[a real Sheila]

Sadly, I don’t believe that.

I think they are rioting because they want more pie!

[jonno]

bump for later read...

[Clemenza]

Your friend is lying. A majority of the people in the streets are either public employees or students. They are rioting to protect their BENEFITS. This has been stated by every protester interviewed and every major figure in Greece.

I live in the largest Greek neighborhood in North America. Greeks are very defensive about how they are portrayed, so I am not surprised your friend told you this. This is not a protest for LIBERTY, but one for keeping a lifestyle that can't be maintained by a generous welfare state anymore.

[ataDude]

“...and I encourage the media to dig much deeper...”

Good luck with that!

[hoosierham]

I don't have much in common with people of any nationality who riot,burn down banks or businesses with people trapped inside,burn or smash cars and store windows,and just generally raise hell and destruction.People rioting because the free goodies are being taken away don't get my sympathy.

Now,IF the people were marching on the government ,demanding mass resignations and new elections,you might have something.

[Cementjungle]

I have a good friend in Massachusetts...

The relatives/friends I have in MA are all leftwing nutcases. Not saying this is the case with your friend, but the odds are high.

[FReepaholic]

...They're fed up. They're fed up with a corrupt, Socialist government. They're fed up with cronyism. They're fed up with rights and freedoms being taken away. They're fed up with watching their national treasure being squandered. They're fed up with the fact that their voices are not being heard and have NOT been heard for years...

The government and banksters screw up the economy and who has to suffer cutbacks? The people.

You know damn well the elite government officials and the bankers won't sacrifice a damn thing. They'll make the common man, who didn't cause a bit of the problem.

Coming soon to a United States near you.

[Randy Larsen]

The Greek are members of the Teaparty!

[pepsionice]

Here’s the Greek reality...you run some gas station in Crete and have cheated a little on your taxes from day one (forty years ago). You also cheated on cigarette taxes...paying only half of what was expected. You cheated on work done on vehicles and just reported half the income.

You did all of that because you had to bribe the telephone guy to fix your phone, the cop to provide protection, the utilities guy to fix your power issue, and the county inspector to overlook your leaking gas tanks.

So here you stand...sixty years old. Your pension guaranteed by the government and you really don’t have much left to throw around. Your bank account has been pretty much cut by thirty percent. They are talking about audits over your taxes paid or missed...so you are worried about what income you do have in the bank. And you keep wondering how this whole mess will come to an end.

I’ve spent two vacations in Greece. It’s a great place and it’s safe. But you can’t find a single guy who works forty hours a week. You can’t find any business that does legit taxes. You can’t find any business man who reports his true income. The whole country is like Mexico, but without the drug cartel.

[Joe Boucher]

This is crappola.
From what I read 50 percent of Greece’s GDP goes to pay govt. employees and pensions.
Ain’t socialism great?

[loreldan]

Except that it’s the Communist Party of Greece that is organizing this.

[Cicero]

Greeks have a proud heritage, and are proud of their country and their fellow citizens.

They stood up to the Turks who conquered Byzantium, and they finally threw them off in the nineteenth century.

But ancient Athens, the mother of civilization, had the same virus as modern Greece—mass Democracy that turned into the desire for welfare benefits.

During the war, the Nazis overran Greece, and as in other European countries the Communists pretty much took over the resistence. There was a strong strain of Communism in Greece, Italy, and France. They very nearly took over those countries, and they have undermined them since direct action failed.

Early retirement, short work hours, generous benefits—they want more and more and more. And the various governments have accomodated these wishes in order to get into power.

Now the chickens are coming home to roost.

[JohnLongIsland]

I bet you your friends name is Kennediopoulos.

[Lucky9teen]

Your friend is correct and I believe it won’t be long before we may see that happen here.

Glenn Beck has been talking about how a lot of the riots are being done by unions and special interest groups (who want the socialism)

Here is some of what he’s said re: Greece:

IN FEBRUARY...
• Greece: Economists are now saying that the U.S. is actually in worse shape than Greece is.

Have you seen what’s going on in Greece? They are bankrupt. Overall debt was 113.4 percent of GDP. Hmm, out-of-control debt and deficits plus no slowdown in government spending; where have I heard that before?

Their weak finances are threatening the EU and the EU just punished Greece by stripping them of their right to vote at critical meeting next month. Greece is the cradle of democracy. It means Greece has no more sovereignty in the EU. California you’d better pay attention.

We’re doing the same things. And did you see Great Britain is dealing with “unexpected” inflation?

Oh Glenn, that could never happen here in America!

Really? How did Great Britain get to this point? Let’s see:

• They socialized their medicine. We’re following their lead on that one

• They pushed the risky mortgages. We followed their lead on that one too

• They took over the banks. We followed their lead on that one with TARP

• They printed more money. We followed on that one too

And now they have inflation? Guess who’s also going to be following that one?

And here’s his latest on Greece...http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/40019/

[Rockingham]

There is no doubt much to what you have related. Yet large scale popular discontent tends to have contradictory elements. The violence, for example, is not reformist but stems from radical Left anarchists.

Moreover, it is not at all clear what goals the reformist protesters have. Less corruption? More political turnover? More freedom? Or is the primary objection simply that harsh austerity is now unavoidable?

[dalebert]

lol socialism works for greece like in cali

[Left2Right]

"Greece is the cradle of Democracy, and they are a fiercely proud people."

Let's not forget the Spartans. They seemed very socialist, and they knew how to fight!

[hoosierham]

Oh ,another point,people who appreciate their new country learn to speak the common language.Many of our nation's earlier immigrants made it a point of pride to learn English,although they may have spoke the "old tongue" in private.

Further,I personally abhor "dual citizenship";it only ensures divided loyalties.

[SaraJohnson]

From what I have read from the horse’s mouths in blogs, the violence is being led by anarachists and Muslims who are flat out communists (black shirts) like our labor union and SDS asses. However, there may be many of the protestors who are as you say - want to end the communists’ corruption and return to freedom. They reject the choice being given to them of global banksters or communists. For us the global banksters are the Demorepublcrat party.

It is the communists tossing the violent fit that they are losing power over the Treasury. I am sure there are others who are against them and want Western freedom restored.

[Polybius]

They speak Greek around the house and the restaurant...you get the idea. .... According to my friend, what is REALLY happening is something completely different from what we're being told, and also explains why Washington is very concerned. I don't claim this to be the gospel truth, I only report to you, my fellow FReepers and lurkers, what I've been told by someone close to the situation whom I trust. They're fed up. They're fed up with a corrupt, Socialist government. They're fed up with cronyism. They're fed up with rights and freedoms being taken away. They're fed up with watching their national treasure being squandered. They're fed up with the fact that their voices are not being heard and have NOT been heard for years.

The types of Greeks that firebombed that bank and burnt three people to death have absolutely nothing to do with the types of Greeks that your friend and his family represent.

It is like comparing the Tea Party protesters in America with the Anarchist rioters at WTO Conferences. Although both are angry, they are coming from totally opposite poles.

Tea Party protesters and conservative Greeks like your friend are angry that Left-wing politics are bleeding America and Greece dry.

The Anarchists, the Leftists and the union thugs that are rioting in Greece are angry that the blood for them to feed off of does not keep gushing out of the national carotid arteries once Greece has been bleed dry. They demand that Germany slit open up its financial veins to keep the blood supply flowing .... or else they will riot and kill.