Random shots for September 29
- I’ve been reading many disturbing analyses about the Greek condition from sources that do not mince their words. This type of reading makes the gap between what the Greeks think is “reality” and what reality truly is appear all the more glaring.
- I learned today that a good friend from the distant past suffered a serious health mishap. I am quite used to calamities but, for some reason, this particular news made me very upset. I found him on the cell phone and we spoke for about half an hour. He sounded scared — he who was always with two feet firmly planted on the ground and with many tough times under his belt. I guess he suddenly realized that we are all made out of clay… literally… and that a serious downpour could easily send us on our way. We agreed to talk again sometime tomorrow.
- The chaos that is the standard condition in Greece has become extremely acute, with elections and uncertainty piling up on top of a myriad other concerns. Of course, few Greeks see any other trouble but the economy. The vision of a world where people need to work and produce and accumulate wealth without basing everything on excuses hinged on somebody else’s omissions or commissions (the European Union? the Americans? the Turks? the Brits? who…?) makes Greeks very uneasy. The writing though is on the wall and it has been there for the longest time only everybody chose to ignore it.
- Professor Yannaras has been writing superb commentary in Kathimerini. He drives the scalpel straight down to the bone and, for his trouble, he is roundly condemned by leftwing “progressives” and that entire sub-culture of freaky “liberal” trolls that pose as “intellectuals” in this country. If you can read Greek and you’ve missed it, go read his latest.
- I’m sitting here at my computer-communications “base station,” which is rather cozy and totally connected to the ethereal outside, and I relish this little momentary sense of security it gives me deeply. This is my OWN corner, one that I could not afford a few short years ago. Listening to streaming radio over the Internet and carrying on with multiple conversations via chat takes my mind away from the gloomy surroundings only a few short steps away from where I’m sitting.
- Nabokov Tweaks Kafka. Don’t miss it.
- And a couple of photos:
Brekis wrote,
“Of course, few Greeks see any other trouble but the economy. The vision of a world where people need to work and produce and accumulate wealth without basing everything on excuses hinged on somebody else’s omissions or commissions (the European Union? the Americans? the Turks? the Brits? who…?) makes Greeks very uneasy. The writing though is on the wall and it has been there for the longest time only everybody chose to ignore it.”
For years people have been saying that Greeks will need to face a ‘harsh reality’, yet they continue to beat the odds. Why is this? Why is it that Greeks manage to avoid facing the music like the rest of the civilised world? It was understandable in the 70s’ and 80’s, but for years the ‘experts’ predicted the doom and gloom scenario of post-Olympics Greece and it failed to materialize. Five years on, Greece has received little more than a slap on the wrist. The economy isn’t exactly in great shape, but it’s no different from the rest of the OECD.
Yannaris’ commentary was interesting, at least what i could understand of it, but Greeks appear to have discovered the elixir of life – the ultimate escape route. And it has served them well for the past 20 years, getting them out of trouble time and time again.
It’s evident that Greeks are highly creative individuals when they need to be. Imagine if they focussed their attention on something worthwhile?
Look out world!!
Link | October 22nd, 2009 at 02:34
Demosthenes wrote,
… but maybe we’ve come to the end of the road presently… you’ll see…
Link | October 23rd, 2009 at 23:10
Brekis wrote,
^^You may be right Demosthenes. The ‘growth pains’ will need to happen sooner or later. Greece has little manufacturing, a releatively weak service and financial sector, crippling external debt, a bloated public sector, and a pension system that is unsustainable over the medium to long term.
Either this generation, or the next, will have to pay for the errors of their previous generations.
Link | November 1st, 2009 at 14:34