More PP infighting: Esperanza Aguirre announced yesterday that she was not a candidate for the presidency of the PP at the June convention, and that she would vote for Rajoy. But she didn't get all the way off the pot: she also announced that she might change her mind, and that she thought another convention should be held in three years to choose the candidate for the 2012 election. The last thing the PP needs is a Rajoy-Aguirre conflict for the next four years. Look how much damage the Hillary-Obama conflict over the last four months has already done to the Democratic party.
Speaking of Hillary and Obama, the Spanish press is eating it up. Nonstop entertainment. Each of the newspapers runs a story every day on the campaign. However, I haven't seen a single article looking into their policies, and little attention has been paid to their records. They're also ignoring McCain, the one person we know for sure is going to be on the ballot in November.
The Spanish fishing boat captured by Somali pirates is anchored near the coast, and Spanish authorities are apparently negotiating the payment of a ransom, and they've asked for help from the French and the Americans, since Spain has no naval presence in the area. I vote we help them out, since piracy is against everyone's interest (not to mention evil), and then never let them forget it.
Much irony here: when Zap's really in trouble, who you gonna call? The imperialist hyperpower, of course. Also, this type of incident makes nationalist Spaniards feel weak and insignificant, since Spain cannot defend itself and is effectively a NATO protectorate, and it makes them even more resentful of those who defend them.
Get this. At the beginning of April, Somali pirates captured a French yacht. The French paid the ransom, got their people back, and then mounted a raid on the pirate base with fifty commandos, a dozen special forces, and five helicopters. They captured six pirates and recovered $200,000 of the ransom money.
I think that's great. Good for the French. The only thing they could have done better would have been summarily hanging the pirates off the yardarm.
Of course, if the Americans had done exactly the same thing, certain elements in Europe would have gotten mad and accused us of colonialist unilateral warmongering.
Want more irony? The fishing boat involved belongs to Basques, as does much of the Spanish fishing fleet. The Basque Nationalists (PNV) are all mad because Spain doesn't have an Indian Ocean naval presence, and they'd called for a Spanish patrol boat to be stationed off Somalia in June of last year. I thought the Basque Nationalists were against Spanish militarism and in favor of Basque self-determination, and now here they are all pissed off because the central government doesn't have enough military power.
Economics minister Pedro Solbes has backed off his overoptimistic prediction for 2007 GDP growth, and scaled it back to 2.4%, still higher than the forecasts we've seen from the private sector. He's predicting 2.1% growth for 2009, which is still way too bullish. He also claims that unemployment won't top 10%.
Meanwhile, an organization of small Catalan builders has announced that its members have 2000 new dwellings already constructed in Catalonia, mostly in the suburbs around Barcelona and Tarragona, and they're selling them at cost, between €120,000 and €180,000. That's half the price those places were going for a year ago. The association of manufacturers of construction materials says that orders are down by 30%.
Barcelona suburb Badalona, Catalonia's third largest city, is looking at a major problem: there are more than 1000 immigrants, mostly Pakistanis and Romanian gypsies, who can't pay their rent and are going to be evicted. These people don't have legal leases, just a verbal agreement, so they don't have the massive protection Spanish law gives renters. And, since the tenants can't pay the rent, the apartment owners, also Pakistanis, can't pay their mortgages, and so the apartments are going to be repossessed. City authorities fear that those evicted will simply move in with compatriots, and thus increase overcrowding and worsen hygiene.
Tomorrow is Sant Jordi, the rose and book day, the day of the year on which Barcelona is most attractive, and the weather is going to cooperate, warm and sunny. And, since Barça hosts Man U in the Champions League semifinals, some 7000 English fans are going to be here. Let's hope they behave themselves. All the city's bars have ordered extra beer supplies. It costs €200,000 to bring out the police officers necessary for crowd control whenever a big crowd of soccer fans come here. There is a lot of complaining about this, generally aimed at the nasty guiris who get drunk and pee on everything. However, it also costs the cities that Barça visits about the same amount to keep their traveling fans under control, so it all balances out.
Don't forget to put down your bet on Manchester United, no matter how bad the odds are, since Barça is in a dreadful slump--they couldn't score in a Tijuana whorehouse--and has completely thrown away the League, and all its best players are either "injured" or injured.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
PP infighting news: Last weekend Mariano Rajoy announced that anybody who didn't like the way he's running the party can leave, which has been universally interpreted as a challenge to Esperanza Aguirre to make a decision. The expectation is that she'll make some kind of announcement today. Rajoy feels confident because he's got the regional party bosses behind him; he and Camps and Valcarcel and Feijoo want to make a move toward the center, while Aguirre's position is farther to the right.
The only thing I can say is it's about time the PP distanced itself from everyone involved in the 3-11 conspiracy theory; Aguirre was not one of them, but she's got the support of the Acebes-Zaplana hard-line wing.
The problem here is when Aznar was running the party, he kept everyone else in line and on message. Rajoy appears to have lost that near-dictatorial power. One advantage the right has had in Spain is that it's united; there's no other national party to the left of the Socialists, while the Socialists have always had to share their support with the Communists. If the PP splinters, though, that's a major advantage they're losing.
Get this: Somali pirates off the east African coast captured a Spanish fishing boat, and they are holding the 26 crew members hostages. They've said they just want money and that they are not political. The defense ministry is sending a ship to the area. This is the second episode this month of pirates taking a Western ship in the area. Piracy is a genuinely serious international problem, and of course those who are hurt most are the poor, since pirates are much warier of Western ships than of small Third World boats. I vote in favor of an armed response by Western navies; if we can't suppress piracy on the high seas, then what do we have a navy for?
Somebody called in a bomb threat against an Air Europa plane just before it was supposed to take off from Caracas for Madrid; they had to evacuate it, and a fifteen-hour delay proceeded.
They're starting another mass trial of members of ETA-front organizations; this time it's Gestoras Pro Amnistia, which supported amnesty for ETA terrorists before Judge Garzon banned it in 2001. 27 of them are facing sentences of up to ten years for membership in a terrorist organization. They are, of course, guilty as hell, and most of them are going to be convicted.
The rains last weekend filled up the reservoirs a bit, and now they're at 22.6% of capacity. Some more would be nice.
One good piece of economic news: 10.6 million tourists visited Spain over the first quarter of 2008, up 5.3% over last year. Tourism is such a huge industry in this country. Just a guess: Lots of Europeans are feeling slightly pinched and are downscaling their vacations from the Seychelles or the Caribbean to the Costa Brava, which is still very cheap compared to most other Euro vacation spots, and easy to reach as well.
I probably dislike Pepe Rubianes as much as I do anyone. He's announced he's taking six months off to recuperate from lung cancer. Unlike Rubianes, I don't wish death on anyone who's not going around killing other people, and I hope Rubianes recovers. And shuts the hell up instead of spewing poison, as he so often does.
Hey, everybody, look at this! La Vanguardia has another reader photo! This time it's a sign in a Barcelona shop window reading "Sale. New electric chairs starting at €3200." Says La Vangua, "The author of the photograph noticed this unusual sale in a shop on Calle Córsega in Barcelona that sells orthopedic products for handicapped people, and he wondered whether the electric chairs are imported from overseas. "Do they come from the United States? No to the death penalty."
Paul Hollander defined anti-Americanism as "a relentless critical impulse toward American social, economic, and political institutions, traditions, and values."
The only thing I can say is it's about time the PP distanced itself from everyone involved in the 3-11 conspiracy theory; Aguirre was not one of them, but she's got the support of the Acebes-Zaplana hard-line wing.
The problem here is when Aznar was running the party, he kept everyone else in line and on message. Rajoy appears to have lost that near-dictatorial power. One advantage the right has had in Spain is that it's united; there's no other national party to the left of the Socialists, while the Socialists have always had to share their support with the Communists. If the PP splinters, though, that's a major advantage they're losing.
Get this: Somali pirates off the east African coast captured a Spanish fishing boat, and they are holding the 26 crew members hostages. They've said they just want money and that they are not political. The defense ministry is sending a ship to the area. This is the second episode this month of pirates taking a Western ship in the area. Piracy is a genuinely serious international problem, and of course those who are hurt most are the poor, since pirates are much warier of Western ships than of small Third World boats. I vote in favor of an armed response by Western navies; if we can't suppress piracy on the high seas, then what do we have a navy for?
Somebody called in a bomb threat against an Air Europa plane just before it was supposed to take off from Caracas for Madrid; they had to evacuate it, and a fifteen-hour delay proceeded.
They're starting another mass trial of members of ETA-front organizations; this time it's Gestoras Pro Amnistia, which supported amnesty for ETA terrorists before Judge Garzon banned it in 2001. 27 of them are facing sentences of up to ten years for membership in a terrorist organization. They are, of course, guilty as hell, and most of them are going to be convicted.
The rains last weekend filled up the reservoirs a bit, and now they're at 22.6% of capacity. Some more would be nice.
