Conditions in Spain (vanity)

[NTHockey]

I just got back from 18 days in Spain. These are my personal observations mixed with comments from the locals. The driver who picked us up at the airport said the economy was bad and it was hard to get jobs, especially for the young people. Yet there was lots of construction around, both private and public.

In Burgos, we witnesssed a college student march. They were protesting against, what else, cuts in education. They were calling for a general strike. Police were everywhere. As an aside, Burgos must be trying to repopulate Spain all by itself. Pregnant women and babies <1 year old were everywhere.

In Santander, more protests. One lady was waving the Communist flag. Seniors were also protesting - looked like OWS, Spain style. One banner read: "Employees are not machines in the hands of the rich and bankers". T-shirts with the saying "Si se puede" (Yes, we can).

Huge protests in Barcelona shown on TV. Not much when we were there. Apparently, protesters are most active on weekends. Valencia had one protest of about five minutes while we were there. It amounted to handing out leaflets which people threw away without reading.

Back in Madrid, we saw many shuttered businesses, including superstores, along Reina Cristina Street. Teachers marched along the Grand Via. They all wore T-shirts saying "Public schools for all - from all, to all". Quite Marxian! I wonder how they feel about equal pay for all - teachers, principals, janitors, etc. OR grade equality for their students.

Interest rates are >10%, real worries about the future of the euro, especially in Greece. If Greece fails, Spain won't be far behind. There was an editorial calling for bank nationalization to ease pressure. Gasoline in Santander was 1.375 euros/liter (~$4.75/gallon).

[central_va]

Did the rain stay mainly on the plain?

[Puckster]

AAAAAAhhhh....Spain, Obama’s “Green Economy” model.

In other news.....Australia is going Nucking Futs with this Soylent Green crap....

http://stevengoddard.wordpress.com/2012/05/25/julia-1-1-million-fine-for-speaking-the-truth-in-australia/

[pepsionice]

The plus side of Spain is that they didn’t run up massive burdens like Greece. Spain could run a mild austerity program for three years and emerge in decent shape. They aren’t that bad off. Toss in the fact that it’s still on the vacation agenda of most folks in Germany, the UK, and France....and they look great. Don’t ask a Greek guy about his tourism situation (no one is going to Greece this summer because they have fears).

[almcbean]

Well I’ve never been to Spain, but I kind of like the music.

[Christian1]

I am pretty certain that the pregnant women were all muslim ones. A big burden of the health care system.
Spain let in million of muslim immigrants a few years ago, they are now over run by them. Serve them right. Being an European myself, I can see the problems in Spain are the same in Portugal, Italy,France...all of Euope is under strain due to immigration from muslim countríes.
Non muslim immigrants tend to integrate, work and be grateful for the support of their host country.

[Moltke]

Gasoline in Santander was 1.375 euros/liter (~$4.75/gallon).

1 eur = $ 1.25
1.375 eur = $ 1.72
1 gallon = 3.79 l
3.79 x 1.72 = 6.51 ($/gallon)

(Hope you didn't learn your conversions from Spanish cabbies and shop owners!!! ;-))

[fatnotlazy]

Thank you for your post. I was in Barcelona in 1998. Really beautiful city. It certainly looked a lot better than some of our cities. I’d like to see the rest of Spain someday.

[billorites]

I spent ten days in Madrid, Segovia and Toledo this spring. Saw evidence of a few demonstrations, at Puerto del Sol, but otherwise had to read the newspapers and watch TV for any evidence of unrest.

Yes, they're in much better shape than Greece, but there is still a fragile component to Spanish democracy and civil society.

It's a pricey environment even outside of tourist areas. Must be very tough for the natives who have lost work.

[listenhillary]

Received via email

The folks who are getting the free stuff don’t like the folks who are paying for the free stuff, because the folks who are paying for the free stuff can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own stuff.

And, the folks who are paying for the free stuff want the free stuff to stop.

