No padre

Some news from Spain. If Spanish bishops are anything like those in the US, this protest will fall on deaf ears.

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MADRID (Reuters) - Members of a Spanish village parish have gone on hunger strike in protest at the transfer of their much-loved priest to another church, the newspaper El Pais reported on Monday.

Eighteen members of a parish in Albunol in the southern province of Granada have refused to eat in protest at the transfer of Gabriel Castillo, and 200 parishioners have locked themselves in the church in an attempt to keep him as their priest.

But Castillo's transfer has been brought forward, El Pais said on its Web site, as the protests continue.

The youthful Castillo is popular with parishioners because he has involved himself with local social issues such as immigration and poverty.

The protesters say Castillo is being transferred because his ideas clash with a group of local nuns, who since his arrival have been hearing mass in a nearby village.

The Knucklehead of the Day award

Today's winner is Jaime Jimenez Arbe. He gets the award for the following.

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's most wanted thief, "The Loner," saw himself as a Robin Hood-style figure and said he robbed banks only because they stole from the public, his lawyer said Thursday.

Accused of killing three policemen and holding up more than 30 banks, Jaime Jimenez Arbe was planning to move on to insurance companies when he was arrested last month, Spanish media reported, citing lawyer Jose Mariano Trillo-Figueroa.

"I am not a killer and if I was obliged to shoot at officers of the law, it was always against my will and in order to avoid being arrested," Jimenez said in a letter reproduced on the websites of newspapers El Pais and El Mundo.

Trillo-Figueroa said Jimenez, who robbed the banks disguised in a false beard and a wig, thinks of himself as Curro Jimenez, a Spanish 1970s television bandit in the style of Robin Hood.

I don't have a very high opinion of banks either, but nothing justifies murder. That's what Sr. Jimmenez did. He isn't Robin Hood, but Jaime Jimenez Arbe is certainly today's Knucklehead of the Day.

Linked to- Adam, Amboy Times, Big Dog, Blue Star, Cao, Church and State, Commonsense America, Dumb Ox, Is it Just me?, Jo, Leaning Straight Up, Morewhat, Perri Nelson, Pirate's Cove, Point Five, Pursuing Holiness, Right Wing Nation, Samantha Burns, Stuck on Stupid, Third World County, Webloggin, Woman Honor Thyself, The World According to Carl, Yankee Sailor,

Igual Tiempo

Some news from Spain. Too bad Peter Cook and Dudley Moore aren't around anymore to say "Keep mooving, keep mooving."

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MADRID (Reuters) - Women in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona, world-famous for its ferocious bull-running festival, are demanding their own version complete with cows instead of bulls.

A student website, www.estudiln.net, set the ball rolling with its campaign "Cows want to run" which asks for a separate encierro, as the bull-runs are known, where only women are allowed to take part.

Women have been allowed to take part in the San Fermin bull-running for some years but they still represent a tiny minority of the thousands of runners who attempt to dodge 600-kilo bulls along an 800-metre course through the streets of Pamplona.

The students say it's only logical that women should have their own bull-run.

"Cows, as well as bulls, have four legs and a natural instinct to run," says their manifesto. "An encierro for cows, would put Pamplona at the vanguard of traditional fiestas with equality for men and women."

Organizers of the festival, which runs from July 7-14, have not responded to the suggestion.

The gloves are off

Some news from Spain-

MADRID, Spain - Police seized a van packed with explosives in southeastern France, thwarting a Basque separatist attack that was clearly intended to cause casualties, Spain's interior minister said Wednesday.

Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said the group ETA, which has killed more than 800 people since 1968, was planning to stage the attack sometime during Spain's state of the nation parliamentary debate Tuesday and Wednesday.

The location and target of the planned bombing were unknown, he said.

Rubalcaba said police in southeastern France seized the van packed with 310 pounds of chloratite-based explosives and detained three suspected ETA members on Monday.

"Chloratite is an explosive with a short life span. The car was ready to be exploded immediately, yesterday or this morning," he said. "It's pretty obvious they aimed to cause casualties."

Perez Rubalcaba said two detonators were found, though authorities believe only one car bomb was planned.

*****

ETA, whose name is a Basque-language acronym for Basque Homeland and Freedom, has been waging a campaign for an independent Basque state for nearly 40 years.