One good piece of economic news: 10.6 million tourists visited Spain over the first quarter of 2008, up 5.3% over last year. Tourism is such a huge industry in this country. Just a guess: Lots of Europeans are feeling slightly pinched and are downscaling their vacations from the Seychelles or the Caribbean to the Costa Brava, which is still very cheap compared to most other Euro vacation spots, and easy to reach as well.
I probably dislike Pepe Rubianes as much as I do anyone. He's announced he's taking six months off to recuperate from lung cancer. Unlike Rubianes, I don't wish death on anyone who's not going around killing other people, and I hope Rubianes recovers. And shuts the hell up instead of spewing poison, as he so often does.
Hey, everybody, look at this! La Vanguardia has another reader photo! This time it's a sign in a Barcelona shop window reading "Sale. New electric chairs starting at €3200." Says La Vangua, "The author of the photograph noticed this unusual sale in a shop on Calle Córsega in Barcelona that sells orthopedic products for handicapped people, and he wondered whether the electric chairs are imported from overseas. "Do they come from the United States? No to the death penalty."
Paul Hollander defined anti-Americanism as "a relentless critical impulse toward American social, economic, and political institutions, traditions, and values."
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Our friends in ETA exploded a bomb at 3:25 this morning at Socialist party headquarters in Elgoibar, Guipúzcoa. They called in a warning, and the cops were able to evacuate the area, so fortunately no one was injured, but serious property damage was done. Three kilos of explosives were used. This was the second bombing of a Socialist headquarters in three days.
Nasty incident in Málaga: a drunk driver passing illegally ran a bus full of Finnish tourists off the road, where it rolled over. Nine were killed and fifteen seriously injured. The drunk survived, thereby pointing out a flaw in the Darwinian model.
Drivers from other European countries might want to be extra-careful in Spain, which has pretty near the most dangerous highways in Western Europe. All the drinking doesn't help, and the dreadful road signs don't help much either, nor does all the speeding that goes on. There really is more machismo among the Latins than the Nordics, and it comes out in the way some of them drive.
Check out this nonsense by Bru Rovira in La Vanguardia today:
Looks like the Jew-American conspiracy against the world is poisoning the wells again. We wouldn't want to imply that many poor countries are poor because of their own social structure or corruption or thieving dictatorial governments, would we?
Sounds like protectionism to me. By the way, the corrupt thieving dictatorial governments that impoverish their own people are well represented at the UN. I'm not surprised that they're trying to blame the situation they created on the Jew-American conspiracy and its "unjust profits." I also note that our author has no concept of competitive advantage: the countries that are best at producing food should do so. Other countries should concentrate on producing other goods that they can produce more efficiently and trade those goods for food. In that way everybody takes the fullest advantage of its economic potential.
Our author is absolutely right that agricultural subsidies in First World countries need to be stopped now; these subsidies are genuine unfair competition to Third World farmers. However, I was not aware that "slashed" food prices caused hunger; I figured the lower the price the consumer pays, the better. Guess I was wrong. Our author also believes that prices are set by the producers rather than the market, by the way. Finally, he does not understand that the way to make Third World countries wealthier is by improving farming technology to increase production there, along with hanging their corrupt dictators.
Nasty incident in Málaga: a drunk driver passing illegally ran a bus full of Finnish tourists off the road, where it rolled over. Nine were killed and fifteen seriously injured. The drunk survived, thereby pointing out a flaw in the Darwinian model.
Drivers from other European countries might want to be extra-careful in Spain, which has pretty near the most dangerous highways in Western Europe. All the drinking doesn't help, and the dreadful road signs don't help much either, nor does all the speeding that goes on. There really is more machismo among the Latins than the Nordics, and it comes out in the way some of them drive.
Check out this nonsense by Bru Rovira in La Vanguardia today:
Hunger is a structural problem of the globalized world today. A tragedy that demands collective solutions to the shared responsibility of the chief actors on the new scene of politics, and transnational markets, especially the rich countries, which have dictated the rules and exercise political and economic control of globalization.
Looks like the Jew-American conspiracy against the world is poisoning the wells again. We wouldn't want to imply that many poor countries are poor because of their own social structure or corruption or thieving dictatorial governments, would we?
(According to the UN) technical progress applied to agriculture "has produced very unjust profits." In order to correct it, the Unesco recommends fostering sustainable agriculture that respects the fragility of natural resources and protects the local production of food, bringing the producer closer to the consumer.
Sounds like protectionism to me. By the way, the corrupt thieving dictatorial governments that impoverish their own people are well represented at the UN. I'm not surprised that they're trying to blame the situation they created on the Jew-American conspiracy and its "unjust profits." I also note that our author has no concept of competitive advantage: the countries that are best at producing food should do so. Other countries should concentrate on producing other goods that they can produce more efficiently and trade those goods for food. In that way everybody takes the fullest advantage of its economic potential.
As can be seen now, although production has increased, distribution is unequal, and the poorest countries have not only gotten poorer because of the difficulties of reaching the markets and unfair competition against their products exercised by rich countries slashing prices with subsidized products (dumping), but they now see that having lost their food sovereignty, self-sufficiency within the poverty in which they lived has directly become hunger, because they now depend only on the markets and the prices that the large producers set, with whom they cannot compete.
Our author is absolutely right that agricultural subsidies in First World countries need to be stopped now; these subsidies are genuine unfair competition to Third World farmers. However, I was not aware that "slashed" food prices caused hunger; I figured the lower the price the consumer pays, the better. Guess I was wrong. Our author also believes that prices are set by the producers rather than the market, by the way. Finally, he does not understand that the way to make Third World countries wealthier is by improving farming technology to increase production there, along with hanging their corrupt dictators.
Friday, April 18, 2008
It's raining again this morning, and they've already gotten half an inch up in the Pyrenees; we had more than an inch yesterday here in Barcelona. A couple of rainy days do not an April make, but it's better than nothing. The content of the reservoirs is slightly up, though some of that is due to mountain snowmelt, not rain.
The transfer of water from the Ebro to Barcelona has hacked off PP-governed Valencia and Murcia, who are demanding that the old PP water plan be revived. Their argument: Barcelona needs water. Send them water. We need water. Send us water too. This issue is amazingly touchy. The lying sod Francesc Baltasar continues to call the planned Tarragona-Barcelona aqueduct a "mini-transfer," since the Spanish left made "No water transfers" a rallying cry against the PP back in 2004. Now that the capital of the Spanish left is thirsty, of course, a water transfer is needed at all costs, but we still can't call it that.
I think this is what Lakoff means by "framing the issue"--inventing euphemisms.
By the way, La Vanguardia is calling this whole kerfuffle "The War for Water." The Cataloonies are, get this, blaming the PP for trying to use the water issue to stir up anti-Catalan feeling in the rest of Spain. No, I think the PP is trying to stir up anti-Zapatero feeling in the rest of Spain.
2008 will be the first year since 1997 in which housing prices have increased by less than the rate of inflation. The five most expensive cities for housing in Spain, per square meter: San Sebastian, Guecho, Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao.
Oh, Lordy. You know we're in real economic trouble when Spanish beer consumption declines, 5% in 2007.
The Basque police arrested ten pro-ETA punks for "street terrorism," vandalism and rioting, in Guipuzcoa province. These dirtbags had committed more than twenty "acts of sabotage," several of them against the railroad system, which sounds like attempted train-wrecking to me. Seems to me the cops could have arrested them after, say, one or two, but the wheels of justice grind exceedingly slow. Three of them put up a fight and got busted for resisting arrest as well. These little shits are violent criminals and need to be locked up.
More little shits: The so-called university students against the Bologna Plan, the EU reform that is supposed to actually make them go to class and learn something, had a sit-in today at the Autonomous university. They're still there; about thirty of them locked themselves in the auditorium. I say we send in the cops to beat the crap out of them and arrest the lot for creating a public nuisance, disturbing the peace, disobeying a police officer, trespassing, and mopery.
They don't get the concept of "civil disobedience" in Spain. See, as Thoreau envisioned it, you were supposed to break laws that you believed to be unjust, and then submit yourself to society's punishment, as a sign that you believed morality to be above the law. You are not supposed to try to escape punishment, which is what these little shits who think it's fun to play radical always do. By the way, when Thoreau actually tried this by refusing to pay his taxes on the ground he was against the Mexican War, and they came and got him, his aunt bailed him out.
The transfer of water from the Ebro to Barcelona has hacked off PP-governed Valencia and Murcia, who are demanding that the old PP water plan be revived. Their argument: Barcelona needs water. Send them water. We need water. Send us water too. This issue is amazingly touchy. The lying sod Francesc Baltasar continues to call the planned Tarragona-Barcelona aqueduct a "mini-transfer," since the Spanish left made "No water transfers" a rallying cry against the PP back in 2004. Now that the capital of the Spanish left is thirsty, of course, a water transfer is needed at all costs, but we still can't call it that.
