The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 | 16 comments (16 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

From my perspective the Royals are meapilas [they pee holy water], so I don't understand how they could detach themselves from the Catholic Church. They even seem close to the Opus Dei, to be honest.

What the PP thinks of the monarchy is becoming irrelevant. The Monarchist newspaper is ABC and they have (amazingly) placed themselves in opposition to the PP leadership because Rajoy took "the black holes of March 11" to the Parliament.

On the other hand, I can't help but be reminded that the "crime syndicate" that waged a press campaign to unseat Felipe Gonzalez in 1993-6 included the then director of ABC Luis María Ansón (a monarchist) but also García Trevijano as the presumptive President of the 3rd Spanish Republic. So maybe now that the "crime syndicate" is at it again, the Monarchy has something to worry about. In that case, it is not clear whether distancing themselves from the Church would weaken the rabid right wing, or cause support for the monarchy to falter also among the right [the left would like to be Republican but owes a debt of gratitude to JCI for the Transition to democracy].

In any case, JCI's shoes are too large for Felipe to fill. They really should form a Monarchist party and run royals as candidates for a ceremonial President of the Republic.

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 04:07:30 AM EST

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (4.00 / 2)

Good points and some new details for me. I wonder if they are really believers, or act like they are. Meapilas could also mean they pee ON holy water and are just acting out the role. I agree that they must have economic and political ties with the Opus, their universities, charities, etc.

What the PP hierarchy thinks of the monarchy seems very important because it is not mutual and the PP doesn´t dare lose that sentimental "base" vote. El Abecedario also resents that the PP has chosen El (In)Mundo and COPE (church-owned radio) over them, for their government-undermining campaigns. Now el inmundo has become a tabloid and its shameless P.J. Ramirez struts around, parroting PP talking points. And he keeps smiling on tv panels no matter how many times they slam him down: Laughing all the way to the bank.

I have ignored the right-wing press too long to know how they stand now, since Ansón is now director? at La (Sin)Razón, but I´d guess that the PP would gain points if the monarchy distanced itself from the church, because they would use it politically.

Your scenario of a ceremonial president gives me food for thought. What if we take into account "the little woman behind the man" vs. the "gray men" advisors? I give some credit to Sofía and I know Leticia is no fool...

Our knowledge has surpassed our wisdom. -Charu Saxena.

by metavision on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 04:49:26 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (4.00 / 2)

You say Pedro J parrots PP talking points, but it almost looks like it is the PP that parrots the talking points put out by El Mundo and Federico Jimenez Losantos. PP leaders are actually scared shitless of Jimenez Losantos, as criticism by him can make them lose the support of the core PP members and sympathisers.

Didn't Andón recently quit La Razon? [this is the newspaper he founded after quitting ABC, which was and is an incomprehensible move].

For the guiris (foreigners):

El abecedario (the alphabet) means ABC.
El inmundo (the filthy) means El Mundo.
La sinraz&oacute (the unreason) means La Razón.

I don't know about Letizia, but Sofia clearly wears the trousers in the Royal House.

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 05:08:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

Well, PJ from el inmundo is really sleazy so he may have a leading voice. But I refuse to even think the COPE´s Fe-de-rico has any real power, even with the church backing. He is a temporary pawn with an ugly tongue, but he has been warned.

Ansón is such a feudal pea-brain! And as I see below, he has moved on "incomprehensibly", to serve under PJ: best of luck to him. I had no idea. Not long ago he was on the tube with the caption of "founder of LaRazon".

"cursory"... LOL I´ll catch your speed in my next lifetime.

Our knowledge has surpassed our wisdom. -Charu Saxena.

by metavision on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 06:06:10 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

I'm going to have to go through your diaries and comments and ask you to explain some things that seem to hide interesting stuff. Like this, for instance: [La COPE's Federico is a temporary pawn with an ugly tongue, but he has been warned_.

Who's calling the shots? It's none of the visible leaders of the PP (Rajoy, Acebes). Not even Esperanza Aguirre though she might be the one best placed to replace Rajoy when he implodes. Aznar, maybe? Well, he's certainly busy increasing his media power.

Ansón, by the way, is now in Intereconomia, another part of the right-wing media machine.

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 06:22:57 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

*Federico has become the king of verbal abuse on the radio, to the degree that he has offended almost all factions at some point. I don't remember during which 2006? debate, he used "4-letter words" and was so insulting that a mini-demonstration, with news coverage, was mounted in front of the COPE.

That forced PP Rajoy to soften the party´s stand in public, just short of condemning Federico, and unofficially asked the Pres. of Conferencia Episcopal, Vazquez, to fire him for being a lose canon.

At the same time most of the media got on the bandwagon, calling for a real "media review commission" to shut down the station. Vazquez was pressed about it in a special interview on TV Cuatro and had to admit "certain behavior" was irresponsible, although he practiced total truth-evasion throughout.

Federico HAS rounded his words and is now the favorite for jokes by media and public.

