I knew it!

BBC is telling the world something I knew all along, that Mediterranean diet is best way to tackle obesity. They also say it's good for the prevention of heart attacks. What they don't say is that it also fights sadness. What can make people happier that a meal of good food with a glass of the best wine in the world? Yes, those who insist that wine from the New World is just as good as the wine from the FIPS (France, Italy, Portugal and Spain) is because they need a nice Mediterranean meal to go with wine to notice the difference.

And talking about immigration...

After yesterday's post, today I came across the curious (or not so much) fact that "immigrants from the 10 countries which joined the EU in 2004 contributed more to the UK than they took out in benefits, according to a new study."

Immigration and EU

This is at the moment one of the most contentious political issues in this country. I am not exactly an immigrant, as I study full time, but I am still a EU foreigner. Therefore, this issue is particularly interesting for me.

The first question is, why are British so worried about this issue?

There are those who say foreigners will destroy the British way of life and are, therefore, unwelcome. This argument would make some sense in a country that has been closed for a long time. I wouldn't agree with it, but it would make sense... Now Britain has been home to waves of immigration since as long as it exists. Cultural diversity is part of the British character. To stop this immigration is to actually harm this specific feature of this country.

There are also those who say that EU citizens are here to take advantage of British social security system. I am sure they do not contest that British do it as well, it is just that they are okay with the fact that "their own" do it but not foreigners. That is a perfectly fair point, but why not just make the system fairer to everyone? Anyone can have benefits, even if they've never work nor try to find work! This is open to a lot of abuses anyway. Just be pragmatically British about it and change it.

At last, there is always the argument that foreigners come here to steal British's jobs. That is when I say: stop moaning and be British about it! To me being British is about having a sport's culture of fair game and open competition. If you are better, nobody will give your job to a foreigner. Just the fact that one is a foreigner is always a disadvantage anywhere in the world being lost in the culture, loosing time to integrate and know how things work... Foreigners will always have these disadvantages so they will not even get the jobs of British in equal circumstances. Besides, sports spirit would say: fight back! Take your own EU citizenship and go to other countries - salaries in Sweden and Denmark are higher than in the UK, for example. Taxes in Luxembourg, Ireland and the Netherlands are lower. There are many economic advantages for you to relocate, not to mention the cultural ones. Besides, if nothing else, you always have the advantage to be native speakers of the Latin of the XXI century: the universal language of business, trade and politics.

So, just be British about the subject and welcome free movement of people. To start with, be a sport and buy a pint of lager to the next foreigner you see in a pub. 

And now I must end this and go to a pub expecting pints from the crowds reading this blog.

The wonders of North Korea

Imagine that the Prime-minister of UK did not appear in public for one week. Hard to imagine, right? Even if he goes to a fish market, that comes in the news.

Now, the Supreme Leader of North Korea disappeared one month ago and nobody knows where he is. Nobody knows if there has been a coup (let's pray and hope) or if he's sick. Nothing! The entire world obviously wants to know where he is. However... It is certainly ironic that the person that most people in the world would dread to meet, is now the one everyone is wondering about.

And this is why...

And this is why I love Hong Kong!
The people from Hong Kong act on their ideals. They see something that does not make sense: the fact that it is the central government and not themselves choosing their chief executive. And more than seeing that it doesn't make sense, they act on it.
Every year in the handover day hundreds of thousands (millions even) take to the streets to protest. This year they refused to go to University, boycotted the national day's celebrations and show the entire world that there is at least one territory in China that wants what makes sense: to choose their rullers.
Seeing this made me miss Hong Kong...

