“I don’t care about the afterlife at all, death is the end of everything,” he once said. Theodoros Pangalos. His confession to Notis Papadopoulos was similar: “Life is one and only. […] Live the way you want. […] And in the end you will remember only those women who loved you and loved you. There is nothing left.”

The turn to sensationalism is indicative of people who have lived their youth in “refuges of ideas” (according to the original expression of Christos Jannaras). Ideocracy at some point becomes fruitless, tiresome. T. Pagalos was interested not so much in how he would be remembered as in what he himself would be remembered for.

As a philosophy of life, his concept expressed the dominant neo-Hellenic position of the last fifty years: individualized eudemonism. As a political concept, he seemed to perceive politics as just another activity rather than the preeminent “architectural” activity of the “city”. A statesman is interested in posterity not in vain, but in an exemplary way: so that his descendants will positively evaluate his contribution to the cause of the common good, so that his contribution becomes a role model. Let them say, for example: the State Council is the work of Venizelos, the inclusion of Karamanlis in the EEC, the creation of ASEP Peponis, etc.

The predominant posthumous description of Theodore Pagalos is that of an “intelligent” person. The characterization reflects the spirit of the era more than it describes the deceased: it expresses a modern obsession with cognitive intelligence to the detriment of the assessment of character. The main feature of T. Pagalos was not so much intelligence as witty iconoclasm – to focus attention on oneself with statements that unconventionally embellish established ideas.

Serial iconoclasts usually take comfort in the fame they enjoy. T. Pangalos was no exception. “Has anyone ever asked a cow how it feels every time she spills her milk?” – he said.

His language combined the spontaneity of coffee communication with the causticity of an aphoristic writer and the insight of an experienced commentator. It was obvious that he had a spiritual depth. Listening to him, you were certainly not impressed. However, if you were looking for complex analysis and genuine reflection, you would not always find them, especially in the last decade of his life. Most of all, he loved telling stories and sticking up.

The rise of political violence and vulgarity during the memorandum era hardened his thinking. I will never forget how protesters shouted at the Outraged rally in front of the Unknown Soldier in 2011: “Tonight to the podium.” Since 2010, he has felt that he is engaged in trench warfare, especially with those “regressive” and “marginal” leftists, as he called them, who condone violence and tolerated political vagrancy. His speech became harsher, more defensive and scattered. I was personally convinced of this when I participated with him in the TV show “On the Edge”.

Studying at the Sorbonne and living in the intellectually stimulating Paris (1965-1978) refined his thinking. He added culture and cosmopolitanism to the militancy of his student years in Athens as part of the Lambrakes. Under the influence of the French anti-totalitarian left, he could not long endure the dogmatism and wooden speech characteristic of the Greek communists. He left the KKE during the 1968 split, but did not follow even the so-called Renovationist Left to the end. Most likely because, on the one hand, he knew the human geography of the area from the inside (hypocrisy and pettiness, which often distinguished supposedly disinterested ideologists), on the other hand, a politically ambitious and capable person would look for other, more promising outlets. Where; In fast growing PASOK.

His relationship with Andreas Papandreou was ambivalent. He admired him intellectually and was grateful that the centre-left had provided a viable existence, but, especially after 1989, he began to distance himself from him. He was worried about the rapid degeneration of PASOK into a party of sycophants after Papandreou’s illness. He ardently supported the election of Simitis. However, he remained silent on many bad texts of his party. He considered unimportant the transfer by Siemens to the party treasury of 1 million German marks. He acknowledged widespread corruption but did nothing about it. He criticized Giannizi’s bold reform of the insurance system.

He said after the bankruptcy the notorious “we all ate together”, not realizing the logical problems created by the self-referentiality of his statement: if politicians are evil, then the one who admits it is also evil, therefore he excludes himself from the exercise of public service, which, despite what, he continues to exercise! It is as if the chief of police of Mykonos confesses to the vices of his service and remains at his post.

Underlying his political behavior was, on the one hand, his elitist tendency to challenge and even ridicule the citizens he represents, and, on the other hand, his self-image that he was more of a commentator than a politician. actor. He lacked patience, self-discipline and method, the elements that determine political effectiveness. That is why his stay in the productive ministries (trade, transport) was rather mediocre. That is why, despite his undoubted intellectual qualities, he could not become the first violin in his party.

His terms at the Foreign Office were generally very good, which contributed to the country’s European path. He enjoyed doing foreign policy, perhaps because he liked to be equally and confidently elected away from the electorate, with colleagues in high politics. The Republic of Cyprus is grateful to him for his decisive contribution to its accession to the EU. without resolving the Cyprus issue. This was a significant achievement.

“I don’t consider myself a person that history will remember,” he said. In the end, he was probably right – most politicians will remain footnotes at best. However, in a short human time, he enriched the social life of the country in various ways.

* Mr. Haridemos K. Tsoukas (www.htsoukas.com) is Professor at the University of Cyprus and Research Professor at the University of Warwick.