*Sometimes I fear that Aznar, grasping at straws in his mental state, is plotting against Rajoy through Secretary Acebes and spokesman Zaplana (linked to developers´ bribes in Valencia, etc.) Rajoy has made every effort to avoid appearing in public with Aznar since he became a candidate in 2004 and is mild compared to the rest.

The power plays in the PP are probably Pres. of Madrid Region, Aguirre and Acebes because they already defeated Madrid mayor, Gallardón.

I wouldn´t trust Aguirre with a cotton ball and she has 1) more ties to dirty business than is already known, 2) her failure in Health care has people in arms and it is rumored she wants to privatize it, 3) she wants to pave and brick the whole province, 4) her grandiose roads-golf-development plans are illegal and in court up to the EU level ( http://www.ecologistasenaccion.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=7 )and 5) her control of TeleMadrid is backfiring, with its head of news and ardent supporter resigning and its journalists demonstrating in the streets for freedom to report real news.

Thatcher or Atila could be her role models.

"Little Angel" Acebes is a true fanatic of "good old control" and is the tireless altar boy for the church, but I really don´t know what other backing he may have. He seems fixed, predictable and inert to consequences.

It is never dull, nor sane and I don´t want to conclude much.

Our knowledge has surpassed our wisdom. -Charu Saxena.

by metavision on Mon Nov 6th, 2006 at 12:50:32 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

Gallardon is poised to lead the moderate right when the current PP leadership crashes the ship.

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Mon Nov 6th, 2006 at 01:35:02 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 0)

Don´t talk so loud, he may hear it and start building his own pyramid. Faraonic nut.

Our knowledge has surpassed our wisdom. -Charu Saxena.

by metavision on Mon Nov 6th, 2006 at 06:11:57 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

Another one for guiris: Fe-de-rico means "rich man's faith".

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Mon Nov 6th, 2006 at 03:40:08 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (4.00 / 2)

Ansón left La Razóon in 2004 (and ended up in El Mundo in 2005) because the publishing company Planeta, which owned La Razón, acquired the catalan-language newspaper Avui. Some cursory googling reveals this account by the man himself...

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 05:20:11 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

It seems the reason Ansón betrayed the conspiracy of the "crime syndicate" was that they were not only against Felipe Gonzalez but were also thiking of undermining the Crown (see Los Genoveses). It is interesting that Anson has now, once again, allied himself with Pedro J. The motive is, in this case, the "threat" to the Unity of Spain from the Basques and especially the Catalans, with Zapatero as the evil enabler.

One interesting thing about the Royals is that:

the eldest daughter married a member of the traditional aristocracy in Sevilla, and they were awarded the Duchy of Lugo [in Galicia, another peripheral region with strong nationalism]
the second daughter, who worked for La Caixa, married a Basque who played professionally for Barça, were given the Duchy of Palma [in the Balearics] and they live in Barcelona
the prince married a media personality in Madrid. Traditionally they would have married in Los Jerónimos, but instead they used the Cathedral of La Almudena, which not only has horrible architecture but is also an Opus Dei sanctuary.

Considering what they did with their second daughter's marriage (and anyone who thinks any of these pairings were totally spontaneous doesn't know the Royal Family - or has forgotten the previous rumoured candidates to marry the prince) I wonder what the King's position on "the Unity of Spain" is. If Ansón is teaming up with Pedro J again 10 years after the "crime syndicate", it might be because the King doesn't agree with him that the Unity of Spain is in danger.

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 05:39:00 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (4.00 / 2)

It sounds as if they are repeating the conspiracy word-by-word and for the same arrogant reason! The daily antagonism of the government is absurd, now with the ETA peace process, even worse because the PP couldn´t achieve it. The PP keeps embarrassing itself by not acting like the opposition, but simply being "opposed" to everything and I think the public has caught on. With the Catalunya statute it was "Spain is breaking!" and nothing has happened.

The king is very aware that there is no threat with the unity of Spain and he´ll keep giving them rope, I think.

The marriages are funny and Elena´s is questionable, but Cristina´s seems good. Felipe´s wedding couldn´t be at Los Jerónimos because it is too small, but if the cathedral is run by the Opus, that means the archbishop is in the Opus?

Our knowledge has surpassed our wisdom. -Charu Saxena.

by metavision on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 06:42:53 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (4.00 / 2)

Juan Carlos has the right to stay where he is for perpeutity. The reason is that he, and he alone, was able to bring democracy peacefully to Spain.

When the Fascists had that attempted coup on Feb. 23, 1981, it was Juan Carlos who personally put it down.

When Franco died, JCI was an absolute monarch, and now he's just like the Queen of England. He's a genuine hero, and unlike many other genuine heroes in this world, he didn't do anything to fuck up his reputation, like most Presidents in Africa, or Kim dae jung.

by messy on Sun Nov 5th, 2006 at 08:22:44 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 (none / 1)

You're right.

The 1981 coup is not the only attempt Spain had to go through after Franco died, but it was the last one. A famous near miss is was called Operación Galaxia.

Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad. -- Euripides

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Mon Nov 6th, 2006 at 03:43:34 AM EST
[ Parent ]

The Price of Royalty in Spain - 5 | 16 comments (16 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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