Tories V UKIP

Not surprisingly, another Tory MP defected to the UKIP. I'm not surprised because the Conservative Party became more and more like the UKIP and the latter has the upper hand right now as it hasn't been ruling the country during an economic crisis.
So what exactly is the mistake of the Tories? Basically, they forgot how to be real Tories and decided to go down the path of easy anti-foreign populism. They forget that it was during the Heath Government that the UK joined the EEC. They also forget that the Thatcher led Conservative party was united in keeping the UK in the EEC during the Labour promoted referendum.
And why was this?
The EEC was promoting free trade and a more integrated economy. It also objected to state intervention in the economy to artificially sustain otherwise bankrupt industries. At last, membership of the EEC opened a market to the UK that was seen as more appealing than the EFTA market they had been members until then. All this was very aligned to Conservative thought.
What changed then? Well, the now called EU didn't change that much. If anything, the EU is nowadays more Conservative than in the 70s. The Common Agricultural Policy is less dependent on subsidies and state control and increasingly left to market initiative. The development of competition law at the European level means that the EU tolerates less state aids . Even the now stronger free movement of workers means that British companies can more easily compete for qualified work against their continental counterparts.
It is then strange that it is while the EU becomes more conservative that the Conservative Party becomes more anti-EU!
And why does this happen? Here is when I go back to the UKIP. This one is not a conservative party, is a deeply populist one. It raises fears where they shouldn't exist to collect support with unreasonable solutions. And, I have to admit, they are quite good at doing this! The reply of the Tories should be to demystify these fears and affirm its European thought and tradition. Tories should be trying to convince the electorate of the many advantages of being part of the EU . Instead, the Conservative Party just accepts the campaign of fear of the UKIP and follows on its footsteps!
So, another Tory defected... To me it's very obvious that many more will defect until the Tories re-learn to be Tories.

Washington on public debt

In his farewell address to the "friends and citizens" of the United States, George Washington left a few valuable advises on politics. One of them is still so useful nowadays that I decided to leave it here. Sometimes there are some good political lessons that people from that country give us, Europeans. We have to make use of such rather exceptional circumstances.

As a very important source of strength and security, cherish public credit. One method of preserving it is to use it as sparingly as possible, avoiding occasions of expense by cultivating peace, but remembering also that timely disbursements to prepare for danger frequently prevent much greater disbursements to repel it, avoiding likewise the accumulation of debt, not only by shunning occasions of expense, but by vigorous exertion in time of peace to discharge the debts which unavoidable wars may have occasioned, not ungenerously throwing upon posterity the burden which we ourselves ought to bear. The execution of these maxims belongs to your representatives, but it is necessary that public opinion should co-operate. To facilitate to them the performance of their duty, it is essential that you should practically bear in mind that towards the payment of debts there must be revenue; that to have revenue there must be taxes; that no taxes can be devised which are not more or less inconvenient and unpleasant; that the intrinsic embarrassment, inseparable from the selection of the proper objects (which is always a choice of difficulties), ought to be a decisive motive for a candid construction of the conduct of the government in making it, and for a spirit of acquiescence in the measures for obtaining revenue, which the public exigencies may at any time dictate.

See: Washington's Farewell Address 1796

Sore looser II

And Salmon resigned...
His dream of an independent Scotland may be over, but he still had a majority in Holyrood. It would have been good to concede defeat, loose with dignity and keep on with the work he was elected to do. Namely, to work with Lord Smith of Kelvin on the constitutional reforms that await Scotland.

Sore looser

Loosing with dignity isn't for everyone. And it certainly isn't for Salmond! Two very annoying points in Salmond's mini speech:

- "there's going to be a majority for the no campaign"

There was a majority for the union with the United Kingdom. A majority for Britishness.  A majority of good sense...

- "Scotland has, by majority, at this stage decided not to become an independent  country"

Scotland decided no to become an independent country and that's it. It's not just at this stage!

The silent majority

Living in Edinburgh in the last few weeks, I would have assumed that a vast majority of the population would vote for independence. There were people wearing badges, stickers, tshirts, shouting and campaigning, posting Scottish flags and yes banners in their windows... This all seemed strange when polls showed that there was still a majority for the union until even the polls stoped showing that.
However, seing the results now, in which Edinburgh has 61.1% in favour of the union, I have to conclude that there was a huge silent majority. Why was that? Surely people didn't change their minds in the last day! Why were those who favoured the union so silent?
I don't understand why the cause of Scottish nationalism is so much louder and visible than that of British patriotism when the latter is apparently so much more popular in this city. Maybe this question could provide a thesis for a sociologist or a political scientist...

Still procrastinating...

I know I should be working instead of procastinating... But who can work in a day like this?! Our wee Scotland is on the news all over the world!
At least today I've been practicing different languages. That's kind of working, right?
So, today I voted twice: for me and by proxy for a friend who couldn't be in Edinburgh today. In the voting table, I gave the letter to the lady there and said I was voting for XXX. After a while the lady asks me:
- And you're voting for...?
I made the most shocked face I could for that split second that I thought that someone in the voting station was asking me how I (my friend) was voting! Only then I understood she wanted to know the name of my friend...
Well... Considering that I'm wearing the colours of the Union Jack, my shock shouldn't be that great!

Here I go... For the UK!

