email to a friend

"Dear Xxxxxx,

Glad to see the convention went well. How was it from the front row? Lots of interesting jockeying going on in the race these days. Its particularly interesting to see it all from a Serbian perspective. I can tell you that Joe Biden is one unpopular man in this country! Wow. The media here are slamming Obama for his choice. I guess they still harbor bad feelings over Biden's involvement in the Balkans conflict.

But, they are no great supporters of McCain here either. I think in general, Serbs tend to think American Political power is to great and is used in ways it shouldn't. Of course, I find this fairly ironic considering Serbia's own recent political history, and the power of the Nationalists here. But then, it's always easier to criticize others. It seems this is one of Serbia's major problems, and why it is always in danger of reverting to nationalism and totalitarianism: Serbs don't face their own problems. They just blame everyone else for them.

Anyway... Send me your impressions of the convention. I am following the developments in the campaigns with much eagerness these days. It should be a good race, with a good result at the end."

Off in the distance, behind me, Edith is singing her heart out.

The political sanctions made Milosevic, he said.

At last, I am finding satisfaction of my intellectual curiosity and want of, what I consider profound conversation. MD is sitting in his office, casually slouched in his chair wearing his usual black jeans and white shirt, going into details over how the western sanctions essentially backfired and enabled Serbia's decline into austere nationalism.

In the 1960s we lived as westerners did. Rock music, I wanted to look like James Dean, I read James Joyce and Faulkner, he continued. But what is important is that MD doesn't want to make the mistake most Serbs make when looking at themselves in the mirror. He doesn't want to export blame onto to someone else.

We are like children in this sense, he suggests. Always blaming others for our misfortune, never recognizing that we are partners in this situation. He calls it self purification, but it seems to me that it is only skin deep, and doesn't lead to any change. Rather the result is in fact a worsening of ones psychological situation. Neither MD or I think that the Serb is totally to blame, that every actor in this theatrical performance we call geo-politics shares the blame. But as long as blame is being externalized, then the Serb remains a victim, and thus a prisoner, of their situation.

Take the paradox of the SRS party (the Radicals) who are fighting hard against EU encroachment in Serbia. Their support for the Pro-Karadzic rallies is case in point - they tell Serbs that Tadic (Tadic Juda!) is going to destroy Serbia by handing it over to those pesky Europeans. What they offer as an alternative is trully the paradox of paradox: A nationalist Serbia in league with its Russian Brothers. Slavic solidarity, though it has never existed historically, is the order of the day. Do they really not see that they are mearly trading one hegemon for another, and that they will still not be in control of their own house?

The conclusion is that this political rhetoric is just another way to justify political movements, and to gain power; it has neigh to do with a desire for Serb freedom or an improvement of life for the ordinary Serb. I ask if maybe this is not the signs of a dying party; a last ditch attempt to regain power? My colleagues at work all think that Serbia is on the European path, from which it will never stray. MD shruggs, and I agree with that sentiment. Who knows?

In the 1980s we all saw Serbia's future as a Western one, part of Europe. No-one could even imagine Milosevic back then, he said. History is never absolute, and always finds ways to shift gears.

Further reflections on a changing society

Serbia, the Serbian man: such complex constructs of history, time, religion, porno, and handbags. Yes, male handbags, or as the Serbian man likes to call them, Pederuca. You will recognize in the first part of that word 'pede', which is French is slang for homosexual. Thus these handbags a basically fag bags. But these are not items worn by the gay community, rather, they are high fashion among the hetero community. Yet they retain the title of Pederuca within the mainstream; a sort of recognition of the homo-erotic nature of this highly chauvinist male culture.

Thus the Serbian man can recognize his fag-ness without having to confront his own repressed desire to try 'it', even if only once. But it also serves as a way for the men to try and dominate each other (as if that isn't homo erotic), by making fun of each others Pederuca. I can hear them now: "nice pederuca, what, are you a fa***t?" Its similar to how American baseball players like to slap each others asses, or how high school jocks do the "sack whack." Alternatively of course, one might conclude that this is in fact a sign of how secure the Serbian man is, in his sexuality. Maybe, but if he is, then why is he so afraid of Homosexuals?

