Harvesting Dutch Absurds
The Illogical and the Arrogant aroud us
Macedonian tobacco and related products will be the Litmus test for entering the EU
dinsdag 15 december 2009 21:50 door gogan
The other day friends gather at
my page
on Facebook invited me to join a group "Against the
law forbidding smoking in public places" definitely against
the ban on smoking in bars, inns, tea-houses, restaurants and the
like. Despite being nearly a chain-smoker (that's me here on the
right as a much younger journalist) I found the appeal useless:
we all know that the ban is rather inconvenient for the nicotine
enslaved population but it is obvious that the premises where
smoking is forbidden provide incomparably healthier environment
for all.
Since my Facebook page is mainly in Macedonian and for the Macedonian circle of friends, it struck me that these people scream against the ban at the top of their voices but do not utter a word about some other facts of life related to the tobacco production in Macedonia. Those facts are devastating and speak volumes about the population, the businesses, the government and the USAID that pours hundreds of millions of dollars there.
Macedonia, by the way, harvested 20,000 tons of tobacco this year, 25% more than the last harvest.
The people there would grab any debate about freedoms and so on and so forth and would attack (rightfully) the EU and the Greek intransigence and everything - but would stay hushed when brought face to face with these facts.
Macedonia does NOT produce:
1. Tobacco for rolling cigarettes, like the Dutch have Drum, Van Nelle, Javanse Jongens and so forth - there isn't.
2. Paper for rolled cigarettes like Mascotte, Rizla ... is non-existent
3. Gadgets for rolling cigarettes are not made
4. Cigarette holders - cigarettepijpje (silver, filigree, wood, amber, ivory) are not handcrafted
5. Cigarette cases of gold, wood, leather - tabacchiera for cigarettes or tobacco for rolling
6. Pipes for smoking are not produced
7. Nargile, water pipe, hookah
8. Tobacco for pipes is not cut
9. Tin boxes for pipe tobacco are not made
10. Cigars are not rolled
11. Scissors and other tools for cutting cigar tips are not made
12. Humidifiers for tobacco or cigars are unknown items
13. Cigarette lighters are not produced
14. Matches, lucifers, are imported
But tobacco is grown to the tune of 20,000,000 kg.
Ever since I have begun smoking my slogan was that the country, its population, needs to engage into producing a vast variety of items related to its most popular crop, that the people of Macedonia need (if they want to exist and persist) finalize their commodities and the fruit of their labor has to be upgraded into a final consumable product. But no.
All they know is either sell stupid cigarettes after world brands and smuggle them abroad or sell the raw tobacco to monopolies around the world. That is not the road to progress. If this country does lean to produce at least half of those 14 items listed above within 2-3 years, there is no point entering the EU.
3reacties
gogan 10-01-2010 12:28
Hi Alexandar,
Interesting comment.
If I find the time I will re-publish thios as a separate post but I will have to edit it a bit.
Pity you do not say anything about the items I have specifically listed as absent from the local craftsmanship.
Anyway, Happy New year.
Interesting comment.
If I find the time I will re-publish thios as a separate post but I will have to edit it a bit.
Pity you do not say anything about the items I have specifically listed as absent from the local craftsmanship.
Anyway, Happy New year.
Aleksandar Bogdanoski 12-01-2010 03:54
Happy New Year to you too gogan,
I agree with you about what "Macedonia does not produce", and with your opinion about it. But believe me, we have other priorities as state and as economy, which are much more important than the production of the things that you mentioned. Ecology, road infrastructure, water management - are our absolutely first priorities, but our extremely stupid, infertile and blind politicians are not able to see their importance.
Here, as consequence of poor environment for doing business, with GDP of 9.3 billion US dollars last year (2009), we have 2.3 billions trade deficit, from which we see the uncompetitiveness of our economy in general, and that goods are easier or cheaper to be imported here, than produced for the domestic market or for export.
Аlthough, if you or someone else could find investors or capital, we could try with some production line, perhaps paper for rolled cigarettes or cigarette lighters, and i think we could be successful in that.
Sorry for my English, i never learned at school as child.
