots, pensioners marching, so
to speak, in the streets, holding
signs denouncing the government for robbing their present,
side-by-side with workers and
students denouncing the government for robbing their future. A
former prime minister who disappeared off the map after his
scandal-ridden administration
brought Greece to the brink of
economic collapse. His successor,
George Papandreou, renouncing
his Socialist party values to try
to keep Greece from defaulting
and collapsing, sinking under the
weight of a 15.1% deficit and
$360 billion debt. A Dark Day
for Democracy when three innocent bank workers killed in an
anarchist firebombing during
protests against the government,
trapped in their offices while the
murderers danced in the streets
and yelled at them to die, witnesses turning away instead of
turning in the perpetrators. The
news business loves dirty laundry and bad news, but 2010 was
a year that couldn’t be made up,
even in a movie or bad tabloid
or even the Fox News Network.
The world turned its eyes to
Greece, which set the news stanFor subscription:
718.784.5255
[email protected]
ABOVE: An employee of a
Marfin Bank Branch is still
dazed after being rescued from
a fire that broke out when the
bank was attacked during antigovernment protests in central
Athens, May 5, 2010. Three of
her colleagues died inside. No
one has been arrested yet.
RIGHT: A flash of lightning illuminates the sky over the
2,500-year-old
Ancient
Parthenon temple, on the
Acropolis hill during heavy
rainfall in Athens, June 28,
2010, mirroring a year of political storms across the country.
dard, its society on the verge of
unraveling and threatening to
bring Europe with it, the country
the butt of lines whenever an
economy anywhere was disintegrating: “California the New
Greece?” Around the world,
Continued on page 10
Continued on page 7
COMMUNITY
2
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
GOINGS ON...
TNH/COSTAS BEJ
TNH/COSTAS BEJ
Snow Slams East Coast; New Yorkers Want to Smack their Leaders
The light is green for "GO!" but the drivers of these vehicles
are long gone as the streets of Brooklyn, New York are littered
with buses, cars and trucks abandoned during the Christmas
Blizzard of 2010. Two days later, streets and mass transit were
still a mess, and New Yorkers were furious with their officials.
With a smile on her face, Helen Spetseris of Queens, N.Y., has
to do the heavy digging out herself after a big snowstorm blanketed the East Coast the day after Christmas, leaving so much
white stuff a snow blower was better than a shovel. On many
streets car traffic was replaced by children making snowmen.
In the Spotlight: Markos Kaminis, God’s Blogger
By Constantine S. Sirigos
TNH Staff Writer
NEW YORK – Markos N.
Kaminis is a Greek American financial expert who lives and
breathes the information-laden
air of the blogosphere. His brain
contains a clear picture of the financial world whose concepts
and practices make otherwise intelligent peoples’ heads hurt, but
his sights are also set on a higher
realm with a different kind of
knowledge. This is one of those
times of year when Orthodox
Christians are told that we do in
fact dwell in two worlds.
“Simeron O Christos en Bithleem
Genate ek parthenou – Today
Christ is born of the Virgin in
Bethlehem” intones the great Orthodox Christmas hymn that reminds us that God once dwelled
among us in the flesh. And even
outside church, watching the
football playoffs, we will see fans
holding placards that read “John
3:16” which points to the Gospel
verse "For God so loved the
world, that he gave his only begotten Son.” We are also taught
that a Christian should be careful
of the world, to be in it, not of it.
Kaminis pushes that guidance to
its limits, and tries to keep his
finger on the pulse of the material and the spiritual life. He acknowledges that he may end up
in seminary one day, but today
he is dedicated to helping people
with their material needs. He’s a
financial columnist and the
founder & chief editor of Wall
Street Greek, the globally syndicated and expert-authored blog,
which can be found at WallStreetGreek.com and www. WallStreetGreek.blogspot.com. As an
analyst for seven years on Wall
Street, as contributor and editor
to institutional newsletters, as
well as a columnist for Businessweek.com, RealMoney.com, MotleyFool.com and others, he was
able to syndicate the blog. Initiated as a one-man show covering
the global economy and equity
markets, the blog has since expanded to include expert authors
covering numerous financial and
Markos N. Kaminis is a Greek American financial expert.
cultural fields.
TNH: How do you help the
people who devote a share of
their valuable time to your blog?
MK: Our blog is an independent endeavor. It’s not a branch
or vehicle of large investment
organizations, like some blogs.
My independence and this latest
endeavor of mine have been influenced by the rude awakening
I received on Wall Street where,
even while employed by an “independent research provider,” I
found gross and broad negligence of fiduciary responsibility.
This experience so tainted my
view of my lifelong dream, that
I determined never to work for
another organization without
serious consideration of the people involved in overseeing
things. I would rather be financially bankrupt than morally so.
TNH: Has your life path been
influenced by your Ancient
and/or Modern Greek and Orthodox heritage?
MK: My life has most definitely been affected by my
Greek heritage. First of all, I’m
so proud of what ancient Greeks
have accomplished. I believe
that we must do everything we
can to now raise the standard
of how modern Greeks are
viewed by contemporary society,
because this perspective has
been recently distorted. My
Modern Greek heritage and upbringing has also shaped my
character.
TNH: What has been your
greatest achievement so far?
MK: If you asked me 10
years ago, I might have said
landing a job on Wall Street, a
lifelong struggle that involved
emerging from a blue collar
background, where my best
friends moved on to delivering
packages and reading gas meters. I chose my career goal at
the age of 13, after a fictional
investment project in school. I
made my first investment by age
16, and every dollar earned
went into the stock market,
which helped finance my college education.
TNH: How did you begin in
the field?
MK: My journey required extreme determination, because
without any contacts in the industry, I was left to my own limited devices while competing
against Ivy Leaguers. Eventually,
after graduate school and a oneyear job search, I joined Standard & Poor’s. My work and
toolset were so novel to management that I was promoted
into a special role among a
group of three stock pickers
handpicked to serve our short
list of institutional clients.
TNH: What’s the greatest lesson you've ever learned?
MK: That nothing is possible
without God’s blessing. Through
blood, sweat and tears, I carved
my way through a mountain,
rather than climbing it. And
then when I reached the pinnacle from within its heart, I was
reminded about God, his plan
and his will. It was like a big
joke revealed to me, that the financial security I sought all my
life was actually meaningless
and worthless, and that I had
nearly lost the riches of faith in
the process.
TNH: Do you have a role
model?
MK: In the past I might have
said my father and the work
ethic I witnessed in him; or Peter Lynch, the famed portfolio
manager of the Fidelity Magellan Fund, and author of Beating
the Street, the book that guided
me toward portfolio management. However, at this juncture
of my life, the answer is just as
clear and much different. Now,
I favor modeling my life after
that of Saint Nikolaos or Jesus
Christ.
TNH: What’s your ultimate
goal in life?
MK: Sainthood. Does that
sound ridiculous or cocky even?
I believe Sainthood should be
the ultimate goal of every life,
and every child, when asked this
question in school, should give
the same answer. When I was
asked this question as a child, I
rattled off eight different jobs,
and they told me that it was
good because I had many options. Then I answered, “But I
want them all.” Now I only want
to be appreciated by the Lord,
whose sole opinion matters. Before achieving Sainthood
though, I plan to and am developing businesses from the web
down to the street. My goal is
not to get rich, but to create a
source of capital, which I plan
to put to work for God by creating a non-profit international
Orthodox Christian-affiliated
philanthropic organization. My
goals have always been big and
impossible, yet somehow possible.
TNH: If you could change
something about yourself, what
would it be?
MK: Well, I always joke that
God broke my nose as a child,
playing street hockey, to keep
my ego in check, but it would
be nice to fix that. More seriously, I wish I could be more
courageous for Christ, which I’m
working on.
TNH: What’s your most enjoyable pastime?
MK: Delivering bread and/or
sandwiches in the dark to homeless people on the streets of New
York City. Secondarily, I have a
great passion for the art of dancing zeimbekiko, and enjoy anything that brings peace and
serenity.
TNH: Share with us some
words of wisdom.
MK: In life, you will find an
abundance of people to tell you
that you cannot accomplish
what you want to do. However,
there is only one voice which
determines if you can or not,
and that is your own. Therefore,
do not seek the approval or advice of people who do not share
the passion of your dream. Fear
nothing, and trust in God and
His will.
[email protected]
If you'd like to nominate a notable member of the Greek
American community for “In
the Spotlight”, please contact
[email protected] with your suggestions.
n THRU JANUARY 3
NEW YORK, N.Y. - The Onassis
Cultural Center explores the
role of heroes in society in the
exhibition, Heroes: Mortals and
Myths in Ancient Greece, on
view in Manhattan from October 5, 2010 to January 3, 2011.
The exhibition is supported by
an indemnity from the Federal
Council on the Arts and Humanities. Highlights of the exhibition
include a bronze Corinthian helmet from 700-500 B.C.; a blackfigure amphora depicting
Achilles and Ajax playing a
board game outside Troy (late
sixth century B.C.); a black-figure column krater (c. 510 B.C.)
depicting Odysseus escaping
from the cave of the Cyclops
Polyphemos; and a gold medallion with the bust of Alexander
the Great (c. 218-235 A.D.);
among many more. Guided
tours of the exhibition will be
offered to the public every Tuesday and Thursday at 1:00 p.m.
Tours can also be organized
upon request for school groups.
A comprehensive brochure will
also be offered free to visitors.
For additional information, contact: Lillian Goldenthal at (212)
593-6355 or email: [email protected].
n DECEMBER 31
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fl. – St.
George’s New Year’s Eve Dinner
and Dance will be held on December 31 at St. George’s Greek
Orthodox Church from 7:00
p.m.-1:00 a.m. The party will
feature Florida’s top Greek
band, Ellada with Dino Theofilos, Elias Poulos and Georgos
Soffos. The dinner will include
hors d’oeuvres, a prime rib dinner, champagne and vasilopita.
Space is limited and tickets will
not be sold at the door. Tickets
for Adults are $50.00 and
$25.00 for children 12 & under.
To RSVP, call: Koula Mitchel at:
(727) 844-0620.
n DECEMBER 31
TORONTO, Canada – The Panmessinian
Association
of
Toronto “Papaflessas-Ipapanti,”
is hosting their New Years Eve
Celebration on December 31 at
The Grand Luxe Event Boutique
at 7:00 p.m. Cocktails begin at
7:00 p.m. followed by dinner at
7:30 p.m. There will be an open
bar for adults and a Champagne
toast at Midnight. Opa Opa DJ
services will be playing a variety
of Greek and English music
throughout the night. There
will also be a spectacular silk
aerial performance by Femmes
du Feu and arts and crafts will
be available for children. Prices
are: $95 for adults, which includes open bar and a 3 course
dinner and $45 for children under 12 which includes dinner
only. Tickets will not be sold at
the door. To purchase tickets,
contact: Peter Panagiotopoulos
at: (416) 887-1601; Rita
Valasiadis at: (416) 817-3413
or
email:
[email protected].
For further information, visit:
www.panmessinian-toronto.org.
n JANUARY 8
TARPON SPRINGS, Fl. – Tarpon
Springs Cultural Treasures presents an evening of lively music
and dance from the Dodecanese
Islands of Greece. Feature musicians are, Kalymnian violin
player, Michalis Kappas, who
will journey from Greece to join
Laouto musician, Panayotis
League in playing nisiotika, the
music of the Aegean Islands.
Performing with them will be
Tarpon Springs' Tsabouna
player, Skevos Karavokiros and
traditional vocalist, Irene Karavokiros. The event is supported
in part by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts,
SouthArts, the Sister Cities
Committee of Tarpon Springs
and the Kalymnian Society. The
event will be held at the Ka-
lymnian House from 8:00 –
11:00 p.m. Tickets are $5. Hors
d’ouveres and drinks will be
served. The Kalymnian House
is located at: 42 W. Morgan St.,
Tarpon Springs, Fl. For more
information, call: (727) 9371130
or
visit:
www.tarponarts.org. Tarpon
Springs Cultural Treasures, PO
Box 5004, Tarpon Springs,
Florida 34689. Telephone:
(727) 942-5605.
n JANUARY 9
OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. - The
Greek Women's University Club
is hosting a special Annual
Scholarship Luncheon, “Celebrating 80 Years of Greek
Women's University Club - Promoting the Arts, Culture, and
Education," at Mike Ditka's
Restaurant on January 9 at
12:00 p.m. Guest speaker will
be NBC Channel 5 Reporter Kim
Vatis. The Restaurant is located
at: Two Mid America Plaza
(22nd St & Rte 83), Oakbrook
Terrace, IL. It will be $45 per
person. For further information,
contact: Maria Kallis at: (630)
455-1688.
n JANUARY 12
NEW YORK, NY – The Hellenic
American Bankers Association
in collaboration with the Hellenic America Chamber of Commerce, the Hellenic Medical Society, the Hellenic Lawyers
Association and the Cyprus-U.S.
Chamber of Commerce, are
hosting their traditional cutting
of the Vasilopita event at the
Holy Trinity Cathedral Hall on
January 12 from 6:30-8:30 p.m.
There will be a wine and meze
reception. The event is free for
members and $40 for non-members.
Visit:
haba20110112.eventbrite.com,
to register. Holy Trinity Cathedral Hall is located at: 337 East
74th Street, Between 1st & 2nd
Avenues, New York, NY 10021.
n FEBRUARY 5
EDISON, NJ – The White Mountains Cretan Fraternity is hosting their Annual Dinner Dance
on February 5 at 7:00 p.m. at
Pines Manor. There will be a
variety of mouth-watering
Greek foods served and Cretan
music and Laika will be provided by George Boyiatzhs and
Xristos Zabolas. Donations: $80
and $40 for children up to 11years-old. For further information and to make reservations,
contact: Soula Kantilierakis at
(732) 819-0563; Irene Kanterakis at (732) 297-8321; or Takis
Psarakis at (908) 256-6813.
Pines Manor is located at: 2085
Route 27, Edison, NJ 08817.
n FEBRUARY 19-20
NASSAU, Bahamas – The Greek
Orthodox Church in Nassau is
hosting their annual Greek Festival on February 19-20. Enjoy
a variety of mouth-watering traditional Greek foods, Greek beer
and an assortment of delicious
Greek pastries. There will be
an ouzeri and kafenio on church
grounds, as well as, cooking
demonstrations. There will also
be a live bouzouki band and traditional Greek dancing. Entrance fees are: $3 for adults
and $1 for children. Festival
hours are: February 19 at 11:00
a.m. and February 20 from
12:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. The festival will be located at the Greek
Orthodox Church Grounds on
West Street, Nassau, Bahamas.
n NOTE TO OUR READERS
This calendar of events section
is a complimentary service to
the Greek American community.
All parishes, organizations and
institutions are encouraged to
e-mail their information regarding the event 3-4 weeks ahead
of time, and no later than Monday of the week before the
event, to [email protected]
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
Vote on our website!
You have the chance to express your opinion on our website
on an important question in the news. The results will be published in our printed edition next week along with the question
for that week.
The question this week is: Do you think your life will be
better in 2011?
o Yes
o No
o Maybe
The results for last week’s question: Should Greece support
the building of mosques in Athens?
23% voted "Yes"
77% voted "No"
0% voted "Maybe"
Please vote at: www.thenationalherald.com
book · worm. - noun
1. One who spends much time reading or studying.
2. Any of various insects, especially booklice and
silverfish, that infest books and feed on the paste
in the bindings.
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language,
4th Edition
The National Herald Bookstore
(718) 784-5255
[email protected]
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
YEAR IN REVIEW: COMMUNITY
3
A Greek American Year in Review: The Highs and Lows of 2010
POLITICS
• On January 3, Greek American businessman George Maragos was sworn in as Nassau
County Comptroller in New
York. Ted Gatsas became New
Hampshire’s First Greek American Mayor on January 5.
• On November 2, Assemblyman Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) won a spot in the New York
State Senate; Aravella Simotas
won his old State Assembly seat,
where she was joined by Nicole
Malliotakis. George Sava lost to
fellow Greek American Dean
Skelos in a bid for his NY State
Senate Seat. Vermont elected
Jim Condos as its Secretary of
State.
