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

The first chapter of Michael Reid’s newish book Spain, provides a review of the major developments of the last 50 years and it’s been interesting for me to re-visit the major political and economic events of the last 25 years that I’ve both observed and written about. Especially as some of them as as hard to believe now as they were at the time. I’m thinking particularly of the years of the phoney boom between 2002 and 2007 and then the spectacular – and inevitable – collapse of it. It’s been good to learn a new things, of which there’ll be something in later posts. Meanwhile, just one minor example . . . When the first of a Spaniard’s 2 surnames is pretty common, their second one is used in the media. So, José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero was always Sr Zapatero.

You can explore Spain’s ‘quieter side’ by cycling along the Olive Oil Camino. Which possibly ranks as Camino number 44 or 45. I can’t find it here, though I don’t doubt that it exists.

It’s you last chance to apply for a Golden Visa.

Another – even better – sketch on Spanish bureaucracy, kindly sent to me by 2 friends.

Portugal

Lisbon is investigating the feasibility of a night train from A Coruña all the way down to Lisbon, via Oporto of course. Which would be nice to have.

The UK

Britain’s challenge this week will be to thrash out with France a concrete plan for what Europe can contribute to a Ukraine-Russia peace deal, by way of resources and a potential peacekeeping force.   precise commitments now need to be nailed down. That ball is in our court,” a senior British official said. “Building a European military package is the next step. The US view is that they are going to get Ukraine in the room this week, then get the Russians to the table and work on a ceasefire, then engage in proper negotiations. At that point we need to come to the table with a European offer on security The military are having to look at what we can actually do on our own or with the French. And it turns out that it’s very little.” Short of starting a nuclear war, of course.

Europe

Strong words but very probably accurate: The US can no longer be trusted as an ally. Europe must become stronger to stand alone. Trump’s arrogance fails to take into account the natural advantages that still make us a desirable destination world-wide.

The USA: More Observations and Quotes

Like Boris Johnson in the UK, Trump has shown that a Constitution’s norms and conventions can be overridden by a determined, unprincipled, populist authoritarian. Indeed, Trump appears bent on even ignoring formal rules re judicial power. Either way, one wonders if and how the Constitution can be improved to stop this happening again, once he’s off the scene. In about 20 years’ time . .

The WSJ has made ‘an astonishing attack’ on Trump, accusing him of treating the North American economy as a personal plaything and suggesting that a court challenge is mounted against what they see as his illegal tariffs.

Meanwhile . . . Trump’s economically-illiterate bravado could do very serious damage.

No one knows anything for sure, mostly because Trump’s tune keeps changing.  The effect has been a Trumpian tidal wave that engulfs each news cycle. “Every day is a new soap opera,” one US official remarked. “No one knows what he’s going to say next.” Nor does Trump, of course.

Many in London wonder whether Trump can force Putin to the table. A senior British politician observed that Trump’s approach of pressuring the Ukrainians and Europeans while trying to “conciliate the Russians” may not work. “I don’t recall seeing that in Trump’s The Art of the Deal. I’m puzzled as to how the Trump administration believe they’re going to bring Putin to the table.” Aren’t we all.

The US didn’t only cut off intelligence from Ukraine, it banned the other members of the alliance from sharing US intelligence with Kyiv.

Trump is  like the comic book character Lex Luthor, an egocentric, megalomaniac businessman who uses his vast corporation to be, in turns, both antagonist and ally to the forces of the Good. But most significantly, the one consistent theme in his varying diatribes is his bond with Vladimir Putin which appears to be unsusceptible to doubt.

Trump may not win a Nobel peace prize but he has certainly earned the Order of Lenin. As Judas Trump blunders about, betraying friends, rewarding enemies and smashing the global crockery, one cold-eyed certainty remains: in their dysfunctional, deeply dubious relationship, Putin is the dominant partner. Trump is Putin’s bitch.

Non-US Quote of the Day/The Way of the World/Social Media

On the demise of creative advertising . . . The beating heart of advertising is now Tik Tok. Vapid, trivial, egocentric, vain, amateur and – that most hideous of terms that sums up all that is wrong in modern media – user-generated content.

English

Social Creators: What we are now expected to call what were ‘influencers’ not so long ago.

You Have to Laugh [Or at least smile}

The Chief Defect of Henry King
Was chewing little bits of String.
At last he swallowed some which tied
Itself in ugly Knots inside.

Physicians of the Utmost Fame
Were called at once; but when they came
They answered, as they took their Fees,
“There is no Cure for this Disease.

“Henry will very soon be dead.”
His Parents stood about his Bed
Lamenting his Untimely Death,
When Henry, with his Latest Breath,

Cried, “Oh, my Friends, be warned by me,
That Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch, and Tea
Are all the Human Frame requires …”
With that, the Wretched Child expires.

— Hilaire Belloc

A Final Thought

The problem with modern democracy . . . The fundamental defect in the nature of our politics is that so many people are easily led, wanting to believe in a saviour-figure who will lead them out of bondage into the promised land. There is no limit to the self-deluding gullibility that stems from this, with quite sensible people ignoring the warning signs as they project their hopes and aspirations onto a leader, the qualities of whom exist only in their imaginations. As long as the collective ignores the quite obvious flaws in people it accepts as its leaders, it will suffer the consequences of its own making 

My thanks to those readers who take the trouble to Like my posts.

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. But see here on this. 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.
• Getting a mortgage in Spain: Some advice on this challenge.