Independence Day
No, not in the States, except that I did notice less bombast this year than last. Always good to see a little less iniquity and madness.
I'm thinking of the Greeks, who in the tradition of NO! to Mussolini's ultimatum on Oct 28, 1940 just said NO! to their European creditors - and to everyone's surprise, by 61-39, no small margin, especially when we consider that the 61 voted from conviction in the face of economic terror, and the 39 reluctantly, feeling the need to settle for a bad deal.
There is joy indeed in the Hellenic Republic tonight, although it may not last. They danced in the streets in Belgrade after the March 27, 1941 coup against the alliance with Germany, but there was no more dancing when the Germans bombed Belgrade and invaded Yugoslavia 10 days later.
History rhymes. Again the Germans want to crush a small Balkan country, this time to shield the German banks from their losses and to make an example of Greece to the Italian, the Portuguese, and the Spanish people - especially to the Podemos Party in Spain.
It's true that the Germans quickly occupied Yugoslavia in the spring of 1941, but their fun cost them a six week delay in their invasion of the Soviet Union. In this way the German army met the mud of October and the Russian winter in their summer uniforms, so the resistance of Yugoslavia and the time that Germany took to make an example of it probably made Germany lose the war in Russia.
Will the Germans go through with crushing the Greeks for their defiance, or will they be reasonable this time? Knowing the proverb, that the dog returns to his vomit and the sow, once washed, to wallowing in the mire, I will be surprised if they wise up, but it's something to pray for.
Stay tuned! Before we're done, we'll be feeling the unwinding of this on our own hides.
I'm thinking of the Greeks, who in the tradition of NO! to Mussolini's ultimatum on Oct 28, 1940 just said NO! to their European creditors - and to everyone's surprise, by 61-39, no small margin, especially when we consider that the 61 voted from conviction in the face of economic terror, and the 39 reluctantly, feeling the need to settle for a bad deal.
There is joy indeed in the Hellenic Republic tonight, although it may not last. They danced in the streets in Belgrade after the March 27, 1941 coup against the alliance with Germany, but there was no more dancing when the Germans bombed Belgrade and invaded Yugoslavia 10 days later.
History rhymes. Again the Germans want to crush a small Balkan country, this time to shield the German banks from their losses and to make an example of Greece to the Italian, the Portuguese, and the Spanish people - especially to the Podemos Party in Spain.
It's true that the Germans quickly occupied Yugoslavia in the spring of 1941, but their fun cost them a six week delay in their invasion of the Soviet Union. In this way the German army met the mud of October and the Russian winter in their summer uniforms, so the resistance of Yugoslavia and the time that Germany took to make an example of it probably made Germany lose the war in Russia.
Will the Germans go through with crushing the Greeks for their defiance, or will they be reasonable this time? Knowing the proverb, that the dog returns to his vomit and the sow, once washed, to wallowing in the mire, I will be surprised if they wise up, but it's something to pray for.
Stay tuned! Before we're done, we'll be feeling the unwinding of this on our own hides.
posted by Peter Attwood at 7/05/2015 05:25:00 PM
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