For years now, I've said that the world will never be at peace until there are enough greek chefs on the planet for everyone to eat Greek food.
Now, that sounds like a flip way to bring about world peace. And there is a degree of fippancy in that, but there's also some practical issues wrapped up in there as well.
When was the last time you ate at a greek restaurant with some friends? Chances are that the staff was pleasant and the food was bountiful and tasted good. It doesn't matter whether the restaurant was a large elegant space, a tiny little shack in between two houses, or if the tables were outside on a warm summer's day or the tiny tables were tightly packed nearby a wood-burning stove in a converted carriage house. In the end, what you remember most is the good food and the good company.
Chairman Mao had this to say on food (paraphrased): First, let us fill our bellies. Then we may talk politics.
The issue of dealing with basic needs (food, shelter) comes before dealing with political differences between peoples. Usually, I'd leave the Greek Chef axiom at just that. But last week, I stumbled across a couple of corrolaries.
First, there will be no peace in Afganistan until the Greek Chefs can move in. Why? Because Greek chefs aren't stupid - there's no reason to move into a war zone full of MREs when basic personal needs are endangered.
Second, there will be no peace in Afganistan until the Greek Restaurants arrive. Why? Because roaming bands of warlords are more interested in fighting than coming together at the dinner table. Once opposing sides can sit civilly at the dinner table and eat first, and possibly talk about politics later, there is little hope for the region.
Third, why Greek food? From the macro level, it doesn't really matter. At the micro level, it does. The Greek civilization is thousands of years old. Pretty much any kind of food can be prepared in a greek style (although I'll pass on alligator and feta though). The Greeks can prepare a meal around vegetarian ingredients, beef, lamb, chicken, fish, octopus, ... whatever is legal food in pretty much any culture (even the fruititarians :-).
(This isn't about Afganistan per se; Afganistan is simply a relevant example at the moment though.)
... whatever is legal food in pretty much any culture (even the fruititarians :-).
But not the Breatharians.
