Group polarization

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis sent a message of unity on Thursday on the occasion of the national holiday celebrating the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, saying the country should move away from polarization and toxicity.

It is strange to see events that we have experienced in this country happening in unexpected places - like the campus of Columbia University in New York, for example. It makes one wonder whether Greece was the first to be hit by an anti-systemic tsunami that is now sweeping across other countries.

Have you heard the news? The Greek Civil War ended 74 years ago. The 1965 events of the "July apostates" happened 58 years ago. The Polytechnic Uprising was 50 years ago. These are all historical events of great importance, fascinating for both historians as well as the casual or regular reader of history books.

Are issues related to life in our cities ever going to be on the political parties' pre-elections agendas? Do political decisions determine what life is like in our cities or not?

The public's anger and outrage caused by the horrific train collision in northern Greece and the subsequent revelations about its causes are the dominant story shaping the election campaigning.

Just imagine for a moment that this country is being governed under a system of simple proportional representation. It would be a nightmare.

In our first meeting, about 18 months ago, in the context of the annual conference of the Hellenic Entrepreneurs Association (EENE), it was with satisfaction that Vassilis Apostolopoulos showed me the findings of a major survey that pointed to a drastic shift of public opinion in favor of entrepreneurship and indicated that citizens' trust in the private sector as a lever of development had inc

The perpetrators of bomb attacks on members of the judiciary, on news media and on economic targets are members of small groups who believe that they have the authority to express the "resistance" of many against the "system." The attacks are a threat and a declaration of intent, proof that even as the fashion of leftist terrorism has died out in other European countries, having run itself into

As we enter the final stretch to the general election - however long this ends up being - the political rhetoric is becoming increasingly vitriolic, tension is rising and more mistakes are being made.

Greece has witnessed many periods of intense polarization during its history. However, it has never before reached the point where government ministers issue statements with such over-the-top or vulgar content.

Their habit of targeting the news media, judicial officials and political opponents has simply overstepped the mark.