So today is the big day... Everyone in the world has their eyes on Scotland. Yes, I know that, I just spent one hour reading what they're writing about us. It may seem like an exercise of procrastination but that's just because that's exactly it! But at the same time, how can anyone just be cool about it? k

Basically we’re deciding today if we should destroy the United Kingdom. It’s a huge decision! And I’m sorry if this sounds catastrophic but that’s exactly what it is… It’s destroying the UK. The UK itself was born out of the union of England and Scotland. And the nationalists can say whatever they want and invent historical “truths” (that are nothing but lies) but these two countries together did very well in the past three centuries. Including the first Western style Democracy in the world with rule of law, parliamentary representation of the tax payers, respect for human rights, etc..

Scotland could do well alone? Yes, I thing it could. Not as well as in the union but still well… And could England do well alone? Same answer. Now the United Kingdom, that one would collapse.

I know I’m not British, I know I've only been here for two years and am not sure if I’m going to stay here for the rest of my life. But I've always admired this country so my vote is going for its continuity. To the United Kingdom! And here I go to the voting station… Wearing blue and red!

It's tomorrow...

Tomorrow is the big day! I feel like I'm living a historical reason. The main reason for this is that I really am! And I feel privileged to be able to participate with my vote (+ 1 proxy, but with that I'm just following instructions) and live this moment. Nobody knows what the result of the referendum will be tomorrow. However, at this moment, there are certain things that seem certain:

1) The result will be a close shot. This is not good for the unionist camp, in which I'm included. If there is only one more vote for YES than for NO, Scotland will become independent. However, if there is no expressive victory of the NO there will be a constant push for more devolution that will become a nightmare of British politics for the years to come.

2) Speaking of devolution... Whatever the result, Salmond already won something. Even with a defeat of the YES, he would have won more devolution, as that has been the promise of the three unionist parties. Some version of his "devo max" will be put in place in the near future.

3) The three unionist parties will most likely have already lost something. The initial huge advantage of the vote for "Britishness". Only a few months ago every poll gave the vote for the union a big lead. On the day before the referendum, nobody is certain of the result. One year ago, a very comfortable majority of Scots would think of themselves as Scot and Brit. Now the nation is divided between those who only consider themselves as Scots and those who also consider themselves as Brits.

4) South of the border this referendum made a lot of people think about devolution for England. This would only make sense... After all, the English MPs don't get to decide on a lot of issues devolved to Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, but the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs get to decide on all the laws that rule England.

5) Another thing that is independent of the result of the referendum in Scotland, is the political instability this referendum created in Spain. Cameron is already seen as a hero in Catalonia because at the very least he allowed the referendum to take place. Catalans are increasingly united in favor of independence and blame it on the stubbornness of Madrid who refuses to be play according to the gentleman like rules of London.

6) The same argument used by the Catalans against Madrid will be used by the Basques against Madrid and Paris, the Flemish against Brussels, the Corsicans against Paris, the Padanians against Rome... At least Cameron will come out as the hero of all these interdependence movements. I can already imagine buying a t-shirt with Cameron's face over the Corsican flag in Ajaccio. 

What?!?!

So, there will be by-elections for the Edinburgh University Students Union (EUSA). Thing with EUSA is that they can sometimes be so absolutely ridiculous that I find it difficult to take them seriously. One of the positions available is:

Womens Liberation Convenor
The Women's Liberation Convenor takes the lead on issues that affect women students. This role is open to all students who self-define as a woman.

In the full description for this position it says:
What is the Women Liberation Convenor? Liberation groups exist to ensure that the diverse population of students at the  University of Edinburgh are represented fully, especially those groups which have been historically discriminated against and are under-represented in higher education. The Women Liberation Convenor takes the lead on issues that affect women students. This role is open to all students who self-define as a woman.

Now... Seriously?!?! Who writes these things? Is it the same person who invents these positions? Because I would like to ask that person a few questions:
A person can self-define as any gender they want?
Women as a whole are a group? And are men a group as well?
Women, who represent the majority of the students and of the staff of the university are under-represented?
Are there any issues that affect specifically all women and only women?

Orange walk in Edinburgh!

Today I was happily working (yes, I'm being ironic) when my friend told me to be careful if I went out on the street. The reason for this was an orange walk in Edinburgh and the fact that I'm Catholic. Can you believe it? Such a peaceful city receiving an orange walk!

