Goodbye to Preston and Florina

[PhiliptheUniterchaeronea]

I would like to thank Preston and Florina for their contributions to the forum. They have decided to leave us and use their energy for Macedonia in other avenues. I for one wish they would stay as they are good people and contribute greatly, but I do respect their decisions. Even if everyone here didn't agree with everything they said (nobody always agrees), I have to say they helped many people here look at the situation from a different perspective and helped us all understand the situation a little better. The threads Preston started where amongst the most popular here ever. No question about it. Challenging people and taking us out of our comfort zone has helped us all a great deal when confromting the complex nature of our people who live with the Slavs now. I for one am very concerned about the SLavophone Greeks and truly wish they could return. However, this is a post to thank Florina and Preston, not to talk about the Slavophones. I hope these two return sometime in the future. All the posters here are in it for the right reasons I should hope. Lets all remember that, even when tempers may flare.

I hope we can all agree that they made this a better forum and we should thank them for it.

Sure this sounds a little cheesy, but I had to get the point across. LOL Take care you two, stay in touch if you can. Thanks again. :clap2: :thumbs: :clapping: :thewave: :cheers:

[akritas]

I am sad that I hear from them this decision and as also that they didn’t tell us the reasons of their withdrawn.:unsure:
I wish both of them good luck:)

[Mygdonia]

Keep in touch guys, don't be strangers. :)

[Tsontos]

Very Unfortunate and unecessary departure

[Melbourne]

Very Unfortunate and unecessary departure

Agree, from the little time I have been posting I felt they added a lot to the forum.

Although we did not agree on all points regarding what to label the language, Florina in my mind is the perfect example why the Slavs could not penetrate any further into Greece. Quite simply those Slavophone Greeks played a pivotal role in defending Hellenism right on the front line.

I sure hope both Florina and Preston decide to join us again!

[terastios]

??????????????
preston and florina decided to leave this forum?
I dont get it! Why?
Preston was the reason i joined your "parea"(he invited me here) and florina was the reason i stayed!
Anyway i respect their decision but i'm here to stay and i will!
Farewell my friends...i hope(i will) to see you somewhere else!

[admin]

??????????????
preston and florina decided to leave this forum?
I dont get it! Why?
Preston was the reason i joined your "parea"(he invited me here) and florina was the reason i stayed!
Anyway i respect their decision but i'm here to stay and i will!
Farewell my friends...i hope(i will) to see you somewhere else!

Terastie, can you ask them why they have to go? :unsure:

[admin]

I have heard that they have left because some people said they were not Greek... this saddens me greatly and angers me even more....

Some Greeks are quite ignorant and even similarly call Pontians Turks...

Pontians are one of the most Greek peoples that I know.

Similarly, As for the Northern Greeks, they might speak some Slavic words,

HOWEVER:

They are the GUARDS of the Greek culture, they are the defenders of the borders, they keep Hellenism INTACT. Its no wonder that they speak a few Slavic words after hundreds of years keeping the borders and Hellenism in check.

I NEVER want to hear from anyone on these boards that such heroic and brave individuals or their forefathers that suffered and guarded Greece are Not Greek.

If you have any respect for Greece and the keepers of the culture, you will have utmost respect for those that are Greek and especially those that have kept their culture in the face of hate (from those outside of Greece and inside - yes even Greeks themselves, in the face of years of onslaughts and pillaging of their homes and killings of their families....

As Alexander once said: "..a virtuous foreigner is a Greek and every evil Greek worse than a Barbarian."

These people are Greeks and they have kept their culture where Greeks even in Greece have lost it...

I welcome them here in our forum as BROTHERS.

[if Preston or Florina are reading this, I apologize for the actions of others and I sincerely wish for you to be with us here again as we were before.]

[PhiliptheUniterchaeronea]

They are absolutely without any doubt GREEK. 100%. I don't care if they are Greekspeakers, Slavophones, or speak whatever language. THEY ARE HELLENES!!!!!!!!!!! No need to say more.

[Tsontos]

No one said they werent Greek. thats would be denying history itself

Florina and Preston needed to think things over better. no need to leave

[Florina]

Wow,,what can I say Gentleman ,,but Thankyou...

I will only comment on this!!

We are Greek and as the Admin stated we protected Hellenisn and our countries borders..I am however tired of fighting against my own brothers on who I am and or why I am and why we exist...why I speak Dopia and where this also derives from...to me that is not the issue as to where this language derives from,,,the issue is what I am! Most don't even know what I am..and trying to make people understand that,,to me is like saying...Alexander did not exsist and that he was a MYTHOLOGY!