The group called off a 15-month cease-fire on June 5 and indicated it would resume attacks. On June 21, police found another car, loaded with 220 pounds of explosives, in southwestern Spain near the Portuguese border.

As I have blogged before, ETA wants victory not compromise. They won't give up till either they goals are achieved, or Spanish authorities exterminate these terrorists.

Prediction- It is only a matter of time before ETA is successful in a bombing attempt.

Linked to- Amboy Times, Big Dog, StikNstein,

I'm a prophet!

Some news from Spain-

MADRID (AFP) - The armed Basque separatist group ETA said Tuesday it was ending a "permanent" ceasefire declared last year, accusing the Spanish government of persecuting the group instead of negotiating with it.

Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero immediately labelled the move a "mistake" and asked the outfit to definitively give up violence.

"ETA's decision goes in radically the opposite direction to the path desired by the Spanish and Basque society, the path of peace," he said in a televised address.

ETA said in a statement it will as of midnight Tuesday "act on all fronts" to campaign for an independent Basque state.

"The Spanish government has responded to the permanent suspension of armed activities offered by ETA with arrests, torture and all sorts of hounding," it said in the statement sent to the pro-independence Basque Berria and Gara newspapers.

"The minimum democratic conditions are not met to continue with the process of negotiations," it said.

ETA, whose four-decade campaign to achieve independence for the Basque region of Spain and southwestern France has claimed over 800 lives, announced the ceasefire in March 2006 and Zapatero indicated in June he would begin peace talks.

This news doesn't surprise me in the least. Lets review what I said on April 9th.

MADRID, Spain - For the second time since shattering a self-imposed cease-fire, Basque separatists released a statement Sunday saying it was committed to peace in the troubled northern region so long as "attacks on the Basque nation" end.

The Spanish government, which called off exploratory contacts that could have led to formal talks with the separatist group ETA after a car bombing at the Madrid Airport in December, responded that the statement was inadequate.

ETA said, "We have the willingness to commit firmly to ... absence of violence, deactivating even options to retaliate within a situation of cease-fire."

ETA said its commitment would be maintained "if attacks on the Basque nation disappear."

The separatist group wants the inclusion in local elections of parties currently outlawed because of their support for ETA, as well as better treatment for ETA prisoners and a reduction in the arrests of its members.

If history has taught us anything, fanaticis(Osama Bin Laden)and revolutionaries(Lenin, Ho Chi Minh and a long list of others) don't want peace or compromise. Their only goal is victory. Spain is no different, Franco being a very recent example.

See I was right. The ETA doesn't want peace, but victory. As to how long before the first act of terror will be committed, your guess is as good as mine.

See TFM isn't just a Knucklehead blog. LOL.

Linked to- Amboy Times, Perri Nelson, Right Voices,

No peace

Some news from Spain-

MADRID, Spain - For the second time since shattering a self-imposed cease-fire, Basque separatists released a statement Sunday saying it was committed to peace in the troubled northern region so long as "attacks on the Basque nation" end.

The Spanish government, which called off exploratory contacts that could have led to formal talks with the separatist group ETA after a car bombing at the Madrid Airport in December, responded that the statement was inadequate.

ETA said, "We have the willingness to commit firmly to ... absence of violence, deactivating even options to retaliate within a situation of cease-fire."

ETA said its commitment would be maintained "if attacks on the Basque nation disappear."

The separatist group wants the inclusion in local elections of parties currently outlawed because of their support for ETA, as well as better treatment for ETA prisoners and a reduction in the arrests of its members.

If history has taught us anything, fanaticis(Osama Bin Laden)and revolutionaries(Lenin, Ho Chi Minh and a long list of others) don't want peace or compromise. Their only goal is victory. Spain is no different, Franco being a very recent example.

It is only a matter of time before another ETA bombing or other terrorist act.

Linked to- Cao, DragonLady's World, Right Voices, Third World County,

Tenerife- 30 years later

Some news from Spain.

Tenerife has been remembering the world’s worst ever air disaster.

It was 30 years ago, March 27 1977, when 583 people lost their lives in a collision between two jumbo jets from the KLM and Pan Am companies when the planes were diverted to Tenerife because of a bomb scare on Gran Canaria.

Investigations at the time showed that the Dutch plane had started to take off in thick fog without permission from the control tower.

An 18 metre high monument to the dead, ‘The snail’s staircase sculpture’ will be inaugurated this afternoon in the presence of family members of the bereaved and representatives of the Spanish, United States and Dutch governments.