Now, for those of you who don't know what an orange walk is, it's not the world's best proof of solidarity and brotherhood among Christians. Basically the organizers are free-masons celebrating something like "protestant pride".* These orange walks are especially common in Northern Ireland where they are seen as a provocation to Catholics. Now, why on earth would someone in good old civilized UK want to provoke other religious people is out of my understanding. 

We live in a time when thousands of Christians of different denominations are being massacred for their faith by Islamic fundamentalists in the "Isis Caliphate", Nigeria, etc.... A time when Christians are not allowed to practice their faith freely by Communist governments in North Korea, China or Cuba... A time when you can still be stonned to death if you're a Muslim and convert to Christianity (or any other religion) in countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran!* Would it not be obvious that different Christian faiths would join efforts and energies in doing something about these awful situations instead of parading their pride as a provocation to other Christians?

This is not to say that Catholics were always bright examples of brotherhood for other Christians. The inquisition, for example, was not known to be very respectful of doctrinal differences. But this is the XXI century Western Europe! Surely these orange-men can grow out of past differences!

* The explosive cocktail of free masonry with protestant pride must surely mean Catholics should be aware!
* More examples can be found here.

Why Carol Craig* is voting NO

Noon, chief strategist for the Yes campaign, loves the idea of a 100% positive, optimistic campaign. In his blogs he is particularly fond of turning any problem people might raise into an insult to the Scottish people:
The No campaign spend much of their time telling us that Scotland would fail or struggle. That doesn't show much respect for, or confidence in, the people who live here. Much better the Yes approach, which is based on an absolute belief in the people of Scotland.
We will face ups and downs in the future (that's life) but, at Yes, we have total confidence that the people of Scotland have got what it takes to overcome the challenges and, most importantly, make more of the many opportunities and advantages we enjoy as a nation. This isn't a blind optimism, but a realistic assessment of our collective capabilities and capacities.
Some of this upbeat appraisal of Scotland's capacities fits perfectly with George Orwell's ascerbic views on nationalism – a philosophy which is always on the look out for slights and driven by 'blind zeal and indifference to reality'. Look at Noon's quote and ask yourself what's so special about the Scots that every single one of us will be impervious to the financial havoc easily wreaked by the international markets or the restructuring of our economy which will follow independence?

*Carol Craig is the author of the book "The Scots' Crisis of Confidence".

Party place

Old College: where the best parties in town are...

Why Alex massie is voting no

The other day the historian Tom Devine remarked that all the Union has going for it is sentiment, family and history. Like that’s not enough? Those aren’twee things, they’re the things that make us who we are. The blood and guts, the bone and marrow of our lives. The tissue that connects us to our fellow citizens, the stuff that makes us more than an individual. The things from which you build a society.  You can have that in Scotland, alone and independent, too of course. But we also have it in Britain, right now, and we will lose some of that if we vote Yes. Or some of us will, anyway.

Reading list

My reading list for the next couple of weeks...

Why I'm voting no

I have written here before that I'm going to vote in this referendum, unlike some friends of mine who say that that's a matter for the Scots. What I didn't say was in what I was voting... Well, the title is very obvious.
There are many reasons why I'm voting no: some economic, some political, some even sociological... No, I don't think it will be the end of Scotland if it becomes independent, it will just be worse for the Scottish and the other British, but that doesn't really matter because the main reason why I vote no is an ideological one. I believe in a more cosmopolitan world instead of an increasingly divided one by ethnic, national or religious divides. And, as foreigner living in this country, I look at the United Kingdom with joy because it represents the very model of state I want to see all over the world.
The United Kingdom is a multi-national state that has been developing to become:
- a Democracy where all of its citizens, be them Scottish, English, Welsh or Northern Irish, have the same participatory rights, civil liberties and access to political positions (the ex-PM was Scottish, for example);
- a state under the rule of law with the same fundamental laws to all its composing entities but that still respects different legal traditions;
- a state that promotes the cultural and religious rights of its different nations and encourages its diversity.
Basically, a state where it doesn't really matter which of its components you come from. And this is what a cosmopolitan state should look like. Just compare it to what happens south of the channel. There you have a state that has been promoting a single French republican identity since the bloody French Revolution and where there is no space for regional and cultural differences.
A yes vote will tell the French they are right. It will tell them that the uniform citizen from Brest to Nice is a good thing. That if you allow your different nations to develop their differences, they'll end up splitting the state (with all the economic and political costs attached to it).
Well, I say "non" to the French republican ideal of a uniform citizen and I say "no" to the SNP's plan to destroy this United (diverse) Kingdom. I say yes to cosmopolitanism, therefore I vote no.

