As of April 2010, the jewel of Athens and an icon of Greece will no longer belong to the outraged and humiliated Greeks. The besmirched country now lies in debt estimated 413.6 billion dollars and though the government relentlessly slashes away at expenses and has implemented numerous austerity measures, Greece's credit rating continues to plummet into unfathomable depths.
What else can they do?
Two German MPs suggest a fire sale of Greek islands, and the Acropolis and the Parthenon to keep bankruptcy at bay. To this, the proud Greek public responded with outrage and they went so far as to boycott German goods and the government responded with cool resolve. However, as the economic situation worsens, unemployment rises in waves, unrest grows exponentially and the countries debt is larger than the country's economy, the nationalistic and patriotic Greeks considered the inconsiderable.
But first of all, when did Greece, famous for white washed houses on cliff sides, delicious Baklava, the crystal Aegean Sea, great thinkers such as Plato, and some of the best night life in Europe, leaves the covers of “Travel and Leisure” and instead is found on the front page of “Business Week?” CNN states that “years of unrestrained spending, cheap lending and failure to implement financial reforms left Greece badly exposed [to economic downturn.] This whisked away a curtain of partly fiddled statistics to reveal debt levels and deficits that exceeded limits set by the eurozone.” Furthermore, its immense debts are predicted to reach 120 percent of their gross domestic product in 2010.
The Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou immediately began implementing harsh and unpopular thrift plans such as raising taxes on fuel, tobacco and alcohol and applied tough new tax evasion regulations. However, even such drastic measures fell short of the goal.
Greece's condition only worsens -- and worsens exponentially. Turning downcast eyes back to the German headline "Sell your islands, you bankrupt Greeks! And sell the Acropolis too!” weary, humiliated and seething Greeks make the fated decision to put their treasured landmarks, islands and artifacts up for auction.
At a whopping 6 billion dollars, the Parthenon was first monument to be “going, going gone.” Sold! -- to the computer tycoon Bill Gates himself! Not known to spend money so extravagantly on himself, he assured our comrade and foreign correspondent Katherine Burgess that this was purely an altruistic venture. He told comrade Burgess that he “did not feel at all guilty that I bought the Parthenon. On the contrary, the Gates will be able to restore and maintain this wonder of the ancient world far better than the Greeks are able at this time. This endeavor to preserve world cultural sites and cherish them for thousands more years to come.”
Not to be outdone by Gates, the other billionaires of the world are hungrily snapping up Greek icons — but for less philanthropic reasons than Bill Gates. Celebrities such as Tiger Woods and Oprah now have private, uninhabited islands under their name, and art dealers all over the world are thrilled as ancient Greek masterpieces trickle into their collections. And renowned authoress J.K. Rowling secured the two “priceless” jewels of the National Museum of Athens: the bronze Poseidon and the gold death mask of Agamemnon.
On the same note, Carlos Slim Helu, currently the richest man in Mexico and the world, bought the sprawling Palace at Knonos, Crete where according to myth Theseus slew the Minotaur.
Mr. Helu will himself have to slay many a minotaur before he accomplishes his own quest. Buying the palace for eight billion, he plans to transform the ancient palace into a fully functional and luxurious residence. He assured the Greeks and the world that the ruins would not be harmed or damaged in any way. He shall live as a god on earth!
And speaking of the gods, Mukesh Ambani, a multibillion dollar Indian, means to be the closest man to them. Purchasing Mt. Olympus itself, his one billion dollar, twenty-seven story house will sit atop the seat of Zeus. I wonder how he will feel about sharing.
But more importantly, how do the Greeks feel about sharing their land and monuments with foreigners? Well if the Greek populace was angry at the budget cuts, then it is wild with patriotic furry now. Public outcry has grown so loud and abrasive to the ears f the government that they may wish they had remained in debt.
One fuming old man said, angry at the Germans, for their suggestion had spawned the government's decision, that “when we were carving beautiful statues like the Venus de Milos...they were living in caves and growling like dogs."
A young girl echoed her elders words she told comrade Burgess “this is the worst humiliation in Greek history, the result of weak and spineless leaders. Those things belong to the Greeks and their history only, not the Americans or Brits or Indians. We spilt our blood for those islands and monuments on the past and we would spill our blood for them now!”
But we, we the exploited slaves, not of economical burdens, but of the tyrannical reign of the despots of the pen, will never sell ourselves, or our proud history, as the Greeks have sold theirs. We will hold on with bleeding hands, heaven turned eyes and proud hearts to the days when the divinity of the written word was not stifled and manipulated by oppressive conventions and regulations. We will never falter! Keep the flame of the Revolution blazing, keep it strong, and keep it forever bright.
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