S O C V st ΓΡΑΦΕΙ ΤΗΝ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ W ΤΟΥ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΣΜΟΥ E 101 ΑΠΟ ΤΟ 1915 The National Herald anniversa ry N www.thenationalherald.com A wEEkly GrEEk-AmEriCAN PuBliCATiON 1915-2016 VOL. 20, ISSUE 1013 March 11-17, 2017 c v $1.50 Greek-American Uber Beleaguered Greece Wants World Bank Aid Driver Helped Deliver Rescue funding could go towards Baby on BQE job creation By Theodore Kalmoukos such a thing. The woman was TNH Staff yelling “I am in pain, I am in NEW YORK – Uber driver pain!” and I was telling her to ATHENS – While simultane - Athanasios Tsakalos had the ex - take deep breaths, I didn’t know ously declaring a recovery is un - perience of his life on March 5 what to do but I kept my cool. I derway, Prime Minister Alexis when he helped a pregnant pas - started seeing the baby arrive: Tsipras’ coalition government is senger deliver her baby. its hand, its foot, its stomach, I asking the World Bank, which He told TNH “it was around was holding it with the towel provides loans for Third World 3 o’clock in the afternoon when because it was cold. I was not and developing countries, for I picked up a woman and her pulling it at all, I simply was additional assistance. small daughter in Astoria. She saying to the woman to hold on The Radical Left SYRIZA told me that she was pregnant a little for help to arrive, but the leader said he wouldn’t seek a and asked me to drive her to the baby wanted to come out.” fourth bailout to supplement the hospital as soon as possible be - Luckily, Tsakalos said, about 326 billion euros ($343.07 bil - cause she was having pains. As 20 minutes later, Police Officer lion) Greece is getting in three I was driving on the BQE Rafael Mohammed arrived on international bailouts, including (Brooklyn-Queens Expressway) the scene. He has experience in a third for 86 billion euros she told me to stop. I asked her such matters “and I told him to ($90.76 billion) he also said he why? She said to me ‘my water take over the delivery. Immedi - wouldn’t seek or accept but did broke, I am giving birth.’ I ately, he put the gloves on and both. stopped the car, I gave her a delivered the baby girl in my car His government has been towel and I immediately called and ten minutes later, the am - locked in stalled talks for nearly the police and an ambulance. I bulance arrived. 18 months with the Troika of took the little girl from the child “The umbilical cord had the European Union-European seat in the back of the car and I wrapped around the neck of the Central Bank-European Stability placed her in the front seat, be - baby, but everything went well. Mechanism (EU-ECB-ESM) cause I wanted to give to the I Followed the ambulance to the which has demanded more aus - pregnant woman more space.” hospital and the only thing I told AP PHOTO/THANASSiS STAvrAkiS terity measures of the type he Tsakalos, 23, continued: them was that I don’t want any Angry Farmers Protest Tax Increases reneged on before. “There was a lot of traffic at that money, nothing. I only want to The news site Politico said time and it took 45 minutes for know about the little girl,” in Riot police clashed with protesting farmers outside the Greek Agriculture Ministry in Athens. Pro - Greece has turned to the Wash - the police to arrive. You can un - some way to be part of her life. testers are angry at increases in their tax and social security contributions, part of the income ington, D.C.-based World Bank derstand my agony, since it was Tsakalos, whose roots are and spending cuts implemented to meet bailout creditor-demanded budget targets. for a 3-billion euro ($3.17 bil - the first time that I was seeing from Thessaloniki, was born in lion) loan to finance employ - Astoria. He graduated from St. ment programs with SYRIZA un - Demetrios and speaks Greek flu - able to put a dent in a 23 ently. He works for a pharmacy Tsipras Wrong on Economy Recovering percent jobless rate, still more in Astoria and is studying soft - than 50 percent for those under ware development. He drives 25. with Uber to make some extra TNH Staff Troika of the European Union- ability to close another austerity “The government of Greece money. European Central Bank-Euro - deal with the lenders. has asked the World Bank to pro - “My priority was to get there ATHENS – Rejecting data show - pean Stability Mechanism (EU- The revised GDP figures re - vide technical and financial as - to this child and free the airway ing Greece’s economy shrinking ECB-ESM) since he sought and leased by Greece's statistical sistance to address pressing