Inevitable, really

When things go wrong, blame someone else; when things are really difficult, start beating up those who look a bit different. That seems to be happening in Greece where it has become a little hard to go on and on about Chancellor Merkel being the new reincarnation of the Gestapo because she thinks Greece should try not living on German money since the Golden Dawn has done well in the elections.

It seems that the usual anti-foreigner riots are beginning to break out with journalists who try to film what is going on getting beaten up as well. I assume the fact that the journalist in question was Israeli was merely a coincidence.

I do love the comment made by the Greek ambassador to Israel:

The ambassador emphasized that the attack was "an isolated incident and is in no way indicative of the overall situation in Athens, where citizens and visitors enjoy a safe, secure and hospitable environment."

He added that the incident does not reflect or represent Greek values or traditions, a people who "have fought hard in their history not only for freedom, but also for the freedom of thought and expression, non-discrimination and tolerance."

Uh-huh!

Meanwhile the BBC has seen fit to report the "far-right MP's" assault at his left-wing colleague, who happens to be female, which makes the story even more piquant.

Of course violence is not new in Greek politics nor is it confined to what our media calls "the far-right". Left-wing demonstrators murdered three bank employees (one of whom was pregnant so it is really four people killed) during strikes in 2010.

Attacks on right wing politicians by trade unions are not unknown and neither is violence in debates by Communist MPs. Still, an actual brawl in Parliament may be raising political discussion to a new level.