athinaios

I read somewhere that since PAO doesn't have enough Greeks on the squad as UEFA wants the Euro roster will be limited, so several first-team players will be cut. Do you know anything about this?

Yes, Jim Adams, don't bother us with some fancy statistics, numbers (easily verifiable), and whatever else. Truthiness is what you feel in your gut that matters. The ICE people are the most reliable sources on the matter of immigration, because, heck, they're totally objective. Also, don't you love the argument that unless you know someone from the ..inside you shouldn't have an opinion even if it's backed by ascertainable* facts and logic. *facts can be discovered; not everything is a matter of opinion.... [but you can't argue with people who say, like, evolution is just another theory....]

The black professor chimes in: the fact that I made it or that we have a black president doesn't mean that racism and discrimination aren't still powerful sources in the US. In a polisci class the discussion about civil rights and protests is an important one. Political speech takes many forms; it's not only oral. I may not burn the US flag in anger or protest, but I surely defend the right of anyone to do it. (their own flag and in a safe way). The flag and the national anthem are symbols which represent rights and freedoms, including the right to dissent. Sometimes stunts like this one are necessary to provoke a society to deal with an important issue. Black athletes raised their fists at Olympics medal ceremony while the US anthem was playing. American soldiers through their valor medals over the White House fence and even burned American flags.

Ah, did Barca won its 12th supercup?

If I may make a suggestion (a repeat request): Please avoid quoting whole articles. No more than a short paragraph or two; just provide the link for those who are interested in reading it further. For several reasons, we can't repost/recite long articles from other sources. It has nothing to do with the topic of the article above (actually I read it and it was interesting), but, again, the link to the original source would suffice. Thanks.

Welcome Pash and thanks for the help. Mods and members like you make this forum a fun place to hang around.

OK. That settles it then. But, what are you saying exactly? That all of us can trace our DNA back to Africa?

nah, I never liked his name anyways....

All I asked is for you/anyone to do a DNA test. I'm not claiming anything, but... If I read history correctly, the Balkans and generally the greater area has been a mixer of ethnicity, races, and cultures. I highly doubt that Hellenes didn't mix with anyone else since antiquity. I may be wrong, hence the DNA test. (easily done through the mail) Oh, hold on, I just remembered the Αρβανιτες.... who fought the Turks.... I heard that they were Albanians and most didn't even speak Greek. Could that be so? Obviously they would never mix with the other Greeks... I mean once they got rid of the Ottomans they must have gone back to Albania.

I dare all those ultra-whatever to do a simple DNA test. I mean, after all, the purity of ones race and ethnicity must somehow bestow special traits that makes a person superior to others. Right? Go ahead. Let us know what you find. .... I brag to ignorant Americans how special I am because of Pericles, Demosthenes, Socrates, Alexander, Pythagoras, and so many others that gave the western world philosophy, reason, science!

Whether you agree with anyone who expresses an opinion in this article, it's a great example how reasonable, mature people should argue. ;) You can make your point, severely criticize the ideas and actions of others, while keeping it civil..... and, actually set the tone for a discussion not a cursing match. Even though I may seriously disagree with some of you on a variety of issues, I do appreciate your civility in arguing your views. Thank you.

Interesting bug.... I have all the options for editing text (mine or others') except in "Let's Talk About..." and particularly the topc Cards... where, for example, I can't edit fonts to make them smaller.... see attached (from snip an image)

Lazarus: please come up with a program that makes sense of people's nonsense (no scarcity of such here). Can you turn this into a brilliant editorial? aqeξκξξ 1&eawh !!΅#! rwayawefha@420432$@@$@!-ζδεσρςφ@γηασοdfgha9w3 ased4ase23151((*:&

I hear what you're saying, Reaper. But, let's assume there's a rule that says an organization has to be self-governing. Then what should happen if the mob takes over? You let it be? In the US, we know that the FBI had to bust up the mafia in unions, casinos, construction, all sorts of activities in the 1970s and 80s. All for the better as we see today. Now, I'm not saying that Kontonis is doing the right things (I just don't know enough), but I/we do know that EPO has been utterly corrupt. The definition of insanity is to keep doing the same failed thing expecting different results every time....

Do you guys think that there's a problem with countries that aren't able to run their own domestic sports leagues? I think you know what I'm talking about..... Yes, I understand the foreign interests that don't want Greece to succeed, etc, but what is it in some countries that nothing works well?* As far as I know, the "Super League" was put together and run by Greeks. *few years ago, I had looked into some numbers regarding the popular approval of institutions [gov, democracy, public service, church, police, heath care, sports, revenue service, government, education, etc,] in Greece and none, except the defense forces broke the 20% approval..... Any country that has such low respect for its institutions is in deep crisis. And, this is a measure of the health of a country.

In the US, the winner-take all electoral system rewards only 1 winner. Even states are like that. You win a state (of 50 states plus DC) by 1 vote, you win all. For example, you win California you get all 55, NY 26, Vermont 3, etc. There are 538 total Electoral Votes, so the candidates that reach 270 win the presidency and VP. In high participation years (presidential elections) we get upper 50s ... so many people don't vote. In off years, it's 40% or less, and in primaries as low as 3-5% (but rarely more than 20%)

Well, first we have to define what an "independent" voter is. Roughly the country is divided into 3 thirds; Dems a bit more, R's and I's a few % less. This is how people self-identify. But the US has been increasingly polarizing. The majority of the I's (who may also have not chosen a pol party when they register to vote*) are leaners. They have strong views on main issues, like abortion, church-state, education, environment, immigration, etc. So they tend to vote based on these views. Then there's 10-15% of floaters who are very low information and highly impressionable and will vote for personalities, swinging wildly from one party to next. They often determine elections, but they don't have high participation numbers (in the US voting is not compulsory). So, the 5% that floats and votes plus turnout of a party's base is what determines elections. *Most states require voters to pick a party if they want to participate in that party's primary/selection process for choosing nominees. Trump's children hadn't picked Republican so they couldn't vote for their father in the NYS primary. In the general election any citizen can vote.... Unless certain states permanently revoke such right for convicted felons. (even after they're released)

