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[supporttheunderdog]

I don't claim to be perfect nor do I share a view that European Imperialism with the slave trade etc., of which British Colonialism / imperialism is but one example, was sweetness and light, in particular for indigenous peoples like the Australian Aborigines, Africans etc. who for the most part were oppressed and exploited. I am very well aware that, for example, the development of railways in Africa, etc was not to the benefit of the average African since by and large it was designed to move items out of Africa so that Europeans could enjoy cheaper products originating with African raw materials, and I certainly deplore the boorish antics of many Brits abroad, such as the loud mouthed binge drinking piss-heads who soil the streets of Agia Napa with their piss, poo and puke, or the drunken expat dangerously driving home after a night on the pop in Paphos,

you do however promote with excessive zeal the alleged virtues of ancient Hellenism while forgetting the vices , which I think is hypocritical of you, but I think you have rather narrow and rose tinted view of Hellenism.

[GreekIslandGirl]

Hellenism is still evolving. You're stuck in the past. One time point; nit-picking that things were not all to your liking 2,500 years ago - until the Brits came along some 1,800 years later to start the slave trade and lift themselves out of the doldrums and into wealthy civilisation. Hurray. Things are rosy now ... and it's not all about railways!

[supporttheunderdog]

Ancestors of current Britons have been identified as living in Britain 3000 years back - Cheddar Man. The British did not start the slave trade. It had existed in Ancient times including in Greece. The Modern transatlantic slave trade was started by the Portuguese. as for nit picking it is you who are principally selectively looking at the ancient but now faded glory that was Greece of 2500 years ago and dismissing anything from anywhere else.

[observer]

Hellenism is still evolving. You're stuck in the past. One time point; nit-picking that things were not all to your liking 2,500 years ago - until the Brits came along some 1,800 years later to start the slave trade and lift themselves out of the doldrums and into wealthy civilisation. Hurray. Things are rosy now ... and it's not all about railways!
Hellenism is still evolving. You're stuck in the past. One time point; nit-picking that things were not all to your liking 2,500 years ago - until the Brits came along some 1,800 years later to start the slave trade and lift themselves out of the doldrums and into wealthy civilisation. Hurray. Things are rosy now ... and it's not all about railways!

Quite wrong. Slavery has existed in almost every community that was more than hunter-gatherers. African, Mesoamerican, European, Arabian, Asian - in Britain they were called serfs, but it was still slavery. It was Britain in the 19th century that ended slavery in its Empire and used the Royal Navy in an attempt to suppress slavery elsewhere. Of course it was not entirely successful, as millions are stilll in slavery today, but I don't think you can blame the British for that.

[miltiades]

Hellenism is still evolving. You're stuck in the past. One time point; nit-picking that things were not all to your liking 2,500 years ago - until the Brits came along some 1,800 years later to start the slave trade and lift themselves out of the doldrums and into wealthy civilisation. Hurray. Things are rosy now ... and it's not all about railways!
Hellenism is still evolving. You're stuck in the past. One time point; nit-picking that things were not all to your liking 2,500 years ago - until the Brits came along some 1,800 years later to start the slave trade and lift themselves out of the doldrums and into wealthy civilisation. Hurray. Things are rosy now ... and it's not all about railways!

Quite wrong. Slavery has existed in almost every community that was more than hunter-gatherers. African, Mesoamerican, European, Arabian, Asian - in Britain they were called serfs, but it was still slavery. It was Britain in the 19th century that ended slavery in its Empire and used the Royal Navy in an attempt to suppress slavery elsewhere. Of course it was not entirely successful, as millions are stilll in slavery today, but I don't think you can blame the British for that.

Portugal and Britain were the two most ‘successful’ slave-trading countries accounting for about 70% of all Africans transported to the Americas. Britain was the most dominant between 1640 and 1807 when the British slave trade was abolished. It is estimated that Britain transported 3.1 million Africans (of whom 2.7 million arrived) to the British colonies in the Caribbean, North and South America and to other countries.

[GreekIslandGirl]

I agree that slavery (in its many forms) has existed over several times points in many different cultures, sometimes a consequence of capturing prisoners of war (as was usual in Greece some 3,000 years ago - and no doubt STUD's beloved 'Cheddar man' had his cheeses made by slaves ).

Mostly, I was alluding to how times change and we supposedly have become more civilised. And yet, not long ago Britain fueled the rise of slavery such as it has NEVER been seen before (you really need to read some testimonies of the time to learn how sickening this practice was - over 14 million enslaved to be transported across the Middle Passage).

Regardless, I'm not absolving other cultures from their participation, neither excusing the fact slavery existed in some forms many thousands of years ago, but please realize, the historical context was very different to now. Yes now, where even today we hear there are some 13,000 slaves in Britain ...

There could be 10-13,000 victims of slavery in the UK, far more than previous estimates, analysis for the Home Office suggests.

Modern slavery victims are said to include women forced into prostitution, "imprisoned" domestic staff and workers in fields, factories and fishing boats.

The figure for 2013 is the first time the government has made an official estimate of the scale of the problem.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-30255084

To tie this in with the topic:

I'll add that historical revisionism on the scale practiced by the wealthiest or most dictatorial countries (Turkey the biggest culprit) is one of my pet hates - and I'll praise many academics (British, Greek) who are trying to reverse this practice.