In the last few days, in addition to seeing how the Ukraine is an existing autonomous state that very reasonably does not want to become the despotate of Russia, we also realised the great value of the brand for the consumer.
A value that seems to be very easily influenced when the brand is not aligned with the political beliefs of consumers, but especially when it is rightly or wrongly linked to the moods of the seller/creator.
Today the brand the world's loyalty towards the Russian nation is at marginal levels due to developments, defying the once praised free market that did not consider countries and borders, but only profit.
In this war between the two countries, the average consumer is led to believe that he or she is probably more at risk from a brand of vodka that is not produced in Russia, simply because it has a name that refers to Russia.
We thus see a restaurant owner ostentatiously emptying the contents of two bottles of Stolitznaya in protest at the invasion. We then read that he may have filled them with water. Either way, ‘took a stand».
By extension, the stream of sanctions against Russia has instilled fear in the consumer that it is also endangered by art and culture, simply because some of its representatives happen to come from Russia.
Especially when the man acting as Minister of Culture in Greece, with the zeal of the mujahideen, does not hesitate to suspend cooperation with Russian cultural organisations, cancel the Opera Gala and the broadcast of «Swan Lake». Because the feeling of enjoyment of intelligent movements is inexpressible and irrepressible.
Nevertheless ’took a stand».
Beyond the exaggeration, I recognise that these are a kind of symbolic gestures in the context of the various sanctions.
But they are not equivalent to taking a meaningful position in a war. That is, in a situation that involves the killing of civilians, the leveling of populated areas, terror, starvation, refugees.
You cannot equate culture with trade and energy, spirit with money. It makes you look the least Idiot, as another political movement for crispy “French fries”, then the US got angry and renamed them “Freedom fries” because France opposed the invasion of Iraq.
We choose to deal with the non-issue, ignoring the issue. Are the side effects of the cancel culture, so acute is our consciousness “hacking” as a society, so deep is our moral decay, that cancelling Russian “fathers” such as Tchaikovsky, Dostoevsky, Tarkovsky, Tolstoy and so many others, some people think they are taking a stand with these ’resistance“ moves of utter subordination and ridiculousness. How they choose a camp.
The war does not stop by boycotting art. Art, on the contrary, both inspires war and heals it.
Is it again so great the progenoplasia which distinguishes our proud government, which would not allow its members to do the same for Plato, nor for Kolokotronis, nor for Theodorakis, not even for feta cheese, to be sure.
On the other hand, one might ask, how does one understand the imposition of sanctions on a state that so brutally offends the international community and the security of the continent? We won't even offer them a welcome cake.
All or nothing? No. Certainly not like that. Neither with the shipment of the sunflower seeds to Ukraine. Such a reckless action.
He is the war of the salad, who is being honed by a dragon unhistorical and amnesties salatologists, who determine their stance on the basis of threats rather than consequences.
Who forgot the pandemic, the economic misery and it suddenly came to them to practice the noble sport of pioneering. To become seal guards. And as a result they flatten everything.
Who rely on mimetic «symbolism» to survive. The same people who were suspicious of the size of the #MeToo cancellation, now they are attempting geopolitics experiments putting pressure on Putin's ego, which is not helping Ukraine or ourselves.
And because I don't want to waste so much Dostoevsky, the writer advised us to seek joy even in the rocky establishment of horror.
The first target in war is civilisation. But the works of people who have gone beyond the narrow confines of their country of origin and have become a global possession cannot be censored and attacked. Let alone in the name of sanctions.
For no NATO and no Putin. Instead of being hostile to our property, let Europe help the US-Russia conflict with a serious anti-war peace movement.
Tchaikovsky is beyond any war.
By Matthew Leonidas
