McCain Gaffe

You gotta feel for José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. Here the Spanish Prime Minister is only four months from an end to his government's strained relations with that of President George W. Bush and blam! — along comes John McCain to suggest that the next four years might not be any better. During an interview in Miami earlier this week with Spanish-language station Union Radio, a reporter asked McCain whether, if elected, he would receive Zapatero in the White House. McCain answered, "Honestly, I have to analyze our relationships, situations and priorities, but I can assure you that I will establish closer relationships with our friends, and I will stand up to those who want to harm the United States."

Ouch. The question about Zapatero came after a series of questions on how McCain sees relations with Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba. He said he would not speak to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez "without any sort of preconditions, as Senator Obama has said he would," and said Chávez was "depriving his people of their democratic rights." He judged Bolivia's Evo Morales as "very similar" and also condemned Cuba's Raúl Castro. When the questioner said, "Now let's talk of Spain" and asked whether he'd invite Zapatero, McCain responded with a vague statement that he would meet "with those leaders who are our friends" and then cited Mexican President Felipe Calderón as an example. The questioner tried several more times to steer the Senator back to a clear answer on Spain, but McCain never directly addressed the nation, saying, "What I would say is that my record is that of someone who has worked in a friendly atmosphere with those who are our friends and faced up to those who aren't."

From this, much of the Spanish press has concluded that the Republican candidate, who hails himself as the experienced foreign policy choice in this election, confused Spain — a NATO member and key ally in the fight against terrorism — with one of those troublesome Latin American states. That was certainly the interviewer's impression, for she followed up with a gentle reminder that Spain was a country in Europe. As Spanish newspaper El País put it, "In the best-case scenario, [his answer] demonstrates his ignorance with respect to Zapatero."

Of course, there's a worst-case scenario: that McCain would, if elected, maintain his predecessor's chilly relationship with Spain. Spaniards may, on the whole, revile American politics and American comida de basura (junk food), but they still tend to measure their Prime Minister's international worth by the esteem with which the U.S. President holds him. And so, for the past four years, the Spanish Prime Minister has tried, ever so earnestly, to prove that he's one of the big boys. At every international summit he has tried to maneuver himself into position for a photograph with Bush. The press has breathlessly reported on every perfunctory exchange the two have had. And the much longed-for invitation to the White House — let alone to a certain ranch in Texas — has been the object of countless pages of speculation. But for all the aspiration, Zapatero has never managed to achieve anything like that famous 2003 photo of his predecessor, José María Aznar, in the Azores looking like he just got invited to the cool kids' party.

Of course, the fact that the cool kids' party happened to be taking place in Iraq explains a lot of the distance between the two current leaders: upon taking office in April 2004, Zapatero immediately pulled Spanish troops out of "the alliance of the willing." Which is one of the ironies of this situation — that Spain can so strongly support a foreign policy opposed to the Bush doctrine (whatever that is), while so strongly hoping for a show of respect from Washington. On Thursday, Spanish newspaper ABC's regret was palpable when it lamented that "the coldness between the governments of the U.S. and Spain could continue if the Republican candidate John McCain reaches the White House."

As for Zapatero himself, the Prime Minister is apparently taking this latest attack on his ego with characteristic equilibrium. McCain may not know who Spain's leader is, but Zapatero promised to work with the new Administration "whatever it is."

Source: Time

HMS Victory in peril

As the former flagship of Britain's greatest naval hero, she is an iconic vessel.

It was aboard her that Lord Nelson died after his most famous seafaring success, the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.

HMS Victory embodies the pride, history and traditions of the Royal Navy. But now she faces another skirmish

'England Expects': The Victory sees 400,000 visitors a year, but the historic ship's future is in doubt because of the upkeep cost

The Government says she may be given to a private owner as a cost-cutting measure after fears among defence chiefs that she is becoming too expensive to maintain.

The Ministry of Defence argues that increasing budgetary pressures mean it must review Victory's future like any other ship.

But the idea that the world's oldest commissioned warship could fall into private hands or go to a charity has been criticised by naval experts, who say it would be a tragedy.

Victory has pride of place at Portsmouth dockyard, where she is visited by some 400,000 tourists annually.

