Letters

National Interest, The, Summer, 2002

Michas reserves special venom for the Greek Orthodox Church and its popular leader Archbishop Christodoulos. He takes words and sentences out of context. Thus, in quoting the Archbishop on the World Trade Center attack, for example, he fails to mention that the words he twists out of context were uttered (on September 14, 2001) in a sermon commenting on the Pauline Epistle reading of the feast day of the Holy Cross (1 Corinthians 17-31, which reads, in part, "God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty."). The passage has been read during this feast for over 1,500 years.

In Greece, Archbishop Christodoulos has been in the forefront in the condemnation of terrorism. He has announced a major Inter-Religious Conference (to be held in September 2002) to address this phenomenon. In recognition of his stand the U.S. Embassy in Athens asked the Archbishop to lead the memorial service for the victims of September 11, as he had done in the past for victims of the November 17 assassins. In the same spirit the Church of Greece has actively supported its sister Orthodox Church of Serbia, and all the peoples of former Yugoslavia, regardless of religious or ethnic identity, who were victims of the civil wars.

No matter how hard Michas tries, he does little to define what he means by the term "anti-Americanism" other than to use it as a brush with which to tar whole segments of Greek society. He suggests it encompasses those who may criticize aspects of U.S. policy, or merely have a cultural identity that is different than what liberal extremists hold to be politically correct. For those of us who grew up in the Vietnam War era, Michas' article evokes, mutatis mutandis the kinds of critiques of the United States by Americans who threw their lot with Hanoi; i.e., alienated individuals who compensated for their existential angst by ascribing terrible motives to their own country-and people.

Contrary to Michas' view, Greece today is maturing, developing a growing sensitivity to and understanding of other peoples, societies and polities. America is held in high esteem, but it is also held to account, especially by its thinking friends. To represent otherwise simply is to misinform.

ARISTIDE D. CARATZAS

New York/Athens

Takis Michas' analysis of the anti-Americanism that permeates Greek society relies primarily on observations that relate to recent developments in the area. There are, however, some deeper motives that elucidate the behavior of the Greek Right vis-a-vis the United States and its policies.

Greek conservatives use anti-Americanism as a psychological refuge from the loneliness caused by a long absence from power. For several decades after the end of the Greek Civil War the political

Right had relied upon the approval of the American "paragon" (a foreign power exerting influence in the internal political scene) to perpetuate their tenure in office. When Andreas Papandreou's PASOK came to power, however, the Left-Right combination of Papandreou as Prime Minister and Konstantinos Karamanlis as President put forth a feeling of security and stability to the wider Greek public. Therefore, the United States decided to work smoothly with the new government in Athens. This dramatically offended Greek conservatives, who felt like unjustly deserted children. This let to increasingly vitriolic attacks on Karamanlis and the gradual distrust of the Americans and their policies from Greek conservative circles. The leaders of the New Democracy party have gradually distanced themselves from the United States, and--on a number of issues--their rhetoric and behavior was reminiscent of the hard liners of the Left.