Blog International

Castelldefels

2005-01-25T21:58:00.000-08:00

I have neglected this weblog long enough. Now that I have an invitation to go to Spain to speak about e-government, I will be spending a little more time here. It has been years since I have lived in Spain. More recently, I have lived in Guadalajara, Mexico and in Honduras, but even that has been quite a while ago now.

The conference that I will be attending is in May in the town of Castelldefels, a town of about 50,000 on the Mediterrenean just south of Barcelona. Looks like a great place for such a conference. They are holding a conference on the European Constitution there this week.

Here are some comments about Castelldefel's long sandy beach which is given a five-star rating.

Spain expands trade with Mexico

2004-05-28T21:13:00.000-07:00

Spain and Mexico are looking to increase their trade relationship. That is a good thing. Currently over 90% of Mexico's trade is with the U.S. According to the LA Times, Mexico is now the tenth largest economy driven by tremendous trade growth following the 1994 signing of NAFTA.

I am excited about the possiblity and expected to see more earlier. Spain is a gateway for Latin America into European markets and Mexican entrepreneurs are comfortable doing business in Spain. Mexico and Spain did over $4 billion in trade with each other last year. Meanwhile, China is threating Mexico's trade growth in a number of ways and has surpassed Mexico in trade volume with the US. That should be a concern to both Mexico and the US.

The two day summit with Latin American and European leaders is being hosted by Vicente Fox in Guadalajara. Guadalajara is a great place to hold a conference. I went to several international conventions when I was living there. It reminds me of the Spanish-American summit of 1991 that was also held in Guadalajara.

More News from Guadalajara:
El Informador
Mural
Milenio

2004-02-28T20:16:00.000-08:00

News from Sunny Spain

The BBC reports that Spain is building the world's second fastest supercomputer (with help from IBM).

The world's largest dinosaur bone is found in the Spanish province of Teruel.

Renmin Ribao (People's Daily) reports that Spain is supporting a unified China. Today's issue also mentions an Iranian news report that Osama bin Laden has been captured in Pakistan.

Actress Gwynneth Paltrow plans to raise her child in southern Spain. I would too if I had that much money...

The Spanish hotel chain Iberostar plans to expand its chain in Bulgaria.

Spain may take over control of the multinational force in Iraq which includes representation from 18 NATO nations.

Al Qaeda suspects are arrested in Murcia and Alicante, two of my favorite cities.

2003-11-28T15:56:00.000-08:00

E-Government finding adherents in Chile

Some new interest and excitement on e-governance coming out of the Bio Bio region of Chile. Jane Fontain, author of Building the Virtual State, visited Chile on November 14th. I'm not sure if that is what initiated this new interest, but I hope it can launch Chile into the forefront of e-government thought and innovation. I would love to see that coming from Latin America.

Boris Carikeo has started a blog on technology, public policy, and society. Boris informs us that the IACD and OAS are sponsoring a course on the formulation of e-government strategies.

Karin Quiero has started an interesting blog on psychology and social policy. I am looking forward to some interesting content and ideas coming from these two sources.

This Thursday, a flute orchestra of six hundred flutists will attempt to set a world record in Concepción, the capital city of Bio Bio. My daughter will be playing the flute in a concert that same day.

I always hate to see good bloggers like the author of Awablog checking out from the blogosphere.

The New York Times points to a study that suggests that states' finances are on the rebound.

2003-09-26T02:13:00.000-07:00

Today is the 50th anniversary of the defense partnership between the U.S. and Spain signed in 1953. The event was celebrated in Rota which continues to be an important base for the Mediterrenean fleet. The base at Rota was completed on April 14, 1958. Apparently, it now longer supports the submarine fleet which it did when I was there in 1978.

Prime Minister Aznar was in Miami where he condemned Castro's Cuba and called for it to move towards a democratic system similar to Spain.

