“Neoliberal Barbarity”: There Is Nothing to Celebrate after Sunday’s Greek Elections
Skyrocketing abstention, social demobilization and an impending
wave of harsh austerity measures call for critical reflection after
SYRIZA’s victory.
There is nothing to celebrate, really. The European leftists that
arrived in Athens to support Tsipras are justified to celebrate, since
they have a vision of Syriza that is external and more often than not
romanticized. As far as Greeks are concerned, no one can doubt that
there are honest and well-meaning left-wing people who have voted for
Syriza or are even (still) members of Syriza. But after the developments
of the last few months the last thing they want to do is celebrate.
How can they celebrate, when tomorrow the new Syriza-led government
has to enforce and oversee the implementation of a harsh attack on
nature and the popular classes, having given up its capacity to
legislate without the tutelage of Brussels and Berlin, and being under
constant financial blackmail by the creditors?
