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When I was growing up in the United States and Sweden, I never thought about becoming a politician.

George Papandreou

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George Papandreou
Age: 72
Born: 1952
Born: June 16
Diplomat
Former Prime Minister Of Greece
Politician
Sociologist
St Paul
Minnesota
George Andreas Papandreou
Politician
Becoming
Growing
United
Thought
States
Never
Sweden

More quotes by George Papandreou

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Greece has great strengths, but much of this potential has been wasted. That's because of a wider political system, but also because of a lack of an institutional framework.
George Papandreou
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If Greece had gone through a very normal political life, I may have not been in politics. But just the fact that I lived through huge upheavals and very difficult struggles and polarization and the barbarism of dictatorships - that made me feel that we had to change this country.
George Papandreou
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We in Europe have great capacities.
George Papandreou
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Many people have been pontificating, and patronizing, and moralizing, and scapegoating, saying you Greeks, you are the problem. I would say we Greeks have a problem. We are not the problem.
George Papandreou
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Greece's history in the drachma was an up-and-down history, a roller coaster.
George Papandreou
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The more there is a European solution to a theoretical, but possible, problem in the markets, the less we will have to talk about an I.M.F. solution.
George Papandreou
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The Marshall Plan was after destruction, and the U.S. came to our help and obviously this was very, very important for the future of Europe. I think now we have all the capabilities of doing it on our own and, in a sense, we have to.
George Papandreou
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An elected government making huge changes with the consent of its people, is being undermined by concentrated powers in unregulated markets-powers which go beyond those of any individual government.
George Papandreou
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I never thought about becoming a politician. But during the military dictatorship, my grandfather was put in prison six times and my father twice. If my family and my country didn't have this history, I might be a professor somewhere today.
George Papandreou
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I think there is a heritage which I’m proud of, which is a fight for democracy, a fight for social justice, a fight for freedom. My grandfather went to jail or exile six times in his life, fighting for his principles for democracy, or for his country. And my father twice.
George Papandreou
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Today I want to send a message of optismism to all Greeks. Our road, our path, will be more stabilised. Our country will be in a better situation. We will be stronger.
George Papandreou
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I would like to see Greece as a case study, an opportunity for Europe to strengthen its coordination of fiscal policy.
George Papandreou
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How can a parliamentarian or a leader in a country say, on the one hand, that we're going to support Greece but at the same time say that Greeks are lazy?
George Papandreou
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Politics also means educating people. It's important to speak openly with our fellow Greeks, to tell them what our problems are and that we have to change something.
George Papandreou
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There is this concept of politics as a dirty game.
George Papandreou
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Markets are saying pretty much what I'm saying too: that Greece is doing what it can, but that Greece is not going to be able to carry the weight of all of Europe and the other problems that Europe has.
George Papandreou
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I have been supporting the European Union, but we are still a work in progress. We have to become more of a United States of Europe. We should talk about electing a president of the E.U., rather than having one selected from the heads of government.
George Papandreou
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Everyone needs to carry out his own personal revolution.
George Papandreou
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If we were going to default, we would have decided that many months ago. It would be wrong for the Greek economy, it would be wrong for the European economy, it would make things worse in the end. That's why we're taking the pain and making these structural reforms, and we're on target.
George Papandreou
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Unfortunately, corruption is widespread in government agencies and public enterprises.
George Papandreou