Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable.
- Christopher Howse: A Pilgrim in Spain.
If you've arrived here because of an interest in Galicia or Pontevedra, see my web page here. Garish but informative.
England
- Me to younger daughter:-
- YD to me:-
- Me to elder daughter in Madrid:-
- ED to me:-
- Dad, you're talking to me on it!
Spain
- According to the Voz de Galicia - in Spanish here - corruption costs each Spaniard around in €2,000 a year. Less than in Italy, though.
- Just as I'm planning to motor to Madrid in January.
- The worst insult a Spanish nationalist can level at a Catalan?
- Something to please Lenox of Business Over Tapas.
- More good toll road news.
- Banksy Banksied in Madrid. But takes it well.
The UK and Brexit
- All seems to be moving smoothly towards a second referendum, master-minded by Mr Smoothy himself, Tony Blair. It'll be fascinating – maybe – to see what the questions are. And how soon Mrs May seeks an extension of the notice period to allow it to happen. Mid January?
- A contrary view: A second referendum would be wrong. It would be by far the biggest attempt to overthrow a democratic mandate ever attempted in this country. Leavers must boycott the vote to save democracy. I can't say I'm persuaded by this. If - as all lawyers know - the 'sovereign parliament' can change its mind and can never bind its successors, why can't the theoretically even more sovereign People have the same right and non-right?
- Boris Johnson has an article today in the UK press arguing against a second referendum. As usual, I can't be bothered to read what The National Oaf has to say. For one thing, I doubt it'll be what he really thinks.
The EU
- It's an ill wind . . . Eurosceptic fantasies of breaking free have been brutally exposed by the reality of Brexit. Day after day, European voters have been schooled in how messy and humiliating the process of leaving can be. They have learnt (as if the Greek tragedy a few years ago wasn’t enough) that the EU will always come out on top. This warning to other nations that have flirted with leaving is incredibly valuable to the EU. Imagine how vulnerable the bloc would be right now were it not for Brexit. Anti-establishment anger is surging, embodied in the 'gilets jaunes' of France. Italian rage against the Brussels machine is being stoked by their populist government. The migration crisis continues to inflame voters from the Continent’s liberal northwest to its hardline southeast. Against this backdrop, support for the EU should be plummeting. Instead, a major pan-European survey this summer found that backing for the organisation is at a 35-year high. This boost in popularity may partly be explained by the fact that (in contrast to the UK’s bumbling) the European Union has come out of this looking as smooth as caramel. In short: Brexit will make Europe stronger than ever. So, the law of unintended consequences in operation. Or was it really unintended??
Germany
- A nice article on the city I recently spent a very pleasant month in.
Spanish
- Word of the Day: Llorica.
Social Media
- It's been a terrible year for Facebook, apparently. Anyone really care?
© [David] Colin Davies
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