Greek Fire
Once the secret weapon of the Byzantine Empire it now may be a new weapon in Greek politics
ATHENS — More wildfires broke out and others rekindled Tuesday as anger rose over the government’s handling of catastrophic blazes that have laid waste to vast stretches of the Greek countryside and killed at least 64 people.
The fires are dominating political debate ahead of parliamentary elections set for Sept. 16. Criticism that the government failed to respond quickly enough — and its suggestions that the fires resulted from an organized attack — could hurt Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis.
… The devastation has infuriated Greeks, who already had been stunned by deadly forest fires in June and July and are complaining of an inadequate effort by the conservative government to confront the latest disaster.
The Sept. 16 ballot will be “the elections of rage,” the Athens newspaper To Vima said in a front-page headline.
… The government “has been woefully unable to deal with the major issue of the fires all summer,” said George Papandreou, the main opposition socialist leader. “Unfortunately, it didn’t even manage to save people’s lives, their property and their homes.”
The government’s suggestions that the fires were the result of an organized plan of arson caused confusion and anger.
Public Order Minister Vyron Polydoras implied Sunday that a deliberate plan was in motion.
“We can say that this truly constitutes an asymmetric threat,” he said without offering any specifics. He said the Secret Service and anti-terrorism squad had joined police in investigating the blazes.
Mr. Karamanlis also implied arson was to blame, saying Saturday it could not be coincidence that so many fires broke out simultaneously in different areas.
The Greek Government is strongly implying that these fires are being set around the country by anarchists and socialists ahead of the upcoming elections, a horrific charge and one that really has awful implications for the Government if false and if true is even worse for the Left. It’s one thing to blame others for your bureaucratic bumbling; it’s quite another to kill for electoral gain.
World Stuff | Mr. Bingley | 
August 29, 2007 7:47 am
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The government is certainly responsible in a major way, lack of equipmet lack of maintenance , lack of coordination, lack of competent ministers, lack of structure etc, and the criminally negligent debacle in Olympia.
The Culture Ministers and deputies should resign if they had any honor..
and noone should believe thier promises now made clearly to save face ahead of the elections. Nothing much will change unfortunately unless the EU steps in to control funds , reconstruction etc.
The same corrupt politicaians and local authorities will engulf the funds , will again take bribes for illegal permits, will again divert funds given by charity to electoral pursuits..as it usually happend in Greece and everyone turns a blind eye.
It is not the ineffective government that is staggering, it is the APATHY of the majority of Greeks .How many volunteered? very very few. The rest were smoking cigarettes in cafes in front of the TV while the next door villages were burning.
Now everyone is fighting again for compensation money and votes.. fires are still blazing..
It is a tragedy but at the same time a hybris to nature and civilization.AND ALL this happening in the proximity of the bithplace of the Olympic ideals and values..
Sadly, maria, I feel you’ve touched on the root cause of this: the apathy of the populace. They are the ones who keep returning the corrupt officials to power. We have the same problem here in New Jersey.
But I don’t know if you can expect salvation to come from yet another layer of bureaucracy at the EU. Hopefully this will shock the Greek people to elect new and hopefully effective leaders, and more importantly hold them accountable.