Former Greek minister beaten by protesters in today's General Strike

[Havet]

Kostis Hatzidakis, who is now an opposition MP, was left with blood pouring from his head after being chased and beaten by dozens of protesters.

He was set upon by up to 100 youths, who shouted "Thieves" and "Shame on you" when he emerged from the Greek parliament building on Constitution Square, in central Athens.

Protesters hurled lumps of concrete and paving stones at riot police, set fire to cars and smashed shop fronts.

The violence in Greece erupted during a general strike called by unions to protest against new labour laws which unions say will give employers too much power and take workers' rights "back to the Middle Ages."

Greece is struggling to reform its economy under conditions set by a 110 billion euro international bail-out package but many Greeks feel that they have ceded away their sovereignty to the European Union and International Monetary Fund.

See video of protests here (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/8203980/Former-Greek-minister-attacked-by-mob-as-riots-break-out-in-Greece.html)

More info on the news inside the spoiler:


The 24-hour strike, the seventh this year, also grounded flights, closed factories, disrupted hospitals and shut down trains, ferries and buses across the country.
An estimated 20,000 protesters marched on parliament. Christmas shoppers fled as rioters wearing black masks and ski goggles hurled petrol bombs wrapped in bundles of firecrackers.
A similar protest in Greece's second largest city, Thessaloniki, also turned violent.
Greece was saved from bankruptcy in May by an international rescue loan package. In return, the Socialist government led by George Papandreou slashed pensions and salaries, raised taxes and extended retirement ages.
On Tuesday, the government won a key vote in parliament on new labour reforms that include deeper pay cuts, salary caps and a reduction of unions' collective bargaining power in the private sector.
Meanwhile riot police in Turkey also clashed with students who were protesting against Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, calling for university reform.
The violence came a day after thousands of demonstrators in Rome went on the rampage when Silvio Berlusconi, the prime minister, survived a no-confidence vote that had threatened to topple his coalition.

Things keep heating in Greece. If you could reach to the protesters, what would you advise them to do? Keep on, or try a different approach? Would you give them a short communist sentence, or a whole book?

[ComradeMan]

Why protestants? Not Catholics? Orthodox?
:lol:

Beating people up in the street is not a good tactic if you are complaining about things going back to the Middle Ages.

[Ele'ill]

See video of protests here (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/8203980/Former-Greek-minister-attacked-by-mob-as-riots-break-out-in-Greece.html)

More info on the news inside the spoiler:



Things keep heating in Greece. If you could reach to the protesters, what would you advise them to do? Keep on, or try a different approach? Would you give them a short communist sentence, or a whole book?


It is going to take more than street battles. I personally would like to see legitimate organizing efforts shine as brightly as the riots. (I'm not saying it hasn't)

This applies more to the student situation in England. Reach out and become engaged with resistance elements in industry. Leverage in this manner is needed more than what can be offered from street demos. March to make noise, organize to actually attack.

[Bud Struggle]

Why protestants? Not Catholics? Orthodox?
:lol:

Either that was a joke--or you misread. :D

[ComradeMan]

Either that was a joke--or you misread. :D
Former Greek minister beaten by protestants in today's General Strike



It's like what went down in Rome yesterday- now they are talking about banning protests and marches and stuff because some dicks decided they were going to chuck street stones and bombs at the police.

Although I did think it was funny watching a guy complain that someone had stolen the badge of his Mercedes... LOL!!!!!!

[Jazzhands]

Would you give them a short communist sentence, or a whole book?

It's obvious that they've already gotten short sentences, because now they're fucking shit up. The trick is to make them learn exactly why and how to sufficiently, and permanently fuck shit up in a constructive, organized way. I'd give them the book. metaphorically, of course.

Die Neue Zeit's signature quote really gets to the essence of what's happening in Greece. "You have to think 'educate, organize, agitate' as opposed to 'agitate, agitate, agitate.'" The Greek people are sufficiently agitated, that's obvious. Now they need to get educated and organized enough to form a force capable of forcing the state out and setting up proletarian rule.

Now I know I'll hear a whole bunch of shit about "peaceful protests" and stuff, because it's OI. Let me ask you people something: what have peaceful demonstrations accomplished in the past few years? people can just ignore them and usually do. Peaceful protests don't solve problems. "Elected" officials don't solve problems, and votes and popular support really don't count as long as they have powerful campaign contributors. So appealing to them is to appeal to the side of the coin that doesn't exist. The only people who will ever change the world are those who don't like it. Those are the people who have nothing and recognize that they will continue to have nothing as long as the system exists.

[Os Cangaceiros]

If you could reach to the protesters, what would you advise them to do? Keep on, or try a different approach? Would you give them a short communist sentence, or a whole book?

Three words and one guttural noise: Make. Total. Destroy. (followed by an angry gnashing sound, like "GWARGHARGLGWARG!")

[Havet]

Why protestants? Not Catholics? Orthodox?
:lol:

Beating people up in the street is not a good tactic if you are complaining about things going back to the Middle Ages.

Sorry, I meant protesters. It was a typo. Can any mod change this?

[Kiev Communard]

I would say to them that the time for more political, not only economic struggle approaches have come, and that they should start building independent political movement and follow the tactics previously used by Solidarnosc in Poland against then-Stalinist regime of that country: indefinite, not "day-of-action" style, strike and systematic blockades of the government residences. That would be my proposal for Greek movement today.