Not only Bristol

Apparently it's not only Bristol which is full of urban art. My own city has been praised for its graffiti and now the city hall of Lisbon just launched a book with the best of its urban art. Next time I go there, I certainly must take a tour...

A new social Scotland?

I love to debate politics and in Scotland I particularly love to debate the coming referendum. As such I do it quite often with anyone who is willing to do it (surprisingly, many people aren't). Now, as I wrote before, most people here do not give the nationalist arguments one in more hot-blooded countries might expect.

I came to realize that the most common argument is that of a “social Scotland”. So, people look at what they grew up knowing was the reality in the Nordic countries and they want the same for Scotland. The reality as they perceive it is a good welfare system, with great free education, good free public health system, etc.. This is actually a great objective in my humble opinion. The question is how to do that?

Nordic countries adopted a welfare state in a time in which the economy in the Western world was growing rapidly. That was also a time when the population was growing so it was expected that the then babies would contribute in the future for the maintenance of the welfare state and would have more babies doing the same… World without end, amen! 

Problem is... That's not reality in Scotland nowadays. Nor is it in those countries anymore. It's an economic joy if the economic growth gets to 2% in one year. And as for babies: where are they?

Now, the money to finance this new social state will need to come from somewhere and it's not merely the savings of not having a nuclear armed country that will do it. Petrol is not the solution, like in Norway, because not only it was never as abundant here as there, it's becoming even more scarce now. There might be a huge raise of taxes but that would bankrupt the economy... 

Basically the Scottish social state is the new Panama. It's generally a good idea (as at the time it was generally a good idea for every European nation to have its own colonies). The Scottish want it as much as they wanted Panama. And now, like then, they prefer to ignore the obvious consequences of their actions and that will bankrupt their economy. That could be OK but... What they have to think is that the rest of the UK is not living a golden era of colonial expansion and world trade as it was three centuries ago. Like most countries in Europe, the rest of the UK is also just making ends meet. As such if by pursuing this new Panama the Scots bankrupt their country, the rest of the UK will not welcome them back open-armed as the prodigal son of the Union.

British v Mediterraneans

This weekend I went to Argyll, in the West of Scotland with a very nice group of British people. Yes, I was the only foreigner in more than twenty in the group. A quite unique experience for me, who am always in groups with a majority of foreigners and one or two natives of theses islands.
Now, one thing about the West of Scotland, to which anyone who has been there can testify, is that, unlike in the East Coast, it rains almost continuously. Exactly what people everywhere else in the world would classify as "very British weather". Besides, there are these wee flies, the midges, that bite you all over. Very annoying!
Now, for a Mediterranean this would have been enough reason to stay home all day long complaining about the weather of these islands and longing for the dryer Summer from back home. This would even constitute a perfect reason (like many other million of perfect reasons) to call the mother, the brother, the cousin and the parish priest back home to complain about it. Not for a British, though. The amazing thing about the natives here is that they couldn't care less for what the weather is like (except to talk about it in detail). If they set their minds on doing something, they do it. And these group of British I was with had planned to use the game lawn in the very nice estate we were at to play games such as a sort of baseball for beginners (forgot the name) and football. They had also set their minds in going to the closest river to swim. And that was exactly what we all did.
I don't know if they felt any discomfort in playing games in the rain. I didn't hear them complaining about being chewed alive by midges. At last, to swim in a river in Argyll seemed to be as pleasurable as to do the same in the Caribbean Islands. It's easy to imagine these people during WWII, with their houses destroyed by the Luftwaffe, brewing a nice cup of tea at 5pm to relax a bit.

More of Bristol

And to finish this series of posts about Bristol, I present to you:

View of the canal.

A nice old pub.

The Cathedral.

High Street.

The famous Clifton suspended bridge. On the other side there are some very nice forests, perfect for a bit of walking in the middle of nature. But beware if you need to catch a plane. If you go to the left and then cross the bridge to the right, then there is no short way to return and you'll need to do the same way back. I had to hurry back fearing I could loose my flight back to Edinburgh.

Recommended article

I know I'm nor Scottish nor British, but I do like this country very much and care about its future. For this reason, I recommend this article in The Economist (press the link) on Scottish independence.

Bristol on a Sunny day

On a Sunny day in Bristol you can either choose to watch a match in Wimbledon in the square...

Or just lay in the park under the blessing of the Cathedral.

Bristol and its graffiti

More on Bristol and its graffiti. All of these were not Bansky's work. I think... So there's more to Bristol's graffiti than Bansky.

