by Flavio Goncalves
I’m as anxious as most of you as to what is coming out of Hellas (or Greece) when the apparently Anarchist insurrection – not even the people taking part in it dare call it a revolution – gives way to some real social change or, better yet, may the spirit of insurrection spread throughout Europe.
So far Euribor seems to be dropping rapidly, the oil prices are also down, even so the effects of the crisis that is taking over the whole world seems to be here to stay and is causing some social, or at least market changes: the cheapest supermarkets chain stores in Portugal had their worst month, as far as sales go, this season: December.
December is in itself the most profitable month of the year for most stores, this year it wasn’t. Surprised? I was, but I was even more surprised when I found out that even though most economic supermarkets were empty, all the expensive stores and shopping centres had long lines of costumers and the parking spots completely loaded almost during the whole month.
So, it seems people are saving – and maybe starving – to buy all the expensive useless junk (or ‘stuff’ as John Zerzan puts it) they got used to purchase during all those golden years of savage Capitalism and Market Christmas.
The supermarkets sold hardly any flour, sugar and milk, but all the cakes and candy shops had lines all the way to the sidewalks. What does this mean? That people these days rather pay 4 our 5 times more and buy ready-made foods and packed all the sweets our grandparents and even our parents used to bake in their home kitchen.
If saving money on what is cheap in order to buy what is expensive or buy take-out instead of choosing basic ingredients for cooking, how alienated the Portuguese society (and I’m guessing European society as a whole) has become!
We can only hope for a way out, but after the system crumbles – and by the looks of it that is happening now – how will we deal with a population that has relied on such luxuries and commodities? Will they be ready for some real change? And, most importantly, will they want change?
Just a thought to keep you busy in 2009…
I’m as anxious as most of you as to what is coming out of Hellas (or Greece) when the apparently Anarchist insurrection – not even the people taking part in it dare call it a revolution – gives way to some real social change or, better yet, may the spirit of insurrection spread throughout Europe.
So far Euribor seems to be dropping rapidly, the oil prices are also down, even so the effects of the crisis that is taking over the whole world seems to be here to stay and is causing some social, or at least market changes: the cheapest supermarkets chain stores in Portugal had their worst month, as far as sales go, this season: December.
December is in itself the most profitable month of the year for most stores, this year it wasn’t. Surprised? I was, but I was even more surprised when I found out that even though most economic supermarkets were empty, all the expensive stores and shopping centres had long lines of costumers and the parking spots completely loaded almost during the whole month.
So, it seems people are saving – and maybe starving – to buy all the expensive useless junk (or ‘stuff’ as John Zerzan puts it) they got used to purchase during all those golden years of savage Capitalism and Market Christmas.
The supermarkets sold hardly any flour, sugar and milk, but all the cakes and candy shops had lines all the way to the sidewalks. What does this mean? That people these days rather pay 4 our 5 times more and buy ready-made foods and packed all the sweets our grandparents and even our parents used to bake in their home kitchen.
If saving money on what is cheap in order to buy what is expensive or buy take-out instead of choosing basic ingredients for cooking, how alienated the Portuguese society (and I’m guessing European society as a whole) has become!
We can only hope for a way out, but after the system crumbles – and by the looks of it that is happening now – how will we deal with a population that has relied on such luxuries and commodities? Will they be ready for some real change? And, most importantly, will they want change?
Just a thought to keep you busy in 2009…
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