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/Galiza

Years ago, I helped the English family of a 2 year old child whose parents and brother had been killed in an horrendous head-on car crash here in Galicia. The car had been telescoped as if it had been in a crusher but she, in a child-seat behind the front passenger seat, had somehow survived, unscathed. This report of a ‘miraculous’ escape of a 6 year old child from the recent train crash brought back (unwanted) memories of that experience.

I’ve been critical of the quality of the ride in a particular type of train carriage used between Galicia and Madrid. In a report on the horrendous crash, I was rather concerned to read this comment from a Renfe steward: Many passengers have been complaining for some time that the trains bounce around a lot, causing fear. Whether this contributed to the crash is not yet known, of course. One hopes it didn’t.

Talking of cheating death . . . How about this one in Vigo yesterday.

Going back to trivial Teucro, the mythical founder of Pv city. This is the statue of him, as an archer, on one of the city’s buildings.

But that’s not how it is now, as a few years ago the bow fell into the street, almost killing someone. Another escape.

The UK

Starmer is impotent before the madness of King Donald. Britain must rebuild its economy to protect itself against the US president’s wrecking ball.

Europe

One columnist foresees European resistance to Trump.

But another doesn’t.

Venezuela

Inside the economics of Venezuela’s elusive oil reserves.

Palestine/Gaza/The World

Trump has established a Board of Peace, with an executive featuring people like US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Tony Blair, the Apollo CEO, the World Bank President and the US deputy national security adviser. Invitations to a permanent seat on the Board have gone to the leaders of 60 countries, including Russia, China, Israel, Belorussia, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Qatar, UAE, Canada, Argentina, Hungary, Poland, India, Greece, Cyprus, Pakistan, Paraguay, and Albania. Trump’s administration requires a $1 billion contribution for a permanent seat; the funds’ management remains unclear. As of today there are no confirmed payments.

The organisation’s charter makes clear that it has wider aims than restoring peace and prosperity to Gaza. It “seeks to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful governance and secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict”. It also gives far-reaching powers to its president.

It’s been called ‘The strongman’s UN’, intended to be a forum that supplants other global institutions by inviting some of the world’s pariahs to join. The President is ‘Donald J Trump’, who alone has the right to appoint members, all of whom serve at his pleasure.

European diplomats have privately reacted with astonishment and ridicule. “It reads like membership of an upscale golf club,” said one.

The USA

One month after the deadline set by Congress for the Justice Department to release all files on Epstein, the Trump administration has made available less than 1% of them. This comes as Trump has dramatically expanded immigration operations in Minnesota while attacking Venezuela, threatening to bomb Iran and maintaining that the United States will annex Greenland. It’s not too difficult to guess why all this activity.

Would it surprise anyone if Trump, like a medieval king, said that he was ruling by divine right? An AI comment: Trump has occasionally hinted at, agreed with, or encouraged the idea that he was “chosen” or appointed by God, especially in interviews with Christian media and in speeches to evangelical audiences. In addition, several close allies and officials have said that God “ordained” or “raised up” Trump for the presidency. Yesterday. Trump said he believes god is very proud of his achievements of the last year.

But he said something correct for once yesterday. There’s never been a first presidential year like it.

Given that Trump has already made more than a billion dollars in a year, it’s noteworthy [other adjectives are available] that he’s still sending out begging messages to his (gullible) followers. The latest asks for a ‘small sacrifice’ of $47 ‘within 30 minutes’, to fund prevention of the Radical Left winning the November elections, ‘with dire consequences’. Mostly for him, of course. Online reaction was swift and mocking, with commentators calling the message “creepy,” “weird,” and a “grift.”

Click here for an insight into Trump’s off-the-top-of-his-head management by nocturnal social media posts and how White House staff, Cabinet members and heads of other government have to try to deal with it – knowing full well that US ‘policy’ could be very different in as little as 24 hours and that, meanwhile, disagreement won’t be brooked and will only enrage someone who’s clearly insane ad probably suffering increasingly from dementia.

A very valid comment . . . . Trump’s abuses of decency have been hitting the USA and the world on so many fronts at once that it is hard to keep a clear focus on what he is doing and how dangerous he‘s become. With his threat of military action over Greenland, can we not all finally see the evidence of a seriously diseased mind? [Well, some of us got there a long time ago]. Perhaps we should treat the outrages of the last 2 weeks as a single package, starting with the deployment of a US naval armada to steal Venezuela’s oil on the high seas, to sell it on the open market, and then to transfer the first $500m to a slush fund in Qatar beyond Congressional oversight. Let us not pretend that this escapade has anything to do with either democracy or fentanyl. If US democracy were still functioning properly, it would be time to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove Trump for insanity, before he completely smashes both America’s institutions and what is left of Pax Americana abroad. But that requires a high-minded VP, cabinet and majority party in Congress. So far, they have been complicit or too frightened to act.

For relief, here’s Jimmy Kimmel, as amusing as ever.

Spanish

Irse de las manos: To get out of hand.

Did you know?

There’s a Spanish farm growing citrus fruits you’ve never heard of.

Finally . . .

I’ve mentioned that one of my Pilate colleagues talks incessantly during the hour of the class. Today, I got to wondering whether talking a lot – undeniably a Spanish trait – gets in the way of thinking deeply . . . Probably not. An AI comment: Philosophers like Socrates and Voltaire earned reputations as non-stop conversationalists and historians such as Herodotus and Edward Gibbon stood out for their verbosity.

Finally . . . Finally . . .

An example of Man’s inhumanity to Man . . . Many of the captured rebels were sent to a large secret detention centre next to Saddam International Airport. Here, Saddam Kamel, the ‘butcher of Baghdad’, supervised mass executions, personally shooting Shia and Kurd prisoners from his armchair in a courtyard for hours at a time. 

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The Usual Links . . .

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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.

If you´re thinking of moving to Spain, this link should be useful to you.