Sloane Elliott

The sane Tzannetakis government produced for the first time in more years than one would like to remember an air of national stability.

At last Greece has come out of the closet: it has officially admitted to having fought a civil war. But, in doing so, it claims that recently it’s gone straight, and the wounds inflicted on Greek by Greek have been bound up and are healing.

As is generally known, Greece has made a formal bid to host the Olympic Games in 1996. The formal petition took place under the former socialist government and it seems to have been the only act of ΡASOK which New Democracy approved of for it has enthusiastically reaffirmed the petition.

It’s said the Greek people are easily bored by routine and become inat-tentive. But the moment something unexpected happens, they perk up and the adrenalin begins to flow.

Even in the last half of the last year of the decade, and even though he lost last month’s elections, Andreas Papandreou continued to dominate the political life of Greece during the 1980s.

At a party in Kolonaki recently, an attractive lady was looking fretful and twisting her handkerchief in her fingers. Several gentlemen, noting her discomfit, tried to soothe her. Over dinner the conversation had been all about how many percentage points ND would win in the coming elections.

Like Camp David in Maryland, Chequers in Buckinghamshire and certain dachas near Moscow, Korydallos Prison has become recreational headquarters for a growing number of government leaders.

This month The Athenian observes the 15th anniversary of its first issue. Given the sudden, unexpected ups and downs of Greek life this time span makes it one of the matriarchs of Athenian monthlies regardless of the language it is published in.

Although the upcoming elections are still scheduled for June, the pre-election period may be said to have already begun.