• Among those defeated, nation-wide, were Charlie Baker
(R), running for governor in
Massachusetts, Chicago Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, Charlie
Crist and Harry Wilson. The
Demos vs. Cox race sent both
home to ponder their political
future while Cox’s fiancee,
mogul John Catsimatidis’
daughter Andrea, began on her
own path, being elected President of NYU Republican club.
• In Rhode Island, Leonidas
P. Raptakis was defeated in Sept.
in his bid for Secretary of State.
In Hawaii, Panos Prevedouros,
a professor of civil engineering,
lost his attempt to be Honolulu’s
mayor.
• In February, George J. and
Olga Tsunis, John A. and Margo
Catsimatidis and Dennis Mehiel
were listed among the top political donors to House and Senate members in New York in
2009 in a study by The Center
for Responsive Politics and The
New York Times.
RELIGION
• On August 18, a Fox News
broadcast regarding the muchdelayed building of the St.
Nicholas church destroyed on
September 11, 2001 brought attention to the issue. Questions
about why the building has been
delayed and the Port Authority
abandoned negotiations with
the parish and the Archdiocese
PHOTOS: TNH ARCHIVES
Hellenic Lawyers Association in New York 2010 Honoree Congressman John Sarbanes and 2010 Attorney of the Year George
Stamboulidis
cipal Betsy Sideris was honored
for her 25 years of service on
October 31.
• St. Basil’s Academy celebrated its 65th Anniversary in
March. The Koraes Elementary
School, affiliated with SS Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church in Palos Hills,
Illinois, celebrated its 100th anniversary in November.
• In Lowell, Massachusetts,
The Hellenic American School
of the Church of the Holy Trinity
(Hellenic American Academy)
became a middle school, thanks
to a grant of $280,000 by the
Stavros Niarchos Foundation.
• Dora Kontogiannis was selected by the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association as the 2010 Visionary
Principal of the Year.
BUSINESS
• Great third-quarter results
of Navios Maritime Acquisition
Thalia Stathis’ mother, Joanne, holds up a picture of her slain
daughter in the courtroom where her killer, a former boyfriend,
was convicted.
continued through the September 11, 2010 tribute and the latters’ December decision to sue
the Port Authority.
• TNH’s intrepid religion reporter Theodore Kalmoukos also
uncovered: in January, the
Church of America’s refusal to
take on the case of two 10-yearold twin boys from the Peoples
Republic of Congo; the issue of
whether or not Archbishop
Demetrios, 83, would leave his
position; sexual molestation accusations, in Texas, against Deacon Bithos; and allegations of
major sexual improprieties by
Metropolitan Paisios, former abbot of the St. Irene Chrysovalantou Patriarchal and Stavropegial
Monastery in Astoria, NY. He
also reported, in November, on
the unpopular decision of Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver to divide the Holy Trinity Cathedral
parish in Salt Lake City in Utah
into two.
• Detroit's Annunciation
Cathedral celebrated its 100th
anniversary.
EDUCATION
• The Greek financial crisis
was keenly felt at Greek
parochial and charter schools,
with the numbers of dispatched
Greek Education Ministry teachers greatly reduced. At St.
Demetrios of Astoria, for instance, the number of dispatched teachers was more than
halved.
• The school’s Assistant Prin-
(NNA) were celebrated in a
lunch at the New York Stock Exchange in December. In October,
the Hellenic-American Chamber
of Commerce made Sophocles
N. Zoullas, President and CEO
of Eagle Bulk Shipping, its Personality of the Year 2010.
• Evripides Kontos was honored at a gala organized by
Cyprus-U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and short seller James S.
Chanos accepted the Hellenic
Bankers Association (HABA)’s
Executive of the Year Award on
May 13.
• Among the nine Greeks on
Forbes magazine’s Billionaires
List, George Phydias Mitchell,
90, was the top Greek American, at $2.2 billion. Meanwhile,
millionaire C. Dean Metropoulos purchased PBR’s parent company, Pabst Brewing Co., for a
rumored $25 million in June.
• Greece’s innovative mattress and housing goods company Coco-Mat opened its first
U.S. showroom at New York furniture store ABC Home.
• Stephen Katsaros invented
his 2-Watt solar light bulb in
January. By year’s end the
Nokero bulbs received press as
alternatives to kerosene lamps
for developing countries.
LEGAL
• Greek American businessman Nicholas D. Kiriakakis, 25,
of Richmond Hills, New York,
was charged by New Jersey police in the double murder on
February 17 of two men. He was
freed on bail in March.
• “Hairy Greeks” was among
the slanders allegedly hurled at
four New York brokers working
at Independent Financial Group
Inc/LPL Financial Corp. They
sued on March 1 in the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District
of New York in Brooklyn.
• Nick and Chris Giannis, a
father and son who operated
Chicago’s Boston Blackie's
burger restaurants were charged
with taking nearly $1.9 million
from two banks in a check-cashing scheme.
• On July 20, attorney Athan
Tsimpedes filed a class action
suit in Washington, D.C. against
the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and HSBC
Bank, representing 97 Cypriots
asking for compensation.
• At the Bergen County Justice Court in Hackensack, New
Jersey, the former boyfriend of
slayed waitress Thalia Stathis,
Hugues Francois, on August 31,
was given the maximum sentence on six counts, including
30 years for aggravated
manslaughter.
• In October, New York City
real-estate developer Thomas
Kontogiannis, 61, pleaded guilty
to masterminding a $92 million
mortgage-fraud scheme.
LEADERS/COMMUNITY
• In January President
Barack Obama appointed Paul
Anastas, a/k/a The Father of
Green Chemistry, to the role of
Assistant Administrator of the
Office of Research and Development of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
• Phil Angelides spent the
year chairing the Financial Crisis
Inquiry Commission, which presents its report on the causes of
the U.S. financial crisis in January. Nineteen days of public
hearings and some 700 interviews were conducted by the
commission, which also included Byron S. Georgiou.
• It was cold, but the Greek
Independence Day parade took
place in Manhattan on April 18.
Sadly, by the time many of the
marchers reached the V.I.P.
grandstand, much of the entourage from Greece, including
several MPs flown in at Greek
taxpayers’ expense, had left.
• Nicholas Karakostas was
re-elected Supreme President of
AHEPA. In November, he was
honored by NY nonprofit
HANAC.
• Cypriot American engineer
Jerry Lastihenos was named to
the Hall of Fame of the International Water Environment Federation.
• On October 7, Ursula E.
Andreas of Virginia was honored by the Jewish AntiDefamation League with the
Courage to Care Award for the
bravery of her late father, Horst
B. Lantzsch, who saved his Jewish friend Freddi Ascher from
the Nazis.
• Ismene L. Petrakis, Professor of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine, assumed the post of Chief of
Psychiatry, Veterans Administration of the Connecticut Healthcare System on July 1.
• The Association of Greek
American Professional Women
or AGAPW was inaugurated; it
honored TV journalist Tina Santorineou on October 26.
• Frances Frangos Townsend, former Homeland Security
Advisor to President George W.
Bush, received the Pan Hellenic
Scholarship Foundation’s Paradigm Award in November.
• Many Greek Americans celebrated the vote by U.S. House
of Representatives (23-22) on
March 4 to condemn the mass
killings of Armenians in 1915 as
genocide.
• March of Dimes N.Y. made
Atlantic Bank CEO Spyros
Voutsinas its Man of the Year on
November 8.
• In November, we reported
that astrophysicist Prof. Vassilis
Angelopoulos heads the NASA
team that saved spacecraft
THEMIS P1 and P2, allowing
them to head to the moon.
Meanwhile, the Hellenic American Women’s Council (HAWC)
awarded former NASA scientist
• A portrait of John G. Rangos was unveiled in September
at the Children’s Hospital of
Pittsburgh thanking him for
three decades of support. Rangos is making a unitrust gift of
$1 million to the hospital for research, in addition to the $8 million that Children’s has already
received from the Rangos’ family foundation.
• Mary and Michael Jaharis
donated $3 million for the construction of the Mary Jaharis
Center for Byzantine Art and
Culture Hellenic College/Holy
Cross in Brookline, Massachusetts.
• The estate of Dr. Spyro and
Helen Gevas of Roseland gave
the Greek Orthodox community
of Saints Nicholas, Constantine
and Helen in Orange, New Jersey $2 million.
• Nicholas Goudes passed
away in on April 5, 2010, leaving $500,000 to the Holy Trinity Greek Afternoon School in
Charlotte, North Carolina.
• For another year, San
Diego’s Stacy Matseas remained
at the top of the American Cancer Association Making Strides
for Breast Cancer event volunteer fundraisers. She’s collected
$800,000 to date.
SPORTS
• The Order of AHEPA sent
70 runners to the Athens
Marathon, which celebrated the
hattan’s New Museum; “Percy
Jackson and the Olympians: A
Look Inside the Lightning Thief”
at Hellenic Museum Chicago,
which broke ground on its new
building, planned to open in
April, 2011; “Heroes: Mortals
and Myths in Ancient Greece”
was the Onassis Cultural Center’s exhibit of the year in New
York; Greek American artist
DeAnna Maganias’ design came
to life as Athens’ first Greek
Holocaust memorial opened in
May.
• Singer Ariana Savalas, 22
year-old daughter of actor Telly
Savalas, sang in Manhattan
clubs. CSI actor George Eads
was awarded at 19th Annual
Hellenic Times Scholarship
Fund dinner in New York. Actress Olympia Dukakis presented her upcoming Greek film
project The Journey in May and
was honored as woman-of-thehour at Houston’s Hellenic Cultural Center of the Southwest
gala.
• The first TNH No Limits
Teen Video Showcase, featuring
videos by three Greek American
teens, took place within the successful 4th New York City Greek
Film Festival. The 4th Los Angeles Greek film festival was
also a success.
• Greek singers Dimitris
Mitropanos and Yiorgos Dalaras
performed in the U.S., while JLo cancelled her plans for a con-
Anthony Papadimitriou, (R) President of the Onassis Foundation USA, admiring one of the
works of art, Herakles wearing a cap, with Greek Minster of Culture Pavlos Geroulanos.
Joan Vernikos with this year’s
Aristeon Award.
• On November 12, the Hellenic Lawyers Association
toasted Congressman John Sarbanes of Maryland and George
Stamboulidis, Esq., Managing
Partner of Baker Hostetler’s New
York office.
2,500th anniversary of the famous battle and the legendary
of Pheidippides.
• May Kotsopoulos, the
AHEPA-awarded UVM star basketball player graduated with
honors and landed a deal to
play professionally on Greece’s
Ano Liosia team.
PHILANTHROPY
• In 2010 – to name a few of
its gifts- the Niarchos Foundation offered $500,000 to the victims of the Haiti earthquake,
$750,000 to the Cathedral
School in Manhattan, which unveiled its new learning center in
December, and $500,000 to the
Tenement Museum for an exhibit bringing to life the story of
a Jewish family from Kastoria.
• The N.Y. Federation of Hellenic Societies thanked Nicholas
Bouras for contributing $30,000
annually to cover live television
coverage of its annual parade.
• Between May 13 – 23, the
Hellenic Medical Society’s Team
Aegean visited 10 small Greek
isles, offering medical care.
• Roy and Diana Vagelos
gave a $50 million donation to
Columbia University’s Medical
School.
• The Annunciation Cathedral of New England in Boston
received a contribution of
$500,000 from an anonymous
donor.
CULTURE
• On February 27, Coloradobased former photographer
Louis Psihoyos earned the Documentary Oscar for The Cove, a
film about an annual dolphin
slaughter in a sleepy Japanese
town.
• Writer/actress Tina Fey
was on the cover of Vogue’s
March issue.
• There was a revival of
France-based, mathematical
composer Iannis Xenakis works
in New York, with a major exhibit at The Drawing Center
(January 15 – April 8); and, on
June 21, a performance on the
water – literally - in Central Park
of his percussion piece
Persephassa, as a part of Make
Music New York.
• Talked-about exhibits included: “Called to the Holy
Mountain: Mount Athos” (Washington, D.C.), with National Geographic photos; “Skin Fruit,”
for which Cypriot collector
Dakis Joannou controversially
loaned over 100 works to Man-
cert in Northern Cyprus.
• New York University Prof.
Peter
Meineck’s
Ancient
Greeks/Modern Lives: PoetryDrama-Dialogue was awarded a
major grant from the National
Endowment for the Humanities
to bring 10 classic Greek dramatic works to 100 cities in 20
states.
BOOKS
(TNH SHORTLIST FOR 2010)
• No One Would Listen: A
True Financial Thriller, by Madoff
whistleblower
Harry
Markopolos.
• Eleven Weddings and a
Sacrifice, the story of businessman John Catsimatidis’ mother,
by Justine Frangouli-Argyris
• Photos of Prominent
Greeks in the USA, by Maria
Yanna
• The First Victory: Greece
in the Second World War, by
George C. Blytas,
• The Lucky Child by Marianne Apostolides
• Greek Revival: Cooking for
Life, by Patricia Moore-Pastides
• Marathon: How One Battle
Changed Western Civilization by
Richard A. Billows
• Greek Orthodox Churches
of New England; The Metropolis
of Boston and its Parishes photos by George Panagakos
• Coming soon: Jeffrey Eugenides’ third novel...
George Delis, LLC
Consultant, Public Relations
Land Use
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1-917-696-0975
YEAR IN REVIEW: COMMUNITY
4
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
Will Ground Zero Mosque Battle
Help St. Nicholas Rebuild?
TNH staff writers
NEW YORK – At Ground
Zero, the site of the World Trade
Center’s twin towers that were
destroyed in the Sept. 11, 2001
terrorist attacks, a new building,
1 World Trade Center, that will
be 1,776 feet tall to mark the
year of American independence,
has hit the 34th floor. Two
blocks away, plans for Islamic
Center Park51, a religious and
cultural center for Muslims,
which will include a mosque,
has been given rapid initial approval by city officials. But in
the shadow of the fast-rising 1
World Trade Center, and not far
from the proposed home of
Park51, all that’s left of St.
Nicholas Greek Orthodox
Church, also felled that fateful
day, is an empty lot. Church officials have now stepped up
their ire too, complaining the
city has stalled plans for its rebuilding, even while giving the
Muslim center a green light.
Against the din of construction
at Ground Zero, opponents of
the mosque and supporters the
church have found common
ground, if for different reasons,
and both went to the sites to
make their case last week. “The
only house of worship destroyed
on September 11” is how both
George Demos, a Republican
candidate for Congress in Suffolk County, and former New
York Governor George Pataki,
who was in office in 2001, referred to the church. (AUG. 28)
Archbishop Demetrios Mum
on St. Nicholas’ Future
By Theodore Kalmoukos
BOSTON
–
Archbishop
Demetrios of America is refusing
to inform the Greek American
Community about the status of
plans to rebuild the St. Nicholas
Church at Ground Zero in New
York. In a response to a written
communique sent by The National Herald requesting an interview with the Archbishop regarding
this
issue,
the
Archdiocese’s Press Officer
Stavros Papagermanos replied
that “for the moment, and as
long as the issue continues to
develop, His Eminence will not
give any interviews regarding
the issue of St. Nicholas.” Meanwhile, St. Nicholas’ Parish Council
President
John
Couloucoundis called the underground Vehicle Security Center
that the NY/NJ Port Authority
has already begun construction
on at the initially agreed upon
site for the new church “illegal.”
Speaking to TNH from Singapore, where he is away on business, Couloucoundis reminded
that the Port Authority proceeded with this decision unilaterally and had not reached
any agreement with the Archdiocese. He also refused to rule
out any option, including seeking legal recourse in the courts,
PHOTOS: TNH ARCHIVES
A Shipping Giant
Sophocles N. Zoullas, CEO of Eagle Bulk Shipping, one of Greece’s most noted companies,
honored by the Hellenic American Chamber of Commerce in New York, is seen here together
with this wife Sylvia and mother Marianna Zoullas.
if an agreement is not reached
during negotiations with the
Port Authority. Couloucoundis
insisted that, “It’s illegal; what
the Port Authority is doing is illegal.” When asked how he
plans to react, he replied that
“we are discussing our course
of action.” (SEPT. 4)
St. Nick’s Fires Legal Notice
at Port Authority For
Rebuilding Church
By Constantine S. Sirigos
NEW YORK – Defamation.
Fraud and Misrepresentation.