[Bud Struggle]

Three words and one guttural noise: Make. Total. Destroy. (followed by an angry gnashing sound, like "GWARGHARGLGWARG!")

All charming, of course. But the Greek government really has nothing to give. The country is bankrupt and is being given money from the EU. If the people of Greece don't want austerity they have to become more productive...that is the real solution to their dilemma. Less people on the government payroll and more private sector jobs, more people paying their fair share of taxes. More exports than imports.

Temper tantrums aren't going to solve anything.

[Revolution starts with U]

Temper tantrums created social security.

[ComradeMan]

All charming, of course. But the Greek government really has nothing to give. The country is bankrupt and is being given money from the EU. If the people of Greece don't want austerity they have to become more productive...that is the real solution to their dilemma. Less people on the government payroll and more private sector jobs, more people paying their fair share of taxes. More exports than imports.

Temper tantrums aren't going to solve anything.

You're half right there but you need to also mention that most people in Greece avoided their taxes in every way shape or form possible and most things were done by cash, i.e. not on the books. This is also a familiar situation in other places too.... LOL!!! So there is an element of people digging some of their own hole here too. The private sector is notorious for creative accountancy.... ;)

[Os Cangaceiros]

All charming, of course. But the Greek government really has nothing to give. The country is bankrupt and is being given money from the EU. If the people of Greece don't want austerity they have to become more productive...that is the real solution to their dilemma. Less people on the government payroll and more private sector jobs, more people paying their fair share of taxes. More exports than imports.

A stronger bourgeois government in Greece has nothing to offer for communists.


Temper tantrums aren't going to solve anything.

"Temper tantrums" have historically solved quite a bit, actually.

[Ele'ill]

All charming, of course. But the Greek government really has nothing to give.

Lots of cuts, incompetence and violence.

They ran out of teargas in 2008 I mean jesus christ, the country ran out of gas. It's important to note that a lot of the already polarized class/political civil unrest escalated sharply in the winter of 2008 and has sort of held.


The country is bankrupt and is being given money from the EU.

Why is the country bankrupt?


If the people of Greece don't want austerity they have to become more productive...

How should they 'become more productive' ? :rolleyes:

[balaclava]

The Greek people have pursued a culture of tax evasion for lifetimes. That’s OK, every country and every people have the right to pursue whatever culture they like. The problem occurs when you to put your wealth alongside other countries with a more responsible and disciplined approach to life and call yourself equals. The Greek people have made their own bed and now they don’t want to lie in it - tough.

[ComradeMan]

The Greek people have pursued a culture of tax evasion for lifetimes. That’s OK, every country and every people have the right to pursue whatever culture they like. The problem occurs when you to put your wealth alongside other countries with a more responsible and disciplined approach to life and call yourself equals. The Greek people have made their own bed and now they don’t want to lie in it - tough.

You're right about the "national sport" of tax evasion, however on the second point I have to point out that the biggest tax evaders tend to be the ones with the bank accounts in offshore tax havens, the same people with the yachts and the limousines. These people however, will not be hit by the austerity measures in any way shape or form.

[balaclava]

You're right about the "national sport" of tax evasion, however on the second point I have to point out that the biggest tax evaders tend to be the ones with the bank accounts in offshore tax havens, the same people with the yachts and the limousines. These people however, will not be hit by the austerity measures in any way shape or form.

Absolutely and it is the job of government to ensure that they/we all pay our dues. I am not a great fan of Gordon Brown but he did do a lot and was doing more to ensure that the people you speak of were tracked down and made to pay.

[ComradeMan]

Absolutely and it is the job of government to ensure that they/we all pay our dues. I am not a great fan of Gordon Brown but he did do a lot and was doing more to ensure that the people you speak of were tracked down and made to pay.

Is it the job of government to use public money to pay for their own expenses, like in the UK? Or the governments of the Mediterranean area which don't exactly have the best fiscal honesty themselves.... (allegedly) :lol: to then pontificate to families that have to live on less than E1000 a month about tightening their belts? I'm sorry, the game is up- people have had enough and there is no respect for governments largely because of their own hypocrisy.

[Bud Struggle]

You're half right there but you need to also mention that most people in Greece avoided their taxes in every way shape or form possible and most things were done by cash, i.e. not on the books. This is also a familiar situation in other places too.... LOL!!! So there is an element of people digging some of their own hole here too. The private sector is notorious for creative accountancy.... ;)

I did mention that. ;)

[gorillafuck]

Lol, "protestants". How did you make that mistake?

[RGacky3]

Why should any one give a rats ass, when no one really does when peaceful protesters get beaten by the hundreds all the time.

[Decolonize The Left]

Sorry, I meant protesters. It was a typo. Can any mod change this?

Thread title changed accordingly.

- August

[Crimson Commissar]

The revolution isn't going to come about through co-operation with capitalists. Fucking deal with it, we're going to have to be violent if we want to force capitalism to collapse.

[RGacky3]

The revolution isn't going to come about through co-operation with capitalists. Fucking deal with it, we're going to have to be violent if we want to force capitalism to collapse.

But beating a former greek minister is'nt helping it collapse whatsoever.