Interesting Facts - Page 127

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631

In 1956, only 2% of people who bought a Ford automobile chose to equip the optional seat belts.

632

In 1833, the city of Athens had a population of only 4,000 people.

633

Between 100 A.D. and 1100 A.D., the population of Rome fell by 99%.

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In the Soviet Union, children were encouraged to be like Pavlik Morozov, a teenager who snitched on his father to the authorities, leading to the father's execution.

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"Paris Syndrome" is a phenomenon where Japanese and Chinese visitors to Paris have a psychotic breakdown due to their extreme disappointment with the city. Between 1988 and 2004, 63 Japanese patients were hospitalized with Paris Syndrome.

14 Comments

+11

Level ∞

Mar 2, 2021

Most of the story of Pavlik Morozov was probably made up by the Soviets as a piece of propaganda.

+14

Level ∞

Mar 2, 2021

I'm a little skeptical of Paris Syndrome. A large number of people suffer from psychiatric illness. A large number of Japanese people visit Paris. Combine the two and you get Paris Syndrome.

That said, the disappointment is real. From Wikipedia:

"While magazines often depict Paris as a place where most people on the street look like models and most women dress in high fashion brands, in reality neither van Gogh nor models are on the street corners of Paris. In this view, the disorder is caused by positive representations of the city in popular culture, which leads to immense disappointment as the reality of experiencing the city is very different from expectations: tourists are confronted with an overcrowded and littered city (especially if compared to Japanese metropolis) and a less than welcoming attitude by French hospitality workers like shopkeepers, restaurant and hotel personnel."

Level 73

Mar 2, 2021

#second

Level 43

Mar 4, 2021

And I thought about Stockholm Syndrome... lol

Level 63

Mar 15, 2021

I've heard of something called Jerusalem Syndrome. Upon taking trips to Jerusalem, there have been multiple cases of people having religious-related delusions and episodes of psychosis because of the significance of the city. It can happen to people with a stable psyche but is also more common in religious people.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem_syndrome

Level 65

Jul 2, 2021

The Simpsons did a whole episode on it!

Level 79

Dec 20, 2021

Paris and Jerusalem are both wonderful if anyone visiting thinks otherwise the problem lies somewhere in their own brains.

Level 68

Feb 5, 2022

Great. I have extremely high expectations of Paris now. :)

Level 82

Feb 4, 2023

I have never had a good experience in Paris. On one occasion it was so hot and crowded that I had a panic attack. On another the metro was on strike and I had to walk 2 miles across the city centre dragging two suitcases. On another I did manage to catch the metro but almost got spat on by a spluttering drunk guy during the pandemic. And on yet another I got lost trying to find the Gare de l'Est and almost missed a train. Add to that that the city feels dirty, sprawling and excessively busy -- and isn't even that pretty by French standards, just grandiose -- and you have a recipe for disaster.

Level 48

Mar 27, 2022

"Most of the story of Pavlik Morozov was probably made up by the Soviets as a piece of propaganda."

Plus to this, it was only in the brief period of our history: from late 1930s to mid-1950s, mostly.

Level 70

Mar 28, 2022

why did he snitch though? surely at that age he knew the consequences?

Level 72

Apr 6, 2022

It was the Great Purge, it was snitch or be snitched.

Level 80

May 13, 2025

Nope, it was a few years before that. The story as reported at the time was that Pavlik's father was the corrupt chairman of the local soviet (the village's top official essentially) who helped kulaks (relatively wealthy landowners profitting off of hired labour) hide their wealth in exchange for bribes, obviously to the expense of the community and the state, during the Soviet farm collectivization. He was also said to be a drunkard who regularly beat his wife and children and had largely abandoned them in favour of a mistress. The boy denouncing his father ultimately resulted in his murder by some of the father's relatives. In short, Pavlik was lauded as a martyr who protected his mother and brothers and - crucially for the political narrative - the common good, at the cost of his life. While there is little hard evidence for the details, there is also no real basis for the smear campaign by post-Soviet propaganda portraying him as just a trouble-making snitch.

Level 80

May 13, 2025

Long story short, the moral of Pavlik Morozov's story was more nuanced than "snitching on your parents is cool".