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[Bananiot]

Again, Nikitas, you focus on the man, not on his views on the issue we are debating here. As far as the macedonian question is concerned (my turn to deviate) Nikos Dimou suggested Upper Macedonia a long time ago and he was quickly branded a traitor. Now, all would be too happy for such a name to be accepted and have the whole thing settled.

[Nikitas]

Bananiot,

The projection of philosophical views is like preaching. If you promote views and ideas that you are not prepared to practice then you are not being honest.

When people exalt respect for their fellow man as an ideal, and cite other nations who purportedly practice this respect, then these same people should also respect others in their daily lives and not only in their newspaper columns and web sites. I do not see how you can separate the messenger from the message in this case.

I will contrast the person in question with someone who practices what he preaches through the media- Sener Levent, to ilustrate the point. Levent has never hesitated to stand by his principles and even go to jail for them. I fail to see any risk by the other.

[Bananiot]

Nikitas, we have been discussing here the right of minority opinions to be protected from the abuses of the majority. I merely quoted a short essay by Nikos Dimou to show to all those that question the right of minorities to hold on to their views that there are more people out there that foster similar thoughts. Yet, you made Nikos Dimou the subject of this debate and you stubbornly refuse to let go, without making a meaningful contribution to the issues raised.

Again, I will follow your example and deviate, just to point out that the fact that ND is a fervent anti smoking campaigner it does not make him a minority abuser (are smokers in the minority in Greece, by the way?) because similarly everybody who condemns drug indulging would also be classified as a minority abuser. Tobacco is just as detrimental to our health as outlawed drugs and smokers need to learn that they have no right to take every body else down because of their obsession.

Last night I was visiting a friend and he asked to go out for five minutes, because he was going to smoke!

[Nikitas]

Condemning the activity is fine. Abusing the people who do it is abusing a minority. In these politically correct times when hypocricy reigns supreme, if a person openly insults drug addicts he is condemend as a racist. If he abuses smokers he is the darling of the media.

This politically correct, reflex action, condemnation is the current rule in Greek public life. It is part and parcel of what people like the gentleman in question have created. When he wrote for the Vima there was no possiblity for any minority he crticised to post a response, and if the letters column were to host a letter of disagreeement it was usually drastically edited. We know the tricks by now.

A similar attitude is now prevalent against those that propose that Greece has a right to protect its territorial integrity. They are the butt of jokes, often openly insulted, and there is even a term used to describe them and hence dismiss them without debate: "patridokapiloi".

When a person condemns Greek arms purchses as "useless" or "ridiculous" then he must also have a comment on Turkish armaments. Greece buys armaments in response to Turkey's purchases. When the Turkish air force chief announced that in 15 years time Turkey will have 700 jet fighter Nikos Dimou and his ilk said nothing at all. Nor have I heard or seen any sharp commentary on the daily violations of Greek air space (like overflying islands or coming within 3 miles of the Evia coast, so as not to get involved in the ten mile air limit which ND has already called ridiculous).

Thankfully Greece has worthy philosophers and thinkers who provide rich ideas without the glibness of the advertiser. Most of those also practice what they preach and thus earn respect.