Trespass. Unjust enrichment.
Bad faith. Arrogance. With these
strong words in the text of a notice of their intention to sue the
Port Authority of New York and
New Jersey and several other
entities, the Greek Orthodox
Archdiocese of America and the
parish of St. of Nicholas have
taken the gloves off in their dispute with those agencies over
delays in the rebuilding of the
Church at Ground Zero. The papers were served on the PA on
December 6, 2010 and constitute 60-day notice of the
Church’s intention to go to
court, which is required by law
for certain actions against the
PA. Father Mark Arey, Director
of Inter-Orthodox, Ecumenical
and Interfaith Relations at the
Archdiocese said the Archdiocese and the parish took that action “very reluctantly and sorrowfully because we must
protect the interests of the St.
Nicholas parish.” The legal papers state, “This claim arises out
of the arrogance, bad faith, and
fraudulent conduct of the Port
Authority in preventing Saint
Nicholas from re-building its
church at Ground Zero after it
was crushed by a falling tower
in the attack on the World Trade
Center on September 11, 2001”
and that in March 2009, the PA
“summarily disavowed a longstanding agreement” to rebuild
the church at 130 Liberty
Street,” and “without permission, notice or any legal justification whatsoever has sent its
bulldozers onto both the land
owned by the Church at its original site...and the land promised
to the Church... and conducted
extensive excavation that has
rendered both sites unbuildable
by the Church.” (DEC. 10)
Greek American Parochial Schools Hope for Better Year
By Stavros Marmarinos
TNH Staff Writer
NEW YORK - St. Demetrios
Greek American School in Astoria, N.Y. once again boasted the
largest number of students
among the local area Greek
parochial school. The school,
which runs all the way to the
Twelfth Grade, has 600 registered students this year. Principal Anastasios Koularmanis told
The National Herald that he believes that the number will grow
and reach the same as last year’s
total of 700 students.. A total of
60 teachers will hold classes at
St. Demetrios this year, including 5 teachers dispatched from
Greece. A sixth teacher on dispatch from Greece is being paid
directly by the school, due to
budget cuts in the Greek Education Ministry. Last year, there
were 11 teachers on dispatch
working at the school. “We had
a big surge in Kindergarten students,” Koularmanis said.
“Eighty students between the
ages of three and four have already registered. We have also
inaugurated or are continuing
programs with a variety of
American colleges,” he added.
The William Spyropoulos Day
School in Flushing, N.Y. also
opened on Sept. 8, with the hagiasmos service scheduled for
Sep. 14th. The school runs from
Grades K to 8. The number of
students is roughly the same as
last year, with 450 children registered and a staff of 37 teachers. This year, the school does
not have any teachers on dispatch from Greece. The Hellenic
Classical Charter School opened
for the new school year on Sept.
8, offering classes for Grades K8.
Some 385 students will attend
the school this year in comparison to 358 students last year.
There are still 450 students on
the waiting list. A staff of 50
teachers will work in the school,
including seven teachers on dispatch from Greece. (SEPT 10,
2010)
St. Basil’s Academy and the Archdiocese said they could
not help 10-year-old Demetris and Konstantinos Sporides
A Case of Need
From the Congo
BOSTON- Two 10-year-old twin boys from the Peoples Republic
of Congo born to a Greek father and a Congolese mother are
enduring a painful life-drama. They lost their father (Stylianos
Sporidis) in 2002 and now face the grim reality of losing their
beloved mother, who is terminally ill with cancer.
Their mother’s health has deteriorated to the point where
she can no longer take care of the 10 year old twins, as was
stated in a letter sent by Metropolitan Ignatios of Central Africa
to His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America, in which
he asks the Archbishop to open his heart and extend shelter
and protection for the twins at St Basil’s Academy in N.Y.
Mr. John Sporidis (the brother of the twins’ deceased father
who resides in Philadelphia, Pensylvania) is retired, legally
blind and advanced in age. Mr. John Sporidis called on St.
Basil’s Academy as well as the Archdiocese of America with a
request for help to save the orphan twin boys and help them
find shelter. He also offered to contribute to the best of his
ability, given that he is retired and on a fixed income. However,
after the passing of several months, on December 21, 2009, he
received a final negative response to his plea from Archbishop
Demetrios.
The Archbishop wrote to Mr. Sporidis that, “With much sorrow, I learned about the terrible position in which your two
nephews, Kostakis and Demetris, have found themselves.” He
continued by acknowledging “the situation for the boys is truly
difficult and I truly hope that a solution is found that will provide a secure future for them.” The Archbishop stated that “this
request of yours is in conflict with, among other things, the
fact that the boys are not United States citizens and hence cannot live permanently in the United States.”
Mr. Ioannis Sporides, the children’s uncle, told The National
Herald that “if the Archdiocese wanted to help, we could have
found the solution.” He made a plea for help to other Greek
American organizations such as AHEPA and SAE to “help these
two children,” saying, “I want to save these children.”
In a news release, the Archdiocese declared: “Saint Basil
Academy never refused to accept the children and has been in
communication with the family over the past seven months.
There was never any question of financial resources in accepting
the children. The Academy has been informed by the family
that they are currently working toward securing guardianship
of the children in order for them to be placed at Saint Basil.
Both the Archdiocese and the Academy look forward to receiving Kostakis and Demetris as soon as possible.”
Eventually the boys were received by the philanthropic organization Ark of the World, headquartered in Athens, Greece
at the initiative of its founder, Father Antonios Papanikolaou.
AHEPA Runners Head The Marathon Line
By Sylvia Klimaki
TNH Staff Writer
ATHENS- “When you cross a
marathon line the feeling is
great but when you cross THE
marathon’s line it changes you
for ever,” Demetrios Kirkiles,
Governor of the Order of AHEPA
of District 2 and a member of
the 2010 AHEPA Athens
Marathon team told The National Herald about the importance of participating in the
event in his family’s homeland.
He was part of the 70 runners
who participated at the Athens
marathon representing the
AHEPA charitable foundation
that raises money for various
Hellenic causes internationally
making funds available to assist
individuals of all races, color,
and creeds....
With 70 runners from Japan,
Brazil, Dubai, Canada, and the
United States, the AHEPA
marathon team had all ages and
abilities. Kirkiles said, “If you
agree to help raise money for
the AHEPA charitable foundation you earn the right to participate in the marathon, so we
approached marathon runners
and asked them to go back to
their communities and ask for
support showing what AHEPA
Charitable Foundation does (…
) and as a result we had a phe-
nomenal success.” Adding, “Hey,
there is much more going on in
Greece than what we just see
on news (…) I watch the financial news every morning before
going to work and they show
the same riots every morning
they send their reporters at the
Grand Bretagne balcony videotaping the protesters, then they
go home and win a free trip to
Greece, that is so frustrating,”
he said. This is the first year
AHEPA team ran the Classic
marathon, and “A few of us
were suppose to come anyway
and we said why don’t we do it
for a cause,” he explained. With
this trip to Athens, “We did charity and also people learned the
history of Greece, they learned
the story behind the Marathon,
there are very few modern civilizations that can boast a history
of 2,500 years.” George Vassilas,
the AHEPA District 23 District
Governor, added. “As (Kirkelis)
said after the end of the race,
“The
inaugural
AHEPA
Marathon Team experienced
lasting memories, new friendships, and the filoxenia (hospitality) from the people of Greece
(…) making this marathon
stand out from all others in the
world.”
So far the foundation has
managed to raise $225,000.00
for Hellenic Charities. (NOV. 6,
2010)
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Από το 1915 για τον Ελληνισμό
Bringing the news to generations of Greek Americans
Filo King Humbled by
Outpouring of Love
By Constantine S. Sirigos
TNH Staff Writer
NEW YORK - ...Evripides Kontos made his fortune as the
founder of the Apollo filo dough production company, but on
May 7 he was also honored for philanthropy and patriotism,
and his undying support for the Orthodox Church, Greece and
Cyprus.... Steve Kontos expressed his pride in his father’s
achievements. When the elder Kontos arrived in the U.S. he
showed the in-laws who owned the Constantinoupolis bakery
- in what was then known as New York’s Greek Town, on 8th
avenue in Manhattan - a more efficient way to make filo by
hand. Eventually, he left the filo business, though he hoped to
return. He did so in 1968 and by 1972 he and his future business partner developed a way to completely mechanize the
production of filo. By 1983 he sold his new business to Pillsbury,
staying on a few years as a consultant, but by 1988 he wanted
to start a new business. That’s how the filo king became the
flat bread-pita king. At the time Steve had concerns about the
new project, but the elder Kontos said, “I’m 58. The Colonel
(Col . Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame) was 58. We
are going to do it.” ...When Mr. Kontos himself finally reached
the podium, he smiled and said, “I lost my speech,” adding “I
don’t know how to thank everybody,” but proceeding to touchingly note all the important people in his life. “My success does
not belong only to me. I share this honor with my wife Eva,
and my son Steve, who was with me from when he was 12
years old, my supervisor of quality control, running around
telling me “daddy, there is something wrong…this is too dry…
this is not good.” (MAY 10, 2010)
YEAR IN REVIEW: COMMUNITY
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
5
The Sad Saga of Metropolitan Paisios …..
Astorians who worshipped at the
Irene Chrysovalantou Patriarchal and
Stavropegial Monastery in New York and
Orthodox Christians everywhere are still
stunned by what has transpired there
since the puzzling announcement of
their beloved Metropolitan’s retirement
in October, 2010. TNH’s coverage by
Theodore Kalmoukos follows:
made a crown of thorns for me to wear,”
while two ladies were collecting signatures at the entrance of the church to
send them to Ecumenical Patriarch
Bartholomew in support of Metropolitan
Paisios and request that the Patriarch
not accept his resignation. (OCT. 30,
2010)
Nun Alleges Abuse at N.Y. Monastery
“Crucified” Paisios Leaves the Altar
With Bitter Blast
Metropolitan Paisios of Tyana celebrated his farewell Divine Liturgy as Abbot of the St. Irene Chrysovalantou Patriarchal and Stavropegial Monastery in
Astoria, N.Y. on Sunday Oct. 24, 2010.
Holding back tears during his sermon,
Metropolitan Paisios said that, “Everything has a beginning and an end, and
so my service which began 40 years ago
has come to an end today.” However,
the Metropolitan urged the faithful, to
respect his successor. “Whoever the Ecumenical Patriarchate shall send, respect
him; even if they send him who betrayed
and crucified me, because he is going to
be your new spiritual father,” he said,
making reference to his deputy, Abbot
Bishop Vikentios of Apameia. Paisios also
said, “I want to thank all those who upset me, crucified me, and all those who
BOSTON - Sister Christonymphi Fitzpatrick, a nun at the St. Irene Chrysovalantou Patriarchal and Stavropegial
Monastery in Astoria, N.Y., has left the
monastic life after giving police a seven
hours testimony about the Monastery.
Metropolitan Paisios of Tyana, who left
for Greece, saying he was resigning for
“health reasons.” Fitzpatrick’s testimony
was given to police over a seven hour
period from Nov. 6 until 2 a.m. the next
day.
Saying she feared for her life, Sister
Christonymphi, 26, who became a nun
at 14, left for an undisclosed location.
That happened as a three-member
Patriarchal Exarchy team of official representatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate came to New York to investigate.
The National Herald spoke with Metropolitan Paisios in Athens, but he refused
to
talk
about
Sister
Christonymphi’s testimony, apart from
saying the money she gave them “is for
the third floor we wanted to build.” He
also stated that the approximate amount
of money in the briefcase “should be
around $285,000 or something like
that.”
When asked why the funds were being held in cash, Metropolitan Paisios
said, “Because we did not want them to
be used.” He said he knew nothing about
what she may have told the police.(NOV.
13, 2010)
tape - live and unconditionally at the
headquarters of TNH in New York,
Bishop Vikentios made revelations of alleged serious excesses by the Metropolitan, including that he was involved with
people of both sexes, including the
young nun, Christonymphi, who now
has given up the Monastic vows and
talked to the police. Bishop Vikentios
also revealed that, according to his information, the former nun had been
pregnant but did not know by whom.
(DEC. 18, 2010)
Bishop Vikentios Levels Shocking
Sex Charges Against Paisios
Patriarchate Suspends Metropolitan
Paisios and Bishop Vikentios
NEW YORK - Bishop Vikentios of
Apameia has made stunning allegations
about Metropolitan Paisios of Tyana
tenure at the Saint Irene Chrysovalantou
Monastery and its Dependencies in Astoria, N.Y., including charges that the
Metropolitan sexually abused the
Bishop’s brother, Spyros Malamatenios,
who was 17 at the time. In a long interview with The National Herald, Bishop
Vikentios (Malamatenios), a close associate of Metropolitan Paisios (Loulourgas) for 40 years and co-founder of the
Monastery, outlined a sordid tale of sex
and other alleged wrongdoings. In the
lengthy interview - which was taken on
BOSTON - The Ecumenical Patriarchate has levied the canonical punishment of an indefinite suspension upon
Metropolitan Paisios of Tyana and
Bishop Vikentios of Apameia, meaning
that the two hierarchs are forbidden
from celebrating the Divine Liturgy, holy
sacraments, and any other Sacred Services of the Church. This decision was
reached during an emergency meeting
of the members of the Hierarchy residing
in Constantinople. Sources told The National Herald that Ecumenical Patriarch
Bartholomew plans on revisiting the issue involving the Monastery of St. Irene.
(DEC. 25, 2010)
Giannoulias, Crist, Wilson
Go Down, New Hopes Emerge
By Constantine S. Sirigos
and Andy Dabilis
NEW YORK - It was not the
showing they’d hoped for, especially with prospects for at least
a couple of wins looming, as Democrat Alexi Giannoulias narrowly lost his bid for the U.S.
Senate seat in Illinois once held
by now President Barack Obama,
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist’s bid
as an Independent candidate after bolting the Republican party
in a bid to gain a Florida U.S.
Senate seat came up empty, and
Republican Harry Wilson fell a
little short in his campaign to become New York State’s comptroller in last week’s elections. But
even as they consoled their staffs
and did some ruminating on
what went wrong, Greek American Congressional candidates
across the country fared better,
with four wins and six losses,
and the community made gains
in New York State, where
Michael Gianaris won his bid for
a State Senate seat and Aravella
Simotas and Nicole Malliotakis
were elected to the State Assembly. Other losses came for twotime House Rep Zack Space of
Ohio, along with his colleagues
in the House of Representatives
Dina Titus of Nevada, Suzan Kosmas of Florida, and Dean Scontras in Maine, the lone Republican. Winners included House
Reps. Gus Bilirakis of Florida,
Shelley Berkley of Nevada, John
Sarbanes of Maryland, and Niki
Tsongas of Massachusetts. Of the
four, only Bilirakis is a Republican.
Giannoulias’ loss in particular
was a major heartbreaker, as
polls showed him running neck
and neck with his Republican opponent. Crist, who was running
as an Independent, had a
tougher challenge in Republican
Marco Rubio, who enjoyed the
backing of the Tea Party.
It was also bad timing for Giannoulias as the President took
what he said was a “shellacking”
at the hands of voters across the
country who swept Democrats
out of the Congress and took
control of the House of Representatives. Harry Wilson charged
into election day riding an advertising campaign fueled by an
impressive treasure chest and an
unprecedented string of endorsements from more than 30 newspapers, including the New York
AP PHOTO/M. SPENCER GREEN
Illinois Democratic Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias hugs
his mother Anna Giannoulias after addressing his supporters.
Times, the Daily News and the
New York Post, but it was not
enough to overcome the incumbent, Thomas DiNapoli. The race
was too close to call for most of
the evening, One frustrated [supporter] did not blame Wilson. As
he bolted through the exit doors
he raised his fists in mock triumph and shouted “yay New
York State Republican party,” on
a night where other candidates
for statewide office were also defeated, included Carl Paladino’s
controversial if not bizarre bid
to become governor, leaving a
once-proud party in disarray on
a night when Republicans triumphed from coast to coast.In
Florida, Crist never recovered
from his decision to bolt the GOP
and
run
as
an
Independent...Crist said he doesn’t know what he’ll do next. He
gave an answer that anyone who
has followed his career for a
while probably could have predicted, word for word, without
hearing him say it: “I don’t know.