This one with the elephant I found particularly funny: the elephant afraid of the mouse. It can have a certain anarchist idea behind it if you think of us, individuals, as the mouse and the state as the elephant. And given that graffiti painters mostly do their work against the law, this would not be an absurd idea. But I prefer to think of it as how we face our anxieties and fears: they may be due to a tinny think, but we give them so much importance...

I liked this one because it reminded me of my bedroom. A home element away from home...

This one kind of reminds me the great wave of Kanagawa...

Bristol: Bansky's city

This weekend I went south of the border, quite south actually, to Bristol. I had been told how beautiful the city is from the moment I was accepted at a conference there. For that reason, I decided to stay two more days after the weekend and I certainly did not regretted it: people who praised Bristol were quite fair to its charm.

And now it's time to reveal my ignorance: I had no idea who Bansky was before I went to his hometown. Besides, I always disliked graffiti and considered it an imposition on the public space. I know that Bansky is not a graffiti painter, stencil, I learned, but it still fits the concept for this purpose. I have to admit I changed my ideas on the matter. I'll show some examples of why with some photos I took.

This one, for example, is funny. One could even say kind of cute because of the teddy bear if it wasn't for the fact that the said bear is about to throw a Molotov cocktail at policemen. Still, I found it funny precisely because of this dichotomy: teddy bear and Molotov...

This other one is even funnier, especially when you know that it was painted in the wall of a sex health clinic. Unfortunately not everyone thought the same and the thing was vandalized. 

This other one shows another dichotomy: the girl who looks straight at you looks irreverent as if she is a hurry to grow up. However, the hearts and the fact that she is on a swing shows a certain childishness.

This last one was painted to celebrate HM's Diamond Jubilee. The fact that the (young) Queen has a Ziggy Stardust on her face shows to me that during her reign the UK changed a lot but the Monarchy stays almost the same, as bridge between past, present and future. And I like this idea...

Like the one of the lover outside the window, this one has also been vandalized. Now, as I wrote above, I changed my mind on mural paintings. Besides Bansky, Bristol is full of graffiti by other artists and many of them quite good. However, I do draw a line in this tagging thing. Signatures (tags) on walls are not art. They are closer to dogs pissing on many places do mark territory or just tell other dogs "I was here".

Returning from the Holy Land

First and foremost, before the occasional reader of this blog accuses me of being hiddenly biased, I have to say that when Pope Francis is concerned, I'm openly biased: I really like him! And one of the things I like the most about him is that he is able to explain in simple terms what his predecessor have been saying for decades.
When returning from the Holy Land the Pope was questioned by the journalists on board the plane about issues that many (usually not Catholics) consider to be the "thorny" issues of the Church like the celibacy of the priests, paedophilia, communion of the remarried, etc.
To all these questions the Holy Father gave exactly the same answer as his predecessor. But he did so in a way everyone could understand so they understood.
- No celibacy of the priests is not a dogma of the Church and yes it can be changed but why change something that has been working well and brings so many advantages?
- Yes paedophilia is a terrible thing and it hurts the Church as well as the obvious victims, the children and yes priests should be trialed by civil justice. But, of course, anyone, no matter how serious his sins might be, always has a place in Church when trully repenting.
- And yes, couples can have their marriage annulled but also Catholics should start thinking and praying more about what marriage is before getting married.
So in a few minutes Pope Francis managed to explain clearly to Journalists and to Catholics back home (and those non-Catholics who are interested) these "thorny" issues of the Church and made them less thorny. He showed that Catholics worldwide don't shy away from thinking, praying and discussing these issues. Above all that the Church of the Catholics evolves gradually carrying on her mission: to bring God to people and people to God.

Uops!

Are these really the results of the first elections I participated in the UK?!
Not too happy about the results but I promise to do bettter next time.

