In the 1960's and 70's, chants such as “make love not war” filled the air. It was a historical time of hope, of challenging authority, of independence and of sexual freedom. People had substance, they held philosophical talks, maybe smoked a couple of funny cigarettes but nonetheless, they transformed the world as we know it. Today a new breed called the "nouveau riche" has infected our neighborhoods and instead of hearing “make love not war” you are more likely to hear, "double tall non-fat moccacino frappe, with artificial sweetener " or "don't forget to plug in your laptop before going to bed so it's charged for tomorrow".
Are modern day nouveau riche Greeks just money-obsessive, corrupt, arrogant, insecure, obsessive compulsive, anal retentive morons who are just missing the bigger picture?
Definitely.
I think every society suffers from a long history of worshipping wealth and when someone is "loaded" they are literally regarded as successful and people follow them around like puppies. In Greece this new generation of people actually believes that they constitute the “kalo kosmo”, (or the really good people – you know the type I am taking about, the successful ones, the trend setters), whereas everyone else that does not fit their "world" is known as “koinoi” (or in plain English the ordinaries, the commoners... or better yet the losers!) In simple terms, the society here is split in two because competitive classism has taken over.
This shallow generation of materialistic buffoons are the offspring (or are part) of the so called Greek revolutionary hippies of the 70s. The difference is that most of that generation had substance, they overthrew a military dictatorship, they wore turtle necks and listened to Theodorakis music and talked about politics, they cared about the environment and wanted to revolutionize the world. They had values, they were not shallow and most importantly they were not materialistic.
Most of that generation came from poor, humble and timid families, they believed in brotherhood and hard work. Their prototypes and heroes included the classroom teacher, the priest, the fireman, the athlete... and not Despina Vandi and Brad Pitt. After the fall of the Junta, a large portion of this generation got on the wrong path and became greedy, corrupt and super arrogant and today is more worried about the latest plasma TV and which hotel to book on Mykonos in the summer than they are about their very own children.
Speaking about their children, these kids are raised on television and Nintendo games, because their parents are always too busy to pay attention to them. Daddy always works late, but always finds time to spend with his mistress, while Mummy does more of the same thanks to the baby-sitting services of her mother. When both parents do finally come home, they make sure to supply their children with the latest toys in a plea of shame for leading their double lives. Superficial and without substance relationships, which have generated an even worse generation of wanna-be's.
If you are thinking yuppies, then think again. No, this new wave of Greeks stems mostly from the middle class. In most societies yuppies are known to be young college-educated adults who are employed in well-paying professions and live and work in cities. This breed differs greatly. In most cases, they are not educated at all, they do not only live in cities because this phenomenon occurs all over the country (and in every Greek community all over the world). This "unique breed" might indeed work hard but they would rather purchase a new car to flaunt their status (via a bank loan of course) rather than put food on the table for their families.
A shallow and without vision generation, or better yet, a unique in origin society of wanna-be’s, that are only interested in inheriting homes and fortunes from their parents with no drive, no motivation and no depth. A community that is too materialistic, arrogant to the core to anything that happens around them, a society that has forgotten what brotherhood and "filotimo" means, a group of peoples that simply follows trends because it doesn't have the courage to be authentic in character and a generation that aside from having a complete idleness in life suffers from the "me-me-me" syndrome.
This shallow generation of materialistic buffoons are the offspring (or are part) of the so called Greek revolutionary hippies of the 70s. The difference is that most of that generation had substance, they overthrew a military dictatorship, they wore turtle necks and listened to Theodorakis music and talked about politics, they cared about the environment and wanted to revolutionize the world. They had values, they were not shallow and most importantly they were not materialistic.
Most of that generation came from poor, humble and timid families, they believed in brotherhood and hard work. Their prototypes and heroes included the classroom teacher, the priest, the fireman, the athlete... and not Despina Vandi and Brad Pitt. After the fall of the Junta, a large portion of this generation got on the wrong path and became greedy, corrupt and super arrogant and today is more worried about the latest plasma TV and which hotel to book on Mykonos in the summer than they are about their very own children.
Speaking about their children, these kids are raised on television and Nintendo games, because their parents are always too busy to pay attention to them. Daddy always works late, but always finds time to spend with his mistress, while Mummy does more of the same thanks to the baby-sitting services of her mother. When both parents do finally come home, they make sure to supply their children with the latest toys in a plea of shame for leading their double lives. Superficial and without substance relationships, which have generated an even worse generation of wanna-be's.
If you are thinking yuppies, then think again. No, this new wave of Greeks stems mostly from the middle class. In most societies yuppies are known to be young college-educated adults who are employed in well-paying professions and live and work in cities. This breed differs greatly. In most cases, they are not educated at all, they do not only live in cities because this phenomenon occurs all over the country (and in every Greek community all over the world). This "unique breed" might indeed work hard but they would rather purchase a new car to flaunt their status (via a bank loan of course) rather than put food on the table for their families.
A shallow and without vision generation, or better yet, a unique in origin society of wanna-be’s, that are only interested in inheriting homes and fortunes from their parents with no drive, no motivation and no depth. A community that is too materialistic, arrogant to the core to anything that happens around them, a society that has forgotten what brotherhood and "filotimo" means, a group of peoples that simply follows trends because it doesn't have the courage to be authentic in character and a generation that aside from having a complete idleness in life suffers from the "me-me-me" syndrome.
Indeed these overly materialistic Greeks, and the struggle within the ranks of the affluence in any society of peoples, is not something new. Animosity between old inherited wealth and the appropriators of new wealth is universal, and in the Greek community it is even traced as far back as ancient times.