Google announced the opening of an office in Madrid and the availability of the Google Toolbar 2.0 in Spanish. Also www.google.es, the search engine in Spanish. Google has several partners in Spain, including ya.com and elmundo.es

2003-09-06T22:14:00.000-07:00

Fotos of Spain

These photographs of Spain at Lycos' "Comunidad Virtual" are getting me a little homesick.

Semana is an interesting publication originating from Colombia - not to be confused with Spain's Semana mag.

2003-08-14T21:48:00.000-07:00

More Leavitt Commentary

American Daily - "Hope for Intelligent Environmental Policy with Mike Leavitt"
Wisconsin Ag Connection - Leavitt's EPA Hearing Scheduled for Early September

Some nice comments from Representative Stuart Adams of Davis County in the Davis Clipper

It was nice to have Lt. Governor, Olene Walker, come by the office today. She is a genuine person who will work hard to fill th Governor's shoes.

2003-08-13T22:01:00.000-07:00

International News on Governor Leavitt's Appointment as EPA Administrator

International Herald Tribune
The Globe and Mail (ap)
The Hindu
Financial Times (London)
Christian Science Monitor

Domestic
Atlanta Journal Constitution
PBS
Wheeling News Register - very positive editorial
The Tennessean
Washington Times - "Balanced Steward for the Storm"
Online NewsHour - includes streaming video, various interviews, including Dianne Nielson

Environmentalist Opinions
Earth Justice
National Environmental Trust

Industry
American Chemical Council

2003-07-20T23:44:00.000-07:00

At first glance, Google's new version of Blogger looks scaled down with minimal functionality. Just what I feared. I hope that it ends up better than this initial appearance.

Stuart Mudie discusses multilingual blogging. In doing so, he discusses ecuaderno, one of my favorite blogs. Most of my blog posts have been in English, although I regular link to content in other languages when they are relevant. Mudie suggests warning the reader if the link refers to content that is another language. I doubt that I will do that. Content that I link to will generally be in one of the following languages: English, Spanish, Russian, Chinese (Mandarin), Italian, Lithuanian, Thai, Valenciano, Catalan, Greek.

Joho the Blog recently carried this interesting thread on Spanish blogs. The debate is over the decidedly small number of Spanish blogs found and analyzed by researchers, Fernando Tricas Garcia and Juan Guervos. Certainly, there must be more than 2,000 Spanish blogs. On the other hand, I really haven't come across too many Polish blogs.

The British Parliament just held a seminar on blogging for its members. Here's the complete E-Government series in the London Guardian.

Dave Winer: "We will all live to see the day a weblogger becomes president."

2003-06-23T22:33:00.000-07:00

100 blogs en español

Alicia was creating a directory of 100 blogs in Spanish. Too bad she got stuck on 80. Perhaps she was trying to maintain too many websites and blogs at the same time. I have a harder time getting back to some of my lesser known sites like this one.

Microsiervos posted a few links that caught my eye. Among them: BlogMatcher - I looked at this site a few months back, it has improved significantly since then, and NASA's Near Earth Objects site which contains research on comets, asteroids and the like that are or might be in the vicinity of the Earth.

Nazaret has a fascinating way of linking her contacts... rotating photos and links. I guess you expect that kind of creativity from a Sevillana.

David is writing about la noche de San Juan and las hogueritas from La Coruña. He shares some nice nighttime photos of the skyline. The last time I experienced the fallas, I was in Alicante.

2003-05-22T22:52:00.000-07:00

otra democracia es posible

otra democracia is a Spanish weblog that presents some unique perspectives on the political situation in Spain. A recent post explains that Indra, a prominent Spanish weapons manufacturer recently received a contract to handle the recount of all elections throughout the country this year. Occasionally, the Spanish government forgets to think about little things like conflict of interest (not that it doesn't happen here as well).

