Brave New Europe? A big
boost for Podemos, Spain's equivalent to Sryiza? Maybe but we're
certainly living through that old Chinese curse - Interesting times.
Quote: "EU officials are confident that after reforms in
southern Europe and Ireland, new financial defences and a programme
of cash creation by the European Central Bank announced last week,
the single currency will not be brought down". Pure bluster??
Quote: "Across
southern Europe the young are being forced to pay the price for the
idealism and arrogance of a European elite that launched the single
currency and ignored all warnings about its inadvisability. . . .
Last week's explosive intervention was hailed as evidence that
the powers-that-be are finally getting their act together to solve a
crisis that is now moving into its sixth year, but I wonder. It
looked more like the desperate act of men who know that they, and the
rest of us, will be very fortunate indeed if a disaster is averted.".
More here.
But back to Spain . . .
A face frequently seen in Spanish politics is that of Vice President
Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría. One major reason is that she's the
spokesperson for the PP party/government and so usually stands in for
the unimpressive President Rajoy. Especially if there's a tough
question to answer. But, anyway, as she's quite young (43), I took a
look at her CV, to see what life experience qualified her for this
very senior position. Well, she graduated in law at 23 and then
worked as a State Lawyer and Associate Professor of Law for 6 years.
In 2000 she began her political career, under Rajoy, and in the
interim 14 years has risen to the commanding heights. Figuratively
speaking that is; she appears to be only about 5 feet tall. So, not
much experience out in the real world. But is this any worse than
David Cameron, who only ever worked as a PR executive?
President Rajoy, by the
way, must be doing proverbials in his pants this morning. As well as
the leader of the Opposition, of course. A 'government of national
unity' anyone?
Keeping a lid on
benefit payments is a key challenge for Western European governments
and perhaps even the USA, where there's no real welfare state. One
example of what they're up against is the attitude of a British women
who's currently bearing her 12th child. After her husband's regular
philandering - now there's a chap who can't keep it in his trousers! -
and his recent departure from the nest, she's now a single mother.
And she receives nearly 40,000 pounds a year from the state. Asked
why she'd had so many children, she replied: "It's the Government's
fault I've got so many kids. It's easy to claim benefits. I've always
wanted a big family and being a mum is the best feeling in the world.
We didn't rush into the decision to have more children lightly but we
knew we'd be able to afford it." The point, of course, is that
they couldn't afford it. The British taxpayers could, spread over
20 million of them. I first experienced the corrosive effect of welfare when I
heard my rich (and wonderful) aunt say she was going to claim a
benefit she didn't need because she'd paid her National Insurance
contributions and was entitled to it. And who doesn't think this way
in the Age of Entitlement? The challenge is to eradicate it without hitting the genuinely needy? Which dosn't seem to be the case with the British government's cap on total benefits per annum.
Reader Dulcinea has
advised that my yellow weed/flower is known as sourgrass in
California and kindly provided this link. Strangely, neither the
cuttings in my house nor the flowers in the garden have opened. So I
can't check the petals. But, anyway, it can be quite invasive. And
even fatal in large quantities. Despite which, it's used in some
cuisines for flavouring. Rather than as a poison, of course.
Finally . . . Despite
changing my Facebook profile to something ridiculous, I've yet to see
any ads for taxidermy courses or zoophilia pages. Perhaps the company
isn't as evil - or as efficient - as it's said to be.
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