Categories
Published Letters

Letter to the Economist

Published in the National Herald March 4 issue

To the Editor:
I sent the following letter to The Economist in response to their special edition on Turkey:

The special report on Turkey, Jan. 21, examines the troubling aspects of President Erdogan’s rule while lamenting the passing of the political system created by the dictator Mustafa Kemal. Erdogan may be different from Kemal in terms of philosophy and ideology, but there is one area where the two would agree, and that is on the matter of Armenians, Greeks, and Assyrians as well as the Kurds which were physically targeted for extermination by Kemal and his predecessors in the Ottoman Empire. It is not true, as one part of the articles says that Kemal fended off the Greeks. The Greek supplies were cut off by the British, French, and Italian governments who provided arms to Kemal (as did the Soviets under Lenin and Trotsky).


Kemal presided over the genocide of Greeks and Armenians in the historic Christian city of Smyrna. Turkish President Erdogan today routinely threatens to invade the Greek islands and has threatened to launch a missile into Athens. The genocidal implications of Erdogan’s threats against Greece attracted no attention from the articles in the Special Report. In addition to threatening Greece and Cyprus, Erdogan has supplied the fascist-racist state of Azerbaijan with drones and other equipment and training that led to the ethnic cleansing of Armenian Christians in the territories of Nagorno-Karabakh.

It is entirely just that the Economist seeks to bring attention upon the problems of Turkey’s present leadership. It is also simultaneously reprehensible and propagandistic that the Economist completely ignores the present circumstances that Armenia, Cyprus, and Greece presently find themselves in. Erdogan’s Turkey is a predatory State and his partner in the National Action Party has openly displayed maps showing the Greek islands as being part of Turkey. The failure of the international media to document and examine Turkey’s genocidal threats and external acts of aggression make those same journalists accessories to Turkish war aims and crimes against humanity.

Theodore Karakostas
Boston, MA

Categories
political

On DeSantis

Governor Rick DeSantis of Florida recently came out against American intervention in Ukraine. This stance does much to remove doubts about his candidacy for President. DeSantis has been an excellent Governor defending religious freedom and parents rights against LGBT radicals.

DeSantis successfully fought to remove trans and other propaganda from schools. For this, he deserves gratitude from conservatives and people of faith. The only problem left is if he can withstand pressure from the pro war extremists in both parties.

Donald Trump is the ideal candidate for 2024. Trump successfully resisted pressure to start wars with Russia and Iran. DeSantis however is emerging as an attractive backup in the event Trump does not get the nomination.

Even in the midst of the horrors of the Russian Ukrainian war, fanatics in both parties are attacking DeSantis for wanting to stay out of the war. Liz Cheney and Bill Kristol have attacked DeSantis for his sensible stance.

Cheney holds the same lunatic stance on foreign policy as her father, the former Vice President. Kristol has been wrong on all his foreign policy stances, especially Iraq. Donald Trump kept these extremists at bay for four years.

DeSantis is going to have to prove likewise if he wants the Republican nomination.

Categories
Letters

Letter to Congressman

Dear Congressman Lynch,

I am writing this letter from a strictly religious point of view. I am a Greek Orthodox Christian. In Ukraine, which is suffering from the horrors of the Russian invasion there is an internal assault on theUkrainian Orthodox Church. There are two Churches. There is the Church that Eastern Orthodoxy considers the legitimate Church (now under attack by the Government) and their is a breakaway Church.

Either way, individuals should be free to worship as they choose and to attend which ever Church they like.The official Church which the Ukrainian government is trying to ban is under the Russian Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow, hence the problem. The Ukrainian Church under the spiritual leadership ofthe Russian Patriarch of Moscow is an autonomous self governing Church. Because they are spiritually under the Russian Church no sinister implications should be perceived.


As a Greek Orthodox myself,
I am under the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople who resides in Constantinople, Turkey. My spiritual ties to an ancient Church now in Turkey has no political implications and I certainly have no loyalty to the Turkish government (far from it) or disloyalty to the United States.

The accusations against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church by the Ukrainian government are preposterous. Roman Catholics throughout the world are under the spiritual authority of the Pope of Rome. That does not make them loyal politically to Italy and it does not make them disloyal to the countries they reside in. At this time, the Ukrainian government is attempting to seize the largest Monastery in Kiev 
from the Ukrainian Church that it does not like despite the fact that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow) has condemned the Russian invasion unequivocally and has criticized the Russian Church for its stance on the war.

Religious freedom either exists or it does not. It is most unfortunate that the Orthodox Church has become a political pawn between Ukraine, Russia, and the west. The sooner they all cease from attempting to interfere in the spiritual life of the Orthodox Church the more likely for peace in Ukraine. Orthodox Churches are profoundly influential in their countries. However, the State Department has interfered in the internal life of the Greek Orthodox Churches in the hope of promoting a split with the Russian Church.