Regards,
Aleksandar, Macedonia
I agree with you about what "Macedonia does not produce", and with your opinion about it. But believe me, we have other priorities as state and as economy, which are much more important than the production of the things that you mentioned. Ecology, road infrastructure, water management - are our absolutely first priorities, but our extremely stupid, infertile and blind politicians are not able to see their importance.
Here, as consequence of poor environment for doing business, with GDP of 9.3 billion US dollars last year (2009), we have 2.3 billions trade deficit, from which we see the uncompetitiveness of our economy in general, and that goods are easier or cheaper to be imported here, than produced for the domestic market or for export.
Аlthough, if you or someone else could find investors or capital, we could try with some production line, perhaps paper for rolled cigarettes or cigarette lighters, and i think we could be successful in that.
Sorry for my English, i never learned at school as child.
Regards,
Aleksandar, Macedonia
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gogan
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Hobbies: photo, travel, writing, web-production,
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This is a piece of fine music. :
Handy Quotes 1
"Russia is
constantly being thought democracy and the people who try to teach
it don't want to learn it themselves" " - Vladimir Putin * * *
"The shepherd always tries to persuade the sheep?that their
interests and his own are the same." - Stendahl [Marie-Henri
Beyle] (1783-1842) French writer (here, left) used over 200
nom de plume * * * "Politicians are the same all over. They
promise to build a bridge even where there is no river." -
Nikita Khrushchev (1894-1971) Premier of the Soviet Union * * *
"Whenever you find you are on the side of the majority, it is
time to pause and reflect." - Mark Twain [Samuel Langhornne
Clemens] (1835-1910) * * * "Those who would give up essential
Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither
Liberty nor Safety." - Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) US
Founding Father * * * "During the Cold war the peace was scary,
fragile but reliable. Now it is less reliable. - Vladimir Putin
Grozdan Popov's New Series: Musing Over Public Faces
Well, this is
just the beginning of an idea, pretty entangled right now. It is
about my feelings arising from a visual contact with public figures
by proxy. I mean, these are reflections triggered by published
pictures of various people without or definitely
before reading a word about their characters. So far these
accounts are ready: Giovanni Accongiagioco Elkann, of the
Agnelli family; Howard Stern, the King of All Media in
America; Barack Obama, possibly the next President of USA;
Toshihiko Fukui, the governor of the Bank of Japan;
Patricia Joan Remak, former Dutch MP, now a convict;
Peter Hartz, VW + Germany's master crook; Chad
Hurley, co-establisher of YouTube; Nobuyoki Oneida, CFO
of Sony Corporation I'll read your portraits too, if you send
the pic! TRY ME So, all you need to do is Click
here to go there. Those portraits are interesting pics.
They may not be whoring but wantoon they are
One may be
confused with the people of the South. They are so pationate. Begin
from its West or East coast - all the same. Fiery. Promiscuous.
Volatile. Irrational. And now comes the sober Financial Times with
this interpretation about the Greek women whoring at such a grand
scale. You might be interested to read my
review of a book FOR THE LOVE OF WOMEN written by
Elizabeth Kirtsoglou a professor at the University of Wales.
She describes the life of a lesbian community in a town near
Athens.
Archives
I think
Turkey deserves every possible argument supporting its impressive
drive to full EU membership. This link takes you to a selection of my articles on
Turkey and related issues. There are numerous posts entered
that qualify under the term Macedonia . Some of them retain
their intrinsic value, others are reminders of once acute issues.
