“El señor de la basura” (“Lord of the Rubbish”) was the title of a magnificent documentary the program Equipo de Investigacion de La Sexta produced about a known businessman in the Vega Baja. This man has become well-kn...
“El señor de la basura” (“Lord of the Rubbish”) was the title of a magnificent documentary the program Equipo de Investigacion de La Sexta produced about a known businessman in the Vega Baja. This man has become well-kn...
The main presentation for the Easter meeting was on the subject of drought resistant plants. This very interesting talk was made by Anna van Dijkh, assisted by Irene Davis, and will have been of great assistance to all gardeners here in Spain. The we...
ROYAL GIFT
PONY-TAILED Pablo Iglesias shunned protocol to give King Felipe the complete ‘Game of Thrones' series when they met for the first time on Wednesday. The king reacted graciously at the MEP meet-up in Brussels, grinning and admitting he had not yet seen the series. Podemos leader Iglesias reportedly gifted the violent series to him so he might ‘better understand the political crisis in Spain'. It was the king's first visit as monarch to the European Parliament to greet the 54 Spanish MEPs, five of whom are Podemos politicians.
COCA COLA DECISION OVERTURNED
Spain's Supreme Court said Wednesday it had upheld a lower court decision to void the layoffs of 1,190 workers at Coca-Cola Co.'s Spanish bottler, saying it infringed on workers' right to strike as the bottler didn't present workers with a detailed plan of its decision to close down some of its factories in 2014. The ruling follows a dispute ongoing for more than a year and means workers at four out of 11 bottling plants that were scheduled to close can return to their jobs with back salaries.
HATE CRIMES
Forty percent of the 1,285 hate crimes reported to police across Spain last year targeted gays and lesbians, the interior ministry said on Tuesday. there were a total of 513 hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation or sexual identity reported to police in 2014, a 13.5 percent increase over the previous year, the ministry said in a report. The vast majority of the victims, 72 percent, were women.
MONUMENT DESECRATED
On the threshold of the Armenian Genocide centennial, a medieval Armenian monument has been desecrated in Alicante. The local Armenian community has applied to authorities with a request to renovate the cross, find the criminals and hold them accountable who say they are taking measures to ensure security during all events the Armenian community organizes in April and to ensure that monuments are not damaged in the future.
PSOE GAFFE
The PSOE has apologised after accidentally voting in parliament for a proposal on abortion that his own party is against. Socialist chief Pedro Sanchez pressed the wrong button during the vote on whether to debate a law requiring minors to get parental permission before getting an abortion. "I deeply regret my error," he said. The move, proposed by the governing Popular Party (PP), passed easily due to its parliamentary majority. Sanchez faced ridicule on social media for the gaffe. Some users drew comparisons with Homer Simpson, the US cartoon character who once avoided a nuclear meltdown by guessing which button to press in an emergency.
WAR ON TERRORISM
SPAIN'S foreign affairs minister has suggested setting up an international 'terrorism tribunal' in a bid to fight the spread of Jihad at the Euro-Arab summit meeting in Barcelona last week. José Manuel García-Margallo says this would be a completely separate entity from the existing International Criminal Court and would allow countries which have not yet signed up to the latter – such as China, the USA and Israel – to join forces in the war on terrorism.
MOBSTER HELD
One of Italy's most wanted gangsters has been detained on the Costa del Sol in Spain while trying to withdraw money from a post office. Lucio Morrone, known as "Spalluzzella", is described by Spain's Guardia Civil as head of a dangerous clan in the Naples Camorra. He was sentenced to 20 years in jail for drug trafficking and on the run for five years, says Spain's Civil Guard. Morrone was caught in a joint operation involving Spanish and Italian police.
VOTING WEBSITE
Website crypto problems on the Spanish online voting registration website are causing it to generate all manner of security warnings. Attempts to visit the sede.ine.gob.es site – run by Spain's National Statistics Institute and introduced this year for municipal/regional elections –lead to users being confronted with a security warning. However, the warnings vary depending on the operating system and browser a surfer is using. A spokesman said that such website problems are sadly common.
CATHOLIC BASTION
More than half of Spaniards admit that they are either "not religious" or are "convinced atheists", according to a new global study that shows the dramatic loss of faith in the traditionally Roman Catholic nation. In fact with one in five Spaniards insisting that they are "convinced atheists" Spain ranks fifth on the global list of adamant non-believers. The study surveyed 63,398 people in 65 countries in a bid to discover global religious trends. Once the bastion of Roman Catholicism, only 37 percent of those polled described themselves as "religious".
