Pascal Bruckner meets Mitsotakis
Pascal Bruckner meets Mitsotakis
and other liminalities of cheap, normal life
Word of the week: liminality. It’s a straightforward concept from anthropology (though it appears in other social sciences too, but since I’m doing a PhD in anthropology, I’ll stick with our take on it).
Liminality refers to the state of being in between or transitioning from one distinct stage, status, or condition to another. It is a concept that describes the ambiguous or indeterminate phase within rituals, performances, and symbolic spaces where the normal rules and structures of society are suspended or inverted. (source, but if you want a real, in depth analysis of this, check out this article)
I’m bringing it up because it feels like liminality captures both my personal experience right now and something bigger happening in the world. At least, that’s how it seems to me. Everywhere I look, things are shifting—changing, moving, expanding, contracting. It’s like the world is jogging with headphones in, techno pulsing in its ears, just waiting for that runner’s high.
I’m not sure how else to describe it, and since this is a newsletter, you’re getting the subjective version. But seriously—doesn’t it feel like the world is spinning?
Weekly Spotlight
I mean, SYRIZA is definitely spinning. 77 members of SYRIZA’s central committee just announced their departure from the party.
And that’s because ex-SYRIZA leader Stefanos Kasselakis launched a new party, triggering SYRIZA’s split. Unfortunately for all Greek opposition and fortunately for Nea Demokratia, that basically just had to sit with their hands on their lap and watch their two opposing parties, both SYRIZA and PASOK, implode in the last months, former SYRIZA president Stefanos Kasselakis's new party launch threatens SYRIZA's opposition status as MP defections bring its parliamentary group to 31. If SYRIZA loses one more MP from its parliamentary group, it will relinquish its status as the official opposition for the first time since gaining it in the 2012 elections.
News You Can Use
Here’s a sentence I never thought I’d write: tonight, at 6pm, we all get to watch the PM of Greece Kyriakos Mitsotakis in a discussion with - wait for it! - Pascal Bruckner.
It’s like Bitter Moon came to life—two people stuck in a conversation that nobody asked for. Let’s just pray the ending is different.
In the meantime, back to the realm of actual people, Greece is Europe’s fourth cheapest realty market and Kathimerini seems to be really happy about it.
The fact it remains one of the continent’s cheapest while the properties on offer are of a much better standard than its peers abroad at the same or even lower price levels, make Greece a “bargain” destination.
Bargain. Destination.
And because it’s such a bargain, power outages in many parts of Athens on Thursday morning threw streets and public transportation into chaos, causing delays for thousands of commuters.
I actually love it when people come to Athens for holidays and then preach about the “amazing public transport”. I swear I feel like a clown sometimes when I’m ranting about this to my friends (especially those who have had enough of Bucharest’s own traffic and public transport nightmare).
So, anytime I find someone else ranting about this, I feel, naturally, validated. Oh, the human brain, how it loves its biases.
More good news:
Greece has third lowest wages in the EU, Eurostat data show.
No ships or ferries on November 20 due to strike. Μost likely, no schools either.
Greek public hospitals face critical staffing shortages, with over 50% of nursing roles unfilled in some rural areas, threatening healthcare quality.
“State of emergency” declared in the popular resort town of Arachova on Wednesday due to water scarcity.
Since June 2024, Greek schools lack funding, facing shortages and unpaid bills, while a new funding system remains unimplemented.
In an attempt to solve its biggest traffic problem, Athens clamps down on illegally parked motorbikes. And ads some new rules on electric scooters: What changes with the new Road Traffic Code.
Greece offers owners of vacant properties tax exemptions and renovation subsidies to boost long-term rental availability under the "Renovate-to-Rent" scheme.
From 2025, self-employed professionals in Greece should see reduced taxes
Residents can now apply for a heating allowance for the 2024-25 period as the relevant e-platform has opened for applications. More details about the conditions here.
Here are all the Sundays when the stores will be open this December.
A blood drive will take place in Syntagma metro station on Saturday, November 16, in observance of the annual World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDR).
Thessaloniki metro is going to be inaugurated soon, but not before a new scandal regarding its logo, that generated so many cute memes. Here are the best of them.
And, finally, be careful in the streets on Sunday. There will be a lot of riot police - and police in general - in the streets in view of the commemorative events that will be held on Sunday, November 17 for the 51st anniversary of the Polytechnic uprising.
The Long Reads
A woman was recently killed by her former partner in Agrinio. She had filed a complaint against him for domestic violence. The problem with this event? It’s not uncommon in Greece.
There have been 11 femicides in Greece in 2024 and this article explains why this is happening. The year is coming to an end, the bloody list of femicides is growing, but the term femicide continues to not be legally recognized in Greece.
I would also suggest you check out this data-based investigation, on the same topic, by the independent outlet MIIR, that describes the sad landscape of violence against women in Greece.
Here you can read a very interesting interview with Eugenia Fotoniata from the ENA Institute that will explain why, while Greece has been growing faster than the Eurozone average, the effects of the past economic crisis are still deeply felt, leaving the country one of the poorest in Europe.
One thing she suggests? That the country needs to focus on creating sustainable jobs rather than just boosting the real estate market.
Thousands of refugees in Greece face life-threatening barriers due to the collapse of interpretation services. Since April 2024, nearly all interpretation support has been cut, leaving isolated refugees in camps unable to access essential health care or navigate asylum interviews effectively. Currently, there is one interpreter for every 267 refugees. In many camps, refugees rely on limited or no interpretation, struggling with crucial interactions—even resorting to Google Translate to communicate basic needs.
Wanderlust
The first snow has fallen in Parnassos and there’s a video of it! (Btw, if you’re into skiing, you can follow the ski center on Facebook, to check out the status of the snow. This is one thing I am totally looking forward to this winter. )
A few great places in Athens when you want food that you can eat with your hands.
The exhibition “Mon Afrique: Uganda | Bonds of Humanity” in the Blank Wall Gallery in Kypseli will open on Friday, November 15, 2024, at 20:00.
"NO, JAZZ SATURDAYS" at Theatre of the No. Full schedule here. November 16th: Alekos Vretos Quartet – Mediterranean Echoes
Have a great weekend and do write back. Even if it’s just to complain.
Ioana