I think this is what Lakoff means by "framing the issue"--inventing euphemisms.
By the way, La Vanguardia is calling this whole kerfuffle "The War for Water." The Cataloonies are, get this, blaming the PP for trying to use the water issue to stir up anti-Catalan feeling in the rest of Spain. No, I think the PP is trying to stir up anti-Zapatero feeling in the rest of Spain.
2008 will be the first year since 1997 in which housing prices have increased by less than the rate of inflation. The five most expensive cities for housing in Spain, per square meter: San Sebastian, Guecho, Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao.
Oh, Lordy. You know we're in real economic trouble when Spanish beer consumption declines, 5% in 2007.
The Basque police arrested ten pro-ETA punks for "street terrorism," vandalism and rioting, in Guipuzcoa province. These dirtbags had committed more than twenty "acts of sabotage," several of them against the railroad system, which sounds like attempted train-wrecking to me. Seems to me the cops could have arrested them after, say, one or two, but the wheels of justice grind exceedingly slow. Three of them put up a fight and got busted for resisting arrest as well. These little shits are violent criminals and need to be locked up.
More little shits: The so-called university students against the Bologna Plan, the EU reform that is supposed to actually make them go to class and learn something, had a sit-in today at the Autonomous university. They're still there; about thirty of them locked themselves in the auditorium. I say we send in the cops to beat the crap out of them and arrest the lot for creating a public nuisance, disturbing the peace, disobeying a police officer, trespassing, and mopery.
They don't get the concept of "civil disobedience" in Spain. See, as Thoreau envisioned it, you were supposed to break laws that you believed to be unjust, and then submit yourself to society's punishment, as a sign that you believed morality to be above the law. You are not supposed to try to escape punishment, which is what these little shits who think it's fun to play radical always do. By the way, when Thoreau actually tried this by refusing to pay his taxes on the ground he was against the Mexican War, and they came and got him, his aunt bailed him out.
Chemical Lali Solé, in another turgid and self-contradictory piece in La Vanguardia, says: "I read in the e-magazine Sin Permiso that in Texas (United States) the creationists have achieved an important goal...in Texan textbooks the existence of our world is explained from the perspective of intelligent design, denying the theory of evolution. A posture that rationalists call obscurantism more proper to ancient times." (Sentence fragment sic.)
Naturally Chemical Lali didn't bother, actually, say, fact-checking said electronic magazine. I did, and I found that according to the National Council for Science Education, a pro-science organization, that nothing of the sort is true. The most recent science-education news from Texas is that a pro-evolution moderate Republican won the primary for a vacant seat on the state Board of Ed, that the Texas Academy of Sciences supports the teaching of evolution, that the Institute for Creation Research has applied for state certification as a graduate school and said certification will almost certainly be denied, and that the state director of science curriculum was fired after using her official e-mail account to urge subordinates to attend an anti-intelligent-design speech, on the ground that it wasn't her job to take sides on the issue.
Sin Permiso's scare story about creationism taking over in Texas, which Chemical Lali completely misinterpreted, is taken from an Austin website called The Atheist Experience.
So where is Sin Permiso getting its information? Well, they say right up front that they're a "socialist" publication, which generally means "Communist" in Europe when written with a small S. They re-publish opinion articles by other writers that they find simpáticos. If you check their file on articles about the US, you get the usual suspects as authors: Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, Howard Zinn, Greg Palast, Barbara Ehrenreich, Eric Hobsbawm, Angela Davis, George Lakoff, Lewis Lapham, Alexander Cockburn, Michael Moore, Ralph Nader, Cindy Sheehan, Tariq Ali--and our very own Andy Robinson!.
So if you're wondering where Europeans get their crazy-ass ideas about the United States, there are a few simple steps. The anti-American ideas start in the febrile brains of the far left of the US Democratic party, and the renegades even farther left than that lot. They get mistranslated to Spanish by our local press, which is also leftist in its sympathies, and picked up on by lefty politicians looking for an issue as well as lefty academics looking for a quick publication. Then they filter down to the mass media, and from there to the general public, nearly always in a further mutation, and next thing you know La Vanguardia is saying that in Texas teaching evolution is banned.
Naturally Chemical Lali didn't bother, actually, say, fact-checking said electronic magazine. I did, and I found that according to the National Council for Science Education, a pro-science organization, that nothing of the sort is true. The most recent science-education news from Texas is that a pro-evolution moderate Republican won the primary for a vacant seat on the state Board of Ed, that the Texas Academy of Sciences supports the teaching of evolution, that the Institute for Creation Research has applied for state certification as a graduate school and said certification will almost certainly be denied, and that the state director of science curriculum was fired after using her official e-mail account to urge subordinates to attend an anti-intelligent-design speech, on the ground that it wasn't her job to take sides on the issue.
Sin Permiso's scare story about creationism taking over in Texas, which Chemical Lali completely misinterpreted, is taken from an Austin website called The Atheist Experience.
So where is Sin Permiso getting its information? Well, they say right up front that they're a "socialist" publication, which generally means "Communist" in Europe when written with a small S. They re-publish opinion articles by other writers that they find simpáticos. If you check their file on articles about the US, you get the usual suspects as authors: Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, Howard Zinn, Greg Palast, Barbara Ehrenreich, Eric Hobsbawm, Angela Davis, George Lakoff, Lewis Lapham, Alexander Cockburn, Michael Moore, Ralph Nader, Cindy Sheehan, Tariq Ali--and our very own Andy Robinson!.
So if you're wondering where Europeans get their crazy-ass ideas about the United States, there are a few simple steps. The anti-American ideas start in the febrile brains of the far left of the US Democratic party, and the renegades even farther left than that lot. They get mistranslated to Spanish by our local press, which is also leftist in its sympathies, and picked up on by lefty politicians looking for an issue as well as lefty academics looking for a quick publication. Then they filter down to the mass media, and from there to the general public, nearly always in a further mutation, and next thing you know La Vanguardia is saying that in Texas teaching evolution is banned.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
ETA exploded a bomb at around 6 AM today outside a Socialist headquarters in Bilbao. They called in a warning first, so the cops were able to evacuate the neighborhood. Serious material damage was done, as the bomb contained five kilos of explosives. Good thing nobody was killed, but seven Basque police officers were slightly injured.
A lot of Spaniards get very indignant when the English-speaking press calls ETA a "Basque separatist group," when it is in reality a gang of terrorists who have killed more than 800 people. They have a point.
We finally had a good rain today, both in the morning and the afternoon, including a thunderstorm, which are comparatively rare in Spain. The cats and the dog don't like thunderstorms at all, and there was some yelping and cowering going on here. It rained all over Spain, since there's a low-pressure system over the Bay of Biscay bringing in counterclockwise moist Atlantic winds. It's supposed to be rainy all weekend; they said it already rained more than an inch in the Pyrenees, and this should fill up the reservoirs a couple of percent. The stinky season has been put off for another couple of weeks.
The incompetent lying greenie-Communist Catalan environmental counselor, Francesc Baltasar, now says we won't need to go into the "drought pre-emergency stage" until May, as the recent rains have increased reservoir contents by a percent or two.
Good news: The cops carried out a mass raid in Madrid, arresting 87 Nigerians for running the well-known Internet e-mail fraud. They may have scored upward of €170 million; the cops have evidence that they took in at least €20 million. Most of the 1200 victims defrauded were foreigners in Europe and the US, and they got taken for an average of €18,000 each. More than 200 computers were confiscated, along with reams of other documents.
Archaeological update: In Constantí, near Tarragona, a ruinous medieval building collapsed and the remains of a Roman aqueduct, later renovated during the medieval era, was found under it. The arcade is 60 meters long, and the aqueduct seems to have been for irrigation. They're taking this seriously enough to change the plan to build a new train line between Barcelona and Valencia, which would have passed right by the site.
Check out this headline on La Vanguardia's website today: "Hundreds of Palestinians mourn cameraman murdered in Gaza." Neutral. Objective. Unbiased. I like that in a newspaper. Naturally, the usual gang of idiots showed up to post anti-Semitic comments, which I won't bother to quote.
Economics update: The Spanish savings banks association predicts GDP growth for 2008 to be 2.0%, and to be 0.9% in 2009. Unemployment will top 11% in mid-2009, housing starts will drop 7% this year and 15% next year, and there will be an 0.6% budget surplus this year and a 1.2% budget deficit next year. Household consumption will rise 2% this year, down from a 3.2% increase last year. Even Pedro Solbes had to admit that his ministry's forecast for this year was outrageously optimistic.
A lot of Spaniards get very indignant when the English-speaking press calls ETA a "Basque separatist group," when it is in reality a gang of terrorists who have killed more than 800 people. They have a point.
We finally had a good rain today, both in the morning and the afternoon, including a thunderstorm, which are comparatively rare in Spain. The cats and the dog don't like thunderstorms at all, and there was some yelping and cowering going on here. It rained all over Spain, since there's a low-pressure system over the Bay of Biscay bringing in counterclockwise moist Atlantic winds. It's supposed to be rainy all weekend; they said it already rained more than an inch in the Pyrenees, and this should fill up the reservoirs a couple of percent. The stinky season has been put off for another couple of weeks.