The spiral theme is said to be a symbol of infinity, according to the Dutch artist Rudi van de Wint.

A grandaughter of two of those who perished at Tenerife, made the trip.

Thirty years ago, what was supposed to be a Greek cruise for Long Beach residents Dora and Lee Torres turned instead to tragedy.

On this day three decades ago, the couple was among 583 people who died when KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Flight 4805 collided with their plane, Pan Am Flight 1736, as it tried to take off from Los Rodeos Airport in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.

*****

Today, the Torres' granddaughter Michelle Torres will join relatives of survivors, as well as American, Spanish and Dutch officials in Tenerife to take part in a ceremonial unveiling of a 19.8-foot-tall sculpture commemorating the air disaster.

"It applauds the people who were involved in rescue efforts and the people who were involved in the crash itself," said San Clemente resident Chuck Torres, the son of Dora and Lee Torres.

God bless the Chuck and Michelle Torres and all the families of the dead today.

What I said about Tenerife before, still applies.

Like most aviation disasters, a chain of seemingly innocent or inconsequential events ended in tragedy. Most but not all the blame falls on the KLM pilot, Captain Jacob Van Zanten who despite his many years of piloting, made a series of fatal mistakes mostly due to impatience.

Many lessons were learned from this disaster, but at a heavy price. Right now the US is going through a never before seen period of air safety. With no major airline crashes in over three years. We still need to keep our vigil up, complanecy has been the cause of more than one air crash.

Airdisaster.com has more information on the events of that day on Tenerife 29 years ago. The report is good, but I disagree. Captain Van Zanten was not solely responsible for that tragic day in 1977.

Humans do tend to learn from our mistakes. There has never been an air disaster like it in the last 30 years. Aviation authorities need to stay vigilant, and keep another tragedy like it from ever happening again.

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Another Madrid Bombing

From CNN-

MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- Spain has blamed a powerful bomb explosion at the country's busiest airport Saturday on Basque separatist group ETA, declaring it a violation of a nine-month cease-fire.

Several people suffered minor injuries when a stolen van exploded in a parking lot near terminal four at Madrid's Barajas International Airport, which had been evacuated after police received a warning.

One man is reported missing after the explosion. If found dead, he would be the first fatality caused by ETA in three years.

Spanish Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said the government condemned the attack, "which breaks nine months without violence on the part of ETA, which breaks the permanent ceasefire."

But the head of Batasuna, a political party banned for links with ETA said the peace process would continue.

"The peace process...is not only not over, but now it is more necessary than ever," Arnaldo Batasuna told a news conference in the Basque city of San Sebastian, Reuters reported.

In terrorist speak that means- "Concede all our demands or we keep up the violence." Terrorists are fanatics and rarely seek compromises.

Fortunately casualties were light today. Spain may not be as lucky next time.

Dr. Taylor is also blogging on the bombing.

I will note, that after the Madrid commuter train bombing it struck me (here, also) that ETA would have a very hard time using bombings as an effective tool in their fight for Basque independence. Along those line, bombing an airport (or even just a parking lot) strikes me as a potential PR nightmare for the organization.

Yes I'd think an airport bombing makes little sense from a PR point of view. Then fanatics aren't necessarily logical in their actions.

Hat tip- James Joyner at OTB.
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Drug money

From Reuters-

MADRID (Reuters) - Traces of cocaine can be found on 94 percent of banknotes in Spain, a country that has one of the world's highest rates of users, according to a study published on Sunday.

The 100 notes tested were collected in gyms, supermarkets and pharmacies across Spain, where increased affluence and falling street prices have made the drug more and more accessible.

Cocaine now sells for as little as 60 euros (40 pounds) a gram, or 5 euros ($7) a line, and it is regularly used by 1.6 percent of Spaniards, up from 0.9 percent in 1999, a government report said this month.

Law enforcement agencies say cocaine is getting cheaper and more popular in Europe because of efforts to boost production by Colombian paramilitaries and rebels who need money for weapons. Spain is a major entry point to Europe for the smugglers.

It was not clear how many of the notes had been used to snort cocaine and how many had picked up traces from other bills, according to the study by the Sailab laboratory, published in the daily El Mundo.

One hopes this sampling was a statistical anomaly. The other option is that cocaine use is much more prevalent in Spain than thought. That could end up a health and crime nightmare for the country.

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