With the advent of the television reality show Survivor people in Greece have lost interest in politics and found a new distraction. A distraction from what though? Why would anyone prefer watching two teams compete for food in what is probably the most inhumane reality show ever? The answers to these questions and more probably lie in the Greek media culture and its imposed caste system on our culture. Thus the two teams competing on the show are the "famous" vs. the "fighters" (note: titles mention famous players by their first and last names while the not so famous fighters are mentioned by first name only).
In what is a seemingly unrelated event almost a month before Survivor went on the air a spectacular accident caught on camera. Certainly a shocking crash and one that is in regular motion. According to early reports here in Greece the culprit was a tire blow out that sent the Porsche reeling off the highway and into the public toilets. Also there was an attempt to blame the ill design of the toilets, bad highway maintenance, road conditions, anything but the driver. The press would have stuck to their story too if it wasn't for public outrage on the internet. People seemed to think that speed and the driver's negligence had something to do with the accident and were very vocal and abusive towards the press. So after airing the 5 or so seconds of impact consecutively 100 times or more, the idea that excessive speed may have been the culprit surfaced in the news. Reporters were very careful not to lay blame on the driver but did mention that after 100 feet of skidding the car entered the pull off at a speed in excess of 180 km/hour (estimators put it at 280km/h). At this point, a couple hours after the accident happened, they also mentioned the name and identity of the driver. The unlucky man was the young son of the owner of Jumbo, the largest toy store chain in Greece. Media was trying to protect and stay loyal to their biggest advertising customer.
Jumbo's advertising campaign for summer may include this spot complete with a sexy "accident". Yes a little slip of the pillow and maybe some flesh will be exposed. You may think this is a tacky and tasteless ad for a company to run but these are mere details in the face of profits. Going back to the first accident you will notice in the video that there is a car parked at the toilet stalls that is obliterated during the accident. A man exits the toilets to see his vehicle in flames. His family (wife and three year old child) perished at impact. Seems that everything is ok now and we may see an ad with the lighter side of "accident". This is just one more symptom of the apathy that is growing amongst some circles in our little country. It is also what happens when you allow the press to play the role of a moral guide and advisor. Like mixing Brahmins with Pariahs all consideration for the truth and morality is lost in an attempt to guide and manhandle public opinion.
Listening to the news on private television one gets the impression that Greece has slipped into third world status. Looking at the numbers on ELSTAT, the official Greek statistic service, things are bleak but have leveled off and are now improving. Unemployment is still hovering above 20% and poverty is also at the same high level. Child poverty for the month of March, according to the news, is touching 45%. Greece is very much a country in crisis. The new year has brought in more taxes and most households are now bankrupt, the country has been bankrupt since 2010. Officially we are in bailout mode but the reality is we are in Survivor mode. Eight long years of this fake economic crisis have left us penniless (centless) and senseless. Antonyms for famous include: common, contemptible, inferior, ineffective, regular, obscure, normal, insignificant, weak, stupid, unimportant, unimpressive, usual, unremarkable, little, powerless, and bad. The famous are members of the tv culture whereas the fighters, their antithesis, are picked from amongst all of us, the supposed antonym of famous. I think the show will end up proving the opposite; it is the common man or woman that shines like a diamond. It is the "upper" caste that is the true Pariah. Calling yourself "famous" doesn't make you better.
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