The only thing on my mind right
now is to work very hard for the
next 60 days for the people,” he
said. “The future will take care
of itself,” the news service reported. (NOV. 10, 2010)
The Vagelos Gift of Giving Gifts To Others:
Philanthropic Lives Well Lived
By Constantine S. Sirigos
TNH Staff Writer
Legendary Greek Mad
Man Lois Had it all
Covered for Esquire
By Constantine S. Sirigos
NEW YORK - There are musicians whose songs become the
soundtracks of our lives: Sinatra, the Beatles, Bee Gees, wherever your taste leads, and then there are artists whose images
orient generations, that become signposts on the bumpy roads
of American history. That’s Greek American George Lois, known
as the Golden Greek of Madison Avenue, the master ad man
and cover designer for Esquire magazine, whose iconic images
of pop stars, politicians, celebrities, and ordinary people struck
a chord that still reverberates. When you view his ads today,
you will smile and nod in recognition, but the covers he created
for Esquire magazine in the 1960s and early 1970’s will transport you back into those times whose meaning we still wrestle
with. He was the anti-Norman Rockwell, finding the dark side
of a turbulent time.
What becomes a legend most? Giving credit to those who
helped them become successful is a good start. Lois had numerous mentors and partners, but idolized his father Harry,
who he credits for many of his most important life lessons.
Harry was from Kastania near the picturesque and historic
town of Nafpaktos. “My father came to America when he was
13. His father sold some sheep and goats to buy him passage
and he came alone. He didn’t know anybody. He worked at
Coney Island where there were a lot of Greeks who sold hot
dogs, met a lot of Greek florists here and there, worked in
florist shops, and by 21 he had his own florist shop on Broadway,” he recalls. The roots of an artists’ genius are a mystery,
by ties to nature are part of many biographies. “My father
loved nature. Whenever I was with him in the country he said,
‘Giorgo, let’s go for a walk,’ and he would talk about this and
that, and he would always look for a piece of wood that he
could carve. He would cut it - it took about 15 minutes - and
he would make a flute out of it, and he would play these beautiful tunes, mythic sounds. intensely beautiful and earthy,” leaving you to wonder how many generations of humble Loises
made flutes and became, or created, virtuosos by entertaining
their families, planting artistic seeds that would sprout far
away in space and time.
TNH asked him what he’d be doing in a parallel universe
where he didn’t become an art director. The surprising, but not
shocking answer was “movie director.” Lois’ music video Joker
Man, starring Bob Dylan, won the MTV Best Music Video for
the Year award in 1983. Lois is still rockin’ too. To learn more
about him and the nine books he’s published, visit:
www.georgelois.com.
Asked about helping Greece during its current crisis, he told
of a campaign he prepared for the Olympic in 2004. But if he
were asked again, he told TNH, “I’d love to do it.” (SEPT. 13)
PHOTOS: TNH ARCHIVES
Dr. P. Roy and Diana Vagelos insist on being involved with organisations when they exercise
charity. Among the institutions they support is Columbia University Medical Center.
los: Earl Stadtman. Although a
veteran at his family’s restaurant,
Vagelos said, “I was a complete
clutz when I started in the laboratory ... scrambled eggs and biochemistry experiments are somewhat different.” But he caught
on fast from Stadtman and they
became life-long friends.
With Stadtman, “We were
doing experiments right on the
Law Firm
edge of science,” Vagelos said.
He noted “I was lost in science
as a young kid,” with science
class’s rote memorization and
classifications, but “When it
came to understanding how
something develops and how the
molecules are put together, that
was a different thing. That’s
when I understood I was meant
to be a scientist.” His mother-
in-law would often chide him,
“and worry that I spent too
much time at work but I could
never convince her that for me
it was not work.” One of Vagelos’
big concerns today is the sad
state of math and science education and the decline in what
he calls the feed stock of science
research and high tech industry
skills. (OCT. 14, 2010)
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George Lois, alongside some of his most iconic magazine
covers for Esquire featuring his anti-Normal Rockwell style.
NEW YORK - Dr. P. Roy Vagelos
and his wife Diana are wealthy
enough to be among the biggest
philanthropists in the Greek
American community, but said
they learned who would get
their generosity by the largesse
they gave to each other, and
knowing the causes they would
support. “One rule we hold true
to is we are charitable to those
we are engaged with. We are
very familiar with their mission
and interests and their governance. Unless we are very involved and know exactly what
the needs are we are not inclined to become donors. So far
we’ve been pretty accurate,” Diana Vagelos said. When they
give, they often give big, the latest being a $50 million gift they
recently made to the Columbia
University Medical Center
(CUMC) will help it to continue
to produce many of America’s
top physicians and researchers
far into the future.
Vagelos, former Chairman
and CEO of pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. Inc. who was
graduated from Columbia’s College of Physicians and Surgeons
in 1954 and his wife is a graduate of Barnard College, invited
TNH to speak with them about
their philanthropic activities and
other concerns.
The quintessential New Yorkers were both born in the Metropolitan Area. Diana Vagelos
was born in Inwood in upper
Manhattan and, at age two,
“moved onto higher ground” in
Washington Heights, where she
lived though her studies at
Barnard. Dr. Vagelos was born
in Westfield, N.J. and went to
high school in Rahway, “Where
my family had a luncheonette.”
He was the first family member
to go to college.
When it was pointed out that
his family’s entrepreneurial background must have come in handy
in his rise to CEO of Merck, Vagelos replied, “I’m really mostly a
scientist who went into the corporate side because I was a biochemist who understood how
new drugs could be discovered...My greatest interest is understanding disease.”
Talk of mentors evoked one
big name in the life of Dr. Vage-
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YEAR IN REVIEW: GREECE CYPRUS
6
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
Greece: A Masterpiece You
Can Avoid – And Many Did
AP PHOTO/DIMITRI MESSSINIS
Piles of Garbage, Piles of Debt
A woman exits a children’s hospital holding her baby as she
walks past a pile of garbage in Athens on Thursday, Dec. 9,
2010 as government workers and garbage collectors were on
strike against ongoing austerity measures.
Two days after the May 5
mass demonstration against tax
hikes and public sector wage cuts
to keep Greece’s economy from
collapsing sparked skirmishes in
Syntagma Square and spilled
over into anarchy, leaving three
bank workers dead after a firebomb was tossed into their office,
the plaza in front of the Parliament where the proud Evzones
stand on guard was nearly empty
of tourists. It’s an image that has
scared Greek officials almost as
much as the scenes of clashes between workers and anarchists
with police, the square filled with
stun grenades and tear gas filling
TV screens and fired off across
Twitter and Facebook with the
unwritten message: don’t come
to Greece. And people are not.
Even before the teargas had
evaporated, so too had reservations for visitors, as more than
20,000 room night stays were
cancelled. The troubles hadn’t
come at a worse trip, as the warm
Spring weather turned hotelier
and restaurateur’s fancy toward
welcoming tourists, nearly 18
million of who come each year,
bringing in more than $43 billion, or 18% of the country’s
Gross Domestic Product, and employing, directly or indirectly,
about 16% of the country’s workers, many of whom are now fearful they will stand idle if the
tourists don’t come. Government
officials estimate a 7-8% drop in
visitors this year for a country,
which has ranked as high as 14th
in the world as a tourist attraction and advertised as “A Masterpiece You Can Afford.” “We'll
see a big drop in revenues because prices are down,” said Andreas Andreadis, head of the Hellenic Hotel Federation and Vice
President of Greece's Tourism Enterprises. Government spokesman George Petalotis said, “The
incidents that stigmatized Greece
internationally were decisive in
creating a climate of uncertainty
and fear for visitors who had
made bookings.” (MAY 22, 2010)
AP PHOTO/THANASSIS STAVRAKIS, POOL
Advice not taken
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou passes behind International Monetary Fund head
Dominique Strauss-Kahn prior to a joint news conference in Athens Dec. 7, 2010. StraussKahn was in Greece to negotiate the terms of the repayment of the $150 billion bailout
loan that saved the debt-ridden country from default.
Many Greeks
Now Face A
Grim Future
ATHENS – Even as Finance
Minister George Papaconstantinou said Greeks would not face
even-tougher austerity measures
to keep the economy afloat and
international emergency loans
coming, workers heading for retirement were hit with the news
that their benefits could be
slashed by as much as 50% and the European Union kept
pressing for Greece to hold the
line on its program of tax hikes
and public sector wage cuts.
“Greece will not need additional measures, especially
‘painful’ measures. I see only
one option ahead, delivering on
our targets with consistency,” Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou said. But he also said
the drastic plan put in place by
Prime Minister George Papandreou to cut public workers
salaries by 10%, reduce bonuses
by 30% and across-the-board
tax hikes was not on target to
meet its goals to help Greece reduce its 13.7% deficit and $380
billion debt.
Greece has promised to slash
its budget deficit to less than 3%
in three to four years in exchange for a $146 billion financial bailout from the EY and the
International Monetary Fund
(IMF) who are pushing Greece
to keep its foot on the necks of
workers in the face of strikes
and protests.
“We are close to our revenue
targets but not quite there.
However, we have exceeded on
our efforts to cut back on budget
expenses,” Papaconstantinou
said, reiterating Papandreou’s
statements that continued tax
evasion is still keeping Greece
from gaining enough revenues
to right itself. Greece’s economy,
which makes up about 2.5% of
the Eurozone, the 16 countries
who use the euro, is expected
to stay in recession for a second
year in 2010 after a 2% slump
in 2009, but Papandreou said
Greece would consider new austerity measures only if it can’t
meet its budget targets or implement all its reform and fiscal-consolidation efforts. (JUNE
5, 2010)
AP PHOTO/PETROS GIANNAKOURIS
We’re old! Help Us!
Pensioners chant slogans during a protest against the Greek government's austerity measures,
outside the Ministry of Finance in central Athens, Dec. 7, 2010.
Will Greece Lose Its Marbles? Denies Deal is Made
ATHENS – Greeks may get to
see the marble friezes stolen
from the Parthenon by British
diplomat Lord Elgin from 180112 while Greece was under the
yoke of the Ottoman Empire,
but it could be in return for relinquishing claim to the national
treasures to the British Museum,
where they are housed, although Greek officials quickly
denied a report in a British
newspaper the deal will be
made. The Times of London
published a report claiming that
Greek Culture and Tourism Minister Pavlos Geroulanos has
made an offer in which Greece
will relinquish its 200-year-old
claim to the Parthenon Marbles
housed in the British Museum
in return for a long-term loan,
and that Greece would also then
have to loan the British Museum
other antiquities to fill the space
occupied by the stones, which
the British call the Elgin Marbles
but which Greece calls The
Parthenon Marbles. Once word
got out a deal was possibly in
the making, Greek officials
quickly moved to quash the notion it was giving up the fight,
but only through press releases.
British Museum officials had
long maintained they obtained
the marbles lawfully, although
they are stolen antiquities, and
that Greece had no proper place
to exhibit them, a stance that
lost its standing when Greece
two years ago opened the New
Acropolis Museum, partially designed to hold them.
The Athens News Agency
quoted the Greek Culture Ministry as saying that the “permanent return of the Parthenon
Neither Jew Nor Greek,
A Holocaust Memorial
By Sylvia Klimaki
TNH Staff Writer
ATHENS - On a sunny Monday
morning a few months ago,
Athens unveiled its first Holocaust memorial, the last European Union capital to commemorate its Jewish population that
was imprisoned, tortured, and
the 65,000 Greek Jews executed
by the Third Reich. Greece stood
nearly alone in condemning the
actions of the Nazis and trying
to save its Jewish community
during the dark times of World
War II, but it took 65 years before that defiance was symbolized too in the simple memorial,
a shattered Star of David, split
into seven large pieces of white
marble pointing in all directions,
the names of regions of Greece
where Jews once lived inscribed
there, the country’s once vast
and thriving numbers, a lingering legacy of 2,000 years of living in Greece, is down to about
6,000, according to Benjamin
Albalas, President of the Athenian Jewish Association, and only
nine of 29 Jewish communities
that existed in Greece in 1942
were re-established after the
war. The dead are at rest, but
now their memories live in the
memorial, located in a quiet,
tree-surrounded herb garden,
beside a cemetery, in the archaeologically rich Kerameikos
neighborhood of Athens, not far
from where Pericles gave his famous funeral oration in 430
B.C., still perhaps the greatest
speech ever delivered. Albalas
said it’s where his people
wanted it to be. “The location
the Jewish community insisted
the memorial to be built upon
was of high archeological interest and therefore the protests of
the archeologists were intense,”
he said. The site has certain particularities: it is close to the synagogue where Greek Jews, under the ruse of food handouts
by the Nazis were rounded up
on March 23, 1944. An estimated 1,000 Athenian Jews
were packed off to the concentration camp in April 1944 after
thousands fled or went underground. Arriving there after a
two- week train journey, they
were met by Dr Josef Mengele.
“He selected 320 men and 328
women for his own ‘research,’”
the historian Mark Mazower
wrote in his acclaimed book Inside Hitler’s Greece. (Oct. 2,
2010)
Marbles to the new Acropolis
Museum remains the steadfast
demand of the Greek state.” But
the statement also said that,
“Greece is prepared to offer the
British Museum classic masterpieces of the country for periodical exhibitions,” a position
similar to what the Times reported was part of the deal for
which Greece's marbles would
be only loaned to the country,
which owns them. The Times
reported that Geroulanos had
entered into the agreement to
abandon the claim to the properties that are a national symbol
of Greece, and whose return
was championed by the late actress Melina Mercouri, who
served as Culture Minister andwas passionate in her unceasing
demand they come back to
Greece.
Curiously, Minister Geroulanos himself did not address
the report, but his office issued
the statement denying it was giving up the claim to the worldrenowned sculptural masterpieces nsmed outside Greek
circles after the diplomat who
stole them. The Times wrote that
“Greece was trying to break
decades of stalemate with Britain
over the Elgin Marbles by dropping its long-standing claim to
ownership of the sculptures in
return for the British Museum
sending the Acropolis artifacts
back to Athens on a long-term
loan.” The report said that
Greece, in return, would offer
the British Museum some of its
best classical artworks, "changing
the exhibition every few years to
give London one of the richest
permanent displays in Western
Europe of sculpture, carvings
and art from ancient Greece.”
AP PHOTO/ALKIS KONSTANTINIDIS
The thick blue line
Police clash with demonstrating students outside Greece's Parliament, Dec. 2, 2010 in another
protest against austerity measures, in Athens. Police fired tear gas and clashed with youths
during the brief incident after some 1,500 people marched through the Greek capital.
YEAR IN REVIEW: GREECE CYPRUS
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
7
The Stormy Year of 2010 Changed Greece – and Greeks
Continued from page 1
there were earthquakes, iPads,
Toyota recalls, the Winter
Olympics, terrorism so common
people became inured to it, and
never-ending wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan, but when it came
to economic news, no one beat
Greece. There was only one story
in Greece: the economy, and all
else was a tangent for what that
wrought. Strikes shutting down
the Metro, buses, trains, trams,
trolleys, buses, the airport,
demonstrating workers wielding
wooden staves menacing tourists
who couldn’t get on ferry boats
shut down by the crisis, cruise
lines stuck in the harbor of Piraeus or avoiding it altogether,
Greece seen in the news as a
country at war with itself.
A Parliament under siege, angry workers pelting riot cops
with stones, bottles, oranges,
pieces of marble, spitting at
them, trying to storm the building while yelling “Thieves!” at
the lawmakers inside who
would not come out. Seven general strikes, the worst on May 5
that killed the bank workers,
others dwindling in intensity,
discredited anarchists now a real
fringe element, disowned by society and the workers they
marched with, slinking deeper
into their black hoods and
netherworld.
It was the worst year for most
Greeks since the days of World
War II and the Civil War that ensued, or the terrible time of the
Junta of the from 1967-74 and
the invasion of Cyprus by Turkey
that toppled them, no resolution
in sight to re-unification of the
island, apart from a United Nations veiled threat that Greek
Cypriots would have to give in
more than they get in return because the UN, United States and
European Union want Turkey
yanked into the western world.