I accept that after 400 years of slavery, a series of wars, a great depression (known here as the psarokostena period), as well as political and economic instability as well as the sudden thrust of western influence and globalization, Greeks hunger for their place in this world, and I accept that new status symbols might have been created.This does not however explain -or forgive- the level of arrogance and the shallowness.
Luckily this is a small fraction of the population. Most of you might know them since they always travel in packs to trendy Mykonos, Araxova and other such hotspots, they always hold the front table at the bouzoukia nightclubs where Panos Kiamos or Anna Vissi sing, and they are the ones that flood the area of Voula in the summertime in order to flaunt their new automobiles. They are also the few that we always see at the coffee shops with 3 and 4 mobile phones on the table. Tacky... tacky... tacky...
I mean on what basis can a materialist support the notion that some people are losers because they –or the kalo kosmo- are privileged and more affluent than common everyday people? How did this so called "kalo kosmo" discover the perfect clubs, the right tavernas, the trendiest boutiques... the ideal tableware, the classiest curtains, the hot gadget shops, etc... Bobby's taverna in my neighborhood and the Armenian souvlaki shop nearby makes k**ck-a**s souvlakis, so why should I be termed a loser, a commoner, or as they say "koinoi" because I do not eat at a trendy Thai restaurant everyday? I have no problem with souvlaki, do you, do they? Sushi is prime, but hey... souvlaki is souvlaki!
Do these people really believe that flaunting this wealth gives them status in society?
WRONG.
Status is obtained through education and not via high-tech computers and trend setting cars.
Status is obtained through giving and living by example, and not by suffering from a "me-me-me" syndrome.
I know what some of you might say, those who are not as privileged, or whose parents raised them to be more timid and humble do not understand the more privileged, which in some ways is true, but arrogance my dear friends is comprehensible in every language and it is inexcusable.
It’s easy for these same people to argue that they got there through hard work & because they deserve it. But does that automatically mean that everyone else is at the bottom because they didn’t work & therefore don’t deserve it?
I say, there is more to life than just a fancy car, the ideal home, or the latest fashion wear. This is what the hippie generation should have taught its children. Money does not buy you prestige, because prestige is only obtained by cultivating your inner soul.
Now do not get me wrong, I do not want to come across as the new Dali lama but if there is no eternal cultivation in a person, then there is nothing. You do not need to be sociology major to understand that.
What this generation should realize is that our minds are not really minds, but are simply the illusory product of the brain. When our brains cease to function, it is not simply our body that dies; we die as well. As such, man's fate is no different than any other man's, so why should man classify and treat others differently?
But like I have said in many other articles, Greeks are a rare breed (even though I think this problem is universal) and although we are the offspring that gave modern society everything we know, we lack in many other areas that are more important. For instance, we would rather pay 200 dollars to go and watch Ploytarxo sing, than help a local charity, spend time with our children, talk about Greek national issues, plant a tree or even support a blog such as this.
Hopefully, with time, and maybe three generations down the road, things might start to change. But in order for this to happen, the problem has to be hit at the core.
I will accept the argument that maybe the notions and ideology of modern day nouveau riche Greeks is an attempt to find some meaning in a universe that has stripped them from everything that older generations were raised on, but I will not accept that they cannot change. Life is about choices, this was not forced on them. They know there is another road and I would advise them to begin challenging themselves to get on another path.
It is a problem, that unfortunately will not be corrected in our lifetime. Maybe 50 years from now, when someone is googling the words "nouveau riche" they will come across this article and smirk about the side effects of globalization. Hopefully it will be a different world then.
Now do not get me wrong, I do not want to come across as the new Dali lama but if there is no eternal cultivation in a person, then there is nothing. You do not need to be sociology major to understand that.
What this generation should realize is that our minds are not really minds, but are simply the illusory product of the brain. When our brains cease to function, it is not simply our body that dies; we die as well. As such, man's fate is no different than any other man's, so why should man classify and treat others differently?
But like I have said in many other articles, Greeks are a rare breed (even though I think this problem is universal) and although we are the offspring that gave modern society everything we know, we lack in many other areas that are more important. For instance, we would rather pay 200 dollars to go and watch Ploytarxo sing, than help a local charity, spend time with our children, talk about Greek national issues, plant a tree or even support a blog such as this.
Hopefully, with time, and maybe three generations down the road, things might start to change. But in order for this to happen, the problem has to be hit at the core.
I will accept the argument that maybe the notions and ideology of modern day nouveau riche Greeks is an attempt to find some meaning in a universe that has stripped them from everything that older generations were raised on, but I will not accept that they cannot change. Life is about choices, this was not forced on them. They know there is another road and I would advise them to begin challenging themselves to get on another path.
It is a problem, that unfortunately will not be corrected in our lifetime. Maybe 50 years from now, when someone is googling the words "nouveau riche" they will come across this article and smirk about the side effects of globalization. Hopefully it will be a different world then.
Closing this article I just want to say that I really pity this small fraction of Greek society, that focuses on individualism, and self-interest because convenience and expediency as well as profitability have become the new values. Indeed its an exploitative world capitalist/neo-colonial system, which means that 80% of the world must suffer for the other 20% to live well and this is probably explains the actions of this so called "new breed" of Greeks.
I also want to say that I appreciate being raised in a more humble home, where brotherhood and "filotimo" were the A and Z of everyday life. So go ahead.. call me a “koinoi” or a commoner… I really do not care and this is simply because the riches instilled in my soul is the prestige that your Ferrari will never be able to reach!
Signed
Signed
Marina Spanos
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