We perceive everything personalized. This is probably our “western mentality”, which should be renounced in the 21st century. If we were reporting that the swine flu does not step back in spite of the imposing statements by the Ministry of Health that it “steps back” it does not mean that we are weaving some intrigue against the health minister.
If I think that in the last 15 years the center of our capital is demolished for the sake of the builders intertwined with the authorities and some neo-Bolsheviks (and at the same time, provincial) gigantomania, this does not mean that I have some personal problem with ideologist of this demolishing, Narek Sargsyan, and I think that he must be substituted with some Poghos or Petros. On the contrary, I like some of the buildings designed by Narek Sargsyan, he is a talented architect and quite worthy of the state prize (if it is necessary to distribute state awards in the 21st century). Is seems to me that the entire problem is that talented people in any specific field should not have a power, talented managers should occupy positions.
A gifted architect, writer, painter etc. are almost mandatorily and overly ambitious while being pretentious often leads to the Bolshevik mindset, according to which “nothing good has happened before me and the history begins from me.” If the person with such mindset is a “free artist”, then it is normal but when he is an official, it can lead to destructions. Andrzej Wyszyński was also a very talented and well-educated lawyer. But certainly it is also true that as the Stalinist system needed Wyszyński so as the oligarchic system needs Narek Sargsyan. We can bring an opposite example, the Minister of Culture of the Soviet Armenia (1967-72) Kamo Udumyan, was neither an artist nor a party member. But he was endowed with extraordinary abilities of a manager, due to which, under the Soviet system, he was able to do a lot for the Armenian culture.
When we write that the leader of this-or-that opposition party in a course of years speaks about the imminent regime change, fiery spring or fiery autumn and then it turns out to be a lie and the mentioned leader does not confess that he has promised a lie, this does not mean that we have something against this leader or his party.
For me, the “Aravot”, it does not really matter which person sits on which chair, starting from the RA president’s seat. We are writing not about the persons but the phenomena. We do not have “preferable” people who substituting the current authorities or the opposition member will create some heavenly situation in our country. If anyone believes it, then he is a naïve person. If he does not believe but says, then it is another matter.
Aram ABRAHAMYAN