Those past times were wars and
a dictatorship in which scores of
thousands of people died and
you can’t compare that tragedy
to what working people, pensioners and the poor are suffering today in Greece, unless you
want to weigh up the broken
lives and homes and shattered
futures for the young, 70% of
whom say they want to flee their
homeland to find better jobs and
work in a country where talent
is more appreciated than political connections. For many
Greeks, their pay cut, their hopes
crumbling, the National Anthem
might as well have been Don’t
Fear the Reaper or It’s The End
of the World As We Know It, as
unemployment passed 12%, up
to 30% for young women,
621,000 people in a country of
11 million without a job, walking past 50,000 closed storefronts with windows so grimy
they couldn’t see their future,
apart from the ominous numbers of beggars on the streets,
homeless on park benches, juxtaposed with the undiminished
lifestyle of the rich and protected
and tax evaders trying to hide
their yachts from tax inspectors
they couldn’t bribe, everyone
with their hands out: doctors,
AP PHOTO/PETROS GIANNAKOURIS
Demonstrators from the Greek Association of Large Families chant anti-government slogans
during a protest in central Athens, , Dec. 15, 2010. Hundreds of protesters clashed with riot police, smashing cars and hurling gasoline bombs during a massive labor protest against the government's austerity measures.
lawyers, civil servants, police,
everyone it seemed.
A YEAR TO REMEMBER
The National Herald has assembled a record of the most important stories from Greece and
Cyprus for the tumultuous year
of 2010 so that this generation –
and those succeeding – will have
even a thumbnail understanding
of how critical the times were,
and how it molded a different
country – even if it doesn’t last.
It was, perhaps, cruelly ironic
that the year ended a free-wheeling, free-spending decade in
which Greece admitted it lied
and faked its economic figures
to get into the Eurozone, a decision many Greeks blame for skyrocketing prices when Greece
lost its ancient drachma. A gyro
that 10 years ago cost 30 drach-
mas, about 10 cents at the time,
is now the equivalent of 660,
more than 20 times the price,
and everything from tomatoes to
yogurt takes a bigger bite out of
Greeks’ pockets than Greeks take
out of them. And therein lies the
problem for what happened in
2010.
IT WAS A YEAR TO FORGET,
BUT THE WOES KEPT
MOUNTING IN GREECE,
CYPRUS
EU Economic and Monetary
Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn
put it this way in an interview
with Kathimerini, Greece’s most
esteemed daily newspaper. “You
were living beyond your means,”
he said. Indeed, as the grim news
grew that Greece was nearing
bankruptcy because generations
of Papandreous and Karaman-
lises and PASOK Socialists and
New Democracy governments
kept packing redundant workers
onto payrolls, Greece had to turn
itself into a receivership, asking
the EU, the European Central
Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for $150 billion in loans over the next three
years to reduce the deficit to the
EU’s imaginary ceiling of 3%, a
figure routinely violated by even
Europe’s biggest economies, such
as Germany and France. But the
Greek Contagion spread to Ireland, which had to ask for a similar bail-out, and the sinking EU
economy threatened Spain, Portugal and Italy too, and, as German Chancellor Angela Merkel
warned, all of Europe, putting at
risk a union formed from the
ashes of World War II so that
AP PHOTO/THANASSIS STAVRAKIS
A riot policeman reacts during clashes with youths in Athens, Dec. 6, 2010. Youths hurled rocks
and oranges at a government building in central Athens during a student protest to mark two
years since the fatal police shooting of a teenage boy that sparked Greece's worst riots in decades.
there would never again be a
reason for war – except class war
that looms across the entire region, starting with Greek workers who took to the streets, their
arguments weakened by their redundancies, the polemics turned
to violence as they blamed politicians and the rich for making
them sacrifice while the privileged continued to live above the
fray, a sentiment shared in
France, where hundreds of thousands took to the streets, mirroring the Greek Anger, furious over
pension reforms and austerity
measures there. And that was the
word of the year: Austerity, one
the disadvantaged said was not
in the vocabulary of the Haves,
who didn’t understand the plight
of the Have-Nots, and for that
Greeks got notice for transmogrifying tomatoes into brickbats,
and then picking up real bricks
while lawmakers hid inside the
Parliament and the rich sipped
cappuccinos in luxury neighborhoods a few streets away from
the tear gas and people gasping
for air, and life. Greeks up to
their eyes in debt, using one
credit card to pay for another,
lining up at banks to either restructure or default, options
open only to the government, it
seemed, as the Papandreou Administration had to acknowledge
it needed more time to pay the
EU-IMF loans because the austerity measures had backfired as
Greeks stopped spending. The
worst part, it seemed, was that
there was no end in sight to the
sense that their lives wouldn’t
get better and that 2011 would
be worse than 2010, people left
to hang onto the words of Papandreou that things would get
better, somewhere around 2014.
Greeks, weary of the street
strife and trying to balance their
budgets, seemed at times to just
give up, the declining numbers
of protesters showing that many
believed nothing could be done
because the EU-ECB-IMF Troika
effectively ruled Greece and the
government had to do what it
wanted because the bankers
wanted their money back before
anyone else, the same way in the
United States the Internal Revenue Service is always in first position – even ahead of banks –
when someone goes bankrupt
and the court orders who gets
paid first.
WE DID START THE FIRE
If it wasn’t the economy, it
was violence or terrorism related
to the economy. Blogger journalist Sokratis Giolias was gunned
down outside his home on July
19 shot approximately 15 times
at close range. Typically in
Greece, where arrests are rare,
even in capital cases, no one was
apprehended, although the
weapons used were linked to
previous attacks by the Sect of
Revolutionaries, one of the deadliest terrorist groups currently active in Greece. A month before
that, a Greek police officer was
killed when a booby-trapped parcel exploded in the office housing then Public Order Minister
Michalis Chrysohoidis, who had
been unrelenting in pursuing terrorists, a rare figure of compe-
tence and integrity in a country
where corruption is as common
as poppies in a field in the spring.
Giolias was the first reporter to
be murdered in Greece in more
than 25 years, and it wasn’t long
before a mini-manifesto popped
up in a newspaper in which terrorists said everyone was a target
now – journalists, business executives, bankers, politicians – and
that tourists should stay away.
And stay away they did in droves
in 2010, the scenes on television
and the Internet of the downtown of Athens burning and anarchists, for a while, running
amok, enough to scare them off.
If that didn’t the closed ports and
airport did as Greece suffered yet
another bad year for tourism,
losing ground in the world list
of most popular places to visit.
It seemed all that was absent in
Greece in 2010 was the annual
rite of arson in which people
who want to develop forested
land burn it down so they can
put up buildings and make lots
of money, the national sport,
even bigger than football, especially since Greece’s national
team, apart from the miracle of
winning the 2004 European
championship, flopped again,
both in the Champions League,
and at the World Cup in South
Africa, bowing out in the first
round after losing to South Korea
and Argentina by 2-0 scores, but
managing to beat Nigeria, 2-1,
before going home.
Apart from the riots and
protests and strikes and general
disharmony, perhaps nothing explained why Greece doesn’t work
as much as a simple smoking ban
– the fifth in 10 years – which
was ignored just like all the others, leaving the Papandreou Administration to throw up its
hands and surrender to smokers
just two months after proclaiming a war on smoking, Greeks
puffing away as if there were no
law, and it seemed there often
wasn’t, unless it was clamping
down on the pay of workers,
raising taxes, and reneging on
pension rights.
CYPRUS IS STILL THERE
There was a high note, when
Greek Cypriot Christopher Pissarides shared the Nobel Prize
for Economics for developing a
theory that explains why many
people remain jobless despite
many jobs being available, although his advice to Greece to
get rid of redundant workers instead of cutting everyone’s pay
was ignored because it would
have affected the voting constituency of the ruling political
party. He was the singular shining moment for Cyprus as Greek
Cypriot President Dimitris
Christofias continued to flounder
in his attempt to re-unify the island and faced a diplomatic quiet
dressing-down by the United Nation’s otherwise timid Secretary
General Ban ki-Moon to reach a
settlement with the Turkish
Cypriots by the end of January,
2011 or the UN might take a
walk and leave the dilemma to
the Cypriots to figure out themselves. It was pretty much what
happened to Greeks too, in a
year they’d like to forget.
A Dark Day For Democracy
For a country which brought
much of the civilized world its
method of government of the
people, by the people and for the
people, it almost unraveled for a
few hours in Athens on May 5
when street protests against government measures to raise taxes
and cut the wages of public
workers erupted into deadly violence, with demonstrators trying
to storm the Parliament and the
firebombing of a bank killing
three people, including a woman
who was four months pregnant.
A stark photo of the shod feet of
one of the victims showing under
the railing of a second-story balcony where workers fled, waiting
to be rescued, shocked the nation, as did the level of violence.
“This is a black day for Democracy. Powers that seek blind violence against democracy and society took advantage of a
peaceful demonstration of employees, caused the death of
three people and endangered
more lives. I reassure that those
responsible will be brought before justice” Civil Protection Minister Michalis Chrysohoidis said.
There was fear that the deaths
of the bank workers could amp
up the violence. Trade unions,
while condemning the actions of
what police said were anarchists
mixed in a crowd of nearly
100,000 demonstrators, said
they would take to the streets
again.
The dead were identified as
the
32-year-old
pregnant
woman, Aggeliki Papathanasopoulou, and her colleagues,
35-year-old Paraskevi Zoulia and
36-year-old
Epaminondas
Tsakalis. They were inside a
branch of the Marfin Egnatia
bank on a main street near
Athens’ center when police said
TNH PHOTO ARCHIVES
ABOVE: A bodyguard (L) leads Costis Hatzidakis, former development minister in the previous,
conservative government, away after he was attacked by protesters in Athens on Dec. 15, 2010.
RIGHT: A petrol bomb explodes next to riot police during a student protest to mark two years
since the fatal police shooting of a teenage boy that sparked Greece's worst riots in decades, in
central Athens, Nov. 6, 2010. Police closed roads and deployed several thousand officers around
the city, amid events to commemorate the death of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos.
anarchists smashed the windows
and threw in firebombs. Outside
the bank the next morning, many
people gathered to gaze and
gawk and lay flowers on the
charred windowsills while investigators were visible inside sifting
the rubble for clues. Four bank
workers were rescued, even as
firefighters said demonstrators
blocked the exit and delayed the
attempts to save the workers.
“Several crucial minutes were
lost,” a senior fire official said.
“If we had intervened earlier, the
loss of life could have been prevented.”
The deaths were denounced
as “murder” by Prime Minister
George Papandreou in a grim
presentation to Parliament,
where he then turned to urging
the members to approve austerity measures as a condition to get
$146 billion in emergency loans
from the European Union and International Monetary Fund
(IMF) to keep Greece, staggering
under a 13.7% deficit, from defaulting on its loans and going
bankrupt.
Papandreou condemned the
firebombing of the bank on one
of the city’s busiest streets as a
“raw murderous act.” In a tense
meeting with Parliament, he
said: “Nobody has the right to violence and particularly violence
that leads to murder.” The deaths
were the first in protests in nearly
20 years in Greece, where violence during demonstrations is
frequent but rarely results in casualties. As the tear gas lifted and
the stun grenades stopped, and
the morning broke to reveal the
charred remains of the bank,
Greek President Karolos Papoulias, surveying the damage to the
debt-drowning country and its
reputation, said the violence over
protests against wage cuts and
tax hikes for workers had put
Greece at “the edge of the abyss.”
(May 8, 2010)
YEAR IN REVIEW: GREECE CYPRUS
8
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
Where is Everybody?
Hold that pose
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou arrives for an EU
summit in Brussels, Dec. 16, 2010 as disagreement over how
to fight Europe's debt crisis deepened at a two-day summit of
European leaders.
U.N. Plan for Stalled Cyprus Talks: More Talks
The Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos is seen
almost deserted during a 24-hour strike in Spata, near Athens,
Dec. 15, 2010 when another general strike hit Greece, grounding flights and disrupting hospital and transport services as
unions protest against the freshly approved labor reforms amid
painful austerity and rising unemployment.
Ban Puts The Big Squeeze on Christofias, Eroglu
NEW YORK - A three-way meeting between United Nations Secretary General Ban ki-Moon,
Greek Cypriot President Dimitris
Christofias, and his Turkish counterpart Dervis Eroglu has led only
to promises for “intensified” talks
to settle the long-standing problem of how to unify the island
that’s been split since a Turkish
invasion in 1974. Christofias and
Eroglu were summoned, reportedly under the warning that the
U.N. would pull its offices out of
Cyprus, unless the two men, who
have been hemming and hawing
for months as talks stalled,
agreed they’d get serious and
ramp up their negotiations. “The
people of Cyprus and the international community want a solution, not endless talks,” Ban
said, as U.N. frustration goes that
talks have failed for years and
that negotiations have become
even worse since Greek Cypriots
in 2004 rejected a U.N. unification plan supported by Turkish
Cypriots.
Christofias said he felt “very
satisfied,” after the meeting and
insisted he came under no pressure or threats and that no timeframes were imposed on him –
all of which were almost imme-
Greek Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias
diately said to be exactly what
happened to him. The Cyprus
Mail reported opposition DISY
leader Nicos Anastassiades said
an “informal timeframe” had
been set for January while government partner DIKO, through
its leader Marios Garoyian said
the President came under
“strong pressure” in New York.
He said “some powerful players
in the international community”
and close associates of the UNSG
tried to lean on Christofias on
this point, as well as make an effort to upgrade the UN’s role so
it could submit proposals, set
timeframes and arbitrate. That
sounded very different from the
spin put on the talks by
Christofias. “I am leaving New
York very satisfied with the results of this meeting,” he said,
adding that ominous tones of
what would happen did not
come true, the protests to the difference notwithstanding. “There
are no timeframes, there is no
threat from anywhere, and there
is no intention on behalf of the
Secretary-General to exert pressure.”
But the Mail reported that according to one European diplomat, the result was a “forceful”
message by Ban for the two leaders to basically “get on with it,”
the usually timid U.N. leader expressing the frustration of the
U.N. and other Western leaders
who had been more direct in
telling Cyprus this could be the
last chance for a mediated settlement and that the option was
a permanent partition of the island, with Turkey controlling the
northern one-third, where it
keeps a standing army and where
Turkish Cypriots occupy properties stolen from Greek Cypriots.
“The result was not as apocalyptic as some circles suggested or
as bland as some thought it might
be. Ban was forceful. He delivered strong messages but no
threats,” said the diplomat. Ban
was forceful. He delivered strong
messages but no threats,” said
the diplomat.
AP PHOTO/THANASSIS STAVRAKIS
Ah, Honey, I’m going to be a little late…
A woman speaks on her cell phone outside a closed gate of a
Metro station during a 24-hour strike by public transport in
Athens, Dec. 8, 2010 in another display of union opposition to
austerity measures in crisis-hit Greece.
Cypriot Pissarides Picks Up Economy Nobel
Prof. Christopher Pissarides
Perhaps just in time to help
Greece get out of its fiscal doldrums – and he’s already offering advice – Prof. Christopher
Pissarides, a British-Cypriot has,
along with two Americans, Peter
Diamond, Dale Mortensen
shared in the 2010 Nobel Prize
for Economics, prize for developing a theory that helps explain
why many people remain unemployed despite a large number
of job vacancies. They were honored for their analysis of the friction involved when buyers and
sellers are paired up in markets.
Diamond, a former mentor to
current Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, analyzed the
foundations of so-called search
markets, while Mortensen and
Pissarides expanded the theory
and applied it to the labor market. They won $1.5 million
along with the prize.
Pissarides, a 62-year-old professor at the London School of
Economics, told The Associated
Press that the win was “a complete surprise.” Speaking from
his London home, he said: “The
happiness is even more when it
comes as a surprise.” Diamond,
70, is an economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an authority on Social
Security, pensions and taxation.
Mortensen, 71, is an economics
professor at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. He
is now a visiting professor at the
University of Aarhus in Denmark and was told he had won
the prize before a lecture, university spokesman Anders Correll said. “He was very, very
happy but composed at the
same time,” Correll said.
Their work sheds light on
why the classical view of markets, in which prices are set so
that buyers and sellers always
find each other and all resources
are fully utilized, doesn’t always
apply to the real world. One example is the housing market,
where buyers can struggle to
find new homes even though
there are a number of unsold
properties available. Another is
the labor market. Because
searching for jobs takes time
and resources, it creates friction
in the job market, helping explain why there are both job vacancies and unemployment simultaneously, the academy said.
