tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2062509833711600070.post188575167974619606..comments2024-01-19T04:00:42.885-05:00Comments on Permanent Revolution: Greece: The working class confronts the Syriza governmentAlex Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09128453587484101609noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2062509833711600070.post-43287235710465095302016-06-04T13:32:38.963-04:002016-06-04T13:32:38.963-04:00Thomas,
These are all good questions. Unfortunate...Thomas,<br /><br />These are all good questions. Unfortunately I am not in a position to answer them as I am not currently in Greece and do not have day to day experiences with the EEK. I hope to find out more when I return to Greece this summer. Feel free to write to me offline (see our contact form).<br /><br />As for why the coalition government is tolerated, well that is not so hard to answer. Current polls give Syriza a 19% approval rating! The Tsipras government is now widely hated. But they hang on because no alternative has yet emerged that commands sufficient allegiance from the masses. It is a highly unstable transitional regime. None of the "traditional" parties in Greece have any credibility. New Democracy is completely discredited and the once formidable PASOK is now just a ghost of what it once was. On the Left you have the sectarian Communist Party (KKE) who has not been able to make any gains despite the crisis. Then there are the former members of Syriza's Left Platform who have formed the Popular Unity group. They ran independently in the September elections and failed to cross the 3% margin to get into Parliament. They were widely perceived, and justifiably so, as presenting no real alternative to Syriza. After that are the forces of the "Far Left", including ANTARSYA and the EEK. Savas provided an assessment of these forces following the September election in his article, <a href="http://forum.permanent-revolution.org/p/aftercapitulating-to-eu-ecb-and-theimf.html" rel="nofollow">A Pyrrhic victory for Syriza</a><br /><br />"The bloc EEK-ANTARSYA has increased its vote and percentage in relation to the previous elections in 2015 and 2012, without breaking the limit of a marginal 0.8 per cent. The broad masses see us as combat organizations necessary for the everyday struggles but not yet as an alternative to power."Alex Steinerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09128453587484101609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2062509833711600070.post-14067732993962201342016-05-26T09:02:32.221-04:002016-05-26T09:02:32.221-04:00It's good to know that the EEK has been playin...It's good to know that the EEK has been playing an "active role". But have they been making any significant headway with Greek workers? Have their party ranks increased? What have their tactics been thus far? And what is the size of their vanguard, if any? Is there anything they could be doing differently? I don't expect a revolution in the next five minutes but I would be interested in your thoughts on why the coalition government continues to be tolerated, despite its frequent and naked class betrayals.Thomas Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06160437331705650542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2062509833711600070.post-42273240189833146122016-05-24T23:52:31.771-04:002016-05-24T23:52:31.771-04:00The EEK continues to play an active role in the st...The EEK continues to play an active role in the struggle to forge a revolutionary socialist alternative to the rotten Syriza-ANEL government. My piece was a general overview of one of the most recent episodes of the class struggle in Greece. I hope it shed a little light on the current state of affairs in Greece, particularly for American readers. The Greek working class was betrayed and kicked in the teeth by Tsipras, but emerged from all that far from defeated. <br /><br />Alex Steinerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09128453587484101609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2062509833711600070.post-60134521719796253302016-05-24T19:28:03.518-04:002016-05-24T19:28:03.518-04:00Alex,
I noticed that the EEK and Savas is conspic...Alex,<br /><br />I noticed that the EEK and Savas is conspicuously absent from your piece. And from your title, I would have expected them to have a role in facilitating and aiding the general strike, if not a mention. Has their position among Greek workers been shrinking, and if so, why?Thomas Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06160437331705650542noreply@blogger.com