What do you think about the history book?

Question

Those of you who are Greeks, will know what I'm talking about!
So, what do you think about the book, with elections coming up and all? Do you think it's should have really bocome a "national issue"? Do you think it should have affected us all so much? Do you think it's worth bringing down a government? I will please ask you all to be civilised. We can all voice our opinion in a passionate way whithout becoming vulgar!

Answer 1

I havent read it, but we can not change what for many centuries history has prooved and what it is admitted by the whole universe...just for pleasing the others..
No country can be slave and no country has to deny facts just because we have to be more ''modern''and accepted by those who disagree..
It is out of the national principles...

Answer 2

I haven't read the book (nor the previous one without the "corrections") but still (boy am I going to have a lot of thumbs down now) I think some of the reactions are exagerated.I mean,there was a lot of complains about a map that showed Greece with the borders till one place and the part above they called it macedonia (including FUROM).But it's natural to be a map like this,since back then those were the borders of Greece and that past hasn't got to do with todays problems with our neighbour.
We should complain about the books and the education our children receive,since most of them are of very poor quality and the kids can't learn from them.We should complain about teachers who don't care if the kids will learn or not.We should complain about inadequate school buildings(I went to school,dimotiko, to a three-class building,it was an apartment,we had no school yard but played on the street and I had to do the classes in reverse because of the limited room they did one "normal" year and one backwards,since two classes had to be in the same class,so I did the first grade and second grade,then I did the fourth grade then the third,then the sixth and then the fifth) and that wasn't so long ago,I mean,I began elementary school in 1990 and that school building still hasn't improved much(now they are moved to a luomeno).Those are things we should complain and make issues for and not a book that most likely will change in a heart beat once there is a new goverment....

Answer 3

Hello
No, a book isn't capable of bringing down a government, but I really don't agree with it's approach.
Just a book can't change a folk's memories, can't make us see the events more objective.
Ibrahim didn't just "showed up" in Peloponnisos, he burned it.
The "paidomazoma" it is true that was mostly a stealing of cristian kids and mostly Serbians, but there were occasions that poor people wanted their children to get into the turkish army.

Also... Did you know that many Cristians became Muslims because Cristians were paying 14 times more debt (forous) to the state?
This is also an objective fact, history says about it and it is very easy to confirm it.

Also what about the depriving of greek Language or Christianity? In Eastern Minor Asia, Greek people was forced to choose between their Language and their Christianity, as they weren't allowed to keep them both.
This can also be easily confirmed.

So, that's why I am against this book, it says some right things but it doesn't state the hole truth....

Answer 4

I haven't read it, but I've heard parts of it. I think the book sucks, not only because of the issues that have been presented, like the kryfo scholio etc., but even in presenting e.g. the Rennaissance, it says 3 lines that no 11 year old can absorb enough to understand what the Renaissance is about. The result of such approaches is that students reach University and you tell them "this is a Byzantine church, when do you reckon it was built?", and they answer 19th century. History for children myst be more detailed, like a fairy tale, so that they can get the ambience of the period.
As for the political issue, I think that indeed books like this one show "proxeirothta" of both governments. The fact that it was turned into a major issue of the elections is popularism (laikismos), because it is connected with nationalistic ideas, but the poor quality of school books should indeed be a huge subject in Greece (not only this book). Same goes for the poor quality in many other aspects of culture and education, which unfortunately don't appeal to the public so much, because the public's education is based on such books. Vicious circle!!

Answer 5

Nothing much to say....I have a sister that studies that book and the teacher gives them the everyday lesson in paper written by him.He can't do anything else........
The Greek Government has done most terrible things than that just as stealing our money,increasing the ΦΠΑ(if you are Greek you know what this is).
I'm not affected too much,but i am trying to protect my sister to get.

Answer 6

It appears that in a lot of areas such as the dispute of national borders, airspace, history, etc. there is an overwhelming willingness of Greek governments of both colours (green or blue), to trade away national interests in exchange for goods or services (if any) that are hard to comprehend. As hard as this may be to stomach, it is an unquestionable reality. I guess this should be the expected price to pay for the constant deterioriation of the fabric of Greek political life both as far as the politicians themselves as well as the electorate is concerned.

Decades of disintegration of the political life have exacted their toll as exemplified by the single-mindedness of elected parties to stay in power at all costs while the holy grail-like pursuit of the opposition is to bring the government down at all costs as well. In addition, as the behaviour of Greece in important geo-political events suggests, there is an increasing dependence or even subjugation of Greek sovereignty to the point of Greece carrying out mostly American or similar political dictates in reality no matter what anti-American or pro whatever rhetoric is used to camouflage this fact.

In this background, what stands as an obstacle to carry out what others have planned for us is our sense of national identity, for which history is something like glue that holds it together. Therefore the falsification of history books and historical facts is a very effective and far-sighted way to strike a blow at national identity in the span of a single generation. Well done! Who could have planned and executed better! As for our battered national interest, there is nothing better to expect from the present political parties and much worse from the self-lobotomized "rousfeti" - minded Greek electorate. For those of the older generation, they may get lucky and die before all is lost. For the younger ones, things are not going to be that kind but it is doubtful that, educated by such splendid history books, they will be able to tell the difference.

Ο Θεός να βάλει το χέρι του!!

Answer 7

Past is past and cannot be changed.
When you have time and opportunity, please read it and you will be surprised:
Balkan states appear to be products of the Ottoman Empire and Byzantine era disappears from any historic context, struggle of 1821 is completely absent ( only Ypsilantis is mentioned ), Macedonian struggle is presented as a Bulgarian struggle for Macedonia’s independence from the Ottoman Empire, FYROM is presented as Macedonia, Bulgarian and Turkish atrocities against the Greeks are suppressed, favoritism toward the Jews, drama of Greeks of Smyrna is presented as departure for an amusing trip ( "thousands of Greeks squeezed in the harbor trying to board" ).......etc.
I hope teachers will not use it : history can not be changed.


And please have a look at FYROM's history book : THIS is unbelievable !
http://history-of-macedonia.com/wordpress/2007/03/31/fyroms-history-books-and-propaganda-facts/

Answer 8

I have not seen the book but I have read parts of it. My only comment is this: How can a history book that distorts the truth in an attempt to be politically correct, claim to represent "history"? It clearly does not.......

Answer 9

i did the book last year the book has serious problems... it has not important people in big picture and important in little tiny ones!!!!

as we say in greek

AISXOS!!!

Answer 10

well, i checked http://history-of-macedonia.com/wordpress/2007/03/31/fyroms-history-books-and-propaganda-facts/
and i don't see any falce fact there. What's the point?