2003-04-14T07:51:00.000-07:00

Semana Santa

This week is Holy Week (Semana Santa). I have spent Semana Santa in Alicante, Spain, in Murcia, and in Honduras. It is a moving experience to understand and recognize the blind devotion of the humble masses in these places. Obviously, the most overwhelming of all Semana Santa celebrations are those held in Sevilla. Here are a few others that have shared their celebration online:

Orihuela
Guatemala
San Miguel de Allende (Mexico)
Peru

2003-03-15T22:03:00.000-08:00

Spanish News

I regularly read a variety of Spanish-language newspapers, most regularly El Informador from Guadalajara, ABC and el Pais from Madrid, Excelsior from Mexico City, and La Verdad from Murcia (Spain). I am indebted to José Luis Orihuela for his post on the top ranking national and regional newspapers in the iberoamericano world (includes Portugal and Brazil). The list, developed by infoamerica.org is an excellent resource. Too bad the papers are not linked to their source. La Prensa from San Pedro Sula comes in at number 34, the highest ranking for Honduran media. El Informador didn't make the list. La Verdad came in at number 9 among regional papers.

2003-03-01T13:04:00.000-08:00

El Principe

El Principe (the Prince) is an online coalition of Universities that collaborate to deliver distance education over the internet. Participating institutions include the University of Murcia, the University of Cordoba, Georgetown University, and the Universidad de Congreso. That is an interesting coalition. The University of Cordoba is the one in Argentina, not in Spain. I used to walk by the University of Murcia every day. I am particularly interested in this group because of the focus on eGobierno (egovernment). A couple of weeks ago, el Principe representatives participated in an international seminar on virtual universities in Latin America and the Carribean.

2002-12-10T07:28:00.000-08:00

Webcams from Orihuela to Peniscola

Here's a great site if you want to peak in on the Valencia area. Included are live webcams of some of my favorite sites in Spain, such as the Plaza de España in Alcoy or the Esplanada in Alicante. You can even watch the waves come in on the Playa de Levante in Benidorm.

2002-11-10T21:29:00.000-08:00

Jativa

On my way from Albacete to Alcoy, I made a short stop at the Valencian town of Jativa and have never been so rewarded.

The castle overlooking the city was the home of the Borgias, two of whom ascended to the papacy. The streets are crowded and the people sing when they speak. If you ever have a chance to visit Jativa, don't miss it.

Here's the city's official website.

2002-10-17T22:34:00.000-07:00

Mary Sparacio and her Spain experience

Mary Sparacio maintained a weblog during her visit to Spain earlier this year. Her blog could almost serve as a text for Spanish art and culture complete with references and interpretation. Very good use of the blogger tool.

2002-10-15T23:16:00.000-07:00

Rota

Rota is a small town on the Atlantic Coast of Spain, not far from where Columbus set sail in 1492. Today it is home to a large naval base which supports both the Spanish and the US fleets. I spent five months there in 1978. It has one of the nicest beaches I've ever seen. It is across the bay from Cadiz, one of the oldest cities in Europe. The naval station's website has some nice pictures of the town.

2002-09-08T21:11:00.000-07:00

Moorish Girl

Moorish Girl maintains a very active blog with some interesting perspectives on what is happening in the world right now. I wish I could have made it across the straits to Morocco when I was in Cadiz. It is a fascinating place.

2002-08-18T16:38:00.000-07:00

Computer Language Translation

I have been a fan of machine translation for over twenty years. Back in 1980, I applied for a job with ALPS, a company that was working on language translation programs. At the time, I had only studied Greek, Russian, Spanish, a little Italian, a little Lithuanian and was just working on a minor in Computer Science. Although I took a different job, I have followed the translation business off and on since then. An article in the Economist states,

SINCE its earliest days, machine translation—the use of computers to translate documents from one language to another automatically—has suffered from exaggerated claims and impossible expectations.

That is certainly true. Five or six years ago, when I was an Altavista devotee, I used babelfish on a regular basis. I found (and still find) their translations to be just what the Economist claims, not perfect, but helpful. If I have a quick job, I can use the tool for a quick and dirty translation and spend a few minutes fixing it up.

2002-07-24T14:49:00.000-07:00

Font Roja

One of my last memories of Spain was a picnic with Jose Antonio Garcia, Enrique Perez, and other Alcoianos at the Font Roja, a forested park in the mountains overlooking Alcoy. It looks like planners are adding another 4,000 hectares to the park which is certainly a good thing.

