Transformation or replication? On the aftermath of the Greek government shift
“I’m a pessimist because of intelligence, but an optimist because of will” (A. Gramsci)
We might err, but we believe that in the night of the elections in January 2015 a symbolic “tipping point” has been reached in Greece, signifying a break with a one way pre-dictated future, and adding vital fresh wind by pointing to the possibility of multiple alternative imaginary worldviews. Those may never come, but a point has been reached from where, so it seems, can be no simple return to the previous state of affairs, and a process of envisioning different futures has finally been initiated.
No one can foresee the results of this unpredictable process, as the aforementioned “opening” of alternatives takes place in a highly complex spatiotemporal context where different – and at times opposing – forces constantly influence their flourishing and/or failure. Greece is affected by the global economic recession more than any other European country, and is the first Western nation to face such a dramatic economic downturn since the end of World War II. Macroeconomic and social indicators point to a deep humanitarian crisis: real GDP has shrunk by 25,5%, general unemployment skyrocketed from 7.2% in 2008 to 27.2 in late 2014 and more than 3 million people have no health insurance.
Furthermore, as it became obvious in the recent negotiations regarding the Greek public debt and the continuation of the financing of the state, core EU countries appeared explicitly hostile even to the articulation of a storyline that contradicts the imperative of austerity. Thus, any alternative narrative coming out of Greece has not only to compete with vested interests within the country, but also has the dual task to simultaneously provide immediate relief from the effects of the accumulated austerity measures and create the necessary alliances at a European level in order to find the vital space to flourish.
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