This weekend, all the ATMs in Athens ran out of cash. I tried a few, and always when I'd turn away empty-handed, someone would be standing there, and would ask "Anything?". No, nothing. I've been talking to the students about the crisis, of course, and why I'm not really scared. First of all, this is their crisis, not ours. Our concern is simply about short-term cash flow. Did we withdraw enough euros from our stable bank accounts to cover expenses for whatever length of time the ATMs will be closed? The euro is is dropping and is the lowest it has been against the dollar in 12 years, $1.09 dollars to the euro today, so we are benefiting if we have the cash in hand. They, on the other hand, are looking at a very uncertain future, that affects everything. Will they stay in the Euro? Will they stay in Europe? Will they end up turning to Russia and have some sort of Rouble? Will they have a drachma and how quickly will that become worthless as few have the confidence to invest in Greece, and Greece has come to rely on foreign imports for so much in the last 15 years. This is a minor cash-flow inconvenience for us, but a real crisis for Greece.
In a bigger sense, even if there was more risk to me, I still would not be scared. Greece and Greeks know how to handle uncertainty. They don't duct-tape their windows, buy more guns, and stockpile food. What I've seen is that my friends get resourceful. They find ways to manage in the short term. In the bigger picture, many become fatalistic, recognizing when they need to give up control, and doing so gracefully. Finally, they rely on each other. Of course there are bad things happening, and some take advantage of the situation, but most turn to their friends, their communities, and find comfort, commiseration, and support. Deree has planned ahead, and have a stockpile of cash. They've created several support mechanisms - -a meal plan that students can purchase on credit at the moment if necessary, an informal banking system to distribute cash on a short-term basis, and they've negotiated with the bank to make sure that the college has access to cash, and its ATMs will be restocked early. The government itself is working to help ease the pressure. I hear that buses and metro rides are free right now, which means we need less cash to operate. I also hear that capital controls won't apply to foreign bank cards, so we should be cushioned from the pressure. I am sure that a black market will spring up and that dollars will be useful for individual transactions, though I've not seen this yet.
It also strikes me that everyone is in it together. There is rueful laughter, there is mutual complaining, there is commiserating, but there isn't so much panic. There is some, after all, the empty ATMs were due to a run on the bank, but less than I would imagine. There is also human-to-human support that I feel is unusual. I took a taxi yesterday and the driver asked where I was from, and the conversation quickly turned to the crisis. He told me that Obama is a good man, and was trying to help. Neither of us was sure how much help he could offer, but he was trying. It was nice to have the Americans not be the bad guys. I wished the guy good luck as I left the taxi, and he laughed appreciatively. We are in this together, even though I'm a lot safer than he is.
Nearly every year I have been here, there has been some sort of political/economic problem, since the 1990s. Rolling blackouts, strikes, protests, heat waves, economic crises. To me, this is simply a part of life in Greece. I appreciate it, as these things have lessons for us. Americans have an illusion of control, and we hang on very tightly to it. You can't have the illusion of control in Greece, as for the entire 20th century, over and over, the idea that Greece has control over its destiny, or that people can plan for all contingencies is shattered over and over again. People here have to learn to let go and adapt to constantly changing circumstances. To me, that is an important lesson. I have more confidence since I know I can continually adapt. It makes me stronger. Another lesson is community. One thing I always feel in Greece is that people stick together. Again, I feel like this is a contrast... in America I think we get separated too quickly. Here, information is shared, people have empathy for each others' situations, and people come out to share with each other, in coffee shops, in the plateias, and other public places. To me this is comforting. Flexibility, resourcefulness, community, these are important strengths that are built in Greece, and lessons that Americans seem to need. We are sharing a tiny bit of what it is really like to be Greek, and it can't hurt us, but can give us empathy and perhaps some lessons that are valuable to us.
In a bigger sense, even if there was more risk to me, I still would not be scared. Greece and Greeks know how to handle uncertainty. They don't duct-tape their windows, buy more guns, and stockpile food. What I've seen is that my friends get resourceful. They find ways to manage in the short term. In the bigger picture, many become fatalistic, recognizing when they need to give up control, and doing so gracefully. Finally, they rely on each other. Of course there are bad things happening, and some take advantage of the situation, but most turn to their friends, their communities, and find comfort, commiseration, and support. Deree has planned ahead, and have a stockpile of cash. They've created several support mechanisms - -a meal plan that students can purchase on credit at the moment if necessary, an informal banking system to distribute cash on a short-term basis, and they've negotiated with the bank to make sure that the college has access to cash, and its ATMs will be restocked early. The government itself is working to help ease the pressure. I hear that buses and metro rides are free right now, which means we need less cash to operate. I also hear that capital controls won't apply to foreign bank cards, so we should be cushioned from the pressure. I am sure that a black market will spring up and that dollars will be useful for individual transactions, though I've not seen this yet.
It also strikes me that everyone is in it together. There is rueful laughter, there is mutual complaining, there is commiserating, but there isn't so much panic. There is some, after all, the empty ATMs were due to a run on the bank, but less than I would imagine. There is also human-to-human support that I feel is unusual. I took a taxi yesterday and the driver asked where I was from, and the conversation quickly turned to the crisis. He told me that Obama is a good man, and was trying to help. Neither of us was sure how much help he could offer, but he was trying. It was nice to have the Americans not be the bad guys. I wished the guy good luck as I left the taxi, and he laughed appreciatively. We are in this together, even though I'm a lot safer than he is.
Nearly every year I have been here, there has been some sort of political/economic problem, since the 1990s. Rolling blackouts, strikes, protests, heat waves, economic crises. To me, this is simply a part of life in Greece. I appreciate it, as these things have lessons for us. Americans have an illusion of control, and we hang on very tightly to it. You can't have the illusion of control in Greece, as for the entire 20th century, over and over, the idea that Greece has control over its destiny, or that people can plan for all contingencies is shattered over and over again. People here have to learn to let go and adapt to constantly changing circumstances. To me, that is an important lesson. I have more confidence since I know I can continually adapt. It makes me stronger. Another lesson is community. One thing I always feel in Greece is that people stick together. Again, I feel like this is a contrast... in America I think we get separated too quickly. Here, information is shared, people have empathy for each others' situations, and people come out to share with each other, in coffee shops, in the plateias, and other public places. To me this is comforting. Flexibility, resourcefulness, community, these are important strengths that are built in Greece, and lessons that Americans seem to need. We are sharing a tiny bit of what it is really like to be Greek, and it can't hurt us, but can give us empathy and perhaps some lessons that are valuable to us.
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