The incompetent lying greenie-Communist Catalan environmental counselor, Francesc Baltasar, now says we won't need to go into the "drought pre-emergency stage" until May, as the recent rains have increased reservoir contents by a percent or two.
Good news: The cops carried out a mass raid in Madrid, arresting 87 Nigerians for running the well-known Internet e-mail fraud. They may have scored upward of €170 million; the cops have evidence that they took in at least €20 million. Most of the 1200 victims defrauded were foreigners in Europe and the US, and they got taken for an average of €18,000 each. More than 200 computers were confiscated, along with reams of other documents.
Archaeological update: In Constantí, near Tarragona, a ruinous medieval building collapsed and the remains of a Roman aqueduct, later renovated during the medieval era, was found under it. The arcade is 60 meters long, and the aqueduct seems to have been for irrigation. They're taking this seriously enough to change the plan to build a new train line between Barcelona and Valencia, which would have passed right by the site.
Check out this headline on La Vanguardia's website today: "Hundreds of Palestinians mourn cameraman murdered in Gaza." Neutral. Objective. Unbiased. I like that in a newspaper. Naturally, the usual gang of idiots showed up to post anti-Semitic comments, which I won't bother to quote.
Economics update: The Spanish savings banks association predicts GDP growth for 2008 to be 2.0%, and to be 0.9% in 2009. Unemployment will top 11% in mid-2009, housing starts will drop 7% this year and 15% next year, and there will be an 0.6% budget surplus this year and a 1.2% budget deficit next year. Household consumption will rise 2% this year, down from a 3.2% increase last year. Even Pedro Solbes had to admit that his ministry's forecast for this year was outrageously optimistic.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Jesus. Get this one. Some guy in Santomera, Murcia, chopped off his mom's head with a samurai sword, and then carried it through town while kissing and talking to it. He had already served two prison sentences for violently abusing his mother, and there was a restraining order out on him that expired last August. Get this: The mother appeared on a trash-TV program back in 2001 because she was afraid of her son. Seems like everybody in Spain who suffers a tragic death has been on trash TV.
The psycho son has been locked up in a prison psychiatric unit. He is clearly as nutty as a turrón and should stay there for the rest of his life. And the judicial system did a terrible job of protecting the mother, since there was plenty of warning that something like this was going to happen. As usual.
Though Spain has a high property-crime rate, its violent crime rate is very low, among the lowest in Europe, and one-fifth that in the United States. That doesn't mean violent crime is non-existent, though. One more thing: If Mom had had a gun this might not have happened.
The psycho son has been locked up in a prison psychiatric unit. He is clearly as nutty as a turrón and should stay there for the rest of his life. And the judicial system did a terrible job of protecting the mother, since there was plenty of warning that something like this was going to happen. As usual.
Though Spain has a high property-crime rate, its violent crime rate is very low, among the lowest in Europe, and one-fifth that in the United States. That doesn't mean violent crime is non-existent, though. One more thing: If Mom had had a gun this might not have happened.
Get this, by Eusebio Val in La Vanguardia from Washington reporting on the Pope's visit:
Wow. I didn't know Bush was a secret Catholic. I thought he was one of those crazy evangelicals who thinks God speaks to him personally, as La Vangua has so often repeated. I also had no idea that the Catholicism of Bush's Supreme Court appointees had anything to do with their nomination. By the way, Val also calls the Church "the most numerous religious minority in the country." I've never thought of the Catholics as a minority; I've always thought of them as the largest US Christian denomination.
And get this one, from Público yesterday, by a fellow named Enrique Meneses:
Wishful thinking, of course; Mr. Meneses would love to see the Coalition flee Iraq, and he doesn't seem to give a damn about the Iraqi people. And since when has the US been particularly noted for its historical machismo? What the hell is historical machismo?
Mr. Meneses includes his e-mail address in his article: it's enrimeneses@gmail.com. Should you decide to drop him a note, please be polite.
Despite being a Methodist, (Bush) is very much attracted to aspects of Catholic morality and the attitude of this Pope in particular. It has even been said that, secretly, Bush is a Catholic. It is true that he has given a great deal of protagonism and power to Catholic public figures, among them the two new Supreme Court justices he nominated, the conservatives John Roberts--the Chief Justice--and Samuel Alito.
Wow. I didn't know Bush was a secret Catholic. I thought he was one of those crazy evangelicals who thinks God speaks to him personally, as La Vangua has so often repeated. I also had no idea that the Catholicism of Bush's Supreme Court appointees had anything to do with their nomination. By the way, Val also calls the Church "the most numerous religious minority in the country." I've never thought of the Catholics as a minority; I've always thought of them as the largest US Christian denomination.
And get this one, from Público yesterday, by a fellow named Enrique Meneses:
The USA, which has made a totem out of machismo (sic) throughout its history, will have difficulty in facing a withdrawal from this war without an exit with the flag flying and martial music. The memory of Saigon lives on in the collective memory. A troop withdrawal in stages was vetoed by George Bush a long time ago. He is leaving that job for his successor. His excuse: the threat of a civil war in Iraq.
But isn't what is happening now in Basora a civil war? Is it necessary to keep lying? There are only two ways out for the Americans: close themselves off in two or three well-fortified bases in strategic places and withdraw the majority of their troops, or leave as Spain did, in an orderly manner while protecting their rearguard in order to suffer the smallest amount of casualties. In the first case the two Shiite sides and the Sunnis, financed by the USA, will end up finding a leader who can negotiate about petroleum. Even if he's a dictator.
Wishful thinking, of course; Mr. Meneses would love to see the Coalition flee Iraq, and he doesn't seem to give a damn about the Iraqi people. And since when has the US been particularly noted for its historical machismo? What the hell is historical machismo?
Mr. Meneses includes his e-mail address in his article: it's enrimeneses@gmail.com. Should you decide to drop him a note, please be polite.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Severo Moto, the leader of the Equatorial Guinean opposition, was arrested today in Toledo on arms-trafficking charges, though the guns he's accused of trafficking in consist of two shotguns and a pistol. I really don't know anything about Moto, except that he's been in trouble in Spain before but managed not to get expelled. I have no idea whether he's any more democratic than Teodoro Obiang, the very nasty dictator currently running that place.
This is important in Spain because Equatorial Guinea was Spain's only sub-Saharan African colony, and there are some Guineans living here, frequently exiles.
Repsol shares are up more than 13% today, on a report that they're in on the consortium to develop offshore oil in Brazil in a big new field.
Unpaid debts in Spain are way up no matter how you measure it, and the Bank of Spain is "moderately concerned."
The Zap government says the €10 billion stimulus package will cut the budget surplus to 0.6%, down from the predicted 1.15%. My question is whether they've taken 1-2% growth into consideration with these figures. I bet they haven't. The €400 tax refund will come half in June and the rest in monthly installments of €33. They're going to raise €4 billion with off-budget borrowing. And the regional and city governments are going to be hit very hard by the real-estate decline and corresponding loss of taxes, and they'll have to cut back spending drastically.
Meanwhile, the Montilla government has its own €2.7 billion economic stimulus for Catalonia all ready. Looks to me like it mainly consists of public works and subsidies to the construction industry.
Housing starts are going to be down 8% in 2008 in Catalonia, after a 2% increase in 2007. This will be the first decline in ten years. Pop goes the bubble.
This is important in Spain because Equatorial Guinea was Spain's only sub-Saharan African colony, and there are some Guineans living here, frequently exiles.
Repsol shares are up more than 13% today, on a report that they're in on the consortium to develop offshore oil in Brazil in a big new field.
Unpaid debts in Spain are way up no matter how you measure it, and the Bank of Spain is "moderately concerned."
The Zap government says the €10 billion stimulus package will cut the budget surplus to 0.6%, down from the predicted 1.15%. My question is whether they've taken 1-2% growth into consideration with these figures. I bet they haven't. The €400 tax refund will come half in June and the rest in monthly installments of €33. They're going to raise €4 billion with off-budget borrowing. And the regional and city governments are going to be hit very hard by the real-estate decline and corresponding loss of taxes, and they'll have to cut back spending drastically.
Meanwhile, the Montilla government has its own €2.7 billion economic stimulus for Catalonia all ready. Looks to me like it mainly consists of public works and subsidies to the construction industry.
Housing starts are going to be down 8% in 2008 in Catalonia, after a 2% increase in 2007. This will be the first decline in ten years. Pop goes the bubble.
Bad news from the US for the Spanish economy: Wholesale prices were up 1.1% in March. Inflation in the US means more inflation in Spain, and we're already close to 5% over the last year.