Serbia is on many levels a very intolerant society, including towards differing ethnicity, skin color, gender, and sexual preference (unless you are two hot lesbians making out in public, then they love it).  I am no expert in these issues, but I remember reading somewhere that we (earthlings) have a tendency to strike out at things we don't know, or understand. In the modern era that has evolved into what we call discrimination (racism, sexism, nationalism, patriotism, etc). It's all still based on fear in any case. So if the Serbian man is so safe with the knowledge that he really only wants to be with women, then why the hate?

The 'Out' Serbian Gay community is very small as a result, and it is fairly intimidated by everyone else. As a result of my flatmate, A., being gay, I have met a lot of the gay community here in Belgrade, thus I have this insight. The hate that this community feels is the product of the mainstream ideology not being entirely sure of its own identity, seeing in the "alternative" lifestyle a challenger. For what ever reason (I blame religious indoctrination, and recommend Caliban and the Witch to anyone who disagrees) this paradigm exists, it is symbolic of an ideological struggle and, more significantly in my opinion, a shifting society. With Serbia becoming a more open place welcoming in a growing number of tourists, western rapprochement, and with a growing gay community, the ideology is necessarily changing also. Even though ideology has never been a stable thing, the majority always try and make it so, in an attempt to stay on top, and react with violence when it is challenged, clinging to symbols of their ideology (i.e. the Orthodox Church).

Don't believe me? Go down to the Church next to the small Roma pre-school for the Gazela kids, and ask the Clergy why they are building a wall on top of the wall. Surly they won't tell you it's because they can't stand the thought of Roma being given a chance. Or you could ask a Serbian man if his Pederuca doesn't make him feel...a bit gay. 

News...

...from what seems, at times, like a distant star.

http://www.wgme.com/News/story_detail/story_detail_13.shtml?readmore

I am so please to see this coverage of the PUSL. The league really deserves this coverage. I hope this will generate some more interest for next season, as well as more revenue.

Captain Tsubasa. I reconnected with this series, thanks to youtube. It's a Japanese Anime series from the 1980s, which appeared both in Manga comics and as TV shows from the 1980s through today. As a kid in France I discovered the show by chance, and through it improved my French, where it was called Oliver et Tom.

The opening lines of the first episode caught my attention as I re-watched it for the first time recently. Tsubasa is in the process of moving to a new town in order to develop his football skills an become a professional. He is looking at a picture of the Italian national team celebrating their victory in the 1982 World Cup in Spain. Over the radio we here a voice announcing the Italian victory, and then speculating when Japan will be there, the best football nation in the world. The radio voice concludes that it should happen soon.

This scene is clearly setting Tsubasa up to be the hope for Japan, but more interestingly, it is also instilling a sense of National honor in viewers of the show (mostly young boys, I assume). This suggests that Football was one way for Japan to (re)claim national standing (which had been a touchy subject since WWII), and even that there was an imperative to do so. As such, football can be one way to promote national glory, to inspire the young to be proud of Japan, and maintain a healthy youth population.

There are also other indicators of cultural ideology present in the show, such as the housewife mother of Tsubasa, who only seems to exist in order to provide a home in which Tsubasa can become the hope of Japanese football. She spends her days cleaning, worrying, and providing, but never working.

Moving along

It's been a strange week, plagued by the illness of two colleagues, and the deaths of the mothers of two people I know. But the week ended with two days of traveling, first to Novi Sad and then to Alibunar for work related reasons. But the schedule was not to heavy, and thus, on our way home from Novi Sad, we stopped by a small winery and ended up spending two hours there, getting a tour of the facilities, going through the Bee museum (as the winery also maintains honey producing bees), and sitting with the owner, sampling the wine and listening to his philosophy on life. It boils down to something like Daoism: no experience is unhealthy, but must be embraced with moderation. It's like wine and honey, according to the owner, as there are only healthy ingredients in these two products, but consumed in excess, they can be dangerous.

