Comments on: Greek politician punches female rival on TV chat show

By: gypsyspacemuffin

gypsyspacemuffin — Sat, 09 Jun 2012 02:17:00 +0000

Honestly everyone, relax. If you’re paying any attention to the tone of these comments, I’m pretty sure it’s unanimous outrage. No one is condoning Kasidiaris’ actions or trying to make excuses for him. Not even by a long shot. I believe that Akimoe, a self-stated liberal, is simply trying to explain that any radical party can embody corruption or bigotry. Personally, I believe there’s more merit in that as opposed to blindly bashing righties: it’s important to acknowledge that every side of the fence has dirtied their hands at some point in history.
I mean. It’s politics, for shit’s sake.

By: BunnyShank

BunnyShank — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 23:35:00 +0000

“Admit it”
Someone likes intimidation.

By: Ipo

Ipo — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 21:58:00 +0000

In your parallel universe there was a time when the Nazis were not considered rightwing?

By: Ipo

Ipo — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 21:46:00 +0000

I could not argue that. I’m too sane.

By: CastanhasDoPara

CastanhasDoPara — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 21:38:00 +0000

@boingboing-c1275cd129cc3d86e5880b1e8c546e6a:disqus Those colossal jerk-wads were more like authoritarians or totalitarians. It’s pretty far from the ‘lefty’ position to have absolute power in the first place and then to use it to murder millions of your own citizens. False comparison is false.

By: mesocosm

mesocosm — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 21:10:00 +0000

As I was saying:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jun/08/greek-police-golden-dawn

By: Cowicide

Cowicide — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 18:15:00 +0000

Right wingers acting like scum? Big shock…

By: Gunker

Gunker — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 15:00:00 +0000

That would be ludicrous, I am merely commenting on the stupidity of left-right as it is now used.

By: fuzzyfuzzyfungus

fuzzyfuzzyfungus — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 14:51:00 +0000

You could argue that with approximately the same plausibility that could be mustered for the argument that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea isn’t actually authoritarian, more democratic leaning…

By: Artor

Artor — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 13:11:00 +0000

You could argue that the moon is made of green cheese too.

By: cdh1971

cdh1971 — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 13:03:00 +0000

Greek Punch does not compare to Good Old Fashioned Hawaiian Punch or British Parliament paper missiles or The Flying Shoes of Taiwan Parliamentary Procedure.

By: toyg

toyg — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 12:43:00 +0000

This is the first time in a long while that these assholes got any visibility in Greece, and it happened only because mainstream parties have collapsed under the weight of German-imposed austerity programs. At the last round of Greek elections, even a donkey could get to 5%. I expect they’ll be wiped out at the next round, and *then* they’ll try to find their own Nick Griffin.

By: toyg

toyg — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 12:38:00 +0000

Thing is, it’s common in “hot blooded” countries (like Greece, Italy or Spain) for politicians to get visibly angry and shout at each other; fisticuffs (usually cocaine-fuelled) do break out in Parliament once or twice a year in Italy, *however* it would NEVER happen on a TV set, and it would NEVER, EVER involve a man punching a woman. Punching a woman in public is disgraceful even in the most retrograde Mediterranean country (while in private… well, it’s another matter).

I hope the good people of Greece will recognize they made a mistake giving visibility to this asshole, and kick out his nazi friends asap.

By: toyg

toyg — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 12:29:00 +0000

There’s an Italian comedian called Corrado Guzzanti who had a fantastic routine a few years ago: a small group of fascist camerati was sent to Mars in the 1930s (obviously to conquer it for the glory of Mussolini), somehow never aged while over there, and then managed to return in the present era (early-2000′s). Most of the gags were about modern politicians pursuing fascist policies in a sleazy way, without having the balls to actually say it out loud like Benito M. would have done. One of the best jokes was about Berlusconi getting hair transplants, while M was proud of his bald patch and even “used its flare to blind his enemies!”

By: georgia

georgia — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 11:54:00 +0000

Yes you ‘re right, it was my mistake.. He is a politician.. I wanted to say that while he was being kept after the telecast, allegedly he was shouting that he should be released cause he ‘s an assembly-but actually he ‘s not (was for 2 days). The elections were cancelled and are due to take place again in 17th of june.
Either way, it ‘ sad..