This link takes you to a full list of the entries
related to Macedonia and its people. Neque porro quisquam est qui
dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit
Neque porro quisquam est qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet,
consectetur, adipisci velit
A JOKE A DAY KEEPS THE BLUES AWAY
A FAST
MOUTH HURTS MORE THAN A BIG ONE? There was this big boss coming
back from a successfull business trip so he thought he could have a
break and told his driver to stop at the first seaside restaurant
for a late lunch. When the driver parked the limousine, the capable
secretary fixed a table by the shore and when he came from the
restroom the appetizers were served and it was all spotless. During
the middle of the lunch a golden fish sprung out of the water and
somehow landed on the table. The Queen of magic fish said: -I am
the one who fulfills those legendary three wishes. You are three,
thus one for each of you. The secretary jumped elated and said:
-I'd like to enjoy my life with my darling in beatiful villa
someplace in the Carribean. -Piece of cake,-said the golden fish,
flapped with the tail and the secretary was gone. Then the driver,
almost stuttering, said: -I wish to pass my days with my wife and
kids on Hawaii, in a mension and two chaufers for two big cars. The
golden fish flapped with the tail and the driver was gone. After
some time, the fish turned towards the boss and said: -What do you
wait, it is your turn! -Cant't you see I am eating? When the boss
finished eating, he said: -Bring those two smart-asses back, the
lunch-break is over. MORALE OF THE STORY Do not speak
ahead of your boss or you may be in for some nasty surprises.
SOLUTION
OF A MID-LIFE CRISIS When I was married for 25 years, I took a
look at my wife one day and said, "honey, 25 years ago, we had a
cheap apartment, a cheap car, slept on a sofa bed and watched a
10-inch black and white TV, but I got to sleep every night with a
hot 25-year-old blonde. "Now, we have a nice house, nice car, big
bed and plasma screen TV, but I'm sleeping with a 50-year-old
woman. It seems to me that you are not holding up your side of
things." My wife is a very reasonable woman. She told me to go out
and find a hot 25-year-old blonde, and she would make sure that I
would once again be living in a cheap apartment, driving a cheap
car, sleeping on a sofa bed and watching a 10-inch black and white
TV. Aren't older women great? They really know how to solve your
mid-life crises!!
Memorabilia
This is a
worksite where an exhaustive collection of pictures-cum-comment
posts pile up and will one nice day form a maze of memories I like
visiting and re-visiting. They, the posts, will allow the visitor
to add, correct, renege or comment in one decent way the entries.
Eventually, people and places may be enlightened by fresh opinion
and be a source for biographers and historians. Ambitious, eh? Thus
Memorabilia you will have entered one very
personal domain, my views of events, people and places which still
compose my life. Be polite, not courteous, and if you leave a trace
behind you, it will live for as long as this blog lives.
Virtual Property Buying
It happens
that I am so very often pissed off by my insecurity, by long
stretches of time spent on balancing "pro et contra" before taking
a decision on anything. Thus, despite my advancing age I tend to
rash past he pole of no return and dive into a project although I
know it was not properly investigated. Now I am approaching the
moment of an actual beginning of a new book and I, kind of, lean
towards picking the less researched project, a title that may bring
me into unfamiliar or poorly known situations I will have to
describe as guidance for other people practical needs. That drives
me mad. That is why I bring out, here, useless elements of what one
day will be the new title. So, here you will have bits and odds
about available properties around the world, Nothing really
practical, more daydreaming than anything. Say, everybody
subscribed to IEX daily letter will have noticed that the French
Investment Project. These people are my neighbors in Amstelveen but
have offices in Carcassonne, a beautiful place we love visiting for
a day or two, too. They offer a possibility for investment in a
Villas Les Clos, near St. Tropez, 800 metres from the Med, for only
€12,500. I do not know how exactly does this scheme work, but
I know that in time-share and stuff one needs every precaution
before diving in. Well, if you decide to go down there and inspect
the property in situ, you may decide to drive via Limoges
where somebody else had just brought out to the market a real
castle. It can be yours for €20,4 million. (top pic)
That is a bit on the upper side of €12,000 but you might be
interested to have a look. It is called Chateau Lionhearts and
offers 17 bedrooms plus forests and lakes, stables, roof terrace, a
cinema. Historic, built after the Crusades, tastefully restored to
the highest standards, lots of modern technical details but still
managing to maintain its original character and charm. 
If that is
on the steep side - there is this splendid 18th century chateau,
(here left) in the Loire valley with 3 wine cellars, fully
furnished, it has 16 bedrooms, Outbuildings include villa, chapel,
staff accomodation and stables, All in 10 hectares of landscaped
park, for only €3,3 million.