And the folks who are getting the free stuff want even more free stuff on top of the free stuff they are already getting!

Now... the people who are forcing the people who pay for the free stuff have told the people who are RECEIVING the free stuff that the people who are PAYING for the free stuff are being mean, prejudiced, and racist.

So... the people who are GETTING the free stuff have been convinced they need to hate the people who are paying for the free stuff by the people who are forcing some people to pay for their free stuff and giving them the free stuff in the first place.

We have let the free stuff giving go on for so long that there are now more people getting free stuff than paying for the free stuff.

Now understand this. All great democracies have committed financial suicide somewhere between 200 and 250 years after being founded. The reason?

The voters figured out they could vote themselves money from the treasury by electing people who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for electing them.

The United States officially became a Republic in 1776, 236 years ago. The number of people now getting free stuff outnumbers the people paying for the free stuff. We have one chance to change that in 2012. Failure to change that spells the end of the United States as we know it, especially if the present administration gets its way and gives illegal aliens the right to vote.

If you don’t believe this can happen look at Greece and the election that just took place in France. Now France is a Socialist Country with a 75% tax rate on those that PAY for free stuff .

[stormhill]

Good catch!

[Uncle Ike]

” The United States officially became a Republic in 1776, 236 years ago. “

A minor nit to pick with the author of your email —

” The United States Constitution was written in 1787 during the Philadelphia Convention. After ratification in eleven states, in 1789 its elected officers of government assembled in New York City, replacing the earlier 1781 Articles of Confederation government.”

[From “History of the United States Constitution” (Wikipedia)]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_United_States_Constitution

[Moltke]

Thanks. I don’t think gas has been below $5/gallon in much of Europe since 2000 or so.

[sergeantdave]

We’re still waiting for you to post the pictures of Spain’s national bikini team.

[EEGator]

I second the bikini team pics.

[Travis McGee]

You really got around! Great trip! What were you traveling in? Tour bus? Rental car?

I covered a lot of that same trip in the summer of 76, hitchhiking from San Sabastion up by France, to the Costa Del Sol, and back.

That was the summer after Franco died, a very interesting period. As it is today.

[SaraJohnson]

Thanks for the report. :)

[Para-Ord.45]

Yeee-hawww ! He blowed up good !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUtdXzBSVaU

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[Para-Ord.45]

Oops.
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Wrong topic
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Never mind

[J Aguilar]

Indeed. Protests in Spain are very limited, probably because people perceive that the main unions are not defending their interests. It is also perceived that civil servants have gotten too many privileges, and therefore I think the majority supports cuts in education, the cause of last week's protests. However, the media and the government want to portray the situation regarding the protests worse in order to shown the European Central Bank they are taking severe measures and so ask for more newly printed euros.

I don't know the statistics about birth rate, but I think the central middle class is taking advantage of the increasing in free time they've got, as a result of a reduced economic activity, to have babies. During afternoons and evenings streets and parks are full of people taking a walk, which has no cost, therefore their "visibility" is greater than in the "bubble years".

As long as you have a job, Spain is still a good place for living, although a bit expensive for the middle class. However, although the right wing government has taken some measures, its strategy has been trying to preserve the system that has led us to this debacle untouched, and just making the cuts necessary to ask the ECB for more euros. As the Bankia nationalization showed up last week (10% of the Spanish banking system needing €23 billion + €4 billion already sent), there are still €300 billiom from the real state bubble uncovered, plus €20 to €30 billion from the four biggest Spanish construction companies which are broke, despite the continous government investments in high speed trains; plus €3-4 billion euros owed by the soccer teams, plus the green energy bubble, probably another €50 billion... this simply cannot be paid (50% of the GDP) by the Spanish economy sectors still working, and raising taxes and the price of the electricity only contributes to reduce the economic activity and less income for the state and the banks. Therefore, I think an intervention and a bail out will happen in the middle term.