Some Links to Check Out

Roberto Says the current Wall Street news is the death of capitalism. There is a lot of shit going down on "C/ Muro, 1". I hope it is not the death of the market system but it sure seems like those greedy idiots need some more rules to keep them in line. This sounds like an issue Obama should jump on and milk.

I remember writing a short while back that I didn't hear the word "crisis" bandied about in the states as much as I did in Spain - or so I thought. I stand corrected. Now it's a crisis. Maybe those soup lines are coming after all.

Pajamas Media has something on Europeans' views of America which contribute to them being disgusted with us - problem is a lot of their facts are wrong. It seems they are as ignorant of us as we are of them... (I have known this for a long time).

Europe is Gonna Hate This Lady

I'm afraid we have a real race on our hands. Everyone in the Obama camp (and the U.S. media) was feeling pretty cocky right after the Democratic National Convention. It didn't last very long.

McCain really pulled a fast one on us with this conservative lady governor. Everyone's first reaction was, "What an idiot McCain is! Does he think we're stupid"? Then she got up to speak. And the chick can speak.

The media instantly piled on trying to bring up any dirt they could - and there is some dirt - but everything they said only hurt Obama more. Sarah Palin is a tough one to beat up on. The Obama-supporting media actually called her a bad mother because she has a job! Now that's a tough sell - and a very hypocritical position for the Democrats to take. They have to be very careful here or it will continue to jump up and bite them in the ass.

I do know one thing though. Europe (and the American Left) is going to hate this lady. She possesses a boatload of the "typical" American stereotypes that Europe hates. Like:

1) Conservative Politically
2) Religious (Christian, of course. The religion they can't stand the most)
3) Goes Hunting!
4) Comes from a small town
5) Only been out of the US one time.
6) Is against abortion
7) Has a bunch of kids
8) Chose to have a Down's Syndrome child instead of aborting.

I know she will be dismissed as a conservative religious fanatic by most Europeans. The same is happening in the U.S. media. But, she's different. She's a mother, not rich, not male, not Washington. She may be more religious than you or me, but she is more "real" than all of those other politicians. People tend to identify with that. Can she "Be the leader of the free world" as they say? Is she qualified? Who knows? But who the hell is!

This is going to be very interesting. The Obama camp is praying (yes, they are praying now) that she will just make a massive mistake. We'll see. If she puts McCain in the white House many people are going to be in total shock - in the U.S. and in Europe. And boy will they be pissed!

Still Too Shallow to Appreciate Woody

I saw Vicky Cristina Barcelona last night and I have to say I still don’t get Woody. I must be too shallow. I love his early stuff though – when he was funny - movies like Annie Hall, Sleeper, and Love and Death. But now I just get irritated.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona is about obviously rich and spoiled broads, who have all the time and money in the world to just hang out and worry about things, complain and whine, cheat on their boyfriends / husbands, and basically be ungrateful for everything they have.

As a guy who knows how much things cost in Spain, and most importantly, how expensive time is, the time to do what you want, time to hang out, time to think instead of working, etc… It really annoys me that everyone in this movie is seemingly filthy rich with lots of time on their hands. They stay in virtual palaces, go to hotels that would easily cost 600 Euros a night, they fly in private planes, go to quaint private Spanish guitar performances, they spend money on the town like drunken sailors and all with no visible means of support.

The same goes for the painter, Javier. His house is amazing, he drives a vintage 1967 Alfa Romeo Duetto in perfect condition (no maintenance there, ha!), flies a plane, and all without ever selling a painting (they all looked pretty bad to me). He’s not exactly a poor, suffering artist….

I know I’m supposed to suspend disbelief but I couldn’t do it. There was nothing real people could relate to in this movie.

In short, everyone is a self-obsessed whiner, especially the Americans. Honestly, they are an embarrassment – and boring to watch. The only character that was interesting, who actually moved around a little and said something different was Penelope. She looks good angry too.