There is a great deal of concern in Spain about the sharp increase in grain prices (up 80% since 2005), since Spain is an exporter of vegetables and fruits but an importer of cereals. The grain price rise is because of bad harvests in 2007 in Australia and South America, growth in India and China, the sharp hike in oil prices (as oil is necessary to process and transport grain), and the use of grain to make fuel. Of course, increased grain prices mean increased meat and dairy prices as well, since farm animals eat grain too.
And the people who are hurt worst by food price inflation are, of course, the poor of the world, since they spend a much greater proportion of their incomes on food than wealthier people do. Methinks that Europe's Enlightened and Illustrated should denounce the selfishness of the oil cartel in limiting production to keep prices high and thus hurting poor folks everywhere. Not gonna happen, though.
Geopolitical point: Most of the OPEC countries don't export anything significant except for oil, so they have to spend the money that they're taking in on food and other necessities, all of which they import. This means that the US, as the world's largest grain exporter, pretty much has the non-grain-producing world over a barrel in the same way that the OPEC countries do; the difference is the Americans don't use food as an economic weapon. Not yet, anyway. The countries that are really going to get squeezed are those that don't produce either energy or grain. Spain, for example.
La Vanguardia's editorial today talks about a possible "food hecatomb," meaning mass starvation. They specifically blame it on using grain to make biofuels, and claim that "staple foods are the objective of international speculative capital." If I didn't know any better I'd say they're blaming it on those damn Jews again. Anyway, they want somebody (the UN security council, specifically) to make everybody else stop converting grain to fuel.
Get their conclusion: "While the United States has always considered grain production as a geostrategic factor, in Europe it has not been so. Here farmers have even been subsidized not to produce it. It is time to change the policy. The Unesco stresses the urgency of changing the rules of world agriculture, which is under the dictates of the large multinational corporations, to the detriment of global well-being."
1) Actually, I don't think the US has ever considered grain production as geostrategic, though that may change 2) the US has also paid farmers not to produce grain 3) "Changing the rules of world agriculture"? That is, putting the Alliance of Civilizations in charge of it instead of the market? 4) "Multinational corporations" dictate everything? Sounds like those damn Jews and Americans one more time. 5) Notice that La Vanguardia does not say one word about the role of oil prices in general and OPEC policy in particular in the high cost of food. It's all the speculative capitalist multinational corporations' fault.
You probably saw Berlusconi got elected for the third time as Italian prime minister. He's a crook, but at least he's a pro-American and pro-NATO crook. Good news: The Commies won zero seats. They got an 80% turnout, which is really high, especially by American standards.
The press is making a big deal out of Carmen Chacon's first review of the troops as Defense minister because she's a pregnant woman and the Army is traditionally very unfond of change. I guess it is sort of a big deal, symbolically, since it stresses that the Army is under civilian control, and Spain was a military dictatorship for four decades and then had a real coup attempt in 1981. However, the army has been substantially reformed and most of the old Franco guys have been retired or dead for years. They haven't seriously interfered in politics since the coup attempt, which was opposed by the great majority of the officers anyway. I doubt they felt humiliated by receiving orders from a woman, since the troops have been taking orders from women noncoms and officers for years now.
The plagiarist Marius Serra records an urban legend / conspiracy theory traveling around the Catalan Internet: the "multinational insurance companies" are flying a squadron of small planes over central Catalonia that are spraying silver sulfate in order to prevent hail, so that they won't have to pay out on their policies, and that the drought is a consequence of this practice. Supposedly three hundred people have seen the planes. Wow. You'd have to be more than abnormally stupid to believe that. Inbreeding in Solsona?
There are a lot of language purists running around claiming that our kids can't write correctly because they use their own jargon, spelling, grammar, etc. in SMSs and e-mails. No, our kids are smart enough to distinguish between two different registers. They just don't know how to write correctly in either of them.
Looks like the goddamn bus drivers and the city have agreed on a last-minute deal and the strike will come to an end. The city caved in: the drivers will get two days off a week, and fewer hours, with no pay cut, and no disciplinary action, even against those guilty of sabotage. The sabotage has continued, though; over the weekend thirty ticket-validating machines were destroyed, and last night nine buses had their tires slashed and a non-striking driver was attacked (they threw red paint all over him). No arrests were made, of course.
I get a lot of Google hits for Isabel Pantoja. Pantoja fans: Her boyfriend Julian Muñoz, accused of stealing everything in Marbella that wasn't nailed down, went back to jail in la Pantoja's car after a three-day furlough presumably spent with his sweetie. Co-conspirator Juan Antonio Roca, charged with extortion, embezzlement, tax fraud, money-laundering, leading an criminal organization, forgery, illegal weapons possession, influence-peddling, and abuse of power, got out of jail on €1 million bail.
Reminds me of a joke: Lincoln had to pay back Pennsylvania Republican party boss Simon Cameron for his crucial support, and he made Cameron his first secretary of war though he knew what Cameron was like. Supposedly one day Lincoln said, "I believe Cameron would steal anything, excepting a hot stove," and a Cameron supporter said, "Take that back," and Lincoln said, "All right, I believe that Cameron would steal anything, including a hot stove."
There is a great deal of concern in Spain about the sharp increase in grain prices (up 80% since 2005), since Spain is an exporter of vegetables and fruits but an importer of cereals. The grain price rise is because of bad harvests in 2007 in Australia and South America, growth in India and China, the sharp hike in oil prices (as oil is necessary to process and transport grain), and the use of grain to make fuel. Of course, increased grain prices mean increased meat and dairy prices as well, since farm animals eat grain too.
And the people who are hurt worst by food price inflation are, of course, the poor of the world, since they spend a much greater proportion of their incomes on food than wealthier people do. Methinks that Europe's Enlightened and Illustrated should denounce the selfishness of the oil cartel in limiting production to keep prices high and thus hurting poor folks everywhere. Not gonna happen, though.
Geopolitical point: Most of the OPEC countries don't export anything significant except for oil, so they have to spend the money that they're taking in on food and other necessities, all of which they import. This means that the US, as the world's largest grain exporter, pretty much has the non-grain-producing world over a barrel in the same way that the OPEC countries do; the difference is the Americans don't use food as an economic weapon. Not yet, anyway. The countries that are really going to get squeezed are those that don't produce either energy or grain. Spain, for example.
La Vanguardia's editorial today talks about a possible "food hecatomb," meaning mass starvation. They specifically blame it on using grain to make biofuels, and claim that "staple foods are the objective of international speculative capital." If I didn't know any better I'd say they're blaming it on those damn Jews again. Anyway, they want somebody (the UN security council, specifically) to make everybody else stop converting grain to fuel.
Get their conclusion: "While the United States has always considered grain production as a geostrategic factor, in Europe it has not been so. Here farmers have even been subsidized not to produce it. It is time to change the policy. The Unesco stresses the urgency of changing the rules of world agriculture, which is under the dictates of the large multinational corporations, to the detriment of global well-being."
1) Actually, I don't think the US has ever considered grain production as geostrategic, though that may change 2) the US has also paid farmers not to produce grain 3) "Changing the rules of world agriculture"? That is, putting the Alliance of Civilizations in charge of it instead of the market? 4) "Multinational corporations" dictate everything? Sounds like those damn Jews and Americans one more time. 5) Notice that La Vanguardia does not say one word about the role of oil prices in general and OPEC policy in particular in the high cost of food. It's all the speculative capitalist multinational corporations' fault.
You probably saw Berlusconi got elected for the third time as Italian prime minister. He's a crook, but at least he's a pro-American and pro-NATO crook. Good news: The Commies won zero seats. They got an 80% turnout, which is really high, especially by American standards.
The press is making a big deal out of Carmen Chacon's first review of the troops as Defense minister because she's a pregnant woman and the Army is traditionally very unfond of change. I guess it is sort of a big deal, symbolically, since it stresses that the Army is under civilian control, and Spain was a military dictatorship for four decades and then had a real coup attempt in 1981. However, the army has been substantially reformed and most of the old Franco guys have been retired or dead for years. They haven't seriously interfered in politics since the coup attempt, which was opposed by the great majority of the officers anyway. I doubt they felt humiliated by receiving orders from a woman, since the troops have been taking orders from women noncoms and officers for years now.
The plagiarist Marius Serra records an urban legend / conspiracy theory traveling around the Catalan Internet: the "multinational insurance companies" are flying a squadron of small planes over central Catalonia that are spraying silver sulfate in order to prevent hail, so that they won't have to pay out on their policies, and that the drought is a consequence of this practice. Supposedly three hundred people have seen the planes. Wow. You'd have to be more than abnormally stupid to believe that. Inbreeding in Solsona?
There are a lot of language purists running around claiming that our kids can't write correctly because they use their own jargon, spelling, grammar, etc. in SMSs and e-mails. No, our kids are smart enough to distinguish between two different registers. They just don't know how to write correctly in either of them.
