Thank The Crisis for less garbage

In the Greek capital, the volume of garbage has fallen by about 30%, due to the country's financial crisis.

This is not because people have begun to embrace a more frugal lifestyle, but simply because households cannot afford basic needs.
In Athens, the largest municipality of Greece, the volume of garbage has fallen by 29% in 2011. Deputy mayor A. Varelas says that in 2010 this drop was around 5 to 6%, but by October 2011 it had reached 27%. “The data for the last two months of 2011 are distorted due to the prolonged garbage strike, but it seems that the reduction in household garbage exceeded 30%.”

The quality of garbage has also changed. Gone are the large cartons of appliances such as fridges and televisions. This is not due to the new phenomenon of immigrants searching cans for recyclables, but to the drastic cut of expenses on the part of households.
It is striking that lately trash cans contain virtually no leftovers. A typical example is the lack of pizza cartons, while two years ago it was not unusual to find ten per can, often with a lot of uneaten pizza still inside. The deputy mayor adds: “These are all but gone now. The cans no longer contain large garbage bags, either. 95% of trash is found in small bags, because households produce less garbage.”

In the open air markets (held once a week in every neighbourhood of the capital) a new category of people has appeared, the leftover collectors. Mr. Varelas says that when the producers pack up after noon, these people ask the cleaning crews to delay cleaning the street until they have time to pick up any eatables among the discarded fruit and vegetables. These new collectors are not the typical homeless in rags, but neatly dressed people of every age who patiently wait to get whatever they can from the unsalable produce thrown away.

Source: Avgi newspaper (in Greek)

Famous director run over by motorcycle

Theo Angelopoulos, film director, winner of the Palme d' Or at the Cannes film festival, died yesterday, after being hit by a motorcycle, while crossing a busy street.
His crew was nearby, preparing the shooting of a scene for what was to be his last film. They were all wearing reflective jackets, except for him.
It was a mistake he paid with his life.

Since when is wearing a reflective jacket a prerequisite for crossing a street safely?
Why were there so few street lights at the spot?
Why was there an open shaft nearby, into which the director fell after the crash, compounding his initial injuries?
Why did the ambulance take 45 minutes to arrive?

If a celebrity cannot cross the street safely and be taken to hospital within time to be treated properly, what are the chances for the rest of us?

Theo Angelopoulos was - is - one of my favorite directors.
But even if he were not, the world is a much poorer place without him.
It is much poorer without the ordinary men and women who lose their lives everyday in Greece, a country with the worst traffic accident record in Europe.

Sources: Athens News, The New York Times, Huffington post.
Also: the director's biography, from his official website

Pedestrian streets - an invitation for action

Pedestrian streets are for pedestrians, right?
Well, not in Greece. They are for scooter riders who want to bypass the clogged streets, for car drivers who know that no policeman or traffic warden is going to materialize with a ticket in hand.

And what about pedestrians?

Well, they'd better learn to get out of the way fast. If not - well, it's their life.

The above scene is from Aiolou, one of the busiest shopping streets in Athens. The next one is from Themistokleous, a smaller street, but no less busy. In fourty seconds I counted 4 vehicles. How many does that make per hour? Per day?

Amazingly, there are some people who are not happy with the status quo. They get angry with passing vehicles instead of meekly moving aside. They have decided to do something to protest the situation. I'm one of those people.

Our meeting is at noon, on Saturday, February 4th, at the corner of Stadiou and Aiolou streets, in Athens (near Omonoia Metro station). There will be canvas, colors and brushes for the children to paint a better city, as well as jugglers and clowns to entertain us. There will also be a gaggle of like-minded people who are going to stop scooters and cars from entering the street. Everyone's invited. We'd be delighted if you would join us.

Pedestrian crossing? You must be joking

This is a typical pedestrian crossing in Greece.
Typically, it is blocked by parked cars and other obstacles at both ends.
People often ask me why Greeks are always jaywalking.
Well, how else can they cross the street?

An accident that didn't happen and the mentality of Greek leaders

Greek ex-minister runs four red lights in a row in a central Athens avenue. Stopped by the police, he believes he'll be let go as soon as he is recognised. When this does not happen, he derides the policemen, refuses to hand over his papers and attempts to drive away, lightly injuring the policeman who tried to stop him.

The Greek public is neither shocked or surprised by the news, but rather regards it as typical.

I will not comment on why the ex minister was finally released without any charges or even a fine. I will not even ask myself what would have happened (in the hands of our not-so-gentle Greek policemen) if any other citizen had attempted even the least of the audacities perpetrated by the ex minister.
I will only ask these questions:

What is it that makes Greek politicians behave in such a manner, as if beyond law and morals?
What gives them the audacity to break the law certain that they will not suffer any consequences?
Why are they always so surprised when they come accross its enforcers?
What makes them think that they can always bargain, barter, threaten or cajole their way out of any fix?

Besides those crucial questions, let us ask a few more:

When the people who run this country are so prone to breaking the law and so certain that they will not be punished for that, what does that tell us about how they run the country?
What are the consequences for a country so governed?

And, finally, what conclusions will their constituents draw from such behaviour?

(Most information from here. The night photo from here. The photo of the last traffic light violated, in Leoforos Vouliagmenis, from here.)

Happy New Year

What a year 2011 was! On one hand, the "developed" world is still reeling from a financial crisis the end of which we have yet to see. Arab countries are in turmoil, with people protesting against oppressive regimes and being brutalized for it. In the third world, violence, war, famine and diseases continue to claim their terrible toll.

Yet, amid this despair, a few glimmers of hope: "occupy" movements and self-help networks spring up across the western world. The arab world has seen two regimes toppled by their own citizens (and a third by foreign intervention) even if  the result is not yet the democracy the people hoped for. Only the problems of the poorest parts of the world seem as intractable as ever.

Oh, I so wish that 2012 would bring nothing but good news from every corner of the globe. I wish the crisis would end, that the economy would pick up and that no one would have to worry about their next meal or how to survive in their old age. I wish no gifted youngster would have to forsake their education just to make a living. I wish there were no prisons full of dissenters or protestors, no torture, no oppression. I wish there were no wars, warlords, conflicts or refugees. I wish every child born would live to old age. I wish every person had enough to eat and a roof over their heads. I wish no one cared about anyone else's color or religion. I wish education and health care were available to all. I wish the rights of every man and woman were respected and none had to live in oppression, submission and fear.

I wish the powerful had less power, the greedy less opportunity and the masses more say.

All in all, I wish for a year better than the previous one.

Happy new year, everyone.
May it be better than our wildest dreams!