In the circles I travel, if you mention “Greek Dog” the first thing that comes to mind is usually Cerberus. 

This time, however, I came across this story today about a dog that has been seen at many Greek protests over the last couple of years.

The dog, which has been christened “Kanellos,” has been seen and photographed at many protests, from the sedate to the violent.   The story, from the Guardian.uk site, has a slide show of fourteen pictures.

The dog’s got a collar so odds are he belongs to someone who’s been coming to the protests.  I don’t know if they’ve tracked down the owner and that’s the dogs given name or if Kanellos has some other connotation in Greek culture (it’s a proper name near as I can tell, as it does not appear to translate).

In any event, we know that there’s at least one Greek citizen with the time and inclination to voice his/her concerns.  I feel bad for the protesters though, because they’re just voicing their displeasure not offering any meaningful solutions.  Their country is broke, it’s past the point of no return (financially) so the government’s options are rather limited.  Protesting about cuts and taxes the government has  no choice but to make, without offering some other type of solution, is like demonstrating against cancer, or protesting tornadoes.

I think people really forget that they are the government; it’s up to them to make it work or change it.  Protesting about your government’s actions without offering a reasonable alternative is not only a waste of time, it’s bound to get your dog hurt eventually.