I am certain you may find this very confusing as do I. The Ukrainian government is getting money and arms from the United States. Washington should at least demand that the persecution of Churches
that the Kiev government does not like should cease immediately. If anything, the government in Kiev is creating disunity among Ukrainians by promoting religious hatred and religious strife. Orthodox Christians throughout the world are watching the persecution of their coreligionists in Ukraine with horror and revulsion.

The assault on religious freedom in Ukraine should cease. The persecuted Ukrainian Orthodox Church (twice as large as the schismatic Church) will contribute to stability and peace in Ukraine if given the opportunity to do so.

Thank You

Theodore Karakostas

Categories
faith

The Kiev Caves Lavra

The Zelensky government in Ukraine with the backing of Ukrainian fascists is attempting to expel two hundred umonks from the famous Kiev Caves Lavra. This policy has been condemned by Pope Francis and the World Council of Churches. Guess who is not condemning this blatant violation of human rights and religious freedom?

Patriarch Bartholomew, Archbishop Elpidophoros, and the Churches of Greece and Cyprus. The Greek speaking Churches have been paralyzed since the Ecumenical Patriarch started all this in 2018 by recognizing the fake Church in Ukraine. The silence of Greek Orthodoxy to this brutal repression is shameful and deplorable.

The Ukrainian government is fascist to the core. The war itself is generally immoral as sympathy should be for the people on both sides who are suffering. It should not be forgotten that Ukraine has not only been repressing the canonical Church, it has violated the rights of the Russian minority.

The war needs to end and Zelinsky needs to be resign in favor of a democratic government. His Allie’s have been Neo Nazis. The fanatics who have been seizing Churches are not devout and have no intention of worshipping in them. The Ukrainian Church is under attack merely for being under the Moscow Patriarchate.

In America, groups like the Ku klux klan adopted an anti Roman Catholic position because Catholics looked to the Pope of Rome for spiritual leadership. The Monks of the Lavra are the victims of bigots and fascists such as them.

It is a pity that Orthodox Greeks are standing on the sidelines with indifference.

Categories
political

Fauci Continues To Infuriate

Medical dictator for life Anthony Fauci has said there should have been more stringent restrictions during the lock down. As if the lock down was not brutal enough as it was and did not make life as miserable as possible for the entire world. Fauci is a tyrant who has no empathy for ordinary citizens.

Everyone made enormous sacrifices during the lock downs. People could not go to work, Church, or eat in restaurants. People became depressed and suffered from depression. Thankfully, the lockdowns ended two years ago.

Fauci did not have to make these statements. If he were a real human being he would not have made them. He is a narcissist who secretly ordered the funding of the lab in Wuhan in 2017 without consulting with the President or the Secretary of Human Services. This power hungry man has no empathy for ordinary men and woman.

Consider another recent remark. He stated he would retire if Donald Trump were reelected. A serious Doctor would not be making partisan statements such as that. Testifying before the Senate months ago, Fauci attacked Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky.

Fauci is an unpleasant person and a fraud. He must be removed. Despite boasting about quitting if Trump is reelected, Fauci will not keep his vow. Fauci loves power and the spotlight and will never willingly resign.

All the more reason for the Republicans to take both houses of Congress in November. Out with Fauci the medical Stalinist!

Categories
political

Nancy Pelosi And China

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is intent on taking a trip to Taiwan which has infuriated the government in Beijing. The Chinese government is most certainly an evil one. Taiwan is a democracy while China is a totalitarian state.

Reality has to intrude here. Nancy Pelosi is a politician and more than likely is attempting to play politics on a very delicate issue. The stupidity of the Democrats and their ignorance of foreign affairs has the potential to do enormous damage to international peace and stability.

Should China invade Taiwan it will be impossible to remove Chinese forces. War with China is unthinkable based on reality. The hawkish statements coming from both parties indicated they have not learned from the mistakes in Ukraine. The Democrats (but also the neocons) played politics with Russia and Ukraine. Their demand that Ukraine become a member of NATO led to the Russian invasion.

Taiwan is not the only problem with China. America’s biggest problem with China is the lab leak in Wuhan which led to the pandemic. House Speaker Pelosi and the Democrats should stop the political posturing. If they want to challenge China’s nefarious influence they should begin investigating China’s stooges in Washington.

Shut down the January 6 investigations and join the Republicans in investigating the origins of the Wuhan lab leak. Anthony Fauci is complicit with the Chinese government and military. Fauci authorized funding for gain of function research in Wuhan and cared nothing about the involvement of the Chinese Communist Party and the People’s Liberation Army with said research.

Crack down on Americans involved with China. This includes Fauci and Eco Health Alliance which funded the Wuhan Labs. We should also remember that the World Health Organization is complicit with the Chinese coverup in Wuhan. That organization’s Director General has longstanding ties with Beijing and accepted at face value Chinese assurances that covid could not be spread from person to person.

