Obsessed with Race

I’ve noticed that many Spanish journalists seem to have a vision of America that they have a hard time letting go of. The vision they are clinging to so tightly is one of a fundamentally racist American society. I guess this view makes them feel comfortable, maybe a little superior, and probably safe in their own prejudices and long held beliefs. They really seem to be obsessed with race. Well, at least race in America.

When I read articles like this one from El Pais, I can’t help thinking that the writer had to go out of his way to find what he was looking for. He quotes Harley Davidson riders in the deep South, Rednecks in a gun store, and mentions the KKK several times like it actually has any relevance anymore. Maybe I’m crazy and I probably have been living in a racially mixed society for too long, but in my American world people are not running around talking about the colors of the candidates. They are talking ideology, experience, our taxes – the usual stuff.

There are also some quotes that are real gems in this article too:

“If God was black and Satan was white, there would be Americans willing to forget heaven and burn in hell at the hand of the white demon.”

And I love this one – the obligatory dig at fatso Americans:

“Susan, forty years old, enemy of diets and gastronomic moderation, sells clothes from the front of her house … etc. etc.”

It seems like the writer of the article really wants Obama to lose. If Obama loses – he will be correct in his beliefs. Americans will be proved racist and it will be clear for all to see. If the unthinkable happens (in his eyes) and Obama should win, then there will have to be an explanation. I wonder what that explanation will be? I’m sure El Pais will let me know.

Of course everyone knows that race does play a part in this election. There obviously are racist idiots in America who will vote against Obama because he is black – just like there are many people who will vote for him just because he is black. But can we get a little credit for how far we have come in the race relation area at least? A black American is the Democratic candidate for president after all. That's pretty good guys.

Well, if El Pais won’t say it I will. No matter what happens in this election - Nice work fat Americans! You have come a long way trying to get along together – now go on that diet.

Keeping it Interesting

Well, at least the Americans give the rest of the world something to talk about. It might be about complete world financial ruin and how did those Cowboys do it to us? Or maybe it’s where the latest war is going to be, etc. But there is no denying that when we cause stories – they are big ones. The world should thank us. We’re keeping it interesting. Face it, life would be so boring without us.

There’s the presidential race that the whole world wishes they could vote in with a cast of characters right from an American movie. We’ve got the semi-hot vice presidential nominee who it looks like might be an air-head (we’ll find out more tonight). There’s the war hero who has to remind everyone every five minutes of his time spent in a Viet Nam prison. There’s the son of an African immigrant with the pushy wife who was abandoned by his father as a child but may be the next President of the United States. In short, interesting.

What else is fun for you guys to talk about? People can walk around with guns in their pockets in some states - legally. That is always good for a newspaper story at least once every month.

There’s the movie and music business. People in Europe know much more about it than I do, and I’m from L.A. Everyone has an opinion too. They may say that all American movies suck but they still watch them – and talk about them.

We have last season’s characters in the persons of George W. and Dick Cheney. Wow, did they ever entertain the folks for the last eight years! There really is no denying that.

It’s always fun to blame us too. That never gets old (and sometimes we deserve it). Global warming, terrorism, financial ruin, rampant racism, greed. I’ll let you decide which ones we deserve the blame for … (I know you'll say "all of the above"). You guys can discuss it at the bar.

What's coming next? I know the world will be glued to their TV’s, laptops and newspapers waiting to find out. I wish we could sell this stuff and make some money… It might help pull us out of our latest catastrophe.

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.

Woody Happily Takes Barcelona's Money - While They Go Broke

It’s a tough contrast to see Woody next to those two. I considered cutting him out of the picture but news is news. Just hold your hand over Woody’s face so you can enjoy the view.

Allen’s latest movie premiered in L.A. this week. As you remember, Woody got paid from the guys in charge in Barcelona / The Generalitat, to make the movie. You would assume Allen has a special place in his heart for Barcelona or something, but it turns out that Woody would have gone to any ol’ city to film – just as long as they picked up the tab:

Quote Allen, “People from Barcelona called and said if I was interested in making a film there, they would finance it, so I said, ‘sure’,” he admitted at Cannes. “If someone had called me from Rome or Venice or Stockholm or god knows where, I probably would have agreed to it just as readily.”

Nice Woody! You should at least lie a little and say that Barcelona is the greatest place in the world and you would’ve spent even your own money to film there.

What’s funny about this (not funny, ha, ha, but funny ironic) is that on the same day, in the same newspaper (El Pais), the front page headline is the following:

Catalans’ “basic services” threatened by cash shortfall

It seems that the down-turn in the economy could effect education and even healthcare. Of course they are blaming Madrid for taking their money but what about bone-head moves like this one?

I wonder if Woody shares any of the money the movie makes with Barcelona. If he does, I’m sure the “usual” Hollywood accounting practices will be in place, i.e., even if it makes a ton of money (which it won’t) – Barcelona will be told it was all spent in distribution, sorry!

Does Anyone Else Think This is Nuts?

Well, he only killed twenty five people, it's not like it was a really awful crime. He also was a nice guy in prison, working in the laundry and so on, so that really counts. And he did do 14 months for each of his victims (21 years for 25 murders). So, what more do you want?

Seriously, what the hell is Spain thinking? Is this some kind of joke? Symbolic prison sentences of 3000 years, time off for "good behavior" in murder cases, child rapists let out after a ridiculously short sentence - or doing no time at all! I know we Yanquis are brutal barbarians with the death penalty and all (not in all states), but I'm sorry, this guy should not walk out of prison ever, neither should child killers. Pedophiles can not be "reformed" and guys who kill 25 people revoke their right to live in society with the rest of us, even if they convert into Mother Teresa in jail.