Spanish
life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable.
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Christopher Howse: A Pilgrim in Spain.
Spain
- My RSS feed yesterday threw up the blog of Tim Parfitt, a Brit who's lived 20 years here, running various well-known magazines. Like me, he loves Spain but is not behind the door when it comes to criticisms of the PP government in general and President Rajoy in particular. In his latest post, Tim opines that: Surreal things can happen in a week of Spanish politics, and it’s been one of those weeks again. And: There’s something seriously wrong in Spain and I’m now convinced that it starts at the very top. Not to mention: The prime minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy, is utterly inept. Click here and here for more and, by all means, enjoy Tim's blog, without abandoning this one, please.
- Tim lives in Barcelona and sympathises with Catalan demands. Here's someone else writing from that city, with even more trenchant views of the Spanish monarchy and government.
- As for the Catalan government . . . Well, this is the latest development.
- Would you believe it? Here's a Spaniard happily admitting to all the 'strange' habits of his compatriots that foreigners get lambasted for mentioning.
- And here, of course, is the latest list from The Local.
- More seriously, Don Quijones has his doubts about the latest plan to protect Spanish banks. Guess who's most likely to finance this protection.
Life in Spain
- I might well complain from time to time but yesterday I had excellent responses in the 2 hardware stores and the electrical repair shop I visited in a sadly abortive search for a magnet that would lift my lost watch from the hole it might be in. One problem, it seems, is that stainless steel is nowhere near as magnetic as plain steel. Thanks to the addition of chrome and nickel.
The EU
- In the run-up to the Italian elections next Sunday, Brussels has backed off in the areas of immigration, clean air, food labelling and debt flexibility. Just as it did with France (fiscal discipline) and Germany(highway tolls). The EU is regularly said to be a rules-based organisation. Maybe, but there are members and members. And rules and rules. The project has to be protected in whatever way is expedient.
The USA
- There are several evening satirical TV shows in the USA which benefit from an endless suppy of material from President Fart. Here's Stephen Colbert on the latter's bravery claims.
The UK and Brexit
- Here's a comment from Richard North on that Corbyn speech: We have the irony of Corbyn using material lifted from the media which in itself is wrong, mangling it to add further errors and then feeding it back to the media which doesn't even recognise that it is being treated to a farrago of misinformation.
- And here - for the few of you interested - is the good Dr North today, mincing Corbyn's nonsense,
The English Language
- This, according to this columnist, has reached its peak extension/influence and will now give way to Chinese. Mandarin, I guess. Or possibly some other Asian language.
Nutters Corner
- Pat Holliday of the Miracle Internet Church: If Hillary Clinton had won the presidency of the United States of America, we might not even be here today because they did have a World War III planned, where they were going to destroy 90% of the people. What they wanted to do was take control over the world by going down into their underground cities. We would all be dead and then, when it was time, they could come out of their underground cities and rule the world with Satan. That was their plan and they were almost there, but God has intervened. Do they not have lunatic asylums in the USA?
Galicia/Pontevedra
- Here's the estate agent's (realtor's) bumf on the palace which the Franco family is trying to flog for €8m euros. Ad and video.
Finally
- The Beast from the East which is currently lashing the UK and the continent was supposed to arrive here last night in the form of strong winds and heavy rain. So far, it's just a normal damp, cloudy winter day. Bit disappointing.
- Why do Spaniards tend to pronounce names of English people and places as if the various words were all just one? Is it because they speak Castellano so fast? I sometimes have great difficulty understanding they're talking about a person or a place I know well.
Today's Cartoon
Can't resist it, from The Times
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