A photographic journey through Alcoy

The Fiesta de Moros y Cristianos (Moors and Christians) is an interesting reenactment of a 1276 battle which liberated Alcoy from the Moors. The Moors were repelled (according to tradition) due to the miraculous intervention of San Jorge (St. George).

2002-07-24T09:08:00.000-07:00

RadioEspaña

Radio España is an online directory of every radio station in Spain and one of the best radio directories that I have seen on the web. It helped me to locate CanalSurWeb, an Andalusian multimedia group that has sites in Sevilla and many other cities in southern Spain. I gained my appreciation for the music of Spain while walking by neighborhood bumper car amusements. These things would draw a crowd of young people, blaring the latest music into the early hours of the morning. I loved listening to the music of Camilo Sesto, songs like Jamas...

Listen to Radio Fiesta, a channel on CanalSurWeb.

2002-07-24T05:47:00.000-07:00

Economic Growth and Economic Equality

According to the latest report from the UN, Spain continues its rapid growth and is currently third among European nations, only behind Greece and Portugal in terms of relative growth. Overall, per capita income in Spain still lags many other Western European countries. It is currently at $19,472 compared to France at $24,223, Great Britain at $23,509, and the US at $34,142. However, this gap is much less than it used to be and according to La Vanguardia Digital, Spain is 15th among the 173 nations surveyed in terms of social inequality (down from 10th the year prior).

2002-07-22T23:25:00.000-07:00

La Explanada

During a walk down the Explanada in Alicante, one can encounter many things. La Explanada is a wonderful mosaic walkway, lined with hundreds of palm trees fronting the Alicante boat harbor. Looking up, one sees the Castillo de Santa Barbara looming overhead, an impenetrable rocky fortress, now reachable by an elevator drilled through the mountain. Alicante is a diverse city. On the waterfront, you will find visitors from England, German, and many other parts of Europe. In its neighborhoods, you used to be able to find people like Manolo Tomas. Manolo was 76 years old when I met him. He had lost his leg in the Spanish Civil War, but struggled on, looking for happiness in a world that had seemed to pass him by.

Alicantina, borracha, y fina....

The old central area of Alicante is traditional Spain... full of monuments, cathedrals, domed churches, and other wonders. Opposite the Castillo de Santa Barbara is a smaller fortress, El Castillo de San Fernando. Alicante has a beautiful harbor and some incredible beaches to the north and south.

Each year, on June 24th, Alicantinos celebrate la Noche de San Juan (patron saint) by constructing las "Fogueras", enormous wood and paper mache statues that are about three stories high. Various neighborhoods compete for the grand prize and the fogueras are burned to the ground on that night. The spectacle is tremendous with the Castillo de Santa Barbara lit up in the night sky overlooking the city. Here is last year's prize winning foguera from Carolinas Altas, where I met my good friend Beatriz Berbegal Garcia.

Hogueras 2000

La Critica en Hogueras

I just found this map of Alicante's neighborhoods which certainly brings back a lot of memories. I spent a lot of time in San Blas, las Carolinas, la Florida, and even up into Ciudad Jardin and Virgen del Remedio. I remember a time in Ciudad Jardin when the garbage collectors went on strike. The garbage piled quickly in the street between 5-6 story apartment buildings and became pretty repugnant after a while...

2002-07-22T15:33:00.000-07:00

US-Spain Bilateral Issues

The US Embassy in Madrid maintains a site dedicated to bilateral relations between the US and Spain. Several high level meetings have occured just in the past few months, including President Bush's meeting with Aznar in May at Camp Williams. The visit was focused primarily on issues related to counter-terrorism. Spain has been very supportive of US efforts to crack down on Al Qaida operatives resulting several key arrests of operatives that appear to have had some involvement with the 9-11 tragedy.

