It was made known today that Jacques Chirac, the former French president, has been ordered to stand trial for an alleged corruption scandal that goes back to his years as Paris mayor between 1977 and 1995, just before he became president of the country. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday the UN general assembly, for the 18th consecutive year, passed a non-binding resolution -with 187 votes in favor, three against and two abstentions- condemning the US economic embargo against Cuba. Only Israel and the Pacific Island of Palau sided with the US. Read the rest of this entry »

Many tourists who visit Madrid have been told to go and see the Valle de los Caidos (Valley of the Fallen) located outside Madrid. For many of these tourists it is just something else to see in Spain. For Spaniards it means much more. Read the rest of this entry »

Two months after the Afghan people voted to choose a president and after it became know that fraud had been perpetrated, US and European officials lobbied for Mr Karzai to accept the fraud ruling believing a credible government is critical for overcoming the Taliban. Read the rest of this entry »

With less than 50 days for the climate summit set in Copenhagen at the beginning of December, there is not much optimism for the results. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said too many people have not yet grasp the scale and urgency of the problem. Read the rest of this entry »

Now there is not only the question of to be vaccinated or not against the swine flu but which vaccine to get if one could choose. News breaking over the weekend have Germany debating about the supposed two-class medical system. German politicians are in full damage control denying that they will receive a different and safer flu vaccine that the ordinary citizen. Read the rest of this entry »

“Safety Nets for the Rich” was the title of the column Bob Herbert wrote on Monday in the New York Times. I have to say that I agreed with him totally and not only because he commented in the passivity of the American population, something that has always puzzled me. I have many times talked about that with friends and family both in the US and abroad. Many of us thought that American patience does not go with the so much talked about American violence. Read the rest of this entry »