Sometimes I go on news fasts where I avoid reading as much news as possible for 2-3 days. I think this is healthy. It puts all the crazy, stressful and negative information on hold. During these fasts I work on my art projects, do yoga, go on hikes. If I’ve been a hardcore news junkie I make myself go on a longer news fast to recover.
I was just on one of these fasts. The past couple of days I’ve been playing catch up by reading online news and listening to podcasts. (Does anyone else think Amy Goodman is a saint? She’s amazing.)
Have you been following the protests in Greece? Whoa. Need to catch up? Here’s some good starting points:
From The Scotsman:
Greece erupts as police kill boy, 16
“Rioters rampaged through Athens and the northern city of Thessaloniki yesterday, hurling Molotov cocktails, burning stores and blocking city streets with flaming barricades after protests against the fatal shooting of a teenager by Greek police erupted into mayhem.
Youths smashed storefronts and cars in Athens; riot police responded with tear gas. Several bank branches, shops and at least one other building were on fire in a major street leading to the capital’s police headquarters. Clashes also broke out near parliament.
(snip)
In Athens, violence broke out as more than 2,000 protesters marched to the police headquarters. Youths fought riot police for about two hours before groups split off into different parts of the city. More violence was reported in Exarchia.
The two officers involved in the shooting have been suspended pending the outcome of an investigation. The police chief in the Exarchia precinct has also been suspended.”
From InfoWars:
Video reports cover Greek civil unrest
-a collection of news videos-
From CNN:
Greek protesters call for more action
“Greek students have called for daily protests starting Monday, 10 days after the police killing of a 15-year-old boy in Athens sparked demonstrations that have thrown the country into turmoil.
Monday’s sit-in is set to take place in front of the country’s national police headquarters, with students urging similar demonstrations in front of police precincts across the country.
They have called for roads to be blocked on Tuesday, a demonstration Wednesday outside the courthouse where the police involved in the shooting will be testifying, and a nationwide protest on Thursday.
Authorities are bracing for potential violence following more than a week of riots which have become an outlet for simmering anger about the economy, education and jobs.”
From Reuters:
Greece hit by 5th day of violence
“”Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a standstill,” said Stathis Anestis, spokesman for the GSEE union federation, which called the 24-hour strike along with its public sector counterpart ADEDY, numbering millions of members.
Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands of Greeks walked off the job.
Unions say privatizations, tax rises and pension reform have worsened conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks who live below the poverty line, just as the global downturn is hurting the 240 billion-euro economy.
“We are fed up with scandals and corruption,” said demonstrator Efi Giannisi, 38, an English teacher.”
From Google News:
Banks gas-bombed in Athens
“Five banks were attacked overnight in Athens, police said Saturday as youths prepared to assemble at the scene of a teen’s killing by police one week ago.
The attacks, using gas canisters, also targeted a local party office operated by Greece’s ruling conservative party.
There were no victims, but firefighters were called out to extinguish blazes with neighbouring stores also suffering damage to property.”
From Aljazeera:
Who are the protesters in Greece?
“The fatal police shooting of a teenager in Athens on Saturday and its violent aftermath are in many ways a spill over of a decades-long conflict that has simmered between police and far-left anarchist groups.
The violence has also laid bare a deeper anger that has been gaining ground in Greece over the government’s policies in slashing budget deficits and pushing on with unpopular reforms such as privatisations.
This anger has been exacerbated by a series of financial and political scandals among prominent members of the government of Costas Karamanlis, Greece’s prime minister.”
From Vice Magazine:
Athens-Inside U Of A(narchy)
“Why’s everybody so up in arms over the riots in Greece? These are the same kids who went fucking bonkers when the Vandals played a USO show over there. Really think they’re going to sit on their hands after a cop shoots a 15-year-old without just cause? Anyhow, while since last weekend every major media outlet has been sputtering commentary from their ergonomic desk chairs about the situation, we went right to the source and got in touch with some Greeks to see what was really doing. A day and a half later they sent over a bunch of amazing photos. They also sent us some interviews with the protesters.”
Posted by Vixen as News at 1:15 AM CST