A couple of days ago, member of the Armenian National Movement Aram Manukyan said that the MPs that left the Rule of Law party are not going to live a good life because “their sons’ friends are going to point to them and say ‘your dad is a cheater’. Even if the honorable Aram Manukyan is making a right prediction, it’s pretty hard to envision the sons of oligarchs getting red or being ashamed. After all, the family is something sacred, where children don’t smoke in front of their father, much less have a negative opinion of the person keeping food on the table, buying them clothes, giving them money to spend and a car to drive, getting them admitted into the university and freeing them from army enlistment.
This is not the only reason why Aram Manukyan’s prediction isn’t right; the sons of the “cheaters” usually befriend the sons of other “cheaters” and those sons will obviously have enough sense not to say that “your dad is a cheater”. Even if something like that happens, the first accusation is going to be contradicted and then we will have a debate. This debate will not be based on human values, as Aram Manukyan is probably trying to say, but it will go into details. Basically, one of the “cheater’s” sons will say “My dad left the Rule of Law party at 5:30 and your dad left at 3:15”, or the first will say “Armen Gevorgyan personally called my father, while your dad was afraid of the FBI checking up on his business.” But this is just a prediction; there can’t be a debate between two boys whose fathers are playing on the same field.
It is quite possible to see “strange souls” among the sons of “cheater” dads, although I have learned from experience, in other words my childhood, that there are no “strange souls” in a similar environment. During the days of the Soviet Union, the “strange souls” had their own circle of friends, including sons of businessmen, super-rich party members and state functionaries, prosecutors, judges, police officers, etc. They gathered in different areas where the “natives” didn’t see each other (or they would see each other while studying at the same university faculty) and didn’t have any contact.
True, there were some “strange souls” who were always trying to establish contacts with the inheritors of the “elite”, to be in their “circle of friends”, enjoy their lifestyle, but they were always sincere and obedient, they would treat the “elite” with respect and it never crossed their minds to hint about their parents’ criminal records.
I’m sure there are people like that today too and they are still the same. Those strange souls who found themselves next to the sons of the “cheater dads”, didn’t come to say “your dad is a cheater”, but rather they came with the values, which are characteristic of “cheaters”. They don’t care about the lifestyles of their friends’ dads, but rather the “Volkswagen” brand name car and they can only enjoy the ride by being close with the son of the owner of the “Volkswagen”.
It seems as though none of the friends will say something like “your dad’s a cheater”, but it’s not just about being friends. The sons of the “cheater dads”, just like everyone, go to school, study in universities and start working for this or that company. You must really have a good imagination to imagine seeing the teacher, the professor or the company owner tell the boys: “Your dad is a cheater”. They’re not saying that because they have rules of etiquette or because they are teachers, but because they know that their fathers have become “cheaters” in order to continue to be in charge of everything that goes on. Since the dad is the one in charge of everything, then you have to be careful with his son and taking extra care could be of your benefit.
In a word, Aram Manukyan’s vision of a “civil war” is not going to happen because besides the intolerant individuals forming a minority in Armenia, the rest…No, they are not tolerant, but take part, they are not an audience, but people watching soap operas.
What’s the secret to the success of soap operas? There are many answers to this question-starting from the low intellect, all the way to the human instinct of finding out what’s going on in somebody else’s home. In my opinion, the secret to the success of soap operas are the standard problems, which the protagonist solves based on our visions. So, if the angry father forbids his daughter to date some rascal, he doesn’t really reveal the secret for us, rather makes us cry.
This is what happens during a rat race too. When a person sells his property and everything he owns and decides to change his political orientation overnight to save his son, he doesn’t give us something serious to think about. He makes us feel. In this kind of situation, the member of the audience becomes a participant whether he likes it or not, he gets to feel what it’s like to be in the “protagonist’s” shoes, feels the adrenaline that his body produces and thinks that it’s inhuman to accuse that person. The reason for this is that Armenian society doesn’t accept the ideal as morality, but rather foreign brand name products.
So, you shouldn’t really try to find a black rat in a dark room, especially during a rat race.