From: malenovi@plains.NoDak.edu (Nikola V. Malenovic )
Newsgroups: soc.culture.yugoslavia
Subject: Danilo Z Markovic, Enlightener (VREME NDA 13.Apr 1992)
Date: 13 Apr 92 14:35:10 GMT
Article-I.D.: plains.16729
Organization: North Dakota State University, Fargo


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     "Vreme" News Digest Agency                      No. 29, April 13 1992.
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    Danilo Z. Markovic, Enlightener
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                          LIES, HATRED AND STUPIDITY


           When the MP Seselj  kicks teachers who are demonstrating
           in  front  of  the  Parliament,  it  is  because  he has
           understood quicker and better than anyone the times that
           are coming. He  wants power and knows that  this kind of
           gesture  only increases  his reputation  and popularity.
                     Who cares about teachers and schools?

    With the  worldwide failure of  the social project  called communism and
    with the realization  of all it brings, sober  pessimists have concluded
    that  at  least  another  decade  or  two  will  have to pass before the
    appearance of  an entirely fresh generation  ready to take over.  It was
    the  only way  out of  the  moral  blind alley,  from general  nihilism,
    because  of which  it is  now possible  to wage  purposeless, evil wars,
    proclaim madness for strategy, paint a  picture of oneself and the world
    from bare lies, and elect villains and bandits to sainthood.

    But, as  far as Serbia  is concerned, not  even this long-term  hope has
    anything to base itself on. As things now stand, the deepest despair has
    the best arguments.  It can't be seen how in  these conditions a new and
    better generation could  grow, that is, who could  make today's children
    better  than their  fathers. For  a good  two hundred  years it has been
    considered that the job of raising or at least upholding the standard of
    civilized society belongs to the educational  system. It used to be said
    that the rise of Germany primarily  began with the German teacher, which
    applied to Serbia as well in the time there was some kind of ascension.

    There can't always  be a Dositej in the place  of Minister of Education,
    but when  the place is given  to someone like Danilo  Z. Markovic, it is
    absolutely clear that education is not something to be counted on. Let's
    say that  it isn't important that  he looks and talks  like some kind of
    crooked cattle tradesman; let's say that it isn't his fault that all the
    money from education  and elsewhere has gone into the  war. But this man
    who knew how to  expect his students to bring a signed  copy of his text
    book to exams in order to ensure  that they all bought it, is now trying
    to persuade teachers  that they were never better paid  and that, in any
    case,  they should  do their  ennobling work  for nothing.  He looks  to
    undermine  the  strike  with  the  help  of  loyal directors, he doesn't
    believe the strikers  will hold out, he prides himself  that he is being
    supported by country  schools. Who would have said  that schooling, that
    is  the future  of children  here, would  be placed  in the  hands which
    Markovic  uses  to  hold  up  his  belly,  unaware  of having become the
    favorite of bad students.

    The faults  of the school  system are  known;  we know that  many of the
    gifted have run away from it and  succeeded in spite of this. But no-one
    completely  gave up  this institution   and left  children to  grow like
    grass. In this  way in Serbia, from pure indifference,  at the moment an
    experimental generation  of forgotten children is  growing, as from some
    Balkan Summerhill.  In fact, we  can soon expect  the question: what  do
    Serbs  need  school  for?  I'm  just  waiting  for  someone to remember,
    particularly if  strikes in schools  are frequent, that  education is in
    fact a leftist, Bolshevist fabrication.

    Because  when the  ideology of  pure blood  takes hold,  when there is a
    segregation  between Serbs  and non-Serbs,  and war  is fought about it,
    what comes is absolute educational pessimism. If the communists believed
    in the  unlimited possibility of  shaping human nature  and creating the
    New  Man, today's  savage post-communist  right wingers  believe that  a
    nation is  given everything genetically,  once and for  all. Seeing it's
    known exactly what Serbs are like, seeing the finest moral imperative is
    inbred and cannot be taught but only  inherited, what then is the use of
    education which might even spoil it and introduce something foreign into
    the  essential Serbian  soul? What's  the use  of knowledge  acquired by
    others? Foreign languages? What's the use of general literacy?

    The  problem of  teacher and  pupil is  obviously not  only in  Minister
    Markovic because  (according to a new  division) he does not  fall among
    the worried  but among the indifferent  Serbs. If this division  has any
    sense,  he is  in it  because he  indifferently leads  the worried.  The
    indifferent have fattened  nicely, and the others worry  because such as
    these lead them.  Negligence could somehow be borne,  but the problem is
    in that Serbia is decisively turning away from education, enlightenment,
    upbringing, learning of anything that  hasn't been endowed to the people
    by birth.

