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In short, if I were a Greek, remembering World War II, billions of dollars in past
American aid, salvation from the Warsaw Pact, and relative peace with Turkey,
I wouldn't have so easily abandoned the old special American friendship.

Too bad the Greeks didn't learn from the Germans, the French and a whole roll-call
of weasels.

They thought their American aid/subsidy program was a never-ending entitlement.

Now, even the Greeks are learning a lesson about democracy (actually
representative republicanism)...
defecate long enough and often enough on a long-suffering friend and they will eventually leave.
And will gather up as many of their "marbles" as possible and go find
newer, truer friends.

Like the Poles.

actually they never got the real benefit of aid after wwII.

between 1945 and 1951 the people of Greece were engaged in a civil war incursion by communists trying to take the country by force of arms. It was bloody and brutal. (there is a good book call "by fire and axe" by Averoff. It is in english)

In the end, British troops helped put the final tilt to blast the commies. (as in they used tanks in downtown athens)

The Americans and British agreed to allow a 10% commie presence in Greece to allow the USSR to stop the military arms help to the insurgents. When the states could have spoken out to support the anti-communist forces and even supplied a bullet or two, there was only silence.

Greeks remember the USA selling out a piece of the future politics, Instead of killing the commies, they set up the country for a military coup in the mid 60's, and incompetent and corrupt socialist driven gov in 70's which made people long for the junta, During the 80's the socialiest emerged but were voted out by the stagnation and inflation they brought the ecconomy.

It is only lately that the young people are turning ecconomically capitalist. They see the only way to ensure their national prosperity is to GROW THE ECCONOMY. This willnot happen under socialism or communism.

The old timers from WWII felt abandoned. (much like the Iaqi's of 1992 uprising)

Their silence during the Iraqi war is what is keeping the subsidies going. Greece gets money from the EU for historic preservation, The UN for restoration, and from the US for military assistance. Greece sees itself as caught in the middle between the larger forces at work in the world. Its sad.