2002-07-21T20:15:00.000-07:00

Honduras This Week

I have been subscribing to Honduras This Week for about 6 years. It is an excellent publication and comes in HTML format through email. Wendy Griffin and other local writers provide an interesting perspective on what is happening in one of my favorite countries. I lived in Comayagua for a short while about 17 years ago...

2002-07-18T22:16:00.000-07:00

La Verdad

This online newspaper has three editions; Murcia, Alicante, and Albacete. Content is common in all three editions with separate local sections. All three are cities that I am intimately familiar with. Both La Verdad and La Estrella appear to be high quality papers with a general news focus, but complete with abundant features on things like fashion and cuisine. The site also features an Alicante webcam with a live shot of one of my favorite beachfront areas.

2002-07-18T21:43:00.000-07:00

Murcia Estrella

Murcia is one of my favorite places. It is a business-oriented city, the center of a citrus-growing, sun-drenched basin, in southeastern Spain. The river Segura runs through it and large 10-12 story apartment buildings line the esplanade running along the river's frontage. La Estrella Digital is evidence of the progress that has occured in the region since I was there 25 years ago, yet even then, it was a progressive city.

2002-07-18T21:35:00.000-07:00

Spain Moves In

Spain moved its forces into place and then swept into Perejil, retaking the small rocky island in dramatic fashion. Charles Powell suggested that Prime Minister Aznar was sending a message, "You don't treat a major European power like this and think you can get away with it." With the backing of NATO and the European Union, this is about all Spain could do to save face... The military action, which included movements of submarines and artillery from Cartagena is being called a declaration of war by Morocco.

2002-07-16T13:37:00.000-07:00

Spanish Basketball Professional Comes to Utah

In the past, many American ballplayers went to Spain to play professional ball. I knew quite a few; Ralph Bobik, Andy Toolson, Steve Trumbo. Now Raul Lopez is coming from Spain to play for the Utah Jazz. Basketball was just catching on in Spain while I was there. It was particularly popular in Alicante which had built some nice facilities. Here's Alicante's current pro team. Most of the players are from Spain. Pedro Fernandez, a major promoter of basketball in Spain, was born in Alicante.

2002-07-16T13:19:00.000-07:00

Corte Ingles to open in smaller towns

Corte Ingles and Galerias Preciados were the two department stores of any significance when I was in Spain (1977-79). At the time, they were only located in major cities (200,00+). This expansion into smaller towns will change the ambiance of rural Spain, which has already undergone a major metamorphosis in the last 25 years.

2002-07-13T17:10:00.000-07:00

The Century Foundation

Professor Denny used to be a prominent player in the Twentieth Century Fund. It has been renamed to The Century Foundation. Like so many others, The Century Foundation has developed their Homeland Security Project. The purpose is to provide policy recommendations and analysis for Federal decision-makers.

The Foundation supported the development of this paper entitled, Promoting State and Local Government Performance for Homeland Security. The paper asks the following questions:

1. What are the basic goals and objectives of homeland security? Can the federal government give the program strategic focus—at least to the point of ensuring that scarce budget dollars are concentrated on the most pressing problems?
2. How can the federal government shape state and local actions to fulfill this strategy? Should it set rules? Create incentives through grants? Allow local flexibility in exchange for performance standards?
3. Is there a minimum level of preparedness and capacity that all governments throughout the United States ought to provide? Or can the nation allow individual governments to create their own plans and run the risk that some governments will unintentionally subject their citizens to unacceptable risks?
4. Is FEMA’s “all-hazard” approach appropriate? Or should the federal government build a strategy tailored specially for homeland security?
5. If a performance system is created, how can it surmount the considerable technical and political obstacles facing it? If such a system is not created, how can the federal government find the proper balance between national goals and local flexibility?
6. What is the role of the states in homeland security? What role should they play in translating national plans to their circumstances—and in enforcing collaboration among their local governments?
7. Can collaboration among neighboring communities be strengthened? How?