    When the MP Seselj kicks teachers  who are demonstrating in front of the
    Parliament,  it is  because he  has understood  quicker and  better than
    anyone the  times that are  coming. He wants  power and knows  that this
    kind of gesture only increases  his reputation and popularity. Who cares
    about teachers and schools? Whoever complains, protests and strikes does
    so because he  is helpless, which at the moment  can't be respected. And
    because of this Seselj with a  clear conscience demands the expulsion of
    Croats, and then of Slovenes and all those who would fight this, because
    they  are traitors.  Because of  this  he  bravely states  that all  the
    journalists  on strike  should be  fired because  they are  traitors. In
    Serbia a  change in the  rules of the  game is being  prepared, i.e. all
    rules are to be abolished. The war is lost, the country ruined, and this
    will be  interpreted by inadequate resoluteness,  toleration of traitors
    and a general excess of democracy. With the war in Bosnia, Milosevic has
    finally destroyed all he had begun to gain in the eyes of the world with
    his  acceptance  of  the  peace  plan  of  the  United  Nations. Arkan's
    "exploits" will be placed at his door, as will the terror over Sarajevo,
    though  the  Croats   shouldn't  be  let  off  any   easier  because  of
    Herzegovina.

    At any rate,  Serbia and the rest of the  world don't have anything more
    to ask or expect of each other.  It would be easy to stop all diplomatic
    efforts and  for Serbia to  gain the status  of Gaddafi's Libya.  Such a
    position outside will remove from the inside all consideration, of which
    there was  some even if we  weren't conscious of it.  Seselj, Arkan, and
    maybe some other leaders of the  extreme phalanxes, are entering a tough
    fight,  and behind  them will  align themselves  the generals,  Academy,
    church,  and other  centers of  power.  The  public will  be divided  in
    desperate  attempts to  establish which  of them  maybe owns  some human
    qualities.

    The ease with which Seselj came into conflict with practically the whole
    journalistic  guild is  the best   proof that  this profession  has been
    finally written off.  It isn't foreseen to exist. All  that will be left
    are the weapons which pour in from the fronts. If this wasn't so I doubt
    whether Seselj would have gone so far.

    In all  of this, what  do the schools,  teachers, children have  to look
    for?  Like state,  like school.  And this  state has  already proved its
    ability to take such an incredible amount of lies, hatred and stupidity.
    All of this will have to  enter the schools' programme, which means that
    we can  expect new ideological  contamination, very like  the communist.
    Only instead of  dialectics and class wars, "Serbianism"  and Saint Sava
    will be  taught as a  historical, moral and  civilization counterpart to
    the rest of mankind.

    I don't  see any  more any  kind of  serious force  which could dam this
    flow. Internal resistance  is ever weaker, and the  external pressure on
    Serbia will  probably stop at  its present day  borders. Because who  is
    interested in  forcibly rearranging one  mad little Balkan  state? As in
    the case of  Iraq, the West will be satisfied  just to neutralize it and
    make it harmless to its surroundings.

    Unlike the communist state, this one is  born in defeat and will be that
    much worse and  less tolerant towards its opponents.  The problem of the
    minorities will  be solved according  to Seselj's recipe,  as is already
    being  discreetly done.  For all  the others  who haven't  run away from
    here,  and who  won't because  they  have  nowhere to  go, the  survival
    strategy will  consist of avoiding  contact with the  government and the
    state. But soon the process of mutual corruption will set in between the
    citizens  and  the  government,  which  in  the  end  will bring about a
    normalization of the situation at a morally low, but acceptable level.

    If it's  up to the schools,  we shall get a  generation of children, the
    same or worse,  who grow up in an  adulation of naked force, but  not in
    the abstract way other children admire Rambo and Superman. Such as these
    will have  local names, walk the  streets and give rise  to real fear. I
    don't  know how  long this  could last,  but I  don't see  how, in these
    conditions, hope can be found for a civil consolidation of this country,
    even at the beginning of the next millennium. All that parents can do is
    to take their  children out of school, to  systematically wean them from
    all  they have  learnt there  and offer  them ordinary Christian morals,
    even though they may not need them here for a long time yet.

                                                              Stojan Cerovic


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     "Vreme" News Digest Agency                      No. 29, April 13 1992.
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