Sábado, 7 de abril de 2007

EspañaEconomía,

"Se meten en un gran lío los que están haciendo un favor al Gobierno o los que creen estar haciéndole un favor al Gobierno o los que han sido llamados por el Gobierno y acuden en ayuda de él (...) Tales ayudas tendrán consecuencias en el futuro". La amenaza a los empresarios colaboracionistas fue pronunciada por Eduardo Zaplana cuando José Manuel Entrecanales, presidente de Acciona, tomó posiciones en Endesa. El astuto portavoz parlamentario del PP sabía que los empresarios son muy sensibles a estas advertencias, sobre todo cuando el poder político parece impotente para aplicar sus planes. La clase empresarial repele el intervencionismo gubernamental, salvo que se ejerza en su beneficio, pero castiga por falta de autoridad cuando fracasa.…  Seguir leyendo »

EuropaUnión Europea

On any given day, one isn't likely to find common cause with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He's a dangerous, lying, Holocaust- denying, Jew-hating cutthroat thug -- not to put too fine a point on it.

But he was dead-on when he wondered why a once-great power such as Britain sends mothers of toddlers to fight its battles.

Ahmadinejad characterized as a gift to Britain the release of 15 British sailors and marines, including one woman, seized at sea last month. In reality, the hostages were the West's gift to Ahmadinejad.

When a pretender to sanity such as Ahmadinejad gets to lecture the West about how it treats its women, we've effectively handed him a free pass to the end zone and made the world his cheerleaders.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoOriente PróximoInternacionalTerrorismo Internacional, ,

As the spring fighting season opens, Afghanistan faces many challenges: terrorism, the Taliban, Islamic extremism, drugs and criminals, warlords and factional friction, weak government and an inadequate national and international security presence.

This is a good time to make an objective assessment of the Afghan and regional environment and to put together a strategy to overcome those challenges. This strategy should be comprehensive, combining military containment with political reconciliation, administrative control and rapid socio-economic development. It must build peace through a bottom-up approach — village by village, district by district — by offering incentives and disincentives to secure the support and cooperation of local populations.…  Seguir leyendo »

InternacionalIglesia Católica,

Jesus wasn't a Christian. He was a Jew. The word Christian wasn't known until years after his death. Which means that in order to appreciate Easter in its own terms, we must think of it as Jewish. The whole purpose for which Jesus went up to Jerusalem was to celebrate the festival of Passover. The last supper was a Passover meal. And it's the symbolism of that meal that Christians must return to in order to understand the meaning of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Even in Jesus's time, the celebration of Passover was well over a thousand years old.…  Seguir leyendo »

EuropaUnión Europea

I'm afraid it was the Ryder Cup-style photo that was the last straw. It is traditional, on the eve of that golf competition, for the US and European teams to pose for photos in matching outfits. Rarely has this biennial silliness been called to mind more sharply than on Wednesday in Tehran, when the 15 released naval hostages waved cheerily for the cameras, looking for all the world as if they were confident of securing an early lead in the foursomes.

Before we proceed, two things should be stated for the record. First, it is obviously wonderful that the crew are back in Blighty and reunited with their families.…  Seguir leyendo »