Romania OR How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Freedom (Gap) - Part 1
20 years passed not long ago - 20 years since Romania enjoys the benefits of freedom. Or does it?
I wouldn't have bothered to put this (I still don't know what it will be) in writing if it wasn't for one of Bogdan Gavrila's posts: 1989-2009: Romania After 20 Years, part of his and MAE's i love romania 'series', which contains a videoclip made for/by MAE (Ministerului Afacerilor Externe/Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs ) and published on MAE's youtube page and their ro20.mae.ro.
The video states that 'Romania was in a CAGE. It was the HARDEST totalitarian regime in Eastern Europe' - before '89, that is.
Fast forward 20 years and '2009 Romania is FREE. It deeply transformed itself: open society, EU and NATO member, free market economy'. Caini cu covrigi in coada, pe romaneste.
'Things are not PERFECT in Romania, but PROGRESS is real' - hard to argue with that too. Kudos to the lawyer who came up with this last line. If you're at least half way reasonable, you'll HAVE to agree that it's not like things are PERFECT anywhere anyway.
It's all so reasonable...but wait! you don't have to take their words for granted - there's more: PROOF! All you have to do is listen to all these (COMMON) people talking about how much things improved around here.
In a way, MAE does its job well...considering the situation. They're not lying and, for sure, the common people they interviewed are trying to be sincere about their feelings (grateful for being lucky enough to be part of a handful of somewhat successful Romanians). I can hear you say middle class...It's not.
However, the overall result is a lie. One that perpetuates and actually starts quickly gaining more ground among Romanians lately. More and more Romanians decided that they'll simply stop seeing the things that they don't like. They want to be 'civilized' (like in Austria), live good lifes (like is Switzerland), feel 'human' again (like in, I don't know...France?!) - at the expense of their own freedoms(like in Romania before '89). So why not endorse a fantasy version of Romania, then?
Wouldn't be the first time either. Like, for instance, '64; back then (25 years before '89) MAE also did a great job when they came out with this little jewel (which the West bought for a while):
RUMANIA
I wasn't born yet in '64. I don't know how life was back then but I have heard stories. I'm sure that my parents would have felt much better about life in '64 if they could have seen this video - provided they had a (color) TV and a television channel to broadcast it, that is. Instead, they were still recovering from having everything taken away from them by some fellow Romanians with shinny carnete de partid - communists, if you like...
Somewhere between '64 and '89, things must have gone south and Romania lost it's (advertised) freedom. Iliescu gave it back to us in '89 but freedom was still not quite perfect. He quickly took it back and out for a drive test for some years:
1990, Romania: Large scale clubbing (free entrance)
2000, Romania in an unedited version: Thomas Ciulei's 'Asta e' (1h 30mins long)
Several revisions later, it's 2009 and MAE would have us believe that freedom is a much better product, almost close to version 1.0.
Present (Political environment)
Iliescu and his party (PSD) had 85% of the votes back in 1990. Geona (PSD) got 50% of the votes in the December 2009 presidential elections. It may look like an improvement but keep in mind that Geona had the support of some of the same parties Iliescu's miners 'visited' and destroyed back in '90. Add the support of Timisoara's mayor - the town where the '89 revolution started - on top of that. Most television channels tried to ignore the fact that the people of Timisoara didn't really like that.
Against all odds, Geona lost - barely.
If it looks like the other parties are any better then you missed the point: they don't have to be so they're not.
Why not? (Part 2)
Before I get into what's right and wrong (next part) with Romanians and the parties that 'represent' them, refresh you memory and try to remember Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb movie made in '64. Same '64 - blame synchronicity for it.
Grab the DVD, download it, rent it and see it. Stop for a second and think about it.
I wouldn't have bothered to put this (I still don't know what it will be) in writing if it wasn't for one of Bogdan Gavrila's posts: 1989-2009: Romania After 20 Years, part of his and MAE's i love romania 'series', which contains a videoclip made for/by MAE (Ministerului Afacerilor Externe/Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs ) and published on MAE's youtube page and their ro20.mae.ro.