This search process meant there
would inevitably be job vacancies and unemployment. “The
laureates’ models help us understand the ways in which unemployment, job vacancies and
wages are affected by regulation
and economic policy,” the citation said.
TNH ARCHIVES
Streets of Fire
ABOVE: A protester throws a stone as a kiosk burns during a student protest to mark two years
since the fatal police shooting of a teenage boy that sparked Greece's worst riots in decades, in
central Athens, Dec. 6, 2010.
LEFT: A riot police officer runs to avoid a protester during clashes in Athens, Dec. 15, 2010 as
hundreds of protesters clashed with riot police, smashing cars and hurling gasoline bombs
during a massive labor protest against the government's austerity measures.
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
YEAR IN REVIEW: OBITUARIES
9
Rethinking Billy Loes, the Daffy Dodger
NEW YORK – Billy Loes, a star
pitcher with the Brooklyn
Dodgers Boys of Summer 1950’s
fabled team, was an only child
of immigrants and one of the
first Greek Americans to enter
the consciousness of the American sports world and the back
pages of New York’s tabloids. He
passed away this past summer
at a hospice in Tucson, Arizona,
on July 15, perhaps as misunderstood by the media today as
when they first wrote about him
in earnest in 1953. New York
Daily News sportswriter Bill
Madden wrote that “news of
Loes’ death didn’t surface until
nearly two weeks after the fact
came as no surprise to his
friends, who regarded him as a
delightful eccentric, self-estranged from society.”
Loes was born on Dec. 13,
1929, in Astoria, Queens and
was a star pitcher on its sandlots
and for Bryant High School. The
media established his reputation
for daffiness early, and he never
forgave them. Richard Goldstein
of the Times wrote that, “The
aura of Loes the loopy Brooklyn
Dodger gained national exposure
with an August 1953 article by
Jimmy Breslin in The Saturday
Evening Post titled The Dodgers’
New Daffiness Boy.” When Loes
was asked by [The Times] about
his flaky reputation in 1957, he
said, “When they asked me a
question, I answered them honestly. But most of them turned it
around because they knew it
would make better copy that
way. It got to the point where I
told a few writers, ‘Go ahead,
PHILADELPHIA - Father John
A. Limberakis, 84, a leading
priest of the Greek Orthodox
Archdiocese of America for
more than 60 years. passed
away on June 10 in Philadelphia, with his wife Elizabeth and
children and grandchildren at
his bedside. Known as a builder
of churches, he led four Greek
Orthodox parishes (Fresno, California; Cranston, Rhode Island;
Elkins Park, and Valley Forge
(Jeffersonville,) both in Pennsylvania, in building houses of
worship. A senior priest in the
Philadelphia area since 1970, he
served in various leadership and
ecclesiastical capacities for the
Greek Orthodox Church.
Father John was born on October 7, 1925 in Boston, Massachusetts of immigrant parents,
Anthony John and Evangeline
Karadimitriou Limberakis, who
left their homeland of Alatsata,
a suburb of Smyrna, Asia Minor
in 1922. The eldest of four children, he attended public schools
in Somerville, Massachusetts
and at age 16, graduating high
school in his junior year, he enrolled in Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology
when it was located in Pomfret,
Connecticut.
Upon graduation in 1948, he
was appointed registrar of the
Seminary, serving as executive
secretary to the late Dean, the
Rt. Rev. Athenagoras Cavvadas,
who was also Bishop of New
England. He pursued graduate
studies, first in Fresno, then in
Providence, Rhode Island and
By Constantine S. Sirigos
write what you want about me
and say I said it. You’ve been doing it right along anyway.’”
He was a Greek American
original with a side that few understood and it seemed nobody
got him. Chris Martin, who
played softball and baseball
with Loes from the age of 14
and was his teammate on the
Bryant HS team the year Loes
pitched FIVE no hitters and the
team won the city championship, described him as a
“good kid, with a good heart,”
but a kid who never grew up.
Remembering
Athan Karras:
Artist, Hellene Limberakis’ Death Leaves Church Void
By Dan Georgakas
AMHERST, Mass.- Athan Karras
enjoyed far more fame among
his professional colleagues than
in the general public, even
though he was a well-known
performer on stage, in film, and
on television. Through his activities in a variety of foundations, studios, and university positions,
Karras
became
universally recognized as America’s premier authority on Greek
folk dancing. Not least of his
many accomplishments was
Karras’ role in bringing important Greek dance troupes to the
United States and arranging for
their Greek American counterparts to appear in Greece. Hollywood insiders frequented the
various studios and other dance
venues Karras established over
the years. These “students” included dancers as talented such
as Ginger Rogers, eccentric
megastars such as Marlon
Brando, and phil-Hellenes such
as Omar Shariff.
Athan Karras was the authority on Greek dance in the US.
High-powered egos frequently
cause bitter jealousies and disputes in the entertainment
world. This was not true of the
charismatic Karras, who enjoyed
particularly good relationships
with most of his Hellenic colleagues.
When I was interviewing
Hermes Pan, Fred Astaire’s personal choreographer, Pan told
me that if I wanted to understand the Hollywood dance
scene, I should make it a priority
to meet with Athan Karras. I got
the same advice when talking
with Telly Savalas and a Greek
American columnist who wrote
for the Hollywood Reporter. In
his various activities, Athan Karras, an immigrant from Thessaloniki, managed a feat that
eludes many immigrants. He became quite successful in an important mainstream American
profession, yet he retained and
advanced his Greek culture, often incorporating that Greek
culture into mass media creations. Few people can boast of
enriching Hollywood, Greek folk
lore, and the lives of ordinary
citizens. Athan Karras was such
a rarity. In dance, he was one of
a kind. (Karras passed away Feb.
12, 2010)
finally in Philadelphia. He received Bachelor of Arts (BA)
and Bachelor of Divinity (BD)
degrees from Holy Cross School
of Theology and a Master of Arts
(MA) degree from Temple University.
Prior to his ordination into
the holy priesthood on November 8, 1949, The Feastday of the
Archangels, he married Elizabeth Constantine, a native of
Los Angeles, California. They
raised four children, two girls
and two boys.
Farewell to Fr. James Moskovites
CLASSIFIEDS
FOR RENT
NEW YORK - There was not
a cloud in the sky on the day
when family, friends and brother
clergy, led by Archbishop
Demetrios of America, gathered
at the Church of the Evangelismos/Annunciation to bid a loving farewell to Rev. James
Moskovites. As if opening a clear
view to heaven for the spiritual
children of the man who tirelessly strove to show them the
path to salvation and a better
way of life on earth, an infinite
blue sky crowned the morning
of Saturday, March 6 in Manhattan for the funeral and burial of
a beloved priest and dear friend
to many.
The landmark church, with
its glowing Tiffany windows depicting the life of Christ, overflowed with clergy, people, flowers and love for its pastor of
almost two decades
His Eminence Archbishop
Demetios declared, “He was "an
exemplary priest at the Annunciation, an innovator who improved not only the historic
building [having overseen the
renovation of the community
center] but the parish," through
the programs he developed, especially for young adults. "He
looked inexhaustible... always
thinking, with his Presbytera, of
new programs. He never said no
to anything, to any Church assignment, always, ‘yes. Yes I can
do that.’”
Archbishop Demetrios concluded his words of praise by observing of priests like Fr. James,
"They don't come in large quantities. They come as exceptions."
The attendees were visibly
moved and eager to express
their love for Fr. Moskovites and
the void his loss represents.
Penny Kostaris, a leadership and
career management consultant
said, "I was touched by how
many of his spiritual children
came up to pray for him, whom
we know is praying for us all
now." One man declared, “We
are not spiritual orphans. Each
of us is a bearer of his words
and witness to his life."
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HELP WANTED
George K. Chimples is Mourned
CLEVELAND, OHIO – George
K. Chimples, a Founder of the
Archdiocese’s Leadership 100
endowment fund and its cochairman from the inception of
the organization in 1984 until
1996, died after a brief illness
on March 13. He was 91 years
old. Archbishop Demetrios of
America presided at the funeral
at SS. Constantine and Helen on
March 16 in Cleveland Heights,
Ohio.
A great churchman and devoted family man, Chimples was
the beloved husband of Janet
(nee Shields) Chimples, the loving father of Evgenia and her
husband George Hasiotis, Constantine Chimples and his wife
Kathleen, Christine and husband Peter Anzo and Thomas
Chimples and his wife Theresa.
He is also survived by the grandchildren who were dear to him,
Athanasios and George Hasiotis,
Janet Chimples and husband
Vasili Kosteas, George Chimples,
Jennifer and Alexis Anzo, and
Grant and Thomas Chimples.
As a leader in the Greek
American community, he was elevated to Archon Megas Primikirios of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and was a great
benefactor of Sts. Constantine
and Helen Greek Orthodox
Cathedral of Cleveland, having
donated its iconostasis in honor
of his father. He served that
parish as Trustee, President,
Vice President and Chairman of
the Board of Education and
Building Fund. Chimples was
one of the founders of Leadership 100, a founder of the Kardamylian Foundation, a member of the Chios Society of
America of AHEPA.
He was born in Kardamyla,
on the island of Chios in Greece,
was graduated from the gymnasion in Chios and the Merchant
Marine Academy in Piraeus.
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REAL ESTATE
Community Mourns 41-Year-Old Professor
tors told him that the cancer he
originally was originally diagnosed with in his kidneys and
later his lungs, had not disappeared as they had told him a year
earlier. This time, it had metastasized to his brain.
Despite the shocking news, the
Greek American academician did
not give up his struggle, and
dreamed of returning to the university in September to teach his
beloved history classes and complete the book he had begun to
write shortly after completing his
doctoral dissertation. Sadly, his
condition took a turn for the
worse, and on Oct. 8, 2010 he
took his last breath at the Merrimack Valley Hospice House in
Haverhill, Mass. He is survived by
his wife, Melissa (Cooperman)
Kontarinis of Exeter, NH; his three
children, Jack Theodore Kontarinis, Tess Irini Kontarinis, and Pearl
Ilyana Kontarinis; his parents,
Dennis and Androniki (Matzoros)
Kontarinis of Queens; two sisters,
Spy Kontarinis and her husband
John Tsantes of Queens, and Lisa
Kontarinis and her husband
George Lagos of Queens; nieces
and nephews, Nikoletta and
Steven Tsantes, and Deanna and
Cecilia Lagos; and many aunts,
uncles, and cousins.
Student’s
Death Shakes
Up Community Mary Maragos, Hellene and Public Servant
NEW YORK - Artemis Makas,
20, was a beautiful young girl
who was full of kindness. She
managed to win over the hearts
of everyone who got to know
her last year, when she was
named runner up in the annual
Miss Greek Independence Contest held by the Federation of
Hellenic Societies of Greater
N.Y. But that same heart of gold
failed her early on Thursday
March 18, as she took her final
breath in the ambulance that
was taking her to the hospital.
The results of the autopsy
showed that Artemis suffered an
aneurism. Her funeral was held
at the Zoodohos Peghe Church
in the Bronx on Monday March
22, and was attended by family
members and fellow students.
NEW YORK – Astoria, Queens
and the Greek American Community of Greater New York will
miss the energy, love and dedication of Dr. Mary Maragos,
long-time member of the staff of
Congresswoman Carlolyn Maloney who passed away on Friday,
December 17 after a heroic fight
against cancer. The funeral was
held at Astoria’s Cathedral of St.
Markella on Tuesday morning,
December 21.
N.Y. State Senator-Elect
Michael Gianaris was one of
many members and leaders of
the community who were saddened by the loss. “Mary was always protecting the interests of
the Greek American community.
She will be missed - there are
not a lot of Mary Maragoses
around,” Gianaris told TNH.
Aravella Simotas, N.Y. State
Assemblywoman-Elect for Astoria said the community will not
be the same without the woman
whose “entire mission in life was
to help others. She was a really
remarkable person, full of life
and a positive outlook despite
her illness.” Simotas told TNH
that she was a role model for
women and that when Simotas
decided to run for office she and
Dr. Maragos “had a frank discussion about the rewards and challenges of public office.” Simotas
said Dr. Maragos, who has
Cypriot family roots, loved her
heritage and Orthodox faith and
that she was excited that another
Hellene was running for office
in Astoria.
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EDITORIALS LETTERS
10
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
The National Herald
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TNH Man of the Year
Greek Prime Minister
George A. Papandreou
Continued from page 1
“We are not a production line for legislation and what people have
to understand is that a bill has to mature and be debated so that a
difficult political decision can be explained and be understood by
the Greek people.” Papandreou’s answer: nice speech, now do what
I said, although he opened the door a bit to allowing debate before
the pre-ordained answer is given. In Papandreou’s Greece, it’s his
way or the highway, and if you vote against him you get the boot,
so he’s just a tank in the streets away from being his own junta,
taking advantage of the worst of times.
Because he’s let the rich alone, and hasn’t come out from his offices – except to talk to more rich people and politicians, including
the Greek Diaspora - the Greek people don’t understand what’s going on and that’s why the disaffected and disenfranchised took to
the streets in a nasty cauldron that included hooligans and anarchists taking advantage of their plight to attack the government,
bomb cars and banks and stir up trouble for trouble’s sake, making
it difficult to discern the real travails of workers and pensioners
fearful their lifestyle was disappearing while the politicians and
rich and tax evaders remained unaffected, the loophole in Papandreou’s Law. Even the head of the IMF, Dominique Strauss-Kahn,
who came to Athens to meet Papandreou, noted that Papandreou
hadn’t met the promise the Greek leader delivered at the Brookings
Institution in Washington, D.C. early in the year, to go after the tax
evaders and the corrupt elite who have been allowed to get away
with what they want, empowering everyone else to cheat too, making Greece the most corrupt country in the European Union. What
a statement for the land where democracy was born and which
saved Western Civilization through its principles and ideals.
In an interview with Kathimerini, in reaction to a question about
his feelings personally as well as the head of the IMF to the demonstrations and strikes, Strauss-Kahn was very telling:
“Demonstrations are part of any healthy democracy. It is only
natural that some people are unhappy about the changes that need
to be made. I understand that. This is a very difficult situation for
the Greek people and I do not underestimate the efforts they are
making. In fact, I commend them on those efforts - as I believe the
rest of the world also is beginning to do. I would only emphasize
this point again: when you have to make tough decisions and take
difficult measures, it must be done in a socially just manner. From
the beginning, we- and the government - have stressed the issue of
fairness.
Ordinary workers and pensioners have done their part. Now,
others in Greek society- including the high-income earners - must
do their part too. That is why, for example, strengthening tax administration, and coming down hard on tax evasion, is so important.
Yes, this will help increase needed revenues but, more than this, it
will help enhance fairness. I believe that, ultimately, people will
support reforms - even very difficult reforms--if they feel they are
in the best interest of their country and if everyone is contributing
their fair share.
If Strauss-Kahn can see that, why can’t Papandreou? It’s what is
keeping him from becoming a modern day Pericles instead of a
Draco. One way to discern the difference and what people want
would be for him to get out of the Prime Minister’s mansion and
his own very finely appointed home and meet Greeks face-to-face
and make himself available to speak to ordinary working people in
the Diaspora as well instead of handpicking journalists to write
puff pieces about him. The most effective leaders, in business and
the military, know that you can’t be an armchair general and that
worse than being feared or hated is being disdained and disrespected, held in contempt because you’ve asked others to do what
you won’t. If the people eat gruel, you can’t have caviar.
HOLD THAT RUDDER
For all that, Papandreou has shown himself to be the Phil Jackson
of Heads of State, akin to that winningest of all National Basketball
Association coaches, the Zen Master, whose spiritual approach to
that hectic game has won him kudos and 11 championships. So
where does Papandreou go from here? He’s also President of the
Socialist International, although almost everything his Administration has done is antithetical to its ideals. He has enough honors
and awards to plaster a very big wall, including the Jackie Robinson
Humanitarian Award, named for the great African-American baseball player who broke the color barrier in 1947 when he joined the
Brooklyn Dodgers, so Papandreou should not forget there is a
Money Line in Greece, workers and the poor and pensioners being
hurt on one side, and most of his allies and rich pals on the other,
and if he does, he stands the chance of becoming a memorable
leader instead of just another opportunist who put his party before
his country. He should keep open the open mind, the one that, as
Minister of Education in a previous administration, allocated 5%
of university posts for the Muslim minority in Thrace, who understood that dialogue with Turkey was better than bombast behind
closed doors, who was a listener instead of a screamer, and praised
as a “Bridge-Builder” and Diplomat of the Year, all that glory ringing
in his ear, deafening him to the cries of the powerless. He shouldn’t
forget that he was a two-time loser in previous elections to head
his country.
