That
happened to me this morning. I was near the train station, hurrying up to make
copies of some exercises for my pupils and I saw him at “Plaza de España”. He was
sat on a crumpled blanket, opposite the main gate to Palma train station and
dressed in his “work uniform. There was a handwritten sign in front of him: “I am a poor man who has 5 kids. Please, help
me”. I happened to see him at break time, when civil servants have a coffee.
He was smoking a cigarette and discussing business on his last generation
mobile. Unconsciously, I had a look at his shoes. And yes, they were newer than
mine.
We live in an extraordinary society which makes business out of the most awful. Anything goes: a good marketing expert is capable of disguising the most obnoxious as friendly. This is called “making a virtue out of a necessity”.
Having such boldness is nothing new. Back in 2004, while I was still living in Frankfurt, a friend told me that she had seen a van that very morning “unloading” beggars at “Konstablerwache” Square and placing them, one by one, in their usual working positions. Her testimony explained that totally handicapped people were able to get to their job positions every day and promptly go away as soon as the shops closed.
It is not necessary to go abroad to see something of the sort. Those who have lived in Madrid at some point of their lives have heard the same speech and the same musical selection from each of the beggars who were busking in the subway. I have always found astonishing that ALL OF THEM can afford a good stereo with loudspeakers and "in a band sound".
And, just at the right moment, when I was reflecting about the current professionalization of begging, one of the most classical beggars of Palma turned up. It was a skinny, tall man in his fifties who always asks aggressively for a little help (“una ayudeta”), assaulting his victims with intimidation and giving insults away when he does not obtain what he wants.
- Give me a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help, a little help…
I decided to answer back exactly as the tough cyclist would have done:
- Give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me, give that help to me,
The beggar cackled.
And that’s all folks.
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