“It’s a subject I’ve been planning to write about for a long time but never found the chance to, and one I’m now saying, ‘thank goodness I didn’t write about it.’ It’s the old ‘modern’ parking system at Ercan!”
The other day, when I went to Ercan, I laughed for a full ten minutes—not exaggerating…
“God, this must be a joke,” I said to myself!
Then I went looking for “Temel,” in Ercan’s parking lot…
I asked around…
But I couldn’t find him!
I left the “payment point” feeling sad, and a little aggrieved.
I would have thanked the person in charge who had the “payment point” moved to the middle of the parking lot—and whose name was probably Temel!
Ahhh, “payment point,” aren’t you a wonderful thing!
You’ve been set up right in the middle of Ercan’s parking lot…
Just like in the “Temel” jokes…
Anyway, as these kinds of “tributes!” were going through my mind, I also thought about the argument that may have taken place when the “payment point” was moved to the middle.
“How was this decision made?” The question occupied my mind for a long time!
Could it have gone something like this?
—Friends, this just isn’t working!
—Why, Mr. Temel?
—Can’t you see? People are leaving this parking lot very peacefully and comfortably… No, no! It shouldn’t be like this.
—Sir, people are happy, and our system is working perfectly well.
—Well, that’s exactly the problem, my friend. These things don’t work unless people suffer! The more they suffer, the more my people “love their leaders”… Don’t you ever follow politicians, my friend? Look, they stay in politics by making people suffer! Hehehehe.
—But, sir, thanks to the system we set up, everyone can easily find a parking space. And when they leave, they pay and drive off. It’s a good system!
—No, my friend! This system isn’t sustainable! From now on, people leaving the parking lot will pay not at the exit, but in the parking lot! Remove the payment points at the exit, move them all right into the middle, and have drivers get out of their cars to pay the parking fee!
(The deputy manager looks surprised, but makes a suggestion without letting it show.)
—Sir, even if we move the payment points to the middle, let’s at least arrange it so drivers can pay the parking fee without getting out of their cars!
—Nooooo! My friend, that’s the whole point: people who don’t suffer aren’t people! They’ll get out of their cars, pay the parking fee, and leave. I don’t want to hear any more objections! Make the changes immediately!
—Yes, sir…
Joking aside, I seriously asked the staff working in the airport parking lot, “Why did you do it this way?” The answer was even stranger: “There used to be traffic when people paid at the exit,” they said. I realized I’d burst into loud laughter. A little embarrassed, I said, “Sorry,” then added, “Well, doesn’t this cause traffic?” The answer was, “It does! We don’t know; they moved the payment point over here!”
I left the scene laughing…
All along the way, I kept thinking about how much my country dislikes systems!
I think I can describe this “love of having no system” with these words: Having no system is in my country’s very veins; no matter what you do, you can’t stop it!
Take a good look around. Wherever you see orderly work, you can be sure it won’t last long; very soon, that place too will become disorderly. It’s an orderly cycle in which disorder creates the system; call it what you will, you can’t prevent the hardship this situation causes you or the absurdity of it all!
At this point, your protest is pointless!
Don’t even try…
Hope to see you on Friday…
Pay attention to your surroundings, keep them clean, and please be respectful in traffic!