The Trump administration cut off aid to the World Health Organization when it refused to reform itself by cutting off Chinese influence. Nancy Pelosi is a fraud and an incompetent politician playing politics over Taiwan. The Biden administration resumed funding to the World Health Organization. There are also the ties between Beijing and Hunter Biden.

It is well known that the Ughyurs in China are the victims of genocide. Over one million of these Muslims are held in concentration camps. It would be more helpful if Pelosi went to the Chinese mainland to discuss the Ughyurs and the Wuhan lab along with Taiwan. Visits to Taiwan should be made by professional diplomats at the State Department.

Considering the Democrats responsibility for the war in Ukraine, it is impossible to take them seriously on foreign policy. Yes, China is a totalitarian government but also a major power. Tensions should be defused and the status quo on Taiwan should be maintained.

Pelosi and the Democrats have taken hawkish stands on Ukraine and Taiwan. This despite the American failures in Iraq and Afghanistan. Do they really want to risk conflict with China? We know they are willing to risk conflict with Russia.

Once again we see the difference between conventional politicians in both parties and Donald Trump. Both parties believe in participating in wars in order to promote their ideas of “democracy”. Trump to his credit did not believe in this bullshit and succeeded in not starting any wars for four years.

Taiwan deserves independence but the Unites States cannot guarantee that independence. Caution and deescalation should dictate how to proceed with China. A free and democratic China should be the long term goal which will benefit Taiwan in the long term.

The process of democratizing China can begin by addressing the Wuhan lab leak and the Ughyurs first and foremost. Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats have a nerve. They have stayed quiet on the matter of Chinese responsibility for Covid. Everything they do is about politics and that is what Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan is about.

Categories
political

The Return Of Greek American Glory?

A Congressional Amendment sponsored by Chris Pappas (D) of New Hampshire has passed. This Amendment would prevent the Biden administration from selling F-16 fighter jets to Turkey. The Biden administration can still get around this by suggesting that the sales to Turkey are in the interests of American national security.

As imperfect as this Amendment is it is still a sign of success and an indication that Greek American influence may be returning. The way to build on this success is for the Greek American leadership to turn its back on the Biden administration. It is clear that Biden is no friend to Greece and Cyprus.

The foreign policy establishment has demonstrated it has no real grasp of realities in the contemporary world. Biden is getting his instructions from Anthony Blinken and others at the State Department. Blinken and the others are unimpressive in terms of their diplomatic abilities and understanding of what is transpiring.

The commitment to Turkey by this administration is out of date by decades. The old Kemalist regime (itself far from compatible with American interests) is gone and will not be returning. The Trump administration while not perfect in regards to Turkey showed signs of breaking with the pro Turkish past. The Greece-Cyprus-Israel agreement to import gas to Europe was supported by the Trump administration.

Biden and his advisors (mostly Victoria Nuland) destroyed that agreement. Biden and his administration only see the world through their anti Russian hatred. They do not see the ugly reality that Turkey is.

The success of this Amendment looks promising for further successes. Aside from the fact that Biden will not be seeking a second term (or if he does he will lose to another Democrat), Biden has stabbed Greece and Cyprus in the back. The Greek organizations should completely ignore his administration and work with those members of Congress, the think tanks, and careerists in the foreign policy establishment to cut off all aid to Turkey.

Greece and Cyprus have not had a major success in America since the Congressional Arms embargo on Turkey after the invasion of Cyprus. Hopefully, those glory days of Greek America will return.

Categories
political

Remembering Cyprus

Today in 1974, Turkey launched its first of two invasions of Cyprus. Supposedly, the invasion was carried out to prevent the union of Cyprus with Greece. On July 15, Greek dictator Dimtrios Ioannides ordered the assassination of Cypriot Makarios and installed fascist Nikos Sampson as President.

The Turkish government had originally renounced all claims to Cyprus at the Lausanne Conference in 1923. In 1955, Turkey claimed Cyprus despite the fact that eighty percent of Cypriots were Greek and that Ankara had renounced claims to Cyprus. The Turkish invasion of Cyprus was always about expansionism and colonialism.

The Democratic Party in 1974 (an entirely different party from the one today) understood what had happened in Cyprus and succeeded in imposing an embargo on Turkey. Turkey had invaded Cyprus a second time on August 14 long after the Ioannides government had been removed in Athens. Cyprus was about occupation and expansionism nothing else.

It is to the discredit of America, Europe, NATO, and the United Nations that Cyprus remains under Turkish occupation. Nothing calls out the hypocrisy of the “free” world than the occupation of Cyprus. The Biden administration hypocritically seeks to sell Turkey F16 fighter planes. The Democrats of 1974 were more principled.