I picked up a liter of honey and three bottles of red wine for less than 20 Euro. Plus I got a nice experience out of it.

On Friday I also went to the Tito mausoleum, which is just around the corner from work. The building is really nice, typical grandious Socialist construction, and the contents were pure mythology. The first exibit is a museum of all the gifts given to Tito by foreign dignitaries, leaders, and by Liz Taylor and Rich Burton (go figure). It seems Liz, Rich, the Marshall and Mrs. Broz were regular chums, with the only picture of Tito in casual attire being the one with these two thespians. It is also worth noting that all the gifts are made of silver, and include bracelets given by the Right Honorable Mr. Eden, tea sets from South Korea, and plates from Mexico.

Then you go out into the gardens, which are extensive, and walk up to a second museum filled with traditional gifts from various parts of Yugoslavia (clothing, weapons, furniture), symbolic of the unity of the State, and confirming Tito as the creator of that unity. The rumor is that a lot of the artifacts were plundered in the early 1990s by the Military under Slobodan M. After passing through this part, you continue through the garden and up to the actual burial site. The tomb is inside a building, with a few extra rooms filled with Tito's favorite stuff, including a Chinese dinning room set up, and the symbolic 'torches' carried by the Yugoslavs in public demonstrations of support for the dictator.  All in all, it was well worth the visit (not least because it was also free), even if it was bit heavy on mythology and glorification.

It does go some measure in explaining why this man still has a fairly well respected name across all of the former Federal Republic. People often talk about how Serbia, in the 1970s and 1980s was comparable, in terms of technology and living standards, to the west. It was thus in a great position to embark on its own journey (as a separate identity), yet those who took charge after Joseph Broz Tito, particularly the thugs in the 1990s, plundered the state, and set it back 10-15 years. This is best reflected in the countryside, where the infrastructure and farm technology reminds me of a German farming community from the 1980s, rather than the modernized ones of today.

The Chess Game

Das schach Spiel im Kaukasus enhüllt sich langsam. Deutschland macht das erste Schritt und unterstutzt Geogiens NATO-Mitgliedschaft.

 http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/602/306561/text/

Odds and Ends

Amalgamated thoughts and experiences:

Went to the 'Marine House' again on Thursday. Every Thursday the US Marines open their doors to guests to use the pool and the Volley Ball court. Its a strange experience for me, because it feels like stepping into an American party; loud electric and hip hip music are played, the women, all of them Serbian and artificial, are under dressed and looking to hook up with beef cake US soldiers. Then there are the Marines themselves: loud, aggressive, stacked, and living in the moment. Some of them are ok, some of them are not.

I had the (dis)pleasure of conversing with Dan, who had asked me to explain my job in small simple words because, as he put it, he only understands words he can spell. He then proceeded to suggest that "everyone in Serbia was really angry, but at least we weren't in Africa, because Africans were even worse than Serbs." Thanks Dan, and have a nice life. We will not be friends, as you are not interested in any of the counter arguments I attempted to offer.

I'm not sure if I have ever met such a blatant racist in my life before. It was a bit shocking to be honest. I thought, as I watched him consuming more and more alcohol, and become more aggressive, of the totalitarian character in the Republic. Old Joe from the Bronx had emailed me recently and told me to tick off the descending order of Plato's characters as I encountered them. Well, I have one down. I wonder how Dan feels today? Maybe he isn't showing it, but inside I bet he is torn to pieces. At least, if Plato was right, then that is how he feels.

