Awake,for morning in the bowl of night has flung the stone that puts the stars to flight.

And, lo, has caught the sultan’s turret in a noose of light!

Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable: Christopher Howse: ‘A Pilgrim in Spain’

Cosas de España

A unique and extraordinary Spanish tradition.

For me, binging on this stuff is another one. But not at Xmas. Only in July, when a supermarket virtually gives a way the excess stocks it was left with in January.

The UK

I mentioned recently that my son-in-law had waited all night in a chair in an NHS hospital, having been sent for immediate admittance with a serious heart complaint needing early intervention. Well, the NHS Chairman recently decided, after his wife had broken her ankle, to see what treatment they’d get, if he didn’t reveal who he was. So, how did it go? This is the headline of a Times article this morning: My wife had to wait all night in A&E. He’s reported to have said: “It just can’t continue like this. But it probably will. Unless God decides to take pity on the Brits and miraculously transform the more-then-ailing service overnight. Unlikely. But less so than the service transforming itself into one of the European models that are significantly superior. I’d be willing to bet that, after the imminent 8 years of Labour rule and lots more dosh for the NHS, it will still be falling way below European standards and outcomes. My personal consolation, of course, it that I won’t be relying on it.

Can it really be true, as it says here, that:  This weird and often contradictory ideology [transgenderism + self-identity] has been swallowed whole by the [British] metropolitan middle classes?

One thing’s for sure . . . The case of teenage identity angst I know well would be universally treated very differently today from 39 years ago. To the detriment of the teenage girl who is now a mother of 3 kids.

Russia

This news will be an earth-shattering surprise to all, I’m sure.

Quotes of the Day

• What I love above all else when it comes to football is the sheer brilliance of its finest performers. . . . When it comes to the players, I’ve never had anything other than devoted admiration for the way they can control a swooping ball with a dab of a toe or create passing sequences of such intricate beauty they might have been conceived by Kandinsky. Me too.
• Football is not just as a sport but also a beautiful meritocracy, a system in which children from all backgrounds can dare to dream, in which expensive equipment doesn’t act as a barrier (you need only a ball and space) and in which genuine ability has at least a fighting chance of winning out over privilege, nepotism, cronyism and the other covert factors that thwart ambition. Only a tiny fraction will ever make it to the great leagues of the world, but this is precisely why those who survive the formidable filtering process tend to be exemplars of drive and ability.

These are the P J o’Rourke quotes which mysteriously disappeared from the WordPress draft of yesterday’s post:-

First ones, both from way back in 1987:-

I can’t bear the dreadful, glum earnestness of the Left. People who worry themselves sick over sexism in language and think the government sneaks into their houses at night and puts atomic waste into the kitchen disposal unit can’t be expected to have a sense of humour. And they don’t

Some people are unable to experience even the slightest of life’s pleasures without being thrown into frenzies of analysis.

The Way of the World

The US authorities are investigating a company on the Nasdaq once valued at several billion dollars but which in reality, throughout 2019, had no meaningful operations or customers and about $15 in its bank account. Allegedly: It was built almost entirely on a mountain of sham documents, created to dupe auditors and investors – a stunning indictment of the ease with which stock market investors were duped by a business conjured out of “thin air”. The case is said to have raised troubling questions for regulators and auditors, who only spotted red flags after huge sums of money had already changed hands. Well, the root cause, as ever with these affairs, can only be human greed. Allied to herd mentality/gullibility. The founder/inventor of the company will surely spend some years in clink and then come out and enjoy the millions he’s undoubtedly squirrelled away.

Spanish

Alucinar: (Inter alia) To be amazed.

Did you know? . . .

In case, like me, you’ve been wondering what on earth ‘intersectionality’ really is, I give you 2 AI-based answers:

Perplexity: Intersectionality is an analytical framework that recognizes the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender, and how these overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage can create unique experiences of oppression. Coined in 1989, it highlights the ways in which various social and political identities can result in distinct combinations of privilege and discrimination. For example, an individual’s experience is not just defined by their gender or race alone, but by how these factors intersect and shape their experiences. It is a tool used to understand and address the complex and often compounding nature of inequality and disadvantage faced by individuals with multiple social identities.

Bing: Intersectionality is a term that refers to the way that different forms of discrimination and oppression, such as racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia, interact and affect each other in the lives of marginalized groups. It was coined in 1989, to describe how black women face multiple and overlapping forms of discrimination that are not adequately addressed by the civil rights movement or the feminist movement.

Some examples of intersectionality are:

• A black woman who is also poor may face more challenges than a white woman who is rich, because she has to deal with both racism and sexism in her society.
• A gay man who is also disabled may face more barriers than a straight man who is able-bodied, because he has to cope with both homophobia and ableism in his environment.
• A Muslim woman who is also an immigrant may face more hostility than a Christian woman who is native-born, because she has to endure both Islamophobia and xenophobia in her country.

Intersectionality helps us understand that people’s experiences are not determined by one single factor, but by the combination of multiple factors that shape their identities and opportunities. It also helps us recognize that different groups may have different perspectives and needs when it comes to social justice issues. Intersectionality is not only a theoretical concept, but also a practical tool for challenging oppression and creating change.

Me: Opinions will differ as to how effective this tool is in solving the problmes of the world. As opposed to creating some of them . . .

Finally . . .

On the boat last week. I was in an inside cabin with no porthole. But there was this on the wall. And it was so deceptive that several times I had to stop myself stepping outside to enjoy the sun and the placid sea . . .

The Usual Links . . .

For new readers:– If you’ve landed here looking for info on Galicia or Pontevedra, try here. If you’re passing through Pontevedra on the Camino, you’ll find a guide to the city there – updated a bit in early July 2023.

For those thinking of moving to Spain:- This is an extremely comprehensive and accurate guide to the challenge, written by a Brit who lives in both the North and the South and who’s very involved in helping Camino walkers.