Backfiring institutional transgressions

It is surely a coincidence that "the report on the wiretapping case came out one day before Parliament closed and two days before August, the laziest month of the year," as Kathimerini reported recently. But it is the worst timing for the government and the judiciary, because in August, when there is no news, people have plenty of time to chat and conspire about a case that - let's be honest - ticks all the necessary boxes to become the focus of discussions at seaside tavernas.

The wiretapping case has all the makings of a spy thriller. Dark agents who eavesdrop on prominent figures of politics, society, ministers, journalists, judges etc. It has the murder of a journalist, companies that create shady software with exports to third world dictatorial regimes, plus Israel, whose mention alone adds five conspiracy theories to every chat. And if some people claim now that the...