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL
The Catalonian town of Navás has installed Spain's first stolpersteine - stones commemorating victims of the Holocaust. The five stones were unveiled on Thursday afternoon in memory of five neighbours who died in Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp near the villages of Mauthausen and Gusen in Austria. The 10cm by 10cm stones include their details; names, date of birth and their place of death, as a way to commemorate their lives. The stolpersteine memorials were created by German artist Gunter Demnig
WHAT TRANSPARENCY?
Spain ranks in the bottom four when it comes to regulating the "hidden influence" of lobbyists in government, according to a report on European countries released by Transparency International on Wednesday. Spain was ranked 16th out of the 19 countries surveyed - with only Italy, Cyprus and Hungary faring worse - with an overall score of 21 percent for being able to safeguard against undue influence from lobbyists.
HEADING TO SPAIN
BRITISH pensioners are cashing in and heading abroad to make the most of new pension reforms. Buying a holiday home abroad – particularly in Spain – has been identified as ‘one of the main investments' made by pensioners withdrawing large sums from their savings. Reforms introduced by UK chancellor George Osborne allow people unlimited withdrawals from their pensions after age 55. And while most people are not seeking an immediate payout it seems those that do are spending it overseas.
Angelina Jolie has traveled to the Vatican to project her film 'Unbroken' and greeted pope Francis, as confirmed by the deputy director of the Vatican Press Office, Father Ciro Benedittini, who specified that during the screening of the film the Pope "was not present".
According to a press release issued by Universal, the filmmaker and actress was accompanied by Luke Zaperini, the son of Louis Zamperini, the olympic athlete who honors the film.
Jolie has said that being invited to the Vatican was an "honor" and a "great tribute to the history of 'Unbroken', the story of a hero, a great example of strength and forgiveness."
'Unbroken' is a drama-war film produced and directed by Angelina Jolie. It tells the story of Louis Zamperini, Olympic athletics star and hero of the Second World War, who during a military mission had an accident in the Pacific Ocean, which survived with only two companions.
He spent 47 days adrift on a raft, until they managed to reach an island. They were found by Japanese soldiers who tortured him and captured as a POW.
Moreover, consumers like to associate the brands with celebrities, according to a global survey about celebrities, conducted by ACNielsen. "We live in a time when internet has changed our habits. When purchasing products, consumers want to see the shop windows, but they declare that advertising influences them much time to decide." A total of 23,500 Internet users in five countries have opted for Angelina Jolie as mentor for casual wear.
In general there are two famous in which all consumers agree: Nicole Kidman to advertise sleepwear and Angelina Jolie for casual wear. "Another interesting point is that the Europeans appreciate the more individualistic images of George Clooney and Johnny Depp," highlights ACNielsen.
The survey shows that the marriage of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie has become the most profitable advertising partner.
Clemente Ferrer
Independent Forum of Opinion
http://indeforum.wordpress.com
Sterling experienced a modest end to last week, falling slightly against both the euro and US dollar following the latest round of television debates between political party leaders. A lack of economic data releases this week will keep investor attent...
Today's children will live fewer years and with worse quality of life than their grandparents, because of the problems caused by obesity and passivity, as warned the president of the organizing committee of the Congress of the Society of Endocrinology and Nutrition in Spain.
In the last ten years, childhood obesity has doubled reaching 13.9% in this country. Moreover, 30% of obese children will remain so well into adulthood.
The comfortable habit of leaving children in front of the TV to not importune too, does a disservice to the health of children. Two New Zealand scientists have shown that watching too much television during childhood increases the chances of being obese more directly than a poor diet or not exercising. 41% of people who are overweight at 26 years of age coincides with those who spent more hours during their childhood watching television.
According to the Aladino study, also in Spain, 19.1% of children aged between six and nine years are obese and 26.1% are overweight.
The causes for this are lack of exercise and nutritional habits. The most serious consequence of obesity is sleep apnea. It can also cause joint and back disorders, and is the leading cause of hypertension, according to the Center for Biomedical Research Network-Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition.
An obese child between 10-14 years old is 22.3% more likely to remain so between 21 and 29 years than one who was not obese. This situation can be avoided doing sports and eating well, "which does not mean eating less or more, but properly," says the study.
The main problems of childhood obesity are cardiovascular and endocrine. But there is another great danger: cancer.
According to a study published in the journal "Cell" overweight acts as a tumor promoter in general and particularly in the liver. Nevertheless, the US Center for Consumer Freedom launched a campaign against overweight under the slogan "Obesity: epidemic or exaggeration?".
It seems that some would deny the obvious in the fattest country in the world. The Journal of the Medical Association stated that obesity was the second cause of death in this country.
clementeferrerrosello@gmail.com Author and journalist Clemente Ferrer has led a distinguished career in Spain in the fields of advertising and public relations. He is currently President of the European Institute of Marketing.
Filed under: http://www.theleader.info/article/47015/