Category: notes

Off to the beach for the weekend, expect a new podcast from the trip early next week… Can’t wait to get out of stifling Madrid for a few days – have a good weekend!

Man Shot by Armed Police on Tube

Mark Whitby said: “I was sitting on the train… I heard a load of noise, people saying, get out, get down.

“I saw an Asian guy. He ran on to the train, he was hotly pursued by three plain clothes officers, one of them was wielding a black handgun.

“He half tripped… they pushed him to the floor and basically unloaded five shots into him,” he told BBC News 24.

Reports of more bombs in London. What the hell is going on? My sister, who was caught in the middle of London again, has phoned to say it is like living in hell – with police sirens as a constant back drop to her call as she once again has to walk several miles home as the transport network grinds to a halt. To keep up to date on just what madness has happened this time, check out the bbc news website, or the Guardian site, particulalry the news blogs.

Really depressing news, no matter what the extent of today’s attacks turns out to be.

People are obviously disturbed that the London bombers were suicide bombers. This opens up a host of horrible scenarios in people’s imaginations. The police chiefs are not doing anything to help by saying that similar attacks are very likely in the near future. I hope they are not capitalising on people’s fear of terrorism, as we have seen happen so often in the past. Related to this is the fact that measures are being discussed to allow the powers that be to read all the Brit’s emails and telephone records. And then there is the thorny issue of the imminent introduction of ID cards in the UK.

If everyone is given an ID number, and a card which doubtless it will be necessary to carry everywhere sooner or later just for convenience, and if the British police can read all emails and check out all telephone activity, all it needs is a severe right-wing government to take power in the future and all the facilities are already in place for a nasty, freedom-stripping dictatorship to snatch away all civil liberties, freedom of movement and freedom of speech in a matter of minutes.

As Michael Moore has pointed put in his books and latest film, it is probably a good time to re-read George Orwell’s 1984 – I think he was trying to warn us about this continuous war > continuous fear > sweeping powers type of thing…

Here’s a typical excerpt on the manipulation of fears (substitute place names for US/UK/Iraq/Middle East as necessary):

“Winston was listening to the telescreen. At present only music was coming out of it, but there was a possibility that at any moment there might be a special bulletin from the Ministry of Peace. The news from the African front was disquieting in the extreme. On and off he had been worrying about it all day. A Eurasian army (Oceania was at war with Eurasia: Oceania had always been at war with Eurasia) was moving southward at terrifying speed. ….. One did not have to look at the map to see what it meant. It was not merely a question of losing Central Africa: for the first time in the whole war, the territory of Oceania itself was menaced.”

I’m standing at a Telefonica phone/net terminal in Madrid’s Barajas Airport, on the way to the UK with my wife for the weekend. Maybe we’ll do a neither here nor there podcast, impressions of an expat when he goes home for the weekend… not sure yet. Back to Spain on Monday. Feliz fin de semana!

The “We’re not afraid” website is a great idea. Apparently there has been irritation amongst some Spaniards about the fact that the English have not been more emotional in response to the London bombs. After the march 11th attacks here last year over 1,000,000 people took to the streets of Madrid two days later, whereas Londoners just knuckle down and get on with real life again. Both responses are equally valid in my opinion.

One thing that I think we should not forget when we are shocked and repulsed by attacks like this in the west: Attacks on this scale are almost a DAILY occurence in Iraq. Imagine living with that…

What a wonderful city, and only around 1.30 hrs from Madrid on the wonderful AVE high speed train. Such a world away from the capital – quiet streets, a real siesta city, a new kind of 40 degree heat, flamenco festivals, incredible monuments, amaaaaazing food – another racion de salmorejo please!

And, a place where around 1000 years ago Judaism, Islam and Christianity all lived peacefully together in one place… it’s a different world today. Well, a podcast coming very soon from Cordoba. Not sure how it’s going to turn out, this travel-cast business is a whole new kettle of fish.

What the hell are we going to do about this. Governments need to start thinking now about how to avoid this happening again, and again. Horrible shades of March 11th bombs here in Madrid, the same feelings of shock and revulsion for me. What are we going to do?

Wow. We all thought it would be Paris. The first comment by most Spaniards was, obviously, how much did London pay to get that? And what on earth to the French think? Well it certainly provides a lot more fuel for their English-hating fire. Oh well, as my friend Rafe pointed out, at least we will be spared seven years of non-stop public works. Practically every street in the city has been taken apart in preparation for the Olympic bid – goodness knows what would happen if they had actually won… They might have tried to rebuild whole sections of the city from scratch.

Still, it’s a shame, I was looking forward to an Olympic Madrid. I still think it should have been Paris….

Will we (Madrid) get the Olympics? Today’s the big day – my money, unfortunately, is on Paris…. Watch this space!