The Greek Student:Hard working, stressed, unhappy!

A child living in Greece 13, 14, 15 years old is probably the most hard working citizen in this country! While the law states that the legal working hour for an adult is 8 hours per day, Greek students start their day at 7 'o clock in the morning and usually finish at 10 o'clock at night. They have to go to school in the morning, rush home to have lunch, spend their noon studying their afternoon lessons, maybe attend a sport activity, return home to study for the next day and end up going to bed exhausted at about 10 or 11 o'clock! Hard schedule,  don't you agree? They suffer from stress, sleep disorder and depression. The social pressure is high as family tradition wants greek children highly educated and qualified. In contrast, in most European countries students finish school at noon and have the rest of the day for themselves to enjoy their free time as they choose. The homework they have to do takes no more than one hour a day. Whereas the greek students spend the whole day trying to learn by heart hundreds of pages of useless material resulting an unbearable social and psychological cost.  What would you change if you were the Greek minister of education? What is the ideal school for you?

Santa's Helpers:Some things cost more than you think....

Christmas is a major celebration for the western world. The 25 of december is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ and it is considered a chance for family gathering and exchanging presents for the countries that are christian. But is it a religious celebration only? Christmas is a great opportunity for the market to increase sales as people tend to spend more money for presents for their loved ones. It's the consumers' paradise and the shopkeepers earn lots of money during this period. Everybody is happy, or that is what we are told! What about the countries that have nothing to do with christianity and christmas? Who manufactures the toys and the christmas trees that we put in our houses? Few will think why the prices are low and where do these toys come from? The fact is that the toys come from China, India and other mainly poor countries where salaries are extremely low and workers have to work for long hours making about 20 cents per hour. Another problem is that it is very likely that the toy or the christmas tree that you will buy is made by a child. Child labour is very common in poor countries like China and India, as there is no regulation to prevent this as the working force is needed to provide the products for the childen in Europe and the U.S.A. The Christmas joy for the children in western countries is the suffering of the children in China and India.

Greece in flames! Social unrest or Anarchy?

Teenagers throwing stones, cars and buildings are on fire, and Greek police firing tear gas are the only images being broadcast to the world, as rioting in Greece enters its third day with more demonstrations planned. But the unrest started long before the senseless shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros-Andreas Grigoropoulos. The officer described firing warning shots but witnesses have said he took aim at the boy. Since this incident more than 50 people have been hurt and hundred of shops, banks and cars have been damaged. Police arrested about 150 people. Protests have erupted in more than 10 cities across the nation of , including northern Thessaloniki and the islands of Crete and Corfu. Greeks overseas protested in London and Berlin. It has been the worst Greece has seen since the restoration of democracy in 1974, and the question is whether democracy truly exists in a country claiming to be its birthplace!

How do you feel about what is happening in Greece?

Mumbai Attacs

Indian security forces have been exchanging fire with gunmen holding dozens of hostages in two luxury hotels in the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay).

Troops surrounded the premises shortly after armed men carried out a series of co-ordinated attacks across the city, killing 101 people and injuring 287.

The hotels were among at least seven sites in the main tourist and business district targeted late on Wednesday.

Latest reports say the siege at one of the hotels has now ended.

Police chief AN Roy is quoted by Reuters news agency as saying hostages at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel have now been rescued, although there are still an unknown number of guests in the rooms.

Witnesses outside the Taj Mahal said civilians could be seen running from the hotel, some with suitcases. Ambulances were also reported to be arriving.

How would you feel if something like this happened in your home town?  

Why do you think terrorism occurs ?  Can you suggest ways to stop terrorism?

Which mp3 are you?

This is a presentation of two popular mp3 players in the U.S.A. There are presented to you in a funny way by a famous technology journalist who works in the New York Times. Technology plays an important role in our life. Entertainment, work, education and many more. The software, the design, the brand and the price of a product are the main factors that influence the decission of a customer. Which mp3 player would you choose and why ? How does technology affects you life? 

