Awake, for morning in the bowl of night has flung the stone that puts
the stars to flight.
And, lo, the hunter of the east 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/Galicia

Spain has an awful lot of airports. Here in Galicia – population 2.8m – we have 3 of them, none of them terribly international. I recall reading years ago of 49 around the country, with some of these being ‘ghost’ facilities – ‘vanity projects’ with no flights in or out. One of these is outside the city of Ciudad Real – Don Quijote airport – and it’s just come into the news as a place where the regional government is going to house illegal immigrants allowed to stay in Spain while being processed. Which has upset the locals somewhat.

Is the Spanish national health service going the same way as the UK’s NHS? I ask this because I’ve recently had to undergo the rationing ploy known as lengthy queuing. And I read today that waiting lists for operations are getting longer and longer. A lot depends on which region you live in, with things being much better in richer regions like Cataluña and the Basque Country than in, say, Galicia. No one in Spain seems to care much about this ‘postcode lottery’, which would be anathema in the UK and a cause of riots.

I’ve been reading newspapers in Pv’s city’s Casino* for long enough to know when there’s a high chance that I’ll have to go somewhere else to read the VdG and DdP. These are the folk of most concern:-

• The chap who does every one of the many puzzles over 2 pages in each of the local papers.
• The couple who take both of them and then, in silence, read every word in each of them, and
• The chap who takes 2 or 3 papers at the same time and reads them one by one.

* A private club with a café open to the public

I’m reminded of what my brother used to say: it’s amazing what you see when you don’t have your rifle with you.

Rain-soaked October has entered its second half, making a mockery of the prediction that it would be drier than average. Even the rain-deprived excursionists from Jaén must be fed up of it by now. Or deliriously happy.

Ireland

This is a fascinating podcast – Why Ireland is about to Explode – on the opinions of a journalist who’s outside the Dublin mainstream. You can – and will, I guess, choose the bits you like and the bits you don’t like. Find it here, here or elsewhere.

The USA

The Amish folk wouldn’t seem to be natural supporters for a man of Trump’s qualities but he is targeting them. Here’s why and how.

The latest bizarre claim from the Orange Loon is that he is the father of IVF. This is an attempt to counter claims that Republican attitudes and actions have harmed people in need of this. Said Trump: We really are the party for IVF. We want fertilization, and it’s all the way, and the Democrats tried to attack us on it, and we’re out there on IVF even more than them, so, we’re totally in favor of it. You won’t be surprised to hear that this is the opposite of the truth – a concept that Trump never wrestles with – and that Republicans in the Senate have repeatedly blocked legislation guaranteeing access to the procedure nationwide.

You get what you vote for . . .

Meanwhile, the FT has a go at itemising The Four economic truths that explain the US’s bizarre election. [As the writer has a style that greatly appeals to me, I checked on him and read that: He is known for his insightful commentary on financial matters. He has a unique ability to explain complex financial concepts in an accessible manner, drawing parallels between finance and other fields. His writing often explores human behavior in relation to finance and markets. Plus he writes not only with insights but also with humour. (Or should I say ‘humor’?) On financial and economic matters!]

As for Ms Harris . . . She was brave enough to go on Fox News last night but the interview is widely seen to have done her no good at all. Some even say it was a disaster for her.

So, it’s down to the wire. The fat lady is still silent.

Ukraine v Russia

Richard North looks a Zelensky’s “victory plan” and says it might be better labelled a “rescue plan”, a desperate cry for help to stave off an inevitable defea

The Way of the World

Reading about the early days of revolutionary France, I was struck by how similar this is to our times of social justice and the commandment to Be Kind:

• In this new world, heart was to be preferred to head; emotion to reason.
• The drastic cultural alteration represented by the eruption of the Romantic notion of sensibility [= sensitivity] meant the creation of a spoken and written manner that would become the standard voice of the Revolution, shared by both its victims and its most implacable prosecutors.

So, are we heading for a revolution​?

Social Media

Dear god! The Roblox gaming platform for kids is an an X-rated pedophile hellscape, replete with users attempting to groom avatars, groups openly trading child pornography, widely accessible sex games, violent content and extremely abusive speech — all of which is open to young children.

Quotes of the Day

• Phone dope’ is the addiction of our times. We are living through a period of acute cognitive deterioration brought about by phone and software companies following overwhelming commercial incentives.  For children, as with other drugs, the effect is especially profound. Only collective will from consumers can break the malignant design of technology that is fuelling our cognitive decline.
• The death of a substantial public figure usually opens a festival of establishment hypocrisy in which even former enemies declare the deceased to be a giant in their field.

English

The fruits of today’s reading . . .

• Ligger: A freeloader or hanger-on, especially in the music industry. Not, as I thought, a lion-tiger cross . . . And certainly not a lino-tiger cross, as I originally typed it.
• Selvedg/Selvage: A “self-finished” edge of a piece of fabric which keeps it from unraveling and fraying. The term “self-finished” means that the edge does not require additional finishing work, such as hem or bias tape, to prevent fraying. In woven fabric, selvages are the edges that run parallel to the warp, and are created by the weft thread looping back at the end of each row.
• Japanese selvedge: A high-quality, specialized type of denim, known for its unique characteristics and production methods.  
• Ephebe: A term for a male adolescent in Ancient Greece. 

Did you know?

• There’s been a stupendous discovery in Petra.
• Latin plant names could be racist. The University of Michigan, in its inclusivity document, says that Botanical gardens should be careful not to erase ‘other forms of knowing’. This seems to me to defeat the whole object of naming things in a neutral dead language . . Are all university professors now thick? Or just ‘Progressive’? Reading some of the document here certainly gives that impression .

Finally . . .

The FT writer of the above article admits he’s a clothes snob. I see myself as the opposite, since I refuse to wear anything conspicuously branded, unless I’m paid to be a walking ad. He pays 250 dollars for Levi jeans. I confess I bought 2 pairs of Lee jeans in the UK at 75 quid each, but only because my daughters refuse to walk with me if I even think of buying a pair for 10 quid in a shop in Liverpool shown to me by a friend who’s both richer and more tight-fisted than me.

Finally, Finally . . .

A shout-out for this reader and blogger who posts lengthy historical articles with lovely illustrations, though -TBH – I’m not sure they’re authentic​​

My thanks to those readers who take the trouble to Like my posts, either after reading on line or in my FB group Thoughts from Galicia.

The Usual Links . . .

• You can get my posts by email as soon as they’re published. With the added bonus that they’ll contain the typos I’ll discover later. I believe there’s a box for this at the bottom of each post. If you do this but don’t read the posts, I will delete your subscription. So perhaps don’t bother if you have other reasons for subscribing . . .
• 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.
• 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. And this is something on the so-called Beckham Rule, which is beneficial – tax-wise – for folk who want to work here. Finally, some advice on getting a mortgage. And this article ‘debunks claims re wealth and residency taxes’. Probably only relevant if you’re a HNWI. In which case, you’ll surely know what that stands for.