2002-07-13T16:46:00.000-07:00

Brewster Denny and the Founding of Seattle

Brewster Denny was the founder of the Graduate School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington. Professor Denny was also a former ambassador for the United States to the United Nations and was my advisor while at the University of Washington. In this soundbite, Professor Denny ponders about the trials faced by his ancestors who were among the original founders of Seattle. Denny Way is now a prominent thoroughfare in the city. Professor Denny was always bringing in prominent international guests which really contributed to the quality of the graduate program. The UW was second only to Harvard in establishing a graduate program in public administration.

2002-07-13T16:05:00.000-07:00

Meanwhile, in Mexico

Farmers have taken hostages near Mexico City, protesting against the government's decision to build a new airport in San Salvador Atenco. Mexico City's current airport is 91 years old and in need of a major overhaul. The only problem is that it is surrounded by homes and there is no room for expansion.

The Mexican government considers all farmland to be property of the State. I haven't followed land policy over the last fourteen years since I left Guadalajara, but at that time, it was a constant point of contention. Rapid growth in the major metropolitan areas was always in conflict with federal land policy.

2002-07-13T15:52:00.000-07:00

Unfaithful Brother

El Mundo posted a picture summary of the action on Perejil. The pictures show a few Moroccan men pitching a tent on this small rocky island. A little later a group of Spanish soldiers arrive at the island to investigate and tell the Moroccans to leave. The Moroccans raise their flag over the island, determined to stay.

The gesture seems to be primarily a symbolic one. I'm not sure exactly what the Moroccans are trying to achieve, but they have enlisted the support of the Arab League, while Spain has drawn support from the European Union and NATO.

2002-07-13T15:43:00.000-07:00

Perejil

Here's a picture of the little island that is causing such a stir in Spain. Spain has called for support from the European Union while claiming to downplay the situation at the same time. On the other hand, Morocco is stating that they will push for a rapid resolution to the problem, while also saying that they plan to establish a permanent guard station on the island. Looks like this could go on for a while....

2002-07-12T23:17:00.000-07:00

Rota to play a key role in conflict with Morocco

Morocco actually occupied a small, uninhabited island called Perejil close to Ceuta. The base at Rota hosts the Spanish fleet in addition to some important US operations. It is a critical point for controlling submarine and surface traffic near the approach to the Straits of Gibralter and the Mediterrenean Sea. Earlier this week, a Spanish official was sent to Washington to shore up strategic plans for the base.

I spent the fourth of July on a nuclear submarine docked at Rota in 1978. We had steak and lobster for dinner in the Captain's quarters, cuisine a little different that what I had been accustomed to in Spain.

2002-07-12T22:58:00.000-07:00

Troops on alert in Sevilla

Spain put 6,000 troops on alert as concern grew concern Moroccan patrols near the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla. This two cities are on the northern coast of Africa, but are a source of pride for Spain. I had a friend in Murcia that made his living from running illegal goods across the Mediterrenean and bypassing the customs, a not-uncommon practice.

Spain is a member of NATO (OTAN in Spanish). I spent five months in the town of Rota where the US has a large naval base. I remember on one occasion having three aircraft carriers (the Enterprise, the Forstall, and the America) all come into port at the same time. It was incredible to look out from the balcony in the morning and see these floating cities just off-shore. Spain is counting on NATO coming to their aid (an attack on one is an attack on all) if Ceuta is attacked by the Moroccans.

2002-07-12T22:49:00.000-07:00

Seville

I landed on a windblown runway and stepped out of the Iberian airliner into a world of enchantment. The Giralda, the Torre de Oro, the old Santa Cruz quarter, and more contribute the the feeling that makes Sevilla unique in the world. It is the heart of Catholocism. And the feeling you get on a hot September night looking out over the rooftops at the lighted Giralda tower with the sounds of Flamenco wafting through the narrow alleys below while people in love wander aimlessly through the city is simply magical.

2002-07-12T22:42:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Blog International

This blog will focus on my international experience, beginning with Sevilla (Spain) in 1977 and extending to my interests and experiences in Honduras, China, Mexico, Lithuania, Czechoslovakia, Argentina, Afghanistan, and virtually anywhere else in the world. We'll look at languages, culture, people, history, technology, and more...