Looks like the goddamn bus drivers and the city have agreed on a last-minute deal and the strike will come to an end. The city caved in: the drivers will get two days off a week, and fewer hours, with no pay cut, and no disciplinary action, even against those guilty of sabotage. The sabotage has continued, though; over the weekend thirty ticket-validating machines were destroyed, and last night nine buses had their tires slashed and a non-striking driver was attacked (they threw red paint all over him). No arrests were made, of course.
I get a lot of Google hits for Isabel Pantoja. Pantoja fans: Her boyfriend Julian Muñoz, accused of stealing everything in Marbella that wasn't nailed down, went back to jail in la Pantoja's car after a three-day furlough presumably spent with his sweetie. Co-conspirator Juan Antonio Roca, charged with extortion, embezzlement, tax fraud, money-laundering, leading an criminal organization, forgery, illegal weapons possession, influence-peddling, and abuse of power, got out of jail on €1 million bail.
Reminds me of a joke: Lincoln had to pay back Pennsylvania Republican party boss Simon Cameron for his crucial support, and he made Cameron his first secretary of war though he knew what Cameron was like. Supposedly one day Lincoln said, "I believe Cameron would steal anything, excepting a hot stove," and a Cameron supporter said, "Take that back," and Lincoln said, "All right, I believe that Cameron would steal anything, including a hot stove."
Monday, April 14, 2008
The new Zap cabinet hasn't been slow in announcing what its economic plan is: Solbes, at the IMF meeting in Washington, said that they're going to spend €10 billion ($15 billion), more than 1% of GDP, on stimulating the economy. So there goes the balanced budget out the window, and inflation will roll on indefinitely, as the Zapsters try to keep consumer spending high and unemployment down. Ironic that Zap and his admirers are always going around criticizing the strawman of Dehumanizing Globalized Neoliberal Consumer Society and how shallow it is.
About €6 billion of the stimulus package is Zap's €400 per taxpayer refund, half of which will be paid in July and the other half in December. If we're going to stimulate the economy, then I thoroughly agree that the best way to do it is to give the taxpayers some of their own money back so they can do with it as they see best. Again, it's interesting that this is a flat tax refund, rather than (as one would think knowing the Zapsters) a progressive refund giving back more to the poor than the rich.
The other €4 billion, though, looks like it's mostly free money given out to special interest groups. It will go to 1) aid for small and medium businesses, basically a government subsidy for the petite bourgeoisie 2) guarantees for mortgages on dwellings under "official protection," basically a government subsidy for the banks 3) public works spending, which if done right doesn't have to be a mere government subsidy for the construction industry, but if done wrong will be just that 4) "reordering the energy industry," which sure sounds like a government subsidy for Repsol and the electric and gas utilities 5) paying immigrants to go home, which is of course a government subsidy for said immigrants, and an indirect subsidy for the unions, whose members will face less competition.
Solbes also said that the government's three economic priorities would be innovation, modernization, and "expanding equality between men and women." Seems to me that gender quotas would cause a negative effect on innovation and modernization.
He's still living in Disneyworld on economic growth: the IMF says Spain's growth rate for 2008 may be as low as 1%, and the Spanish banks predict between 400,000 and 600,000 Spaniards will be added to the unemployment rolls by December.
The Socialists have been nattering on about George Lakoff and how their political strategies are based on his theories. From what I can tell, Lakoff thinks humans interpret everything as a metaphor, which of course is unscientific, and taken to the extreme means that humans are incapable of truly abstract thought. Lakoff's political metaphor about conservatism being a "strict father" and left-liberalism a "nurturing mother" is not precisely original. He adds that leftist politicians should attempt to define and frame the issues according to the metaphors they believe in, which again is not precisely original; he seems to really be saying that leftists should invent euphemisms to avoid using what he believes to be conservative discourse and metaphor. So it figures that Zap and the Socialists would buy into such tosh. Karl Rove or Lee Atwater would eat these guys up and spit out the bones.
About €6 billion of the stimulus package is Zap's €400 per taxpayer refund, half of which will be paid in July and the other half in December. If we're going to stimulate the economy, then I thoroughly agree that the best way to do it is to give the taxpayers some of their own money back so they can do with it as they see best. Again, it's interesting that this is a flat tax refund, rather than (as one would think knowing the Zapsters) a progressive refund giving back more to the poor than the rich.
The other €4 billion, though, looks like it's mostly free money given out to special interest groups. It will go to 1) aid for small and medium businesses, basically a government subsidy for the petite bourgeoisie 2) guarantees for mortgages on dwellings under "official protection," basically a government subsidy for the banks 3) public works spending, which if done right doesn't have to be a mere government subsidy for the construction industry, but if done wrong will be just that 4) "reordering the energy industry," which sure sounds like a government subsidy for Repsol and the electric and gas utilities 5) paying immigrants to go home, which is of course a government subsidy for said immigrants, and an indirect subsidy for the unions, whose members will face less competition.
Solbes also said that the government's three economic priorities would be innovation, modernization, and "expanding equality between men and women." Seems to me that gender quotas would cause a negative effect on innovation and modernization.
He's still living in Disneyworld on economic growth: the IMF says Spain's growth rate for 2008 may be as low as 1%, and the Spanish banks predict between 400,000 and 600,000 Spaniards will be added to the unemployment rolls by December.
The Socialists have been nattering on about George Lakoff and how their political strategies are based on his theories. From what I can tell, Lakoff thinks humans interpret everything as a metaphor, which of course is unscientific, and taken to the extreme means that humans are incapable of truly abstract thought. Lakoff's political metaphor about conservatism being a "strict father" and left-liberalism a "nurturing mother" is not precisely original. He adds that leftist politicians should attempt to define and frame the issues according to the metaphors they believe in, which again is not precisely original; he seems to really be saying that leftists should invent euphemisms to avoid using what he believes to be conservative discourse and metaphor. So it figures that Zap and the Socialists would buy into such tosh. Karl Rove or Lee Atwater would eat these guys up and spit out the bones.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
The List Universe has a post containing 11 videos of James Randi debunking pseudoscientific bullshit: graphology, astrology, psychometry, crystal power, aura reading, telekinesis, clairvoyance, dowsing, thought transference, faith healing, and homeopathy. Great stuff. Definitely check it out.
Coincidentally, La Vanguardia has a two-page piece today on something called ayurveda, which they call a "millenarian science...millenarium wisdom...ayurveda does not cure symptoms, like Western medicine, but rather goes to the roots and establishes an integral or holistic diagnosis of the individual." Naturally, it's nothing but superstition and fraud.
Wikipedia says:
Quackwatch says that ayurveda as it is known today is based on the fraudulent claims of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and Deepak Chopra, and adds, "Because Ayurvedic medicine relies on nonsensical diagnostic concepts and involves many unproven products, using it would be senseless even if all of the products were safe."
The Skeptic's Dictionary also describes ayurveda as "pseudoscience," and says it "confuses metaphysical claims with empirical claims."
Even La Vanguardia says, tucked away at the bottom of the article, "Nonetheless, there are those who criticize the fact that ayurveda only cures those who are not ill. In case of emergency, ayurvedic doctors themselves resort to Western medicine."
So why did the newspaper bother using two whole pages to encourage people to travel to India for ayurvedic treatment?
Coincidentally, La Vanguardia has a two-page piece today on something called ayurveda, which they call a "millenarian science...millenarium wisdom...ayurveda does not cure symptoms, like Western medicine, but rather goes to the roots and establishes an integral or holistic diagnosis of the individual." Naturally, it's nothing but superstition and fraud.
Wikipedia says:
Critics object to the lack of rigorous scientific studies and clinical trials of many ayurvedic products. The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine states that "most clinical trials of Ayurvedic approaches have been small, had problems with research designs, lacked appropriate control groups, or had other issues that affected how meaningful the results were."
There is evidence that using some ayurvedic medicine, especially those involving herbs, metals, minerals, or other materials involves potentially serious risks, including toxicity.
Quackwatch says that ayurveda as it is known today is based on the fraudulent claims of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and Deepak Chopra, and adds, "Because Ayurvedic medicine relies on nonsensical diagnostic concepts and involves many unproven products, using it would be senseless even if all of the products were safe."
The Skeptic's Dictionary also describes ayurveda as "pseudoscience," and says it "confuses metaphysical claims with empirical claims."
Even La Vanguardia says, tucked away at the bottom of the article, "Nonetheless, there are those who criticize the fact that ayurveda only cures those who are not ill. In case of emergency, ayurvedic doctors themselves resort to Western medicine."
So why did the newspaper bother using two whole pages to encourage people to travel to India for ayurvedic treatment?
There's no news today except more reactions to Zap's new cabinet. Our friends at La Vanguardia have a good few opinions:
1) Zap's inner circle consists of De la Vega, Solbes, Rubalcaba, PSOE general secretary Jose Blanco, PSOE Congressional leader (and ex-defense minister) Jose Antonio Alonso, Jose Enrique Serrano, who is Zap's chief of staff, and David Taguas, Zap's top economics advisor.
