At a press conference held today Rouben Babayan, Artistic Director of the Yerevan Puppet Theater, and Samvel Karapetyan, who heads the Armenian Architectural Research NGO, argued that Armenians have lost practically all connection to their historical and cultural roots and warned of the dire consequences such a "process of alienation" would have in the near future. Mr. Karapetyan angrily commented on the fact that when he walks up the hill to the Tzitzernakaberd Genocide Memorial Complex he witnesses the worst kind of behavior on the part of many Armenians who wind up laying flowers at the eternal flame. He stated that such behavior proved that many are merely engaged in a sham display of respect towards their ancestors and that such "shows" are to be seen at many commemorative events like the April 24th remembrance. According to Mr. Karapetyan, "We have become alienated and that which is alien has become second-nature for us." He pointed to the profusion of foreign words on Yerevan billboards and stores. "He will no longer use the Armenian language; we just write in Armenian letters," he argued. He added that while foreign names are to be seen on taxi fleets in Armenia, on Turkish taxis in western Armenia you will see the geographical names of our fatherland - Msho Taxi, Lake Van, etc. In his view this means that we have severed the ties to our origins and that we have strayed from our national underpinnings. "If we lay flowers it means that we respect the memory of our forbearers. We must care for the remnants of our culture on a state level. You don't love your country by shouting slogans. You must come to know it and such recognition leads to a desire to protect it," Mr. Karapetyan argued. Rouben Babayan stated that it will take decades for us to comprehend the significance of 1915. "We only talk about the victims and the lost lands. But we forget about what the 1915 Genocide has left in its wake. It has left a mentality of victimization and a victim is bereft of feeling national honor," he concluded. Mr. Karapetyan lashed out at the ARF, noting that in practice this party which claims to reflect the pain and torment of the "Erkir" has done nothing to justify such claims. He went on to say that the burning of the Turkish flag on April 24th by ARF youth is just another part of this "theater of show". "While it is acceptable for me to burn the raised flag of the enemy when it is captured on the battlefield, one has to make sacrifices to capture that flag. Thus, I find it laughable and my heart goes out to those kids who are being brought up in such a way in the name of the party's philosophy," Mr. Karapetyan noted. "By building a restaurant with the name 'Erkir' they are satisfied that they have solved the issues of western Armenia and have adopted an attitude of neglect for decades on end." "There are Hay Dat (Armenian National Committee) offices around the world. You would expect that they’d initiate real ‘dats’ (court case) in the name of our rights. But have they ever taken Azerbaijan to court for the destruction of the stone-cross cemetery in Jugha?" Mr. Karapetyan rhetorically asked. "Cyprus has 1,600 claims against Turkey in the European Court for destroying Greek monuments on the island. Recently, Turkey has been forced to pay $1million in compensation for its actions."