Ovi Magazine Issue #24: Nationalism - Published: 2013-01-31

Welcome
Like everything else in Ovi magazine there is a constant evolution, we try to correct, change, adapt if
necessary; always inside the red lines we have mark ourselves. Tolerance, democracy, freedom of speech,
respect, anti-racism, anti-fascism.
And since I talked about our red lines time to return to the
theme of this issue. Nationalism. And I must admit that in the
beginning except the challenging of the issue I felt a certain
enthusiasm seeing in it a good chance to exhibit all the above.
Then questions started. So what is nationalism and how you
identify nationalism. As oppose to patriotism or as a partner
to fascism? Hitler was a nationalist; he actually flagged the
word as the essence of his philosophy. But Stalin and Mao
were also nationalists in their own very unique and twisted
way.
What about Argentina’s Peron? And why the most nationalistic
elements of the British populist spectrum admire Margaret
Thatcher? Was Yasser Arafat a nationalist or a liberator
patriot and then what does that makes the Iranian mullahs and
the Afghani Taliban? And the same time the Lapi people, the
indigenous that live in a non existent situation between Russia,
Finland and Sweden they also talk about the nation and
need for national unity. Again the words “nation,” “nationalism”
jump here and there always with different meanings and
approaches.
“How far
semantics
can excuse a
holocaust in
the name of
nationalism?”
Semantics you might say. I absolutely agree. It is about semantics but how far semantics can excuse a
holocaust in the name of nationalism? Now we are all more confused since we are talking theoretically about
something that has cost millions of lives.
In this thematic issue of the Ovi magazine we are not giving answers about “nationalism.” We simply express
opinions. We also start a dialogue with only aim to understand better. That’s why we invite everybody
to participate and you can do that in our magazine. You can do it commenting or sending your own opinion/
essay/article and we promise to publish it.
Ovi magazine with the 24th thematic issue, welcomes you to a new era and effect. A big thank you to all
the contributors of the Ovi magazine for their daily participation to the big or small battles we give, a big
thank you to the Ovi friends and a huge thank you to all the Ovi readers from all of us.
We sincerely hope that you will enjoy this issues of the Ovi thematic magazine
Thanos Kalamidas
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