TURCIJA - TURKEY, my very first book
My very first
real book is just out from the presses. It is lavishly
revied peace of work in which I did my best to present Turkey and
the Turks, Asia Minor, as acurately as possible. The reviewers
(ethnic Turks and Macedonian) kind of insist that the 368 pages are
written with lots of affection dor the people and the land, that it
insists on dispersing the mists of prejudices and that it can be
read as a novel. I also like the title. You can buy it from
E-Bay (the Dutch branch)at € 12. This is
the first book ever written and published in Macedonian about the
people and the land which governed Macedonia and the Macedonians
for nearly a half of the past millenium. I claim that we, the
Macedonians, would have been incomparably better if the Ottoman
Empire did not crumble about 100 years ago. The book in mirrored on
the web-site WWW.TURCIJA.NET. My printers are expected to be ready
with setting the book on GREECE (also in Macedonian, with
plenty of detail, geography, history, arts, myths) which should be
on sale for the main tourist season.
My Best Weekly
Reading Times
Literary Supplement Is one of my great pleasures. Sometimes I use
the paper sometimes the on-line edition. The topics are carefully
selected and absolutely first class. The enrages me often and I
write letters to the Editor (Tom
Stothard, he bloggs) who acknowledges the receipt but throws
them in the bin, though I'd prefer the other way round. He will
send you a sample copy for free so that you can check if I am right
or no.
Arround the World in Many Years
Some of you
may be interested in my impressions from travels around the world.
Just begun developing that site. A bit early for promoting it, but
that is how I tick. This is
your link if you wish to visit. The trips have taken me
over to Africa, Asia, North and South America, Australia and very
much around Europe. The software of that facility counts as
"one country" Lichtenstein with poor Vaduz and the USA with some 30
states (including Hawaii) as "one country" again. By such a count I
have covered paltry 17% of the globe. See for yourselves if you
like!
SPECTATOR's VALUE TODAY EXCLUDING $7,500 GOODWILL
Arts and Culture around Turkey, and Istanbul
During the
darkest of the winter one would hardly pack up and roam Turkey.
Even its deepest south, right there by Alexandreta and Hatay,
although covered with lush citrus gardens in full harvest - is not
exactly warm. There are at least 20 events on the programe for the
Turkey Now Festival and one of the highlights is a jazz
concert that you can sample here: the
well known Ayse Tutuncu Trio but other stuff as well. You
will enjoy the rhythm and the temperament of Turkey here in
Amsterdam right for St. Valentine day! Click for the full
program in Dutch and Turkish. Pure Music and Art - good for
the soul!
ON MY NIGHT-TABLE
Mark
Mazower: THESSALONIKI, The City of Ghosts, Contact, 558 pp,
2005, When it becomes obvious that counting sheep will not help me
sleep and when I have 10 mg Lexilium pill next to the glass of
water (this text goes to my nerves) then I take this
book. It is an ementaler-like history of Salonica. If Mazower
carried on back-packing around - he might have produced a
travelogue but I would not trust him with a thing he writes. Poorly
read reviewers shamelessly say his text was exciting. Further to
being greatly false - it is dull and so lopsided that I need to
write a review. Do not throw away your money on this piece
of crap. 
Bas
Soetenhorst en Michiel Zonneveld: AFREKENEN MET PEPER, Van
Gennep, 235 pp, 2001 een spannende en onthullende reconstructie van
de affaire. Met bijdragen van Leo Huberts en Hans van der Heuvel,
Uri Rosenthal en Ruud Veenstra; Probably one of the most
illustrative documents about the Dutch political zoo and its exotic
exemplars. I have be re-reading this now and again. It is an
effervescing spring of incredible twists of logic 
Only
curiosity made me buy, on the outbound flight to Turkey, Orhan
Pamuk's Istanbul, Memoirs and the City. Of what I
made myself read, this is one of those impressively misconceived
and then miscarried products under the authors loom. It is more a
sadly borring collection of family album images by an ambitious
high-school brat than anything remotely similar to literature. If
Mr. Pamuk did not decide to extend his superfluous views over the
Armenian question - it is most improbable that the worthless text
would have been reviewed at all. If you have €30 to spare you
may consider rewarding yourself and three friends for a Burger King
meal on Schiphol instead. There is always something far more
interesting going on and you will have eventually created an event
more memorable than this book by Orhan Pamuk.