Global Warming

On Feb. 2, 2007, the United Nations scientific panel studying climate change declared that the human activity has "very likely" been the driving force in that change over the last 50 years. The last report by the group had found that humanity had "likely" played a role.

 The release of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases from smokestacks, tailpipes and burning forests has played a central role in raising the average surface temperature of the earth. Global Warming is further affected by the greenhouse effect. But what is the "Greenhouse effect"? A greenhouse looks like a small glass house and it's used to grow plants in cold climates. The glass lets in light from the sun and stops heat escaping. The earth is like a greenhouse. People release carbon dioxide and other gases into the atmosphere increasing the greenhouse effect. Scientists believe that global warming is dangerous for the planet and for humans. They also suggest the development of new eco-friendly types of energy -solar/wind etc. What is your view on the subject? Can you suggest ways to protect the environment? 

These are the lyrics by a popular band from the U.S. called the Red Hot Chlly Peppers. The band formed in Los Angeles, California, 

in 1983. For most of its existence, the band has consisted of vocalist Anthony Kiedis, guitarist John Frusciante, bassist Michael "Flea" Balzary,

 and drummer Chad Smith. The band's varied musical style has fused traditional rock and funk with various elements of heavy metal, punk rock 

and psychedelic rock.

In addition to Kiedis and Flea, the group originally featured guitarist Hillel Slovak and drummerJack Irons. Slovak, however, died of a heroin

 overdose in 1988, resulting in Irons resigning.^[1]Irons was replaced briefly by former Dead Kennedys drummer D. H. Peligro before the band

 found a permanent replacement in Smith, while Slovak was replaced by up-and-coming guitarist Frusciante. This lineup recorded the band's

 fourth and fifth albums, Mother's Milk (1989) andBlood Sugar Sex Magik (1991).

Blood Sugar Sex Magik became a pivotal record for the band; it thrust them into the mainstream with over thirteen million copies sold. 

Frusciante grew uncomfortable with the band's success and left abruptly in 1992. Kiedis, Flea, and Smith employed Dave Navarro 

ofJane's Addiction for their subsequent album, One Hot Minute (1995). It did not match the critical acclaim of Blood Sugar Sex Magik 

and sold fewer than half the copies of its predecessor. Shortly afterwards, Navarro departed the band due to creative differences.

Frusciante, during his time away from the band in 1998, completed rehabilitation, rejoining the band at Flea's request. The reunited 

foursome returned to the studio to record Californication(1999), which went on to sell fifteen million units worldwide, becoming their 

most successful album to date. It was followed three years later with By the Way (2002), which continued their success. In 2006, the 

group released the double album Stadium Arcadium. The band has won seven Grammy Awards. They have sold over fifty million 

albums worldwide, have had seven singles in the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 (including three singles in the Top 10), have had five #1 

singles on the Mainstream Rock charts, and a record eleven #1 singles on the Modern Rock charts.^[2]

Road trippin' with my two favorite allies
Fully loaded we got snacks and supplies
It's time to leave this town
It's time to steal away
Let's go get lost
Anywhere in the U.S.A. 

Chorus:
Let's go get lost
Let's go get lost
Blue you sit so pretty
West of the one
Sparkle light with yellow icing
Just a mirror for the sun
Just a mirror for the sun
Just a mirror for the sun

These Smiling eyes are just a mirror for

So much has come before those battles lost and won
This life is shining more forever in the sun
Now let us check our heads
And let us check the surf
Staying high and dry's
More trouble than it's worth
In the sun

Just a mirror for the sun
Just a mirror for the sun

These Smiling eyes are just a mirror for

In Big Sur we take some time to linger on
We three hunky dories got our snakefinger on
Now let us drink the stars
It's time to steal away
Let's go get lost
Right here in the U.S.A

Chorus
Let's go get lost
Let's go get lost
Blue you sit so pretty
West of the one
Sparkle light with yellow icing
Just a mirror for the sun
Just a mirror for the sun
Just a mirror for the sun
These smiling eyes are just a mirror for
These smiling eyes are just a mirror for
Your smiling eyes are just a mirror for