If I as a Greek have to consistently prove I am one,,then how about all Greeks prove what they are?

Regardless to anyones personal opinions of me..my culture..my background,,my people,,the Dopia language..or Dialect..where it Derives from..where I derive from..where all the people of Northern Greece derived from...should I start also asking where the rest of my nation derived from?

I mean what are we talking about here people..Ilikrina?

Is my blood better or worse than yours?

Is my flesh not worthy of being Greek?

I personally have heard so much crap that it's not funny anymore!

I AM GREEK,,NORTHERN GREECE IS GREEK..MAKEDONIA IS GREEK...MY PEOPLE...YOUR PEOPLE...THE PEOPLE OF GREECE SUFFERED!! WHY?

Coz I also speak another language...not in this day and age...not in this so called Democratic World..All Wars...leave destitute behind them...people killed for no reason..none other than the so called (GOOD OF THE COUNTRY)
Well you know what guys?

The scars wont heal..unless they are healed by my brothers...so how about it brothers? Will you start healing these scars?

Think about that very carefully..it does not mean..telling me what I am..it does not mean,,,my language deriving from anywhere or Me deriving from any such people..it mean,,YOU SEEING ME AS GREEK AND NOTHING MORE!!

I wish you well on your endeavours..i trully hope that some of you can understand ..why we really have the problem in Makedonia..and why it has gone on forever?

Until you and every single one of my country men and women figure this out...the problem will remain,,,and I Hope to God that History does not repeat itself..


Filakia,

Florina

[akritas]

Florina read your PM box

[Istor]

The point is dear Florina that a neighboor country uses your language as a tool against Greece. If there was a Vlachian country around, there will be the same problem with Vlachs in Greece. SlavoSkopians think that you have done the first step to abandon your Greekness and adopt slaviness. This makes sense, doesn't it ?? Well, we Greeks shall be more careful with you, right?

Anyway, I do share your thoughts about blood. What does count is spirit and pride, not blood. So, can someone be proud Greek when hasn't abandonned its non-Greek native language ??

[Florina]

We Greeks Istor?

What has been my point this whole time?

Until YOU! Greeks as you put it start realizing that I am one of you regardless to my second language...the sooner FYROM Will have no leg to stand on..If you as a Nation seperate me from you...then Fyrom wins!

Why becuase these people simply want and need to belong somewhere and when they feel that their own birthplace ingnores them or treats them like they aliens, when they are GREEK! Then Fyrom feeds the hunger!

Do You think Fyrom can win?
Do you think Fyrom needs you?

Do You think that Fyrom really cares about Greeks?

No Istor they don't..they care about the land and the problem is that GREEKS Live on that land..I LIVE ON THAT LAND.ISTOR!

So snap out of it and stop seperating me from you for a language..and stop using that as your base of argument...That has nothing to do wiuth anything...You as a non speaking dopia Greek ,,go and sit on our countries borders with Fyrom ..lets see exactly what you can do...;)

The truth is bitter..but must be told by everyone..I dont give a rats about Fyrom..Fyrom only has one thing I want and that is the Greek people who live there..as for there land..their language..their culture they can keep it I have my own.......You want hard facts?

Well these are it...you want me to play dumb? simply to feed a lie?

Never gonna happen...these people were ALL Treated like communists for one Language ,,regardless of gender and they are Angry...why?

Giati Greeks like you who seperate me from You..which is clearly stated in your reply....EXIST!!!

Regards,

Florina

[Tsontos]

who are you preaching to Florina? We know our history here

[Florina]

LOL@PREACHING!

What preaching Big Takis?

You call that Preaching?

You know your History?

Do You?

Well let me give you the ugly side of Our History...in one word...METAXAS!


I do not need to preach Takis..but until you actually start listening to your people of Northern Greece...Fyrom will exist..

Half the time I do not even know why I bother trying to explain anything..seems to me isaste sto kosmo sas...kai distihos afto to kosmo ine to Lathos stin Ellada Mas!

Becoz of this,,we know have Fyrom,,Don't we?

Hmm..well I think we as Greeks are on the right track!

It's called denial..ala to inati..vgasi mati!!

Min to xehnas afto..:)

[PhiliptheUniterchaeronea]

Welcome back Kotta!!! For those of you that get the joke, thanks. It is very lame joke though, haha.

Seriously though, a big welcome back. I'm with you Florina and believe you. I never realized how Metaxas dropped the ball on that one. As strong as he was reppelling the Italians, he was equalled by an apparent ignorance on this issue. A complete failure to understand the complexity of the situation. Thanks for telling us.