So does the man make the times or the times make the man, especially when it’s the worst of times? Papandreou has shown a
keen ability to keep an even keel, much as in Rudyard Kipling’s famous poem “If,” which declares that, “If you can keep your head
when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you. If you
can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance
for their doubting too,” and for that he deserves kudos because
another man might have let Greece be dashed on the rocks instead
of at least trying to avoid them. If he were not in office, Greece
would be in default and disgrace, its economy destroyed for
decades, the country’s image and reputation in ruin, a pariah
among nations.
What does he want his legacy to be, that he killed the country
to save it? Instead of sycophants surrounding him telling him not
to look out the window at the chaos on the streets, he should have
a Greek Chorus reminding him that fame is fleeting and, as Kipling
also wrote in that poem, to remember that when you meet with
Triumph and Disaster to “treat those two imposters just the same.”
If he does, that would make him a Man of the Ages for Greece.
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
The Road to Perdition Starts
in the Church
To the Editor:
I received the weekend edition of The National Herald of
December 18-24 and I was left
speechless with what I read
about the sex scandal at the
Chrysovalantou Monastery in Astoria, NY. What is happening to
our Church? There is one sex
scandal after another that is rearing its ugly head in the Christian
Church. The repetitiveness of
these scandals is destroying the
credibility of the Orthodox
Church when the world needs it
the most. Is there any wonder
that a recent poll taken by the
National Herald reported that
52% of Orthodox Christians in
America do not trust the ecclesiastical leadership of the Church?
And to think that at one time the
Church was the most trusted institution of our society. Is there
any wonder why the many
Greek-American millionaires
give huge grants to many universities and colleges in America
and not a penny to Hellenic College/Holy Cross School of Theology? Hellenic College/Holy
Cross School of Theology is the
only institution of higher learning of our Archdiocese that perpetuates our Hellenistic Orthodox Christian Heritage and it is
treated like a poor relative by the
wealthy segment of the Greek
Orthodox community. It is a precious jewel in our midst and
most of our faithful seem to ignore it. Why?
The interview of Theodore
Kalmoukos with Bishop Vikentios is very troubling. How could
Vikentios work with Paisios for
forty years and not know what
was going in that monastery? His
silence all those years makes him
an accessory to the sexual crimes
that went on in that institution.
How could the Patriarchate simply accept the resignation of
Paisios without punishing him,
without a spiritual court to judge
the charges against him? What
about the violation of the laws
of this country perpetrated by
Paisios with the perverted
lifestyle that he lived as leader
of the monastery? The clergy of
our Church are not above the
laws of this land. When is the
Church going to learn to do a
proper vetting of all the candidates for the priesthood throughout the world in order to weed
out all these sickoos before they
get into positions of leadership?
This whole issue reinforces my
opinion that there are two standards of justice in the Orthodox
Church, one for priests and another for bishops. If a priest is
caught in a similar situation the
Church throws the book at him.
If a bishop does something as
terrible as Paisios they tap him
on the wrist and send him off to
retirement with a fat pension.
I could go on forever about
the rot that is afflicting our
Church and our world today but
I will let the prophecy of St. Nilus
(1700) speak for me. “They will
not respect the sanctity of marriage and they will gravitate towards perdition which will be
worse than during Sodom and
Gomorrah, committing many
more evil works. The more evil
works, the more calamities will
befall the world. People will be-
come insensitive to their salvation from the many worldly concerns they have. The people today are given over to hoarding
treasures and surrendering
themselves over to perdition
through looting, betrayals, lies,
homosexuality, gluttony, pride,
hardness of heart and overwhelming avarice. When the
world becomes impoverished of
the Grace of the Holy Spirit, then
the world will be encircled by all
types of calamities.” May the
Light of Jesus Christ bring us
back to our roots of Christian
morality and enlighten us to finally understand the reason for
the Incarnation of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. May God
have mercy on our souls.
Fr. Constantine J. Simones,
retired
Waterford, CT
fotograffiti
AP PHOTO/PETROS GIANNAKOURIS
Calling Mr. Godot! Godot!
The last person trying to get out of Greece at the end of
2010 wasn’t told the train wasn’t coming because the drivers had been on strike – since 1912.
ΛΟΓΟΣ
In 2011, Don’t Be Like The Lone Fly On the Window
Have you ever seen a dead
fly on a windowsill? Sure you
have. At one time or another, I
bet that you’ve also seen a fly
buzzing so frantically against a
closed window that it looked
like it was trying to escape from
prison. Drawn by the seductive
light outside and fixated on
what seemed to be its one and
only path to freedom, the fly
eventually succumbed to forces
greater than its own. Ironically,
many of these poor souls - and
I’m still talking about flies - appear completely unaware that
there were other “escape” routes
available to them, such as an
open door or window on the
other side of the same room. Although I’ve freed many flies
from captivity over the years,
I’ve also witnessed the remains
of many who obviously weren’t
so fortunate. Indeed, it doesn’t
take long for many windowsills,
especially around spring cleaning time, to look like graveyards
for flies whose lives ended tragically and prematurely due to
basic instincts that did not in
the final analysis serve their best
interests or highest good. Existentially-challenged, flies don’t
have the capacity to learn from
experience, gain insight into
their personal circumstances,
and grow or consciously evolve
as a result. Flies, in other words,
appear to be doomed to repeat
their past mistakes no matter
what the consequences.
Now think about how the fly
and the behavior just described
represent so much of life as it is
lived by we human beings. As
we begin 2011 this kind of
thought-provoking exercise is
especially fitting and may help
to put those New Year Resolutions, along with the stresses
and challenges at this time of
year, into their proper context.
Imagine for a moment that you
know, people tryare now staring at
ing to get “out”
a dead fly on a winthrough a closed
dowsill.
What
window. We may
thoughts or images
even know people
about life in general
who “died” in
and about your life
mind, body, and/or
in particular fill
spirit trying to do
your mind? I’m not
so! What seemed
asking you to belike a desirable
come the character
“exit strategy,” one
played by Jeff Goldthat promised true
blum in the 1986
freedom and a betmovie, The Fly, only
by Dr. ALEX
ter quality of life,
to reflect upon
PATTAKOS
proved not to be
what life from a
one after all. These
fly’s
perspective
Special to
poor souls (now I
may have to do
The National Herald
am referring to
with the meaning
people not flies) invested everyof your life.
Let me try to jumpstart your thing they had into getting
thinking. I think that we all can through the closed window but
agree that the fly expended or were only able to die trying.
exhausted all of its life energy And like the fly who died on the
on a futile, joyless undertaking. windowsill, these individuals,
Let’s face it, there was no way despite giving all they had,
that the fly was going to break ended up leaving it on their field
through the closed glass win- of dreams unfulfilled; that is, on
dow, even though the view from the windowsill of life. Fortuoutside may have been very at- nately, we are not flies even if
tractive and seductive. What- we sometimes behave like one.
ever the fly’s “vision” at the As humans, we do have the intime, there was no way that it nate capacity to learn, to be crewas going to achieve its ultimate ative, and to grow in productive,
aim. Metaphorically speaking, meaningful ways. Whereas the
the windowsill became the fly’s fly never heard someone say,
“field of dreams” that would “Hey fly, you cannot get through
never be realized. Despite the that window, it’s crazy to keep
fly’s unrelenting, Herculean ef- trying, so why don’t you try the
forts to reach its goal on the door or something else,” I susother side of the window, free- pect that over the course of our
dom proved to be an illusion lives, each of us has received
that was out of reach. Indeed, such guidance from someone at
unbeknownst to the fly, things some time. Moreover, because
are not always what they seem! we are blessed with reasoning
And, sadly, because it is inca- (critical thinking) and creative
pable of stopping, listening, and abilities, we’ve also been able to
learning from its predicament, navigate our way through life’s
it isn’t able to take corrective ac- challenges and learn practical
tion that may save and extend lessons along the way. These life
lessons, in turn, provide a platits life.
So what does this little fly form for future thinking and acteach us about life? To be sure, tion enabling us to learn and
we all know people who live grow further as a result. As we
their lives like this fly did! You know, flies do not have such ca-
pacity and therefore don’t share
the same manifest destiny as humans, unless of course the latter
choose to behave like flies!
Unlike the fly who saw the
window as a way out and was
determined to go through the
window even if it killed it (and
it did kill it,) we have not only
the freedom of will but also a
will to meaning that, if we use
these powerful resources, can
lead us to unlimited possibilities. And while we may not always have control over the circumstances within which we
find ourselves, we always have
the ultimate freedom to choose
how we will respond to them,
even if only through our choice
of attitude.
Fortunately, in most cases,
we can do more than simply exercise the freedom to choose our
attitude towards a situation confronting us. Unlike the fly, we
have options; that is, creative license to find alternatives to the
closed windows that separate
and prevent us from where we’d
like to go.
Equipped with the benefits
of faith and reason, we can get
to our destination even if it
means rethinking our strategy
and taking a course that is much
different and maybe less obvious than the window to
nowhere. And because we are
human, we have the added benefit of enjoying and discovering
the deeper meaning of the journey along the way. So remember, you are not a fly; therefore
don’t get stuck and die like a fly
on the windowsill of life!
Dr.
Pattakos,
author
of
Prisoners of Our Thoughts, is
co-founder of a business initiative on how to live a meaningful
life based on Greek culture.
Readers may contact him at:
[email protected].
ANTILOGOS
Turkish Grinches, Boutaris, the Patriarch
ON TURKISH CUSTOMS
CLAMPDOWN IN CYPRUS
'Kktc' is sinking deeper and
deeper into economic catastrophe. And it isn't the so-called
Cypriot blockade. It's the fact
that 'kktc' is not ecomomically
viable in the first place. They
live off of Turkish 'baksheesh'
for the most part and the Turks
have cut way back on that. It's
only going to get worse.
- Philip Vorgias
ON PATRIARCH’S DIALOGUE
WITH POPE AND ISLAMD
The Orthodox Church has
contributed tremendously to
civilization and as the Patriarch
said has a "duty" to speak out
and engage on all issues and
with all faiths for the benefit of
peaceful coexistance. With engagement, with dialogue, with
sharing of our faith and with
foemulating solutions to today's
issues based on our fath, we can
move Orthodoxy towards a
good future.
- Dionysios Markopoulos
ON INTERVIEW WITH
THESSALONIKI MAYOR
YIANNIS BOUTARIS
Boutaris seems to have a
problem with that old afflictionmouth in 'Drive', brain in 'Park'.
Folks need to realize that, even
if they're politicians, they are
held accountable for what they
say. He's had his Mulligan, we
won't be so charitable in our
comments
next
time-Mr.
Boutaris.
- Philip Vorgias
ON TURKISH GRINCHES
STEALING CHRISTMAS
Edrogan demands an apology from Israel? Is Erdogan going to apologize for this?
Shameful and disgusting!
- Niko Seretis
ON GREEK SHIPPING
INDUSTRY DOMINANCE
If Greeks as a nation were as
hard working and aggressive as
those in the shipping industry
the nation would have no economic problems now. It's unfor-
tunate the goal of so many is a
civil servant’s career and a life
of minimal stress. Where and
when did the nation lose it's
way??
- Philip Vorgias
ON HELLENISM WORLD
CULTURAL CENTER IN N.Y.
This is indeed a good idea,
but also quite expensive. It can
be done though. The key decision will be where to put it?
Manhattan is the busiest place,
but also the most expensive. A
site of this scale in Manhattans
will cost hundreds of millions.
Finding the appropriate land
will be difficult in Manhattan as
well. Placing this center in the
outer boroughs may work, but
the wow factor of Manhattan
would be lost as well as the
sheer number of people that
Manhattan has to offer. An in
between location may be Long
Island City where PS1 is located.
There are plenty of affordable
sites to purchase there and that
area has become a haven for art
loving, culturally sophisticated
people to live in and to visit.
This location would also provide
the opportunity for the center
to be on the East River, visible
from Manhattan and provide a
great architectural view.
- Dionysios Markopoulos
ON EFFORTS TO REBUILD
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH
These agencies are full of arrogant people. In this issue,
where are former mayor Guliani, President Bush, Mayor
Bloomberg, Governor elect
Cuomo and others. Saint
Nicholas is in fact a national and
international issue, and our
elected officials need to be in
the forefront of rebuilding this
tiny church destroyed on 9/11.
I am pleased that the Archdiocese has finally engaged a legal
team to deal with this matter as
well as the services of a public
relations agency to get the message out to the world. It's about
time!
- Dionysios Markopoulos
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
VIEWPOINTS
11
Just When You Thought It Couldn’t Get Any Worse For Greece… It Did
The Year that Went: I am appalled. My 2010 predictions,
which I thought erred on the
worst-case side, proved far too
rosy. The top two percent of the
US population, which created
the Great Recession in the first
place, not only salvaged its outrageous lifestyles but also lobbied to keep their taxes low. For
the rest of Americans, unemployment increased, foreclosures proliferated, and the gap
in family income grew. Lobbying
remains the single most profitable investment in America;
$50 million dollars to lobbyists
netted investors about $70 billion in tax savings. The GOP remained master of the soundbyte and the Democrats
remained inept and leaderless.
President Barack Obama’s inspirational skills did not translate
into the hard political skills
needed to break the partisan
deadlock. By November, the
public bought the line that this
dark-skinned, Socialist President
of suspect parentage really
caused our problems. Ugly partisan rhetoric reached lows not
seen since the run-up to the
Civil War. Internationally, things
did not fare much better. Democrats undercut the President
on Guantanamo Bay while Republican support for a surge in
Afghanistan failed to impress
the Taliban. Israel defied the US
Government and snuffed out
any hopes for peace in the next
decade. At least, we have not
been stampeded into attacking
Iran. At the final hour, some
signs of sanity appeared in
Washington. The President
crafted a last-minute tax compromise with the Republican
leadership that outraged the
core of both parties; usually a
good sign. The Congress repealed the military quasi-ban on
gays, the “Don’t ask, Don’t tell”
policy for the practical reason
that it added a big burden on
an already overstretched US
military. At least the Senate approved the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) because
every previous Republican Sec-
retary of State and Defense and
the uniformed military persuaded enough patriotic Republican Senators to put America’s
interests above their desire to
deny Obama a victory.
This column also grossly underestimated the Greek economic crisis. While France and
Germany, as predicted, prevented Greek (and later Irish)
insolvency, the cure seems as
bad as the disease. Prime Minister George Papandreou has
dramatically reduced Government spending, pushing the average citizen closer towards
poverty, but has neither increased tax revenues from the
rich nor punished the corrupt
politicians who precipitated the
crisis. The GDP continues to decline and the usual tools for economic recovery, e.g., currency
devaluation, no longer apply.