MISERABLE WEATHER, SUNNY SPIRITS
Please note this: "There may be times when we are powerless to
prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to
protest."?Elie Wiesel, (1928- ) Writer, Nobel Peace
Prize winner 1986 + + + MY SELECTION This gay guy, Hans
Glaubitz till now our ambassadorial laughing stock in Tallinn,
Estonia, found the people in that EU member-country impossible to
bear with. What happens elsewhere? Compare Estonia and Macedonia.
Minister Bernard Bot sends him, degraded, as our
consul-general to Montreal. That is bad. Glaubitz should be send
with his Cuban pitch-black boyfriend to Washington D.C. on the -
same ambassadorial level. Let us teach President Bush and
Secretary Rice a lesson about principles, equality of sexes, of
sexual preferences and everything. (Pic: TV-Star Vesna "Baby"
Petrusevska: What does the vagina smell like?) + + + Why film
actress Labina Mitevska thinks that the
Macedonians are a nation of losers and how come every
nitwit becomes an expert in tourism overnight? With this kind of
patriots the poor country betwer give up its diaspora. + + +
A friend of
mine is leaving for Spain next weekend and I expect him to bring me
the tripple authored (Ferran Adria, Juli Soler, Albert
Adria) most impressive catalogue ELBULLI 2003-2004
probably the most "with-it" gastronomy book around. It is 656
pages, weighs 4,500g, costs €140 and is accompanied with
MAC/Windows iinteractive disc. Will be superb surprise if he tells
me: You need not pay, this is a souvenier for
guiding me to El Bulli, but I strongly doubt that...
A friend of
mine is leaving for Spain next weekend and I expect him to bring me
the tripple authored (Ferran Adria, Juli Soler, Albert
Adria) most impressive catalogue ELBULLI 2003-2004
probably the most "with-it" gastronomy book around. It is 656
pages, weighs 4,500g, costs €140 and is accompanied with
MAC/Windows iinteractive disc. Will be superb surprise if he tells
me: You need not pay, this is a souvenier for
guiding me to El Bulli, but I strongly doubt that...
EUREKA!
Well, there
is no need beating about the bush. After a year of fun and play we,
the bloggers, though this may sound like we the people it is
not anything like that famous declaration, must have realized that
there is a lot of time, effort and skill poured into the VK. By
both our generous hosts and by our modest selves. I believe that
GJB and us could chat a bit about a new, commercial, twist to the
individual pages. Since we are a sort of one big family and we have
all grown up in a year, maybe we should see whether and how we
could contribute to the costs of this facility, gather money for
improving it and, doing so, earn a decent buck individually. The
proposal is simple. GJB supplies those who are interested the
price-list for a 300x300 pix slot on this column, agrees to pay us
commission (which he anyways pays to others) and we contract
sponsors who pay directly to VK upon which VK shells out our part.
We as authors do not promote those sponsors in our posts.
There are parties which do not even know about the VK but may be
interested to advertise here for any reason, especially sponsoring
an acquaintance's or friend's hobby or whatever. To secure that the
big-time advertising wizards are not affected, we, the small fry,
would be allowed to bring adds at lest 600 pixels under the
ad at the top for which VK gets money. So, that is it. Simple like
Senate Beans Soup. All we need do is agree on the percentage of the
commission!
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What concerns tobacco, this year the price of that good is highest in the past 20 years (3.3 euros per kg for the producers). Also, the government gives (promise) subsidies of 1 euro per kg. That 1 euro is OK, but i am afraid that the things that are doing damage to tobacco production, and to the economy in general, are much more dominant than the good ones.
EU must now this facts and to react strongly, but carefully, since Macedonia is very important factor of stability in Europe, and candidate for membership.
Aleksandar, Prilep, Republik of Macedonia
erigonal@gmail.com