I think we all have to look at it from the different perspectives. If we use each other filters to interpret what is happening, then we can move forward. As for the Greeks that Metaxas chased away, God help them (and us) for losing our children. For the kidnapped kids the Communists and Slavs took from us, God help them even more. We can say all we want, but I'm with you Florina in wanting our people back. Takis, I'm with you when recoginizing all the damage the Communists did our people, and for the Slavic group who murdered Slavophone Greeks around the turn of the 19th century for saying that they were Greek. If you recognize the pattern here, I'm hoping we unite the Greeks. I hope you see it. Florina, Takis, etc.. We need all of you. Whether Anglophone, Slavophone, Greek, etc... Our damn curse has been fighting each other over the millenia. Ever wonder why Greeks don't rule this planet? My guess is that we slap each other around too much. After all we are united by blood (sure others have joined us, but the continuity of all the Greek tribes goes back to the ancients), heritage and culture.

If possible, I hope we can all learn Greek as well, but I won't give up English at this point, I don't expect others to stop speaking the language they can actually express themselves in either. Really everyone, it isn't that hard to figure out. Would you want to speak a language so poorly that others couldn't comprhend your sophisticated thoughts, instead coming out as childish phrases, even gibberish? Of course not. I for one, have shut my mouth at times trying to speak Greek as I have become very self conscious and embarrassed. Fortunately, most, that's most, have been with wonderful people that have encouraged, not ridiculed, my efforts.

Perhaps the problem is more complex than that, but let us not be naive, it is definatley a big part of it. Those people here who are the children of immigrants should know what I am saying. You know very well that your parents may speak with an accent, but do not think with one. how many times growing up did you see and hear them speak with their accents knowing full well, that they were smarter than people gave them credit for. For our Slavophomes, teach them Greek, that is great, but let them speak that tongue they speak best. Lets not be stupid and crazy about it. WE have to be smart. So speak Dopia, etc... We would all learn from the experience, and maybe Greeks would finally be united.

I just want to say to our Greeks around the world that may have turned Skopjian, we want you back.

[lokatzi]

hello everyone,

Zhto H Ellas 25th March. :thumbs:

i have friends who consider themselves Greek, but speak the slavic dialect at home, first up. They are Greek.

and what do you know, they are from Florina in Greece.

They also know and speak fluent Greek but the slavic language was taught from young, therefore being the language of choice.

However, I also know of 'Macedonians' from Florina who absolutely despise Greeks. They have Greek names but do not speak Greek. The speak "macedonian" (slavic). They hate Greeks with a passion.

My opinion is if Florina on this forum feels Hellenic, then Florina is Hellenic, regardless of what he/she speaks. :clapping:

im assuming the dopia language is the slavicmacedonian?? call me ignorant if not! :unsure:

[PhiliptheUniterchaeronea]

Welcome back to both Preston and Florina. Paidia, if our countrymen are lost over a border, lets not be happy of it. This is March 25th, a very special day for us, but we are still not united. Remember this, it may make all the difference one day. You never know when you'll walk into one of our own who speaks another language. S/he may end up coming home one day because they saw you cared.

[akritas]

I would preston ,,but you know what?

I am not explaining anything anymore,,,na ta vrite moni sas.

Geia Hara

Florina
Who told you to explain us ? Just tell us this typical conversation. :)

[Tsontos]

LOL@PREACHING!

What preaching Big Takis?

You call that Preaching?

You know your History?

Do You?

Well let me give you the ugly side of Our History...in one word...METAXAS!


I do not need to preach Takis..but until you actually start listening to your people of Northern Greece...Fyrom will exist..

Half the time I do not even know why I bother trying to explain anything..seems to me isaste sto kosmo sas...kai distihos afto to kosmo ine to Lathos stin Ellada Mas!

Becoz of this,,we know have Fyrom,,Don't we?

Hmm..well I think we as Greeks are on the right track!

It's called denial..ala to inati..vgasi mati!!

Min to xehnas afto..:)

For god's sake we know about METAXAS.

jesus christ

[Florina]

For god's sake we know about METAXAS.

jesus christ



Yes you do :)

So I guess there is nothing for me to teach you is there?

Or for you to teach me?

Since we all know everything...what is the point?

Oh now i remember..expressing our opinions...that's what this Forum is about...geez...man I am stupid aren't I!:read:

I will do as most do and go and read about History..Only one thing Mr BigTakis. to me knowledge is based on personal experience..not on Books:)

Shame!

Regards,

Florina