First they came (or the conspiracy)

First They Came for the Jews

First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for me
and there was no one left
to speak out for me.

Pastor Martin Niemöller

We all know this inspirational poem, some of us have it on our walls even.
Last night I felt a whole new definition of it, when I saw this documentary (sorry in Greek only) about the "generation of 700 euros", the term that defines the part of greek society that has to survive with the basic salary, that of 700 euros. I am usually not moved by these things, maybe because I am an elitist at heart, maybe because I live abroad. Recently however, I have seriously entertained the idea to go back to Greece and I have started thinking about these things. Also my friends, who I love and respect, moan about money all the time, so it seems that this is a true thing, not some kind of exaggeration.

It seemed to me that if a person complains about something like salaries, it is very passé. Having a collective approach to things like that, seemed to me the quest of a different time, of a different generation. I've been very skeptical towards hippie-looking, '60's loving leftist youngsters, who complain about governments.

But I now see that I am very very wrong. Some things might look shady aesthetically (like demonstrations and men with long hair) but the actual issue is real and important. Because the Greek society is rotten in it's core to allow for all this. And this is where the conspiracy of the title comes into play. I've been raised to believe that the Greek family is better than all others and that it loves its children more than the others because they support their children financially. And this is the biggest trap that it let itself fall in. Greek governments never felt the pressure to look after young people, and pay them a decent basic salary exactly because the Greek family has always been there to help. And now you have this generation of well-educated people that cannot support themselves and struggle. And our government expects us to give up our independence and accept our parents' money forever. Why would I want to do that though? Why would I want to be forever handicapped?

The Greek government has proved that it cannot deal with such harsh criticism, that's why it sacked the journalist that did the documentary above. That's why, aesthetics aside, we need to become activists. Maybe well-dressed activists, but activists nonetheless. I really think that this is the only way. Governments rely on our passivity, our lack of action. For too long now, people could afford to do nothing. Not any more though. Because soon there will be nobody 'to speak for us'.