Dawn

Dawn

Friday, September 23, 2016

Pontevedra Pensées: 23.9.16

LIFE IN SPAIN

Taxation: I've mentioned the appalling Modelo 720 statute several times and touched on my own experience with it. Sometimes it seems that the Spanish government – in its desperation to increase revenue – is oblivious to the consequences on actual and potential investors in Spain. Including those who bring their capital and income here as residents and those who are thinking of doing so. Click here for an article on this.

SPANISH SOCIETY

Pigs: This, for example, is one of the words you should avoid using in the context of the Spanish police or Guardia Civil. For 'insulting' them is a (Francoist relic?) criminal offence. And you don't need to do this face to face. From your bedroom is enough, as this article shows. How would the Socialists Workers Party be able to stay in business here?

(Un)Employment: The EU has thrown a huge spanner into the workings of what many say is the Spanish two-tier labour system - some employees extremely protected; some not protected at all. Click here for details. If there is to be any change, it will – of course – be very slow in coming.

Plastic bags: No great surprise to hear that the Spanish use an average of 133 plastic bags a year, compared with 4 in Denmark. Bags are an obsession here, even for the smallest of items.

THE SPANISH ECONOMY

Dead White Elephants: HT to Lenox for this article on the (always corrupt?) construction of massive sports venues that now lie in ruins. Even if you can't read Spanish you can enjoy the fotos.

Cartels: If you do read Spanish, here's another article from Business Over Tapas, on the illegal price fixing which keeps our prices up.

SPANISH POLITICS

Monarchical Interventions: The Spanish king is not having much luck. He urged national politicians to get their act together so that a government could finally be formed but the headline next day was: Politicians ignore the king's words and use them to make accusations against each other. And then the hapless monarch contributed his pennysworth to the Gibraltar imbroglio and was immediately slapped down for his 18th century attitude. Click here for more on this. He didn't mention Ceuta or Melilla, of course. Not seeing these as 'colonial anachronisms'. A universal Spanish blindspot.

LOCAL STUFF

A Low Bridge: I clocked this attempt to avoid crashes the other day when doing a day's camino. One inevitably wonders what happened after a truck knocked down the dangling strips and headed for the bridge. And why the strips haven't been replaced.


FINALLY

Heroes and Villains: Funny, isn't it. Stalin and Hitler were monsters whom very few still admire. So was Napoleon but the French still revere him. Likewise, Henry VIII was another complete bastard but he's held in great esteem by the English. Hard to explain.

Protecting Trump from the Real Devil: You do have to laugh

PUBLIC SERVICE NOTICES

Flights to NW Spain from the UK: Some good news – Monarch will have flights from Manchester next year. Of course, these won't be going to any of Galicia's 3 'international' airports but to Oporto in North Portugal. But you can be sure many of the passengers will be ending up here.

THE GALLERY

More examples of Finnish/British nightmares:-





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