~~

There was another protest the other day, this time it was on my street, right in front of the Foreign Ministry. The protesters managed to shut down Kneza Milosa and Nemanjina. We hadn't heard anything at work about this, so I was surprised when I saw my street shut off. At first it made me nervous because I could see a lot of Serbian flags waiving, and I thought it might be the SRS again. Instead it was a group of Serbian veterans from the Kosovo War in 1999 demanding back pay. Apparently these old boys haven't been paid yet! 8 years on, I might be a bit upset myself.

It made me think how refreshing it was to see people take to the street so often. Despite the fact that I disagreed with all of the causes of the various protests thus far, I like seeing people stand up for what they think is right. This is, of course, a dangerous thing and it invites the violence seen at the Karadzic protests. It also opens the door to a manipulation of the public by strong charismatic people (as Freud suggested). Yet, if all sides are reasonable, it places these issues into the public discourse in a way that it cannot just be ignored. I think America needs a little more social action. To often are big topics just glossed over because people don't take to the street, or if they do, then they do so in small groups, and thus they are marginalized and even ridiculed by the media.

~~

Off to Ada tonight to give S a farewell bash. He is a fell intern and heading back to the US on Sunday. Sadly though, my planned trip to Bosnia fell through as I am serious low on funds. But life is cheap here, and people generous, thus I will not starve.

The temperature hit 38C/97F today, and my God was that hot. Even just heading down the street to get lunch was brutal, not to mention the bus ride home after work. Sweat was running down my back the whole way. The weekend should be better, and tonight will be spent by the water, so it should be cooler.

The speculation continues...

I have been thinking about this since Skyping with a mentor earlier today.

Really, what could have possessed Saakashvili to think he even had a snowballs chance in hell to re-taking S. Ossetia? I mean, the Georgian military was vastly outnumbered and there was no way that Russia would not respond to a sudden military incursion into a de facto Russian province. So, I see two possibilities, and I am currently leaning towards the second.

1) Saakashvili was going for broke, thinking he would override forces (separatists and Russian peacekeepers) in S. Ossetia. His swollen military budget (and ego) and friendship with the West gave him a false sense of power. He thought he could get the Russian border ahead of Russian re-enforcements and consolidate. Maybe he also underestimated Russian resolve to control the province. Finally, he may also have counted on a strong NATO/US/EU response to Russian retaliation, forcing the Russian forces back.

or...

2) Saakashvili made this move to enhance his own power, and consolidate his position within the Western hierarchy. I came to this thought because what the end effect of his actions are, at this point, is an exposure of the West's inability to exert any control over Russia in this region. It is plain for everyone to see that Russia can regain its old Soviet sphere of influence if it felt the need. The speed at which Russian forces over ran the Georgians was rather shocking, particularly to the EU, which has some painful historical memories to a similar effect.

Ok, so what? how does this consolidate Saakashvili? Well, first off, it will play well to Georgians outside of S. Ossetia, because their leader fearlessly stood up and tried to reclaim what would be theirs. Second, it will likely re-invigorate the debate over admission to NATO. If Russia is able to so easily crush Georgia, it is clear that this territory is really their sphere of influence, and not the West's. Admitting Georgia into NATO would allow the West to beef up the forces there, and remove the State from under Russia's thumb.

So, was war the folly of one power hungry leader, or a shrewd Machiavellian move? Who knows... I'll never know all the details to really say. Plus, how would Russia react to Georgian NATO membership? Not well. The reaction would probably also manifest, in part, with a sudden drying up of energy flow into the EU.

a few more thoughts...

While Putin and Bush stood side-by-side at the Olympic opening ceremony offering the world beaming smiles and happy handshakes, Russia was beginning a crushing assault on Georgian forces in S. Ossetia. To be sure, both sides (Georgia and Russia) share the responsibility of subjecting these citizens to devastation.

Yet as Russian and Georgia faced off on a different pitch, the two sides came together afterwards to show that its really just a game, and they are just people. Salukvadze (of Georgia) came in third place in the Olympic Shooting event, second place went to Paderina (of Russia), and despite the war between their respective nations, the women were somehow able to stand together and exchange embraces.