chal - up, so everything just kicked in despite three international accepted a third rescue package agency ELSTAT were quarterly lenges including: long-term one after the next,” Mohammed bailouts, Prime Minister Alexis in July, 2015, this one for 86 bil - and not final, which the Euro - unemployment, economic com - told reporters on Sunday, as re - Tsipras boasted the country is lion euros ($91.41 billion), pean Commission had also petitiveness and growth and so - ported on CBS New York. poised to show “exceptionally made his claim moments before pointed out, government offi - cial protection…In accordance Tsakalos said he almost can’t high” growth this year. Greece’s statistics agency EL - cials told the Athens News with World Bank procedures, believe what he saw that day, That drew immediate STAT revealed the economy Agency. any final decision on providing and noted that “I will definitely ridicule and mocking from op - contracted 1.2 percent in the “We are waiting for the April loans would be subject to ap - remember this for the rest of my ponents with the European last quarter of 2016. figures,” the same sources proval by the bank’s board of ex - life.” Commission saying the statistics That was far worse than the noted, in response to questions ecutive directors,” was the Both the mom and newborn are volatile and could change. 0.4 percent decline projected in about the figures released by EL - quoted posted by Politico and at - baby girl were taken to Wycoff Tsipras, whose Radical Left earlier estimates in February STAT. tributed to a WB spokesperson. Uber driver Athanasios Tsaka - Heights Medical Center in SYRIZA-led coalition has been and showed the deteriorating los, who helped deliver a baby. Brooklyn and are fine. locked in stalled talks with the effect of the government’s in - Continued on page 9 Continued on page 9 St. George in 4.1 Miles’ Captain Papadopoulos at the UN Turkey’s Palm Desert TNH Staff Aegean NEW YORK – “I am excited and Celebrates happy the documentary 4.1 Sabre- Miles can be viewed in homes around the world, to show the By Vasilis Papoutsis drama of the refugees in this cri - Rattling sis facing Greece so they can PALM DESERT, CA – The up - think to do something about it,” scale community of Palm Desert Kyriakos Papadopoulos told the TNH Staff in California has a small but vi - National Herald. brant Greek-American Orthodox The captain of the Greek DELPHI, GREECE– U.S. Ambas - contingent, and the center of it Coast Guard patrol vessel 602 sador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt, is the St. George Greek Ortho - based on the island of Lesbos is praising Greece’s restraint, said dox Church, steps away from the protagonist of the Academy America is worried about a pos - the famous shopping district of Award-nominated documentary sible “accident” in the Aegean El Paseo. short subject 4.1 Miles. Pa - over Turkish provocations. The city is mostly known as padopoulos visited Los Angeles Turkish President Recep a retreat for the many seasonal for the ceremony with the di - Tayyip Erdogan and nationalist residents who are known as rector Daphne Matziaraki. politicians are openly claiming “snowbirds,” and arrive during Although they did not win Greek islands near their coast the winter to enjoy the beautiful the gold statuette, they were belong to Turkey as he has sent desert weather and the pic - proud because of the over - F-16 fighter jets and warships turesque mountain and valley whelmingly positive reaction to to violate Greece’s sovereign ter - views, a welcome escape from the documentary that managed ritory and go past Greek islands, the cold Northern climes. to touch the hearts of viewers. especially the disputed rocky President Obama is expected “In Los Angeles, we experienced islets of Imia where the two to reside in Palm Desert, as did such an extraordinary moment countries almost went to war in President Gerald Ford. Most and felt pride because expatri - 1996 over similar tensions and people are more familiar with ates followed us in and out of claims. the city of Palm Springs, which the auditorium at the Academy TNH/COSTAS BEJ Speaking at an international is about a 20 minute drive away, Just days after attending the Academy Awards in Los Angeles, Director Daphne Matziaraki and economic forum taking place in and has been the gateway to Continued on page 4 Captain Kyriakos Papadopoulos at the UN screening of the Oscar-nominated 4.1 Miles. Delphi, home of the Oracle in many Hollywood celebrities, es - ancient times, he talked about pecially in the Golden age of increased military activity in the Hollywood.