Just Some Food for (European) Thought…

Hellas owes Europe money. However, Europe owes to Hellas its: name, Western civilisation, political system, politics, astronomy, geometry, mathematics, physics, medicine, history, philosophy, classical (and neo-classical) architecture, theatre, minimalism in art ( Cycladic figurines), rap music (Homeric rapsodies), thousands of words in every European language, the Olympic Games, the Parthenon as a universal cultural symbol and the values that inspired the Enlightenment period, to name but a few.
Many would, nevertheless, argue that all the above now belong to a glorious past, which is long gone and Hellas has lost its ancient grandeur. True. Yet, the current Hellenic contribution to Europe remains significant and clearly visible to the discerning eye of a sober, keen observer, who denounces partial nationalism.

More specifically, even nowadays, Europe owes to Hellas: Nobel Prize poetry, award-winning, contemporary music and films, the institution of the European Cultural Capital, ground-breaking discoveries in almost every, modern-day, scientific field, top academic and research staff in almost every European university and think tank, the most beautiful European archipelago and light, the best climate and hospitality, a huge percentage of the total of archaeological sites in Europe and the ultimate holiday experience, among many other assets. Ironically enough , even the operative words “economy”, “euro”, “crisis” and “austerity” are Hellenic!
So, Hellas is in debt, but Europe’s indebted! Maybe, it’s high time its European creditors gave Hellas some credit! A country that borrows money must, undoubtedly, return the loan, but should not be forced to liquidate its sovereignty, national integrity, humanitarianism and dignity to raise the sum in question. The hand that rocks the cradle of Western civilisation had better be gentle, in Brussels, otherwise the cradle will overturn and the tremendous loss won’t be exclusively Hellenic, but European too and not only fiscal and financial, but profoundly cultural as well!
By Georgios Andritsos