The video states that 'Romania was in a CAGE. It was the HARDEST totalitarian regime in Eastern Europe' - before '89, that is.
Fast forward 20 years and '2009 Romania is FREE. It deeply transformed itself: open society, EU and NATO member, free market economy'. Caini cu covrigi in coada, pe romaneste.
'Things are not PERFECT in Romania, but PROGRESS is real' - hard to argue with that too. Kudos to the lawyer who came up with this last line. If you're at least half way reasonable, you'll HAVE to agree that it's not like things are PERFECT anywhere anyway.
It's all so reasonable...but wait! you don't have to take their words for granted - there's more: PROOF! All you have to do is listen to all these (COMMON) people talking about how much things improved around here.
MAE's marketing attempts wouldn't be THAT bad if it wasn't for this statement (I promise I'll stop using CAPS after this):
'Common people have RESHAPED Romania from grassroots. They carry on its transformation.With THEIR dreams, facts, courage, power. And with their LOVE for their home'.Really nice copy - I like it a lot. I wish it was also true.
What MAE did was to fabricate a version of the truth that would look good while also being very reasonable. No lies - just omissions: choose the right people, ask the right (leading) questions and you get a good angle. Then it's time to make it watertight - the key ingredient is 'common', a single word that can project this 'truth' over everyone and anyone living in Romania. Presto!
In a way, MAE does its job well...considering the situation. They're not lying and, for sure, the common people they interviewed are trying to be sincere about their feelings (grateful for being lucky enough to be part of a handful of somewhat successful Romanians). I can hear you say middle class...It's not.
However, the overall result is a lie. One that perpetuates and actually starts quickly gaining more ground among Romanians lately. More and more Romanians decided that they'll simply stop seeing the things that they don't like. They want to be 'civilized' (like in Austria), live good lifes (like is Switzerland), feel 'human' again (like in, I don't know...France?!) - at the expense of their own freedoms(like in Romania before '89). So why not endorse a fantasy version of Romania, then?
Wouldn't be the first time either. Like, for instance, '64; back then (25 years before '89) MAE also did a great job when they came out with this little jewel (which the West bought for a while):
RUMANIA
I wasn't born yet in '64. I don't know how life was back then but I have heard stories. I'm sure that my parents would have felt much better about life in '64 if they could have seen this video - provided they had a (color) TV and a television channel to broadcast it, that is. Instead, they were still recovering from having everything taken away from them by some fellow Romanians with shinny carnete de partid - communists, if you like...
Somewhere between '64 and '89, things must have gone south and Romania lost it's (advertised) freedom. Iliescu gave it back to us in '89 but freedom was still not quite perfect. He quickly took it back and out for a drive test for some years:
1990, Romania: Large scale clubbing (free entrance)
2000, Romania in an unedited version: Thomas Ciulei's 'Asta e' (1h 30mins long)
Several revisions later, it's 2009 and MAE would have us believe that freedom is a much better product, almost close to version 1.0.
Present (Political environment)
Iliescu and his party (PSD) had 85% of the votes back in 1990. Geona (PSD) got 50% of the votes in the December 2009 presidential elections. It may look like an improvement but keep in mind that Geona had the support of some of the same parties Iliescu's miners 'visited' and destroyed back in '90. Add the support of Timisoara's mayor - the town where the '89 revolution started - on top of that. Most television channels tried to ignore the fact that the people of Timisoara didn't really like that.
Against all odds, Geona lost - barely.
If it looks like the other parties are any better then you missed the point: they don't have to be so they're not.
Why not? (Part 2)
Before I get into what's right and wrong (next part) with Romanians and the parties that 'represent' them, refresh you memory and try to remember Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb movie made in '64. Same '64 - blame synchronicity for it.
Grab the DVD, download it, rent it and see it. Stop for a second and think about it.
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