What does this mean? Maybe that war is entirely fictional and created by a few individuals who have to much power. If war were natural, then these two athletes should have turned their rifles at each other and fired. At the very least they should not have been able to stand side by side.

~~

On another note, I have re-read some of my recent posts, and feel like I have been painting a slightly negative picture of Serbia. This is not my intention. I am having a fantastic time here, and have felt very welcome everywhere I have been. Certainly I have not been subject to any discriminations, beyond what one expects in any big, busy city on this planet.

D Time

Sunday is a great day in Belgrade, as the streets are quiet, traffic is low, and everyone is taking it easy, including me. So time to put on a little jazz and catch up on some writing. The following is impressions I wrote after my first few days at work.

~18/6/2008~

The Lady with the Che Mug

Two days of work are behind me now, and I have yet to figure out exactly what it is I am meant to be doing on a daily basis. More over, I only just got access to my computer (email and Internet also) and still am waiting on my security debriefing, at which point I also get my security pass. Well, ok, these are irrelevant details and I must say that on the whole, it has been a dobro experience, both Belgrade and work. I have also had a positive reception from all the people at work. That is, except for the IT department, but I blame my boss for that, as moments before they came to set me up, she fried my computer! Luckily the problem was quickly solved and we all got on our way.

So far, the only down side I can see is the fairly lengthy bureaucracy for any and all procedures. It really get in the way of work! I watched two of my colleagues spend tri hours just to fill out a funding request for a small project. At one point, one of them commented that you needed to fill all this stuff out even you are only asking for more pens... Then again, this is all tax payer money we are spending. So the level of transparency should be fairly high, and these bureaucratic methods do ensure that to some degree. Still, it does have a knack for killing creativity and spontaneity.

What intrigued me the most on my first day was being greeted by the department head as she sipped kafa from a Che Guevara mug. This evoked two responses from me:

1) I felt a fool for having left my Che shirt in Maine. I had done so because I was nervous about working for a major western political organization by day, and supporting repressive socialist ideologues by night.

2) I wondered if the department head used this as a conversation piece. It gave her a certain distance from the American regime (a desirable thing in this political climate.) and was thus a hit with the Serbian ministers.

Who knows? In any case the irony was not lost on me: here was a woman heading the department most intimately involved in re-education of the Serbian political and social community to adopt a more western ideology, and she was walking around the office accompanied by one of the most ardent critics of that very ideology.

Maybe she had a more sinister agenda here: maybe this was her form of victory dance. Western liberalism had won out over socialism and now she was drinking for the head of the vanquished. Is this her nod to tribal rituals of past eras? One day, I'll have to ask her.

Russia, oh Russia

Once again, there is war afoot. Once again it is in a region all to familiar with this brutal, life altering event. It looks almost inevitable that Russia and Georgia will be at War, if they are not already. What will this mean for the West? for the US? Will NATO be drawn in? Surly this is the front line with Russia, and both the US and NATO have strategic reasons for 'coming to the rescue'. All this can yield is further escalation between the Russians and the West, and history is all to familiar with that dynamic...

As I have just watched Zeitgeist, it seems so convenient (from the point of view of the Military Industrial Complex) that war and conflict is getting a healthy little booster, as if Iraq and the "War" on terror wasn't enough. Really, lets try something new for a change. I think 6,000 years of conflict is enough.

But what really has me mad, is the fact that S. Ossetia is right next door to Chechnya. Remember? That province in Russia that also wants to be free, but has been ruthlessly crushed over and over again. Sorry, why do they not have the rights that S. Ossetia has? And why does Kosovo not have this right either? Well, the reasons are economic and political in my mind. Obviously Russia wants to weaken Georgia, a country trying desperately to be part of NATO and the West, and Russia would like to strengthen Serbia, which (until recently) was fairly anti-West.