Friend, You followed my post by saying, " I voted that our votes don't really matter because lobbyists pretty much control Washington DC. I personally think lobbyists have ruined this country because major corporations have now grabbed control over the political scene with their monetary prowess. America, and must of the west has completely lost its way when it comes down to the meaning of democracy. And I essentially believe that the general public is just along for the ride while corporate interests/crooked politicians conduct some of the worst domestic/foreign policies aided by the millions of dollars they receive in donations." So I called you on your broad statement, that sounds like a bumper sticker. (see your first sentence). Your second statement is equally broad and, in my view, fails to explain reality. Because, as the Forbes example demonstrates, reality (in my view) is very different. Just look around with open eyes. I won't repeat the points I made, but within the corruption, the huge influence of the big corporations and rich donors, there are notable benefits, some of them increasing--and this is why this election is crucial because it does matter who the next president is. If you want to have an effective corporate tax rate of 7% or less, well vote accordingly. If you want the market to do better, for strengthening the middle class (I assume it includes you) with higher incomes and less taxation, then don't vote for the GOP. If you want consumer protection, science, education, environment, etc... In your simplistic way of looking at the world, you miss reality. If you think this is offensive (me saying so), well so be it. Let me make it clear: I respect your right to freedom of expression and however you want to feel about everything. Unfortunately while communicating through written barrages often seems very threatening or disrespectful. People have rights, ideas don't. I can respect the person's rights but I can ridicule their ideas. I'm sorry if you can't distinguish these two. All of us make judgments about all sorts of things everyday. Having the right to free expression does not buy immunity from criticism nor buys credibility.

So, I was reading Forbes magazine the other day, and everyone was complaining that Obama has practically destroyed capitalism. I hear Repubs saying we have the highest corporate taxes in the world, that the free market is no more, etc. On the other side we have views like yours that also promote a very distorted (and thus false) reality, because it fits with a pee-conceived narrative--the story people like to hear and repeat like parrots. And, that's the problem when trying to have a discussion with people who converse by using bumper-sticker statements and broad slogans. It's tiresome to have to start every conversation by starting with square one: If A is not B, and B=C, the A is not C. :huh: It's usually also a waste of time because such persons have no interest in amending their views, nor learning how to analyze, synthesize, and theorize. * ... * I know, Socrates was a pain in the ass; good thing they democratically got rid of that prick.

It's changing... like smoking; everybody did it because everybody else did... Scandinavian countries consider the practice as child abuse. There are studies that show C may reduce AIDS transmission and in populations with poor hygiene it can help reduce infections. In advanced societies, C isn't as beneficial and it deprives the individual of choice whether to have the procedure. However, it's like recommending pulling your teeth out to avoid teeth rot and heart infections Here's a great Hitch video on the subject Obviously, it's mostly cultural and religious. If the Hellenized Jews had won the Jewish civil war, C may have died out as they didn't practice it. The Maccabees won and quickly established conservative Judaism and eliminated Hellenic cultural influences.

My beef with many posters here is that they fail to see multi-causality and generally the complexities of issues/people. For example, the only thing you need to know is whether Tzatziki stole something, cheated, lied. Therefore if he has, he's a really bad person who should burn in hell. I, on the other hand, think that the reality is more complex, and over all he's a decent guy. Same with the US political system. Perhaps all you need to know is that Obama is a communist Muslim from Kenya, therefore anything he does is to undermine this country. Same with your topic of elections, money in politics, and voting. Is big money influencing elections? Absolutely. Do candidates and parties go to big donors and listen to what the money sources want? Sure. Maybe that's all you need to know to dismiss the notion that voting does not matter. I, on the other hand, think it matters a lot, more than most people realize--especially the people who float from party to party. Some points to ponder: does it matter who is on the Supreme Court? Obviously Dems and Repubs nominate opposite judges does it matter whether there's social security, national parks, net neutrality, public education and health care, consumer protection, the environment, etc, etc? does it matter if the president believes the earth is only 5,000 years old, wants to merge church-state, is anti-science, etc? does it matter whether the middle class does better or worse? Does it matter that it pays more in taxes than billionaires? does it matter which party causes huge recessions and the Great Depression? does it matter whether a man-child with bad temper becomes president? and to your point, who is more likely to push for campaign finance reform, including overturning "Citizens United" supreme court decision that allowed unlimited $$ into politics? (oh, yeah, the supreme court is at stake too in this election) I could go on, but you get the point. Different candidates and political parties have different agendas and have steered the country in certain directions. So, now, get your ass out there and vote :box:

Well, if religion informs your reality, then you end up doing and believing crazy sh*t from the superstitions of the Stone Age.

Whatever.... I'm still trying to figure out if Soros, an American-Hungarian Jew, is for or against Israel. And, is he for or against national states, and for/against the EU.... You guys are all over the place. Soros is just one player among many. What's next, that he'll decide the next US election? :1eye:

Soros is Jewish... B) Just to remind you that the earth isn't flat.... and there are complexities if you care to look.... Are you joking that the violence around Trump is due to the Soros-MoveOn radicalism? And, thank you for the laugh about the militarized police dpts all over the US will be powerless to act upon several ISIS strikes..... It must be the Obama socialist/communist cabal that is weakening the police everywhere so the feds will come in and establish a dictatorship. That's why they're taking guns from people and are destroying the 2nd Amendment. :1eye: