Re: <nettime> The Greek elections?

[Flick Harrison <flick@flickharrison.com>]

   I don't know too much about internal Greek stuff, other than what makes
   it out on the news, Golden Dawn MP's beating women on television, etc.
   but I do study electoral politics a lot.


   The militant nationalism that Tsipras displayed by visiting the
   Resistance memorial makes me think Syriza is stupid, or talking to the
   stupid.  The fascist threat isn't rolling into Greece in panzers; it's
   a few inches to the right of their coalition partners ANEL.  Maybe this
   theatrical bow to violence was actually intended for a far right
   audience, either to attract them, or threaten them, or both?  Surely
   the Germans are inured to WWII references by now?

   Then again, the gesture could also be aimed at the oligarchs: we will
   shoot you down in the streets, you dogs!

   In addition to what Eric and Brian said, I think teaming up with the
   centre-right (is that really the right word for them?!) puts Syriza in
   a position to deflate the hate machine.  They can all say they will
   ignore their non-economic policy planks, but that won't work in
   practice very long (as many a coalition has discovered).  How can you
   denounce someone as dirty immigrant scum and then sit down at a table
   with them?

   The worst problem everyone agrees on - the austerity banking jackboot -
   gives them a good reason to talk to one another.  It also stymies
   Golden Dawn, for instance, who will now have one less ranty
   trouble-making ally in parliament, ready to burn down the executive
   mansion to clean out the socialists...  at least for now.  Moderation
   (in Greek terms, that means not murdering rappers) has delivered power
   to their less crazy comrades, and so the mass of angry conservatives
   are forced to re-evaluate their knee-jerk take on the left and vice
   versa.

   Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.

   But, Syriza is only a couple of seats short of a majority, with plenty
   of parties to grab votes or even defections from moment-to-moment.  I
   mean, surely there is a self-interested MP or two just waiting for the
   offer of a cabinet post to cross the floor?  Syriza could surf this
   coalition only as long as it's useful to them.  A swift decisive policy
   on the austerity might be enough to get this alliance through a few
   months while they clean house (make political appointments etc).  And
   don't forget the oligarchs, another source of pan-political agreement:
   rousting those bastards from their comfy beds is another feel-good
   project for a shaky coalition.  Barring unforeseen events (ie Ukraine
   escalation, a major assassination), or unseemly determination on the
   part of Germany to burn down Europe, this just might work...

   (Our own far-right Party, Reform, made a life mission of muzzling their
   most extreme voices and in the end have become that which they loathed:
   pensioned centrist economic stimulators with more family-values
   immigrants in their parliamentary caucus than mouth-breathers.)

   --
   * WHERE'S MY ARTICLE, WORLD? http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Flick_Harrison
   * FLICK's WEBSITE:
   http://www.flickharrison.com

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