By: Gunker

Gunker — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 10:52:00 +0000

You could argue that the Nazis weren’t actually right wing, more socialist (or left wing) leaning.

By: angusm

angusm — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 10:12:00 +0000

Do not taunt Happy Fun Nazi.

By: Navin_Johnson

Navin_Johnson — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 07:32:00 +0000

Hey Teller,
You’re so right. I’m just glad to see that you’ve rightfully defended these right wing racist assholes. As I mentioned before, right wing conservatism is a defense of hierarchy against liberating forces from below, and as a wealthy privileged chap, you have played your predetermined part with gusto!

By: aikimoe

aikimoe — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 07:30:00 +0000

Navin, just because someone makes an assertion you disagree with, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are “trolling.” No need to get angry.

I actually agree with you that bigotry is perpetrated by conservatives. But we’re not talking about conservatives and liberals, we’re talking about people on the left and people on the right.

The Soviet Union was run by people on the left, but they were conservatives. The leftists who presently run China and Cuba and North Korea and Zimbabwe are all conservatives, but they are firmly on the left. Che Guevara, a rather famous leftist, was a racist and bigot.

Lots of leftists are and have been conservative.

By: Navin_Johnson

Navin_Johnson — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 07:13:00 +0000

Look at all these creepy men bumbling to defend racist men who beat women.

By: Navin_Johnson

Navin_Johnson — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 06:56:00 +0000

1st off, I respect your work (which is amazing btw), but not your views, which are completely naive, out of touch, and reflective of your own wealthy self interest.

What the hell does this have to do with “Stalin” or “Mao”. I mean really, have you no shame? Are you really this much of a naif? I mean I thought you were actually a smart man…..

By: Hakan Koseoglu

Hakan Koseoglu — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 06:39:00 +0000

Rise of the Nazi parties in the most unlikely places like Russia and Greece really baffles me. They suffered very badly under them in WWII and now this. I suspect the people who actually remember died by now and it becomes an unobjectionable view anymore. Still very baffling.

By: BijouxBoy

BijouxBoy — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 06:39:00 +0000

Stalin? Pretty sure he was left. Pol Pot? Erm…Chairman Mao? What about those “shining path” dudes? I dunno…am I wrong here?

By: aikimoe

aikimoe — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 06:29:00 +0000

Kimmo, I’m not equating the left and the right. I’m making the rather boring and obvious argument that radicals on the left do bad things as much as radicals on the right. And I’m a liberal! If you want to ignore the entirety of the Soviet Union, China, Cuba, or even the wretched actions of Mugabe in Zimbabwe, that’s your prerogative. But it doesn’t change the fact that people of all political persuasions have succumbed to corrupting effects of power.

Mind you, I’d say the same thing on a far-right website and someone would argue that leftists are inherently worse than those on the right by bringing up subjective concepts of “what should be considered acceptable,” and “fairness.”

By: Navin_Johnson

Navin_Johnson — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 06:28:00 +0000

@aikimoe:disqus In response to your trolling: What a line of b.s. you’re spewing up there and down here. Seriously it has not been “perpetrated by people with a wide variety of political ideologies”.

It was perpetrated by conservatives.

By: flickerKuu

flickerKuu — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 06:06:00 +0000

I bet he’s fun at parties…

By: Gunker

Gunker — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 05:05:00 +0000

At someone else. Admit it, she was a third party who got physical first

By: buster_friendly

buster_friendly — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 04:29:00 +0000

Hermeticism always leads to fascism.

By: Kimmo

Kimmo — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 03:46:00 +0000

Sif leftism isn’t just window-dressing for any authoritarian.

We’re talking about mutually exclusive concepts supposedly coexisting here.

By: Kimmo

Kimmo — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 03:43:00 +0000

@aikimoe:disqus Isn’t ideology all about what should be considered acceptable?

And aren’t the ideologies of those on the right considerably less concerned with fairness, and far more amenable to blaming people for circumstances beyond their control?

Your left-right equivalence is fucking bogus, man.