The State of Affairs Virtue and Money

The new authorities have no money for teachers, but they destroyed half a ton of pure heroin. The former administration, allegedly, intended to sell those drugs to the West, but maybe they had some better ideas, such as to distribute the heroin to the teachers, or inject it directly into their veins, in order that they cease striking. The new ones claim that they do not intend to print new money without the backing of the National Bank reserves, but it can neither be said that they are about to bring in some money or embark upon a robbery. On the contrary, they seem as if they want to extinguish everything that has been left since the war. Serbian economy has been nothing but a criminal felony, the pure example of lawlessness. All efforts were made by the state organs to suppress any feeling for decent work, and the robbery became the only job worth respect. In the country, which claimed to present the last resort of freedom and justice in Europe, the most people were brigands and thieves. To be normal was factually illegal and subject to penalty. Each time when something was demolished, it was identified as a sign of patriotism, whereas whoever wanted to fix something or have it built, he could have done it only at his own expense and responsibility.

Now, if someone has to be responsible for anything, the first thing to be determined is whether those two are human beings at all. Then, to agree on whether they are competent for doing all they have been doing. As far as the punishment is concerned, they are already in some kind of prison, without hope of ever getting out, so the actual punishment would be if they were released on parole and forced to walk along a crowded road - whatever is left can to the Hague.

However, regardless of their imminent destiny, Serbia now has to discover a new scrupulous way of being, without black market, thefts, frauds and producing counterfeits. It means that the new authorities first have to confess to the citizens that they had taken over a broke state and to suggest them to draw their own conclusions. The state does not hide that, but it does not find excuses for it either. Maybe the teachers and professors would hesitate to commence a strike, if someone told them that they should rather consider themselves as volunteers and understand their jobs as a hobby.

Teachers, as all other state employees, can say to the Government and DOS to go the hell, but cannot say that they want Sloba, Mira and Seselj back again. Hence, they can do nothing else but show the utmost understanding and come to an agreement about helping this country that tries to develop into a law-abiding state. But, the government that expects the people to endure the unendurable has to be very efficient, much more efficient than in normal countries. Here, if the reforms are about to succeed, ministers are expected to be saints and angels.

My point is that if Germany managed to stay alive after the financial scandal of the former Chancellor Kol??, if France managed to elude similar crises, if Italy survived despite the discoveries of corrupted affairs that cleared up the entire political elite, Serbia would not be able to survive a single affair of the kind. The paradox is that this country is just trying to recover and step into that world of scandals and affairs in the sphere of politics - that means that Serbia would have to change a great deal, in order to subsist such a degree of duplicity, and its leaders would have to be infallible.

This does not mean that politicians are obliged to employ the cheapest demagogy. For instance, Djindjic is not expected to set himself a teacher's salary, but if turned out that he, or one of his close associates, doubled his assets all of a sudden, it would easily cause a social earthquake. Therefore, neither DOS leaders are immune to human weaknesses, but now as they expect the citizens to labour without being properly paid, they are obliged to behave at least somewhat ascetic.

So far, Serbia will have to work leaning on hope, faith and love - all virtues of the developed world, which usually functions with money only. Those who see some advantage of it in Serbia, are maybe right, but only from St. Peter's point of view. However, you have surely noticed that not many people are willing to exchange money for virtues. In any case, I have no intention to elaborate on the general question of progress of our civilisation, particularly as I am not at all convinced that poverty is necessarily crowned with all virtues.

The readiness of this nation to suffer is the biggest pledge for the future and the only hope is that it will not thaw completely before the money arrives. So, it is very important to watch the virtuous Kostunica helping them to endure the hardship, until Djindjic manages to bring in some real money. If these things are observed from a positive standpoint, then it seems that Kostunica is a moral instructor to Djindjic, who is there to generate something substantial. Otherwise, it may seem that Kostunica impedes Djindjic with his moral principles, while the latter smears the former with his pragmatism.

I still have no gloomy doubts; I only know that it is the worst thing when something, which has no alternative, is about to get decomposed.