Greek-Turkish relations took
bizarre twists in 2010. Turkish
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan undermined the Turkish
military domestically, but allowed Turkish provocations in
the Aegean to continue. He has
made only small, symbolic, positive gestures towards the Patriarchate. Most amazingly, Erdogan manufactured a crisis with
Israel that undermines the Turkish Generals while deluding the
Greek lobby into believing that
Israel is their salvation.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The Year to Come: The politicians can turn around 2011 only
if they forgo their favorite pastime of telling the public that it
can have everything it wants for
free. The GOP would have us
balance the budget by cutting
taxes for the wealthiest two percent and cutting government
spending. However, they will
not talk about cutting anything
(e.g., defense, Medicare, social
security, farm subsidies) that
might cost it votes. The Democrats seem to have articulated no
policy at all. They simply want
to avoid confronting important
constituencies such as the trial
lawyers and the teachers’
unions. Health care reform
politicians fear to
seems to have beendorse them. The
come the Democrareport of the Natic substitute for
tional Commission
policy. Although on
on Fiscal Responsibalance a good
bility, made up of
thing, the tortuous
those few remainlegislative process
ing thinking and
to pass it ruined its
patriotic Republipublic appeal. Neicans and Democther party has serirats, laid out a path
ously looked at fixto reduce the feding our balance of
eral deficit by $4
payments deficit.
by AMB. PATRICK N.
trillion over the
The GOP, in its freeTHEROS
next decade. It will
market obsession,
probably be emassees further gutting
Special to
The National Herald
culated on Capitol
American industry
Hill. On foreign afand enriching the
financial sector as a solution fairs, neither political party
while it is difficult to discern any wants to do anything unless it
Democratic policy. Fiscally serves a domestic constituency.
sound proposals abound, but The putative new Republican
chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee has already
made it clear that her highest
goals for the next two years will
be to ensure the political support of the Israel and Cuban lobbies. The outlook for Greece
may be even murkier. The
M.O.U. between the Greek Government, the European Central
Bank and the IMF imposed an
austerity so strict as to dramatically reduce economic activity
and make deficit reduction impossible. The few growth-creating measures imposed by the
IMF and ECB will not show positive results for years, long after
the austerity measures sink the
economy. Ultimately, the M.O.U.
failed to address Greece’s essential problem: bad governance,
AP PHOTO/J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE
President Barack Obama, joined by Republican and Democratic lawmakers, signs the bipartisan
tax package that extends tax cuts for families at all income levels, during a signing ceremony
on Dec. 17, 2010 at the White House. The massive tax law signed is filled with all kinds of
holiday stocking stuffers for businesses, including: tax breaks for producing TV shows; grants
for putting up windmills; and rum subsidies for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
not private sector inefficiencies.
Unlike the US, Ireland and
Spain, Greece’s banks stayed
solvent and there was no real
estate bubble. Greece’s civil service is far too big but underpaid,
encouraging corruption and
economic distortions. For example, the 1980’s decision to avoid
raising teachers’ salaries but to
allow teachers to supplement
their income by forcing students
into private tutoring; - the infamous “frontistiria” – sent a once
very good public school system
into a death spiral. The Greek
deficit was driven by a revenue
shortfall more than unsound expenditure.
Tax collections were estimated at 32% of what was due.
There is some evidence that future tax collection will improve
(newly-rich Greeks are dumping
yachts right and left to avoid the
“appearances” tax) but no evidence that the government now
has the guts to go after known
tax cheats and self-admitted corrupt officials. The current riots
are the outward expression of
deep public anger. The only reason that they are burning shops
downtown is that the corrupt
Leftist trade union leaders who
direct the riots reside in highrent neighborhoods. My direst
prediction is that failure to
throw some high-ranking crooks
in jail and to bankrupt others
by collecting back taxes will lead
to class violence on an unprecedented scale. The likelihood of
these brutal predictions coming
true depends entirely on a combination of voters waking up
and politicians learning to tell
the truth. Past history imparts
little confidence.
The Hon. Ambassador Theros is
president of the U.S.-Qatar Business Council. He served in the
U.S. Foreign Service for 36
years, mostly in the Middle East,
and was American Ambassador
to Qatar from 1995 to 1998. He
also directed the State Department’s
Counter-Terrorism
Office, and holds numerous U.S.
Government decorations.
LETTER FROM ATHENS
The First Annual TNH Ostrakon Awards, May I Have The Envelope Please
The Ancient Athenians knew
what to do with corrupt and inept leaders. They ostracized
them, expelled them from the
city for a nice little 10-year
freeze-out so they could rethink
their crimes and stupidity – that
was the theory. Unfortunately,
just as in Greece today, where
the poor are just interchangeable sidewalk tiles, the needs of
the common citizen could be
overridden by petty concerns
and the process would be hijacked to get rid of a rival by
accusing him of aspiring to
tyrant status or threatening the
state in other ways. It was a convenient tool; there was no real
charge, or even a defense, just
simply a command from the
people of Athens that someone
was getting a decade-long vacation from the city, which didn’t
want his services anymore. Let’s
bring it back, even with its excesses, to deal with the excesses
of the past decade, where even
the “innocent” cashed in. In that
spirit, we’re announcing the
First Annual Ostrakon Awards,
named for the simple broken
piece of pottery that was the
voting tokens on which someone’s name was written, and, if
enough Athenians jotted you
down, you were gonzo.
It seems fitting that the
award be given at the end of the
year so that a whole year’s
worth of ineptitude and greed
can be calculated on our abacus,
which, unlike computers, never
crashes and is more accurate
and often faster. The Ostrakon
is a dishonor even worse than
the Dodo Awards I’d given out
while working for another European newspaper, the award
named for the goofy-looking
bird that lived on the island of
Mauritius and became extinct
by trusting mankind. The Dutch
called the Dodo the “loathsome
bird,” because of its tough texture and foul taste, so, like
politicians it wasn’t good eating.
Too tough. Alas, unlike the
Dodo, hypocritical politicians
will never become extinct because they, like cockroaches, can
survive a nuclear explosion or
even bad publicity, as was evidenced by what happened in
Greece this year, where there
seemed to be no end to people
trying to disgrace themselves
and their country. If one of
Greece’s greatest Generals,
Themistocles, could be ostracized, why not a politician or
someone unworthy of note today who’s done nothing except
enrich himself?
Each year the Athenians
were asked in the assembly
whether they wished to hold an
ostracism. The question was put
in the sixth of the 10 months
used for state business under
old now, being
unimaginable sex
held by a mother,
acts. Instead of a
but maybe the
broken piece of potkillers and the
tery with his name
many who know
on it, he will receive
who they are and
a special gold osshare this ignotrakon, made from
minious
prize
one of the icons he
lifted a glass of
was charged with
beer to remember
melting down, perthem before burphaps figuring God
ing and planning
wouldn’t notice it
the next attack.
was missing. Imagby ANDY
Exile is too good
ine how dishonorDABILIS
for them, unless
able you have to be
it’s in a bank office
to win this one
Special to
The National Herald
that’s been firewhen your competibombed and the
tion includes the
monks of Mt. Athos, who fig- doors are locked so they’ll know
ured out land deal swaps to gain what it’s like. Let’s stop pretendthemselves billions of dollars, ing the anarchists are anything
and the line of priests waiting but spoiled, bored nihilists sitfor a fresh supply of altar boys, ting around sipping capitalist
besmirching the reputation of cappuccinos in their Che Guethose who toil for the Church vara T-shirts, reading Marx and
honestly and believe in their Mao and spouting pretty slogans, skipping over the part
vows.
MOST COWARDLY: The an- about how many millions of
archists hiding behind hoods people their idols killed in the
who threw firebombs into a name of helping “the people.”
branch of the Marfin Bank office Because of what they did, foron May 5 during protests mer prime minister Costas Karaagainst the austerity measures manlis, who was a shoo-in to
that have drained the lifeblood win this award because he went
of the working-class, the people into hiding after his scandalous
the anarchists allegedly are administration brought Greece
aligned with. The petrol bombs to his knees, can remain invisikilled Paraskevi Zoulia, 35; ble for another year, and, if
Epameinondas Tsakalis, 36, and there’s any real justice in the
Aggeliki Papathanasopoulou, world (there isn’t) will not be
32, who was pregnant. Her remembered.
MOST ARROGANT: This one
child would be several months
is retired in its first year and will
go every year - although that
spoils the suspense - and unless
there’s someone more shameless
on this planet, the loser will always be Andreas Vgenopoulos,
56, Chairman of Marfin Investment Group that owns the
Marfin Bank where his workers
were killed because he wouldn’t
close the branch on a day when
it was known by everyone else
in Greece that banks would be
targeted. Unfortunately, he
wasn’t in it at the time to feel
the heat and smoke and showed
up a while after the murders, but
had to be hustled away by police
and bodyguards after a mob had
lynching on its minds He did
pause, however, to answer a
question from one of them,
“How many yachts do you own?”
He smiled even more smugly and
held up three fingers, one for
each of the dead so we know the
currency exchange at his bank.
Any chance one of those yachts
could sink with only him on it,
clutching his Ostrakon? Otherwise, let’s make it a Triple Ostraka and keep him away from
Athens and Greece for at least
30 years. The Ostraka are reserved for humans, not snakes,
You think you had a bad year? Metropolitan Paisios, formerly but he sneaked in through the
of Astoria, N.Y. and now of Athens, Greece, isn’t talking about zoological door. Since he’s a major shareholder in the frequent
how bad his was.
the democracy (January or February in the modern Gregorian
Calendar.) If they voted “yes,”
then an ostracism would be held
two months later. In a roped-off
area of the agora, citizens
scratched the name of a citizen
they wished to expel on potshards, and deposited them in
urns. The presiding officials
counted the ostraka submitted;
if a minimum of 6,000 votes
were reached, then the ostracism took place: the officials
sorted the names into separate
piles, and the person receiving
the highest number of votes was
exiled. Today, only one vote is
needed – mine. And, unlike the
ostraka, which exiled only one
person a year, there’s no limit
to the TNH Ostrakon because
the candidates just keep pouring
over the transom like Chinese
soldiers in the Korean War and
you need an endless supply of
ammunition to stop them.
Enough talk, these are the people we’d like to see ostracized
(or jailed in perpetuity in some
cases) so let’s proceed to the
awards.
THE OSTRAKA FOR...
DIS-SERVICE TO GOD: Metropolitan Paisios, who fled the
Chrysovalantou Monastery he
co-founded in Astoria, N.Y. just
ahead of charges by his own
Bishop Vikentios, and a nun
who came into Paisios’ charge
as a 14-year-old, that the
monastery was really a cover for
failure Panathinaikos soccer
team, and Chairman of Olympic
Air, he would still have plenty to
do destroying those franchises in
absentia. Better hope there’s no
terrorist threat against Olympic
Air on a day you’re supposed to
fly because everyone shows up
to work for Vgenopoulos, unless
they’re murdered, and then they
get all the next day off. And the
next and the next. For Greeks
who believe in Hades, they can
rest assured he’ll meet the anarchists there one day and face the
fires of eternity because The
Devil’s Branch never closes either.
LOWER EDUCATION: To alleged Minister of Education
Anna Diamantopoulou, who
proved if not for politics that
politicians would be selling hot
dogs somewhere. Her response
to dwindling enrollments at the
abysmal national colleges was
to abolish academic standards,
just a transparent sell-out to
save failing institutions such as
the TEI of Western Macedonia
in her former constituency. Can’t
spell your name? Don’t worry,
you’re admitted under the Diamanatopoulou Criteria! Her response to criticism that she was
diluting academic standards by
opening the doors to anyone
who knew how to open a door
(some are still outside trying to
figure it out) was that: “In the
past, failures would go to private … institutions and abroad.”
Great idea, let’s keep the failures
at home instead. This from a
woman who wrote a book called
Exinpni Ellada (Intelligent
Greece) that most of those she
allowed into university will be
able to read anyway. But what
do you expect when she oversees a university system in
which the best in Greece, The
National Technical University of
Athens, ranks 340th in the
world. There’s better high
schools in the United States, but
at least it’s better than Harokopio University of Athens, that
ranks 4,846th in the world. Nice
going, Anna. When you come
back in 10 years maybe Greece
will finally allow real private
universities as required under
European Union law because
there’s nothing like competition
to make your students and fac-
ulty work, even if you don’t.
BIGGEST SELL-OUT: Whew!
Where to begin? Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos was reportedly ready to desecrate the
memory of a former holder of
that office, the late brilliant actress Melina Mercouri, who
fought with her last breath to
bring back the Parthenon Marbles from the thieves at the
British Museum. When word got
out he was ready to relinquish
the claim if he begged the Brits
to lend them to Greece, his office
put out a statement to the contrary, but he never came out in
public to show himself. But the
winner (loser) is …… Greek
Cypriot President Dimitris
Christofias, who, his words to the
contrary notwithstanding (politicians always have position papers supporting all sides) means
you’re likely to see a Turkish
President on the divided island
one day, or Greek Cypriots will
be told their homes stolen by
Turks after the invasion of 1974
now belong to the Turks as a
condition to re-unify the island.
MOST IGNORANT: Those
Greek politicians who came to
New York City for the annual Independence Day parade, stood
around on the reviewing stand
to take a breath and then hotfooted it to Macy’s and Fifth Avenue to shop or wherever idle
politicians go, leaving students
and children who worked for
months on costumes and floats
to impress them walking by a
reviewing stand as empty as the
heads of those who abandoned
them. Class act, but you’re not
welcome back for 10 years because … you’ve … been….. ostracized! Say that a few times
and see how good it feels.
And lest the winners forget,
in Ancient Athens, The Ostracized could return in 10 years
without stigma, but had only 10
days to leave the city when
voted out, and if they attempted
to return, the penalty was death.
Let’s give ‘em til sundown to
ride out of Dodge and hope a
few of them try to come back
before their time is up, so their
time will really be up – ask
Messieur Sartre or Signior
Dante what comes next.
[email protected]
GUEST EDITORIALS
The National Herald welcomes manuscripts representing a variety of
views for publication in its View Points page. They should include
the writer’s name, address, telephone number and be addressed to
the View Points Editor, The National Herald, 37-10 30th St., LIC, NY
11101. They can also be e-mailed to [email protected]. Due to considerations of space we enforce a strict 850word upper limit. We reserve the right to edit.
12
• Greece has the highest proportion of working poor in the EU27. In-work poverty is directly
associated with low wages, inability to find a
full-time job and low skills. It is also associated
with the existing system of taxation and the lack
of an effective, well-planned social policy.
• About two out of 10 Greeks under 17, or
about 450,000 children, live in poverty, and the
numbers are rising since the country has been
hit by an acute economic crisis this year, analysts
said. Some 14.6% of Greek children do not finish
secondary school, but that number is 71.2%
among poor children, surveys show, and more
than 20,000 underage Greeks work legally.
• The poverty threshold stands at 6,000 euros
($7,943 annually, or $17,977 for a family of
four.)
YEAR IN REVIEW: GREECE
The Hurtful Numbers
• Unemployment rose to 12.4% in the third
quarter, with the number of people without a job
hitting 621,938. The unemployment rate for females (16.1%) is considerably higher than the
unemployment rate for males (9.7%.) The highest rate is in the 15-29 age bracket, at 24.2% for
males and 30.6% for females.
• In the first six months of the year, 17,000
businesses shut their doors and the estimates
are it will surpass 50,000 for the year.
• Tax evasion costs Greece $30 billion a year
in lost income. In March, Prime Minister George
Papandreou said, “Tax evasion is top of the list
of reforms. We will be prosecuting offenders, no
matter how rich or powerful, to show that we
mean business.” No one of any stature has been
charged.
• Fewer than 5,000 Greeks declare annual
incomes of more than $135,000 although more
than 60,000 Greek households have investments
in cash and securities exceeding $1.35 million.
• Athens now has the biggest number of
homeless and poor people since the 1940 German Occupation. Experts predict that due to the
THE NATIONAL HERALD, JANUARY 1-7, 2011
economic crisis, these numbers will increase in
the future. It is estimated that approximately
4,400 proportions of food are distributed to
homeless, poor and elders by the parishes in
Athens on a daily basis. During the Christmas
and New Year holidays, more than 50,000 poor
people turned to the commons organized by the
Greek Church and the local municipalities in
Athens and Greece.
• The suicide rate has doubled in two years,
according to Klimaka, an organization that runs
a helpline in Greece for people considering suicide, with more than two people a day taking
their lives, an unusual spike as Greece has the
smallest number of suicides in Europe, about
3.5 per 100,000 people, compared to 12 in Germany and 38 in Lithuania.
TNH PHOTO ARCHIVES
Even international chains are empty in Athens these days, as the number of businesses closed
after the government imposed austerity measures on workers sent their sales plummeting, one
empty window after another, bracketed by growing numbers of homeless, some with only a
park bench for a bed, and a paper bag from a luxury store for a pillow, more beggars appearing
on the streets, the decline and fall of Greece symbolized (top photo) by the May 5 riots in
which 100,000 people took to the streets in protest, workers mixed with anarchists, throwing
stones and battling police, three innocent bank workers killed, all in vain as Greece just kept
on cutting spending and people’s hopes dried up.