We came upon this huge boat while we were walking in the marina in Palaion Faliron the other day. It is massive, as big as the ships that take hundreds of passengers to the islands in the summer.
It's so big that however hard I tried, I could not get all of it in one shot. And it's private.
This is the other half of it.
Next to where this boat was moored, a helicopter pad.
We could not comprehend the need for such a big private boat and such gross conspicuous consumption seemed obscene to us. It brought home the vast and growing gap between rich and poor in our world today.
And then yesterday morning I read in the Guardian that the latest Oxfam report has shown that the 62 richest billionaires own as much wealth as the poorer half of the world's population and that 1% of people own more wealth than the other 99% combined. In order to reverse this, Oxfam suggests the following: a crackdown on tax dodging; higher investment in public services; higher wages for the low paid.
The Equality Trust have made the following statement: 'Inequality, both globally and also in the UK, is now at staggering levels. We know that such a vast gap between the richest and the rest of us is bad for our economy and society. We now need our politicians to wake up and address this dangerous concentration and power in the hands of so few'.
Hear, hear.
The imbalances are obscene in extreme. I have no problem with individuals making their own wealth from nothing, by using their intelligence and working hard. I have no problem with an individual owning a huge yacht and helicopter -- the problem I have is with that wealth being passed on to the children. What I wish for is equal opportunities for everyone, and an abolition of inherited wealth - but I am much more likely to win the lottery without buying a ticket than ever seeing that achieved!
ReplyDeleteLike you, I cannot see things changing Olga, and it's very depressing. So many people are suffering - austerity for the majority: cuts in social services, poverty, being barely able to make ends meet, and on the other hand such obscene levels of wealth. It's a disgrace.
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