European elections II

I already voted! I was really excited about it because:
1) I generally love to vote;
2) It was the 1st time I voted in the UK - it made me feel more part of this country;
3) I hadn't voted since 2011 (general elections) and at that time I was living in China and had to vote in the Consulate;
4) I teach EU Law, so this is also a professional thing.
Now differences from voting back home:
1) There were lots of political posters at the entrance of the poling station! Back home that's forbidden: there can't be any political advertisement around the poling station. I think in a radius of some 50m or something like that. I have no idea why it is forbidden, though... It didn't shock me at all seeing the posters there. It also didn't influence me, as I already knew very well who to vote for.
2) There was only one lady at the desk. Back home there is one representative from each party. This made sense after the revolution, when everyone hated everyone and democracy was still consolidating. Nowadays it doesn't make much sense: it's a waste of money and human resources. Just put an honest person there, make that person take an oath and then trust the person, like they do here. Maybe they're afraid not to be able to find enough honest people in the country for all the polling stations...
3) She didn't ask for my ID.  I have no idea how they control if someone takes a few polling cards and votes more than once. I guess that's because British don't have a national ID. If they don't drive nor have a passport, there is no document to prove their identity. This is something I find funny in this country. Now, any British would reply that a national ID is an infringement on one's civil rights and liberties. Some things we, continentals, just have to learn to accept in these islanders. Having no national ID card together with driving on the wrong side and using the imperial measurement systems makes them so happy!

European elections

So, the date for the elections in the UK is tomorrow, right? This question in the end of my previous sentence comes from a certain doubt as to the fact presented before. Is it really tomorrow that we're going to have an election in this country?
The reason for this doubt is that I see nothing on the streets: no billboards, no posters, no people giving out leaflets... Nothing! Also, I was told that in the UK candidates would knock at people's doors. Well, not this person's (I'll need to check this last statement with my flatmates, though)!
Do people here know how important the European Parliament is in our daily lives?
- Right now, a vast majority of EU's legislation needs approval by the EP;
- It is up to the Commission to start the legislative procedure but it's the EP that elects the President of the Commission and approves all the members chosen by him/her;
- The EP also votes on the budget of the EU, which is certainly something that has some influence in our pockets.
Now, there are quite a few different alternative parties in the UK and they mostly disagree on a huge lot of issues related to the EU. So why this apathy when it comes to these elections?

Source: http://www.eucountrylist.com/map.html

Isle of Skye

In four days four friends decided to visit the Isle of Skye. We knew something of what was expecting us, like the Old Man of Storr:

We kind of knew how beautiful the landscape was going to be. But we had to go, photos are not enough to describe this:

And we realized how comfortable and cozy nature can be when we found a valley with running crystal clear water and a waterfall for our daily showers. OK, now it's the time to confess that the daily showers were not the most warm in the world. If anything, they could be among the coldest showers ever endured by human beings. But we endured them!

And after going there I can only recommend a visit!

The tragedy of the comb

Do you see this comb in the picture? Does it look like any regular comb to you? If it does, that's because you're an absolute sane and balanced person. However, this is my only comb and the loss of it this morning led me down a spiral of pessimism, anguish and despair to the point of making me wonder what the less painful and cheapest way to commit suicide could be. OK, I'm being a bit dramatic here but that's just because this is the beginning of this story of sorrow called: THE TRAGEDY OF THE COMB!
When yesterday I was jogging around Arthur's Seat, with the sun in my face, seeing the ducks and swans in the lake, listening to the birds singing, I had no idea how one day later I would be considering suicide due to the loss of a comb. But this is a tragedy in four acts, so let us start with the first act.

Act I

The Bankruptcy

This tragedy starts when I realised that I had gone bankrupt in the UK. OK, not really bankrupt, just out of money in my current account. I still have a savings account but I don't want to touch that one until the end of the PhD... So I tried to transfer money from my Macau account and couldn't because they changed the procedure. Now they will text you a one time code every time one needs to transfer and the text just wouldn't come! I realised with utter distressed that I was a bankrupt man! I would need to cal the bank the next morning (today).

Act II

The Scholarship

It was at the same time that I realised that I was virtually bankrupt in the country of Her British Majesty while having enough money to last me one year in the gambling capital of the world, that I received another tragic financial news. I wasn't going to get a scholarship that I thought was almost sure. That was very frustrating, specially because I lost two days preparing the application.

Act III

The Oranges

So I woke up today with this strange feeling that I only have 80p in this country. As every day, I go to the kitchen to eat an orange when I realised that was my last orange! I would need to buy oranges, but how, if I have only 80p left? Now, the act of eating my morning orange is almost sacred because it's when I say my morning prayer. Today, however, there was no morning prayer, there was just the anguish of being bankrupt and without oranges!

Act IV

The Phone Call

When I lived in Macau, I was totally used to cal the bank. It's not an easy procedure, mind you! You need to wait on hold, need to understand the Chinese accent of the person on the other side of the line and need to know that there will be some complication. However, after almost two years in Edinburgh, I lost this practise. Today it took 7 minutes to be attended, I couldn't understand the lady and they wanted me to remember a phone number I haven't used in 2 years! I finally managed to change my number with the bank but this will take one day to process. Oh stress! Only one thing could save me from mental collapse: one hour in the gym not thinking about my worries.