Lets not just pick on Russia here though, for the West is guilty of the same hypocrisy, only in reverse. The only reason they want to support Georgia, Chechnya and Kosovo is because it strengthens their position in this region. Why will the West raise military power against Russia here (in the name of freedom, self determination, etc.) but not on behalf of the most peaceful people in the World: the Tibetans? Basically, because we need China and can't really confront it, nor is there a huge strategic gain in liberating Tibet right now. But, to use Cold War terms, Containment is totally relevant in relations with Russia.

Once again, it all comes down to a war, a slaughter, over an invisible line in the dirt. We are witnessing exactly what powerful things national borders are. Yet, they only exist in our minds, and still they create such amazing devastation.

Democracy and the Serb

My body is still adjusting to this new life: 65% humidity, 28-35 degrees C, smog, creative driving solutions, strong coffee and cigarets, Yugos, weak beer and heavy food, bureaucracy, 45 hrs+ work week, Serbian language, diplomacy, and deeply rooted fear of the outsider.

What do I mean by fear of the outsider? While I think that Serbia is moving towards Europe (see below entries), there are plenty here who would disagree. The picture to the left is the name of a hooligan firm in BG, associated with Partizan Football Klub. Their name, Anti-Romi (anti Roma people) suggests their politics is Serbia for Serbs. This part of society is not interested in having anyone from the outside (Roma, Croatians, Bosnians, Muslims, Albanians, and Westeners fall into that category) tell them how to live, which laws to adapt and which of their heros to arrest.

Well, this is nothing new, any country that has been occupied and re-occupied for huge swaths of its existence would feel the same. But for Serbia (and possibly for the rest of the Balkans), the other factor contributing to its split personality is fear of change. This is a fascinating time to be here for that very reason. The country, thanks to the forcefulness of its political system, is currently inching towards EU integration, towards Westernism, towards Ipods, Nescafe and BMWs.  It is moving away from socialism, Kafa Domacha and Yugos. Cost of living in places like BG is already very high for such a low income country, tourists are coming with higher frequency, and Kosovo is slowly slipping away.

What isn't changing is the fact that change is being produced by totalitarian means. What's new right? Well, it's an interesting picture here though. I get the sense that if the country were to hold a popular referendum on whether to join the EU, the vote would be split 50-50, or the 'no' vote would just barely win out. In the the face of this indecision, the government is able to maneuver fairly easily. The voting population is uninformed and confused: 8 years ago NATO was destroying buildings in BG, today they are being labeled as friends. 20 years ago Serbs were once again standing up for their own unique identity, but today they are being told to exchange it for a European one (which comes standard with an ipod...).

The government is also fortunate to have a fairly significant concentration of power at its command (despite my current efforts at decentralization) and a disregard for transparency. As a result, legislation, when necessary, passes quietly and without public scrutiny (not unlike the UK in many regards). The saving grace at the moment is, ironically, the radical opposition in Parliament. Only they have the power to stop the current government from doing what ever it wants. This opposition has been able to shut parliament down for all of the last 4 weeks, and it will remain so until early September.

Anyway, whatever the mechanism, Serbians are recognizing they lack control in there own affairs. They (or at least part of 'they') are directing that fear at the most obvious target (Europe, the West, etc) without realizing they have never really controlled their fate (who has?). The result is polarization and anxiety, taken out on foreigners. The most obvious foreigners are the Roma.

I went to a Roma school the other day and celebrated the last day of class with young Roma kids, who wanted to do what all young kids want to do on the last day of class: sing, dance and have fun. But the Church, which occupies the neighboring lot, is so xenophobic towards this Roma school (god forbid they get an education...) that it is building an extension of the already existing wall, so they never have to look upon these kids. Its amazing, and perfectly illustrates how Serbian society is reacting to change. On the one hand you have the Serbs who work with me to help such marginalized groups find a voice, while other Serbs to to great lengths to pretend these margins don't exist.