July 11, 2007 TZAK POT !

I was surprised when I read in the Herald Tribune that the per capita spending on lotto and various gambling games in Greece is many times that of other countries, including the U.S. A graph with a breakdown of where the gambling money was spent showed that nearly 80% of the money in Greece is bet on sports. Gambling on sports is legal in Greece and brings much money into the government coffers.
The K. family with whom I am staying does not indulge in lotto or instant tickets or sports gambling. Christos, one of five brothers, grew up "dirt poor" as they say, actually with a dirt floor in their home, in a mountain village. As the young men became old enough they left the village for Athens where they could find work. They remember hard times and they borrow nothing; everything is paid by cash, not even in installment payments. They have no credit cards.
The only time they participated in a lottery was in the government lottery for apartments. Housing is expensive in Greece and most people can not own a house; they may own an apartment. Due to the severe housing shortage the government ran a lottery and gave apartments to those who were chosen. Qualifying to be included in the lottery required a great quantity of paper work to be submitted. With Christos' help, the proper forms were submitted and two of his brothers won apartments - very nice apartments. I have visited them both. Without the lottery both of these brothers would undoubtedly still be renting. It is particularly fortunate for them as neither of them attained a high school education and have been hourly wage earners all their lives.
Following the end of World War II, Greece had a very hard time with civil war and great distress for her people. Now, for the first time in her long history, the Greek people have lived without war for the past thirty years. That in itself seems to the older generations, who suffered so much, almost too good to be true. Perhaps for them the real "TZAK POT" is Peace.