Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
New York Times
March 22, 2008
To the Editor:
“Conflicts Throw NATO Expansion, and Bush’s Trans-Atlantic Legacy, Into Doubt” (news article, March 15) suggests that Greece is the main stumbling block in President Bush’s plan to expand NATO to include the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
The so-called “spat” between Greece and Fyrom over the latter’s name is not some childish argument. It is a fundamental disagreement about history, culture and security.
Governments in Skopje, since the end of World War II, have deliberately provoked the Greek state with claims to cultural markers of Hellenic heritage and identity. But they have also undermined the security of Southeast Europe by challenging the territorial boundaries of the region.
Words and symbols can inflict as much pain as physical violence. The K.K.K. and the swastika, to name but a few, invoke fear and revulsion among millions.
Enlarging NATO at the cost of alienating allies is just one reason America is losing friends throughout the world. It is hard to understand how the United States can be so insensitive to the legitimate concerns of Greece, a historically loyal friend and ally.
Antonis H. Diamataris, Publisher, National Herald, New York, March 20, 2008
Editor's Note: The article by Steven Lee Myers and Thom Shanker appeared in the Current News Early Bird, March 15, 2008.
March 22, 2008
To the Editor:
“Conflicts Throw NATO Expansion, and Bush’s Trans-Atlantic Legacy, Into Doubt” (news article, March 15) suggests that Greece is the main stumbling block in President Bush’s plan to expand NATO to include the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
The so-called “spat” between Greece and Fyrom over the latter’s name is not some childish argument. It is a fundamental disagreement about history, culture and security.
Governments in Skopje, since the end of World War II, have deliberately provoked the Greek state with claims to cultural markers of Hellenic heritage and identity. But they have also undermined the security of Southeast Europe by challenging the territorial boundaries of the region.
Words and symbols can inflict as much pain as physical violence. The K.K.K. and the swastika, to name but a few, invoke fear and revulsion among millions.
Enlarging NATO at the cost of alienating allies is just one reason America is losing friends throughout the world. It is hard to understand how the United States can be so insensitive to the legitimate concerns of Greece, a historically loyal friend and ally.
Antonis H. Diamataris, Publisher, National Herald, New York, March 20, 2008
Editor's Note: The article by Steven Lee Myers and Thom Shanker appeared in the Current News Early Bird, March 15, 2008.