Issue 162

Political science students all over the world are being taught in the early stages of their studies that the best way for an authoritarian government – any authoritarian government – to enhance its own powers is to use a crisis – any crisis – as a justification. The bigger the crisis, the bigger the opportunity. At a time of a huge crisis it becomes easier to take away citizens freedoms and rights not only with a couple of decrees, but also with the general public applauding from the sidelines.

Anarcho-liberal circles claim that the Bulgarian chief prosecutor is omnipotent and controls everything. This is not true. This is propaganda.

Chief Prosecutor Ivan Geshev

Buying 50 kg of sugar will not boost your immunity.

Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev

The most polite policemen possible will patrol the hospitals.

Prime Minister Boyko Borisov

This is not the time to talk about democracy.

Through vivid and at times poignant images Communist Bulgaria shows what has remained of this country's Communist material heritage. Included are some would famous sites such as the Communist Party Memorial House on Mount Buzludzha, popularly referred to as The Flying Saucer of Communism, downtown Sofia with its Stalinist architecture, and many monuments of Second World War resistance fighters. Thirty years after the collapse of the Iron Curtain most have been abandoned and are in various stages of decay, exuding eerie, even otherworldly vibes.

Many cities are situated on famous rivers or seas, but Edessa, in northern Greece, was founded on waterfalls.

Edessa sits on the edge of one of the easternmost outcrops of the Pindus mountains, where streams and rivulets jump through thick greenery and fantastically shaped rocks. Water has been its defining feature since the very beginning, as evident in its Greek and Bulgarian names. Both Edessa and Voden mean Water City.

Most of the houses in the village were uninhabitable. The residents of the rest of them were old people and Gypsies. On the whole, peace and love didn't exactly reign, but there was tolerance and an absence of extensive problems. The elderly Bulgarians were situated in the upper mahala, and their dark-skinned younger neighbors – in the lower one. The store on the village square was in the middle of the village and served as a linguistic point of contact.

In days when it seems that the world has stopped stopped in its tracks, we begin to pay attention to details which until recently we found of little significance. Millions of families who now have to work and study at home discover the limitations and opportunities of their homes. The apartments and houses that until recently were residential space only, now need to replace the workplaces, the schools, the universities.

Life caught us all by surprise and the notion that long-term planning is pointless and even impossible settled in the business field. But when we look at things in perspective, we begin to realise that we should not underestimate long-term planning. Yes, recently were cancelled events that were planned for months and years: from the Tokyo Olympiad to countless sport competitions, conferences, public talks, teambuildings, concerts and weddings.