2) Maleni Alvarez didn't get fired, and Bibiana Aido got a cabinet post, because of the influence of Andalusian party boss Manuel Chaves.
3) Zap and Montilla do not get along either politically or personally, and Montilla had to swallow Alvarez's continuance in her post. Montilla's reward for the big Socialist victory in Catalonia were the cabinet posts for Chacon and Celestino Corbacho, even though Corbacho is more a Zap guy than a Montilla guy.
4) Elena Salgado at Public Administration is considered to be very competent by political insiders.
5) Jesus Caldera, Zap's campaign manager, wanted to be deputy premier in charge of social issues. Zap, who doesn't seem impressed with Caldera at all, gave him the boot and sent him off to set up a PSOE think tank, a copy of the PP's FAES.
6) The purpose of the new Ministry of Equality will be to establish gender quotas in the private sector and to fight against "machista violence."
7) Zap is going to make a big deal out of environmentalism and climate change and all that Greenie crap.
8) Nobody likes Moratinos or Alvarez.
9) Apparently the big favor Miguel Sebastian did for Zap was agreeing to run for mayor of Madrid against Gallardon on short notice after Jose Bono bailed out on him. Cristina Garmendia at Research and Development and Beatriz Corredor at Housing are Sebastian's people, as well.
1) Zap's inner circle consists of De la Vega, Solbes, Rubalcaba, PSOE general secretary Jose Blanco, PSOE Congressional leader (and ex-defense minister) Jose Antonio Alonso, Jose Enrique Serrano, who is Zap's chief of staff, and David Taguas, Zap's top economics advisor.
2) Maleni Alvarez didn't get fired, and Bibiana Aido got a cabinet post, because of the influence of Andalusian party boss Manuel Chaves.
3) Zap and Montilla do not get along either politically or personally, and Montilla had to swallow Alvarez's continuance in her post. Montilla's reward for the big Socialist victory in Catalonia were the cabinet posts for Chacon and Celestino Corbacho, even though Corbacho is more a Zap guy than a Montilla guy.
4) Elena Salgado at Public Administration is considered to be very competent by political insiders.
5) Jesus Caldera, Zap's campaign manager, wanted to be deputy premier in charge of social issues. Zap, who doesn't seem impressed with Caldera at all, gave him the boot and sent him off to set up a PSOE think tank, a copy of the PP's FAES.
6) The purpose of the new Ministry of Equality will be to establish gender quotas in the private sector and to fight against "machista violence."
7) Zap is going to make a big deal out of environmentalism and climate change and all that Greenie crap.
8) Nobody likes Moratinos or Alvarez.
9) Apparently the big favor Miguel Sebastian did for Zap was agreeing to run for mayor of Madrid against Gallardon on short notice after Jose Bono bailed out on him. Cristina Garmendia at Research and Development and Beatriz Corredor at Housing are Sebastian's people, as well.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Not much other news, as is common on Saturdays. ETA set two booby-trap bombs at a telephone relay station in Navarra, hoping to blow up some cops, but the second bomb didn't work. Fortunately, nobody got hurt.
El País says that 800 Spaniards have contracted Creutzfelt-Jakob disease (of which one cause is eating "mad cows") since 2000, which means that there most likely is something strange going on. I'm glad I'm a vegetarian.
More than one-third of Spanish university graduates are working at jobs for which they are overqualified, a higher percentage than in any other EU country but Ireland and Estonia.
The mini-aqueduct between Tarragona and Barcelona, to carry unneeded water destined for irrigation from the Ebro to the thirsty metro area, will be finished in six months and cost €150 million ($225 million). So let's see: it ought to come on line by the first of November, assuming that they get started now and everything goes according to plan. That means about four months of showering once a week here in Can Fanga, during what will become known as the Stinky Summer of 2008.
Milan general manager Adriano Galliani is coming next week to buy Ronaldinho. Supposedly the offer is €8 million a year for Ronaldinho and €16 million to the Barça for his contract. Barça wants €30 million, and the story is they've already got a €25 million offer from Inter. I say make them bid against one another and see how much the club can get.
El País says that 800 Spaniards have contracted Creutzfelt-Jakob disease (of which one cause is eating "mad cows") since 2000, which means that there most likely is something strange going on. I'm glad I'm a vegetarian.
More than one-third of Spanish university graduates are working at jobs for which they are overqualified, a higher percentage than in any other EU country but Ireland and Estonia.
The mini-aqueduct between Tarragona and Barcelona, to carry unneeded water destined for irrigation from the Ebro to the thirsty metro area, will be finished in six months and cost €150 million ($225 million). So let's see: it ought to come on line by the first of November, assuming that they get started now and everything goes according to plan. That means about four months of showering once a week here in Can Fanga, during what will become known as the Stinky Summer of 2008.
Milan general manager Adriano Galliani is coming next week to buy Ronaldinho. Supposedly the offer is €8 million a year for Ronaldinho and €16 million to the Barça for his contract. Barça wants €30 million, and the story is they've already got a €25 million offer from Inter. I say make them bid against one another and see how much the club can get.
Zap's named his new Cabinet, with some changes, but mostly continuity.
María Teresa Fernández de la Vega: First Deputy Premier and Cabinet chief. Holdover.
Pedro Solbes: Second Deputy Premier and Economics. Holdover.
Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba: Interior. Holdover.
Elena Salgado: Public Administration. Holdover.
Carme Chacón: Defense. Last legislature: Minister of Housing.
Celestino Corbacho: Labor and Immigration. Last legislature: Mayor of Barcelona suburb L'Hospitalet.
Mariano Fernández Bermejo: Justice. Holdover.
Bernat Soria: Health. Holdover.
Miguel Ángel Moratinos: Foreign Affairs. Holdover.
Miguel Sebastián: Industry, Tourism, and Commerce. Lost 2006 mayoral campaign in Madrid.
Mercedes Cabrera: Education, Social Affairs, and Family. Last legislature: Deputy from Madrid.
César Antonio Molina: Culture. Holdover.
Elena Espinosa: Agriculture and Environment. Holdover.
Cristina Garmendia: Research and Development. From the private sector.
Magdalena Álvarez: Public Works. Holdover.
Bibiana Aido: Equality. Last legislature: Deputy from Cadiz in Andalusian parliament.
Beatriz Corredor: Housing. Last legislature: Member of Madrid city council.
So that's a Cabinet made up of 17 ministers, nine women and eight men, though of the women only De la Vega, Chacón, and Álvarez hold top posts. It's the first time that a Cabinet has had more women than men, and the first time there's been a woman Defense minister.
Solbes is the minister who is most trusted by the Spanish public. I'm surprised Zap didn't fire Maleni Álvarez. Spain's most important international posts, Foreign Affairs and Defense, are in very weak hands, a wimp and an airhead. Rubalcaba is a holdover against his desires; he'd wanted to change posts. He's done OK at Interior, I have to admit. At least they got the new research and development minister from the private sector, so she might actually do a good job.
I have no idea what a minister of Equality is going to do; I suspect it's going to involve gender quotas. I thought Miguel Sebastián's political career was over after that embarrassing 2006 defeat; Zap must have owed him a big one in the favor bank. Former Barcelona mayor Joan Clos got booted at Industry; I wouldn't hire Clos to paint my back fence. And Cristina Narbona's head rolled at Environment, as I'd speculated.
María Teresa Fernández de la Vega: First Deputy Premier and Cabinet chief. Holdover.
Pedro Solbes: Second Deputy Premier and Economics. Holdover.
Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba: Interior. Holdover.
Elena Salgado: Public Administration. Holdover.
Carme Chacón: Defense. Last legislature: Minister of Housing.
Celestino Corbacho: Labor and Immigration. Last legislature: Mayor of Barcelona suburb L'Hospitalet.
Mariano Fernández Bermejo: Justice. Holdover.
Bernat Soria: Health. Holdover.
Miguel Ángel Moratinos: Foreign Affairs. Holdover.
Miguel Sebastián: Industry, Tourism, and Commerce. Lost 2006 mayoral campaign in Madrid.
Mercedes Cabrera: Education, Social Affairs, and Family. Last legislature: Deputy from Madrid.
César Antonio Molina: Culture. Holdover.
Elena Espinosa: Agriculture and Environment. Holdover.
Cristina Garmendia: Research and Development. From the private sector.
Magdalena Álvarez: Public Works. Holdover.
Bibiana Aido: Equality. Last legislature: Deputy from Cadiz in Andalusian parliament.
Beatriz Corredor: Housing. Last legislature: Member of Madrid city council.
So that's a Cabinet made up of 17 ministers, nine women and eight men, though of the women only De la Vega, Chacón, and Álvarez hold top posts. It's the first time that a Cabinet has had more women than men, and the first time there's been a woman Defense minister.
Solbes is the minister who is most trusted by the Spanish public. I'm surprised Zap didn't fire Maleni Álvarez. Spain's most important international posts, Foreign Affairs and Defense, are in very weak hands, a wimp and an airhead. Rubalcaba is a holdover against his desires; he'd wanted to change posts. He's done OK at Interior, I have to admit. At least they got the new research and development minister from the private sector, so she might actually do a good job.