The major villain in America was then Secretary of State Henry Kissinger who worked to ensure the Turkish invasion would not be opposed. Today, it is Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland who harms Cyprus and Greece. The Democratic Party and the Republican Party seem to have changed places.

Today, it is the Democrats who advocate a hawkish foreign policy against Russia which is to the benefit of Turkey. Five decades ago, it was the anti Soviet Republicans who promoted policies that benefitted Turkey. Hypocrisy abounds in Washington as Turkey continues to receive American support.

Turkey has always been a sick country. Turkey is sicker under Erdogan but this has made no difference in Washington. The struggle for Cyprus is not over and all Greeks everywhere should consider Cyprus the most important issue for Hellenism.

Categories
political

Graham, Biden, And The Neocons

Neoconservative Senator Lindsey Graham has stated he supports the Biden administration’s decision to sell F-16 fighter jets to Turkey. The pro war elements in America remain pro Turkish. Graham is proof that there is no substantive difference in foreign policy between the Democrats and the neoconservative faction of the Republican Party.

Graham visited Turkey and proved how stupid many elected officials really are. A politician visits a country and is easily charmed. This speaks poorly of the Senator’s intellect and understanding of history and world affairs. According to Ekathemerini, Graham says the US and Turkey have had a “problematic relationship at times”.

Graham and Biden are united by the fact that they are both warmongers and believe the propaganda of the neocons. Trump was less than perfect on Greek issues, but a major improvement over all his predecessors Republicans and Democrats. He was certainly better for Greece than Biden has been.

Donald Trump and Mike Pompeo supported the Greece-Cyprus-Israel pipeline agreement that Biden and Victoria Nuland torpedoed. Two years ago, Greece successfully chased a Turkish ship away from the island of Castellorizo. Trump’s refusal to intervene was beneficial to Greece.

With the Biden administration backing Turkey, it is noticeable that Greece has been having a more difficult time with Ankara as the Turks openly claim the Greek islands. Graham is a neoconservative just like Victoria Nuland. These are shady and unscrupulous people. It says something about Biden that he is working with such people.

Categories
faith

The Scandal Widens

The Washington Post and Forbes magazine ran news items on the “gay” baptisms that have triggered so much anger in the greater Orthodox world. In addition, the story was posted on the website for ABC News. This incident easily eclipses any other controversy involving Archbishop Elpidophoros and that is saying a good deal about how bad this is.

Archbishop Elpidophoros appears to have acted unilaterally. This is in contrast to Metropolitan Antonios of Glyfada who upon learning that the “parents” of the children that had been baptized were both men stated that he would have asked for the holy synod of the Church of Greece to convene in order to rule on the matter before proceeding with the baptisms. It is beyond doubt that the Archbishop misled Metropolitan Antonios.

So far the aforementioned news reports have reported what has happened and have made no commentary on the matter. It would not be surprising if the secular media began making judgements against the Orthodox Church as it is very clear the media is very supportive of the LGBT agenda. On the one hand, the Orthodox Church could take the opportunity to be in the spotlight in order to proclaim the truth of the gospel and to teach America why LGBT is sinful.

On the other hand, the Orthodox Church could become a target of never ending hostility and hatred like the Roman Catholics and Evangelicals have. Whatever the case, this entire affair has been horribly mishandled. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese has been plagued by scandals for many years and is clearly not up to the task of preaching the gospel to Americans.

Archbishop Elpidophoros has not only brought the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese and the Ecumenical Patriarchate further disgrace, he has dragged the Church of Greece into this mess. Not a single word of apology or explanation from Archbishop Elpidophoros to Metropolitan Antonios of Glyfada or the holy synod of the Church of Greece.

In addition, there are the two children who received holy baptism. None of this is their fault. It is most lamentable that their baptisms are going to be associated with the nefarious actions of both the Archbishop and the “family” and other adults involved in this matter.

Regarding the adults involved in this matter. They deserve a certain degree of sympathy for the humiliation they may feel, but not for the choices they have made. It is clear these people are unchurched otherwise how could any of them have gone on social media to celebrate a Greek Orthodox “gay baptism”? Archbishop Elpidophoros is to blame for all hurt feelings and embarrassment in this matter and should have made it clear the Orthodox Church does not permit same sex marriages. The issue of the surrogate mother is further evidence of the Archbishop’s failure to provide moral and spiritual guidance.

The first step in cleaning up this mess is to depose Archbishop Elpidophoros. The opportunity is at hand for the Ecumenical Patriarch to be a spiritual leader by removing the Archbishop and to clarify for good measure before the whole world what the Orthodox Church actually teaches. The Ecumenical Patriarch must clean house.

There is still Ukraine and the schism, but for now all Orthodox Churches are watching to see what Patriarch Bartholomew and the holy synod of Constantinople are going to do in the aftermath of the scandalous behavior of Archbishop Elpidophoros.