Act V

The Comb

And that's when the comb comes into the picture! While preparing my bag to the gym, I realised I had lost my comb! Problem 1: it's the only comb I have. Problem 2: I don't have the money to buy a new one. Problem 3: my hair is really long at the moment because I'm waiting to go to Portugal in a couple of weeks to cut it (much cheaper!) so I really need the comb not to look like the beggar I'm about the become. I searched and searched and there was no way to find the comb. I gave up going to the gym and decided to tide my room instead as it was already a vision of hell. Still, no comb! I lift the bed: could only find a book in German from my predecessor in the room. It was by that time that I thought with despair that I couldn't even go to the pharmacy and buy enough pills to commit suicide because a) I have no idea what pills to buy and b) if I had enough money to buy enough pills to kill myself, I would rather buy a comb and oranges instead.

Act VI

The End

Finally I found the comb! It was under the drawer. Probably fell and I kicked it there or something like that. That's when I realised that all my problems would soon be solved. I can just use my Macau card to withdraw money in an ATM that will serve me while the transference doesn't come through. If that doesn't work, the Portuguese card will. If that still doesn´t work, I have good friends in Edinburgh that can lend me money for 4 or 5 days - my flatmate had already proposed that when he saw my utter despair because of the lost comb. And if, worst case scenario, I really can't make the transference from Macau, my savings account here will be enough for 2 months and the payment for my classes will arrive in a week or two. How easier is it to rationalise your problems when you have a comb at hand!

Scottish referendum through the eyes of a “local foreigner” II

It has been great to live the referendum campaign from the inside! The experience has almost been a sociological / political science study. I has allowed me to notice that some well-known differences between British (be them Scottish or from the rest of the UK) and their Mediterranean European brethren also extend to politics. One of them is the rational V emotional discourse.

As a Mediterranean, I would imagine that a campaign of this kind would be very emotional. The separatists would be appealing to the patriotic feeling of the Scots by showing how different their traditions and character are from the rest of the British. They would appeal to the patriotic history of wars against the English (and the Irish, by the way). Unionists would be appealing for the same patriotic feeling but on the reverse, showing how much the four nations that form the United Kingdom have in common. They would be appealing to the sense of common history and heritage.

In this patriotic dialogue, both sides would have a lot to present. In fact, Scots and the rest of the Brits do have differences and similarities. However, instead of this emotional patriotic discourse, both sides provide very rational and technical arguments: membership in the EU, the common use of the pound sterling, petrol, gas and fish reserves in the Northern Sea, the permanent seat in the UN Security Council, the education and social security systems, the amount of contribution and benefits to the common budget, etc..

This is an interesting approach. It certainly helps us, foreigners, better understand the technical issues at stake and get an overall view of British political system. And it confirms our judgement that British prefer not to show their emotions publicly (which is not to say, as many Southerners think, that they don’t have them). But I certainly would prefer a more patriotic campaign. So an appeal to both separatists and unionists: spice it up!

Scottish Referendum through the eyes of a “local foreigner” I

I am a foreigner living in Scotland. Well, to say the truth I’m not totally a foreigner: I am an EU citizen and the UK is in the EU, so I’m a citizen of this greater union I live in. Because of that I’m given the right to vote in the referendum.

And here I find two different opinions among the other “foreigners / not so foreigners” on this respect. On the one hand there are many who say they will not vote because this is a matter that concerns only the nationals. There are many others who see voting in the referendum as part of the duties towards the country they live in. I am much inclined to agree with the later ones.

There are many reasons why the treaties of the EU established EU citizenship and a right of all citizens to vote for some elections in the other member states. If there is freedom of citizens to establish themselves in other countries (and therein pay taxes), it is only fair that they should be able to hold local politicians accountable for their decisions. Besides, it is considered that the future of the territories they live in is also of their concern.

I add another one. This is a less political or practical reason and more emotional one. We, foreigners, may very well love the country in which we establish ourselves and to want the best for it. For this reason, we may want to share the responsibility with the nationals for important political decisions.

For these reasons, I chose to vote in the UK for the EU elections. With this, I lost the right to vote in the same elections in my own state of nationality. For the same reasons I will vote in the referendum on the 18^th of September. And I will vote with the best interests of this country at heart… Just as any national should.