I have no idea what a minister of Equality is going to do; I suspect it's going to involve gender quotas. I thought Miguel Sebastián's political career was over after that embarrassing 2006 defeat; Zap must have owed him a big one in the favor bank. Former Barcelona mayor Joan Clos got booted at Industry; I wouldn't hire Clos to paint my back fence. And Cristina Narbona's head rolled at Environment, as I'd speculated.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Too bad the poll on La Vanguardia's worst correspondent is finished, or Rafael Poch would have gotten a few more votes. I ran across a Rafa piece on George W. Bush's 2004 speech at Normandy. Check out Rafa's take on World War II history (the translation is not mine):
Trevor from Kalebeul had an excellent post when Poch's article came out originally in 2004. He summed up the problem perfectly:
Here's what Poch has to say about EU China policy:
Somebody claiming to be Rafael Poch posted this as a comment at a Time magazine blog in the original English:
It is hell difficult to be "international correspondent" without analizing english language model as well.
Many think that John Wayne and soldier Ryan saved Europe from fascism, that Angloamerica saved the old continent, and that the disembarkation in Normandy was the great decisive action. It was not so...
But, would there have been a "second front" if the things had gone well to Hitler in the East?
The Anglo-American disembarked in the remotest and worse places to alleviate the pressure undergone by the USSR...
The United States had supported the Italian dictator from his arrival to power in 1922, including the Italians’ excesses, since they represented, after all, a the threat to the Bolsheviks...
On the Western part it is accepted, for example, that the German-Soviet ’39 pact demonstrated the kinship between nazism and stalinism. Of the shames of the democracies, of their attitude towards fascism on the eve of the war and of their imperial kinships with Hitler and Mussolini, hardly anyone speaks. Surely because of the manifestation of that fascism in the present times...
...if the USSR had been attacked (by Hitler) instead of having attacking Poland first, would have been applauded by the democracies...
The most formidable propaganda apparatus and public relations in world history has made a legend of its ever-victorious history. Hollywood, the mediatic industry in the hands of tycoons, the systems which are the official feeders of that industry and, of course, the army of paid affluent conformists in charge to transmit it, have written the most “advisable” version: the victory was America’s...
Vindicating the only positive role that the foreign armed intervention of the United States has had in its history in the last century, the President sells his present-day crusades. The French, the Italians, the Belgians and the Dutch are thus eternally grateful to America and the Europeans’ serfdom to soldier Ryan is maintained, even when confronted with a long list of unpunished crimes committed by the American militarism since then and the ongoing destruction of the fragile international rights.
The man (George W. Bush) who, according to polls, embodies the war and promotes global destabilization for most Europeans, spoke today in Normandy about morality, liberty and principles, and received the tribute and the applause of the leaders of the "old Europe".
The generosity and heroism of the 10,000 killed in those French beaches served, as well, to assert its "war against terrorism", the destruction of the fragile rudiments of international law and arms control, the preventive or "humanitarian" aggression, the arms race and the trivialization of the use of nuclear weapons in conventional wars. It's time to remember who was the main representative of those same trends in the world of 60 years ago.
The war was not won Private Ryan in Normandy, but a dangerous unworthy claims its glory.
Trevor from Kalebeul had an excellent post when Poch's article came out originally in 2004. He summed up the problem perfectly:
Stalin apologist Rafael Poch has published an article in La Vanguardia which belittles, falsifies, misrepresents the Normandy landings. That’s a common line here, where quite large numbers of people still believe that Stalin (substitute Mao, Pol Pot, Castro, Companys etc as you will) was a benevolent (although misunderstood) genius.
Here's what Poch has to say about EU China policy:
The communicative strategy to be adopted by the EU in the rhetorical construction of its dialogue with China should be fully cognizant of and sensitive to the criteria of China’s moral order as outlined in this study and specified in the Five Principles (mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity; non-aggression; non-interference in each other’s internal affairs; equality and mutual benefit; and peaceful coexistence), the Spirit of Shanghai and the ASEAN Way, with special emphasis on mutual recognition, parity of esteem, and mutual benefit. Any other discourse will be perceived semiotically as unilateralist and exploitative.
Somebody claiming to be Rafael Poch posted this as a comment at a Time magazine blog in the original English:
Western optimism and ignorance about his own history, takes for garantted that there is nothing worse for China as the CCP. A realistic example of "Democracy in China" is the so called "Cultural Revolution" not your idealistic corporate western democracy, where the people decides very, very little. Make the people irrelevant for big decissions was the confessed pourpose of the western "fathers of Democracy" from the very begining (just read!).
Democracy in the West was the result of a very gradual and controlled process, extended for two centuries and plaged whith carnage and social rebellion. My point is that it is hell dificult to analyse "democracy in China" without analizing western democracy model as well.
It is hell difficult to be "international correspondent" without analizing english language model as well.
The Times has a nice little weekend travel special about Barcelona. Pretty well done, though just a bit too enthusiastic, as most travel articles are. Their recommendations are mostly pretty good if you have money to spend, though to their credit they do mention a couple of budget places.
One criticism: The article doesn't mention street crime, of which there is plenty, mostly of the non-violent sort. Tourists coming here need to be aware that they are targets, especially in the Old City and anywhere else there are a lot of other tourists. If you keep an eye out and don't get sloppy drunk, you should be OK. And, racist as it may be to say so, stay away from groups of Moroccan teenagers wearing brand-name sports gear.
One criticism: The article doesn't mention street crime, of which there is plenty, mostly of the non-violent sort. Tourists coming here need to be aware that they are targets, especially in the Old City and anywhere else there are a lot of other tourists. If you keep an eye out and don't get sloppy drunk, you should be OK. And, racist as it may be to say so, stay away from groups of Moroccan teenagers wearing brand-name sports gear.
Check out what I found over on YouTube. It's a collection of short films called "Private Snafu" made for the Army during World War II. The idea was Frank Capra's, and the cartoons themselves were done by the Warner Brothers people, including Mel Blanc as Private Snafu, using his Bugs Bunny Brooklyn accent. The best of them, including "Rumors" and "Spies," were written by Dr. Seuss himself. Fascinating stuff. I'd never heard of it before, much less actually seen the films.
The point of the movies was to teach soldiers what not to do by showing a bad example. The Americans were big into psychology during World War II, and these films were obviously much more effective than your standard instructional movie.
"Coming! Snafu" introduces the character. In "Spies" Snafu gets drunk and gives away military secrets. "The Home Front" addresses GIs' gripes about non-combatants living it up back in the States. "The Chow Hound" warns against wasting food. In "Private Snafu vs. Malaria Mike," Snafu fails to take proper precautions. "Snafuperman" is a superhero who doesn't read his field manuals. "Rumors" shows how spreading gossip may backfire. In "Fighting Tools," Snafu fails to maintain his weapons and his jeep. "Censored" shows what might happen if soldiers try to dodge the censorship of letters home. In "Outpost," Snafu gets bored on observation duty and nearly loses a battle. "Booby Traps" warns soldiers to pay attention when occupying new territory, and comes pretty close to showing some boobies. Bugs Bunny makes a cameo in "Gas," as Snafu loses his gas mask.
Note that all the movies include lots of cheesecake.
The point of the movies was to teach soldiers what not to do by showing a bad example. The Americans were big into psychology during World War II, and these films were obviously much more effective than your standard instructional movie.
"Coming! Snafu" introduces the character. In "Spies" Snafu gets drunk and gives away military secrets. "The Home Front" addresses GIs' gripes about non-combatants living it up back in the States. "The Chow Hound" warns against wasting food. In "Private Snafu vs. Malaria Mike," Snafu fails to take proper precautions. "Snafuperman" is a superhero who doesn't read his field manuals. "Rumors" shows how spreading gossip may backfire. In "Fighting Tools," Snafu fails to maintain his weapons and his jeep. "Censored" shows what might happen if soldiers try to dodge the censorship of letters home. In "Outpost," Snafu gets bored on observation duty and nearly loses a battle. "Booby Traps" warns soldiers to pay attention when occupying new territory, and comes pretty close to showing some boobies. Bugs Bunny makes a cameo in "Gas," as Snafu loses his gas mask.
Note that all the movies include lots of cheesecake.
Not much news today, not even any obnoxious media anti-Americanism. Zap will be officially seated as Prime Minister today. Looks like the Zap government prefers the water scheme that would send unused water, currently destined for irrigation, from Tarragona to Barcelona. Supposedly they could build the 60-km aqueduct in six months. Yearly inflation has hit 4.5%, with an 0.9% increase in March alone. As well as oil and grain, clothing and shoe prices are leading the increase. La Vangua claims that Barça is negotiating with AC Milan, Inter Milan, and Manchester City to sell Ronaldinho, and that Inter has offered €25 million.
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