She costs a minimum of £1.5million to maintain and run each year, but that figure can go up when major work is needed.

The MoD is considering whether to hand Victory to a private company, to a charitable trust similar to the one that looks after the Mary Rose, to another government department, or keep the status quo.

Lieutenant Commander Michael Cheshire, now retired, who was commanding officer of Victory from 1992 to 1998, said: 'If they sell her or give her away to charity it will be an absolute tragedy.

'This magnificent ship means so much to both naval people and the whole nation - selling it to a private firm would turn it into Disneyland and would be its ruin.

'To sell off this icon would indicate the decline of the Royal Navy.'

Former First Sea Lord Sir Julian Oswald said: 'The Victory is a national treasure. Talk of selling her

or anything of that sort is absolutely daft. It can't be that expensive to keep her - she is just wood and canvas.'

Portsmouth council leader Gerald Vernon- Jackson said: 'It's essential Victory remains available to the public and in tip-top condition - she must not be allowed to rot.

'My concern is a private firm could restrict access and just open her for corporate events or increase admission prices.'

The MoD said it was committed to keeping Victory in the best possible condition, adding that sticking with the current set-up was one of the options.

A spokesman said: 'Whatever happens, we are committed to keeping Victory as a commissioned warship.'

Source: Daily Mail

Lost in Translation

Have a read of these mistranslations. Do you get all of them? What did they really mean to say?

1. In a Tokyo Hotel: Is forbitten to steal hotel towels please. If you are not person to do such thing is please not to read notis.


2. In another Japanese hotel room: Please to bathe inside the tub.


3. In a Bucharest hotel lobby: The lift is being fixed for the next day. During that time we regret that you will be unbearable.


4. In a Leipzig elevator: Do not enter the lift backwards, and only when lit up.


5. In a Belgrade hotel elevator: To move the cabin, push button for wishing floor. If the cabin should enter more persons, each one should press a number of wishing floor. Driving is then going alphabetically by national order.


6. In a Paris hotel elevator: Please leave your values at the front desk.


7. In a hotel in Athens: Visitors are expected to complain at the office between the hours of 9 and 11 A.M. daily.


8. In a Yugoslavian hotel: The flattening of underwear with pleasure is the job of the chambermaid.


9. In a Japanese hotel: You are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid.


10. In the lobby of a Moscow hotel across from a Russian Orthodox monastery: You are welcome to visit the cemetery where famous Russian and Soviet composers, artists, and writers are buried daily except Thursday.


11. In an Austrian hotel catering to skiers: Not to perambulate the corridors in the hours of repose in the boots of ascension.


12. On the menu of a Swiss restaurant: Our wines leave you nothing to hope for.


13. On the menu of a Polish hotel: Salad a firm's own make; limpid red beet soup with cheesy dumplings in the form of a finger; roasted duck let loose; beef rashers beaten up in the country people's fashion.


14. In a Hong Kong supermarket: For your convenience, we recommend courteous, efficient self-service.


15. Outside a Hong Kong tailor shop: Ladies may have a fit upstairs.


16. In a Rhodes tailor shop: Order your summers suit. Because is big rush we will execute customers in strict rotation.


17. Similarly, from the Soviet Weekly: There will be a Moscow Exhibition of Aets by 15,000 Soviet Republic painters and sculptors. These were executed over the past two years.


18. In an East African newspaper: A new swimming pool is rapidly taking shape since the contractors have thrown in the bulk of their workers.


19. In a Vienna hotel: In case of fire, do your utmost to alarm the hotel porter.


20. A sign posted in Germany's Black Forest: It is strictly forbidden on our black forest camping site that people of different sex, for instance, men and women, live together in one tent unless they are married with each other for that purpose.


21. In a Zurich hotel: Because of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggested that the lobby be used for this purpose.


22. In an advertisement by a Hong Kong dentist: Teeth extracted by the latest Methodists.


23. A translated sentence from a Russian chess book: A lot of water has been passed under the bridge since this variation has been played.


24. In a Rome laundry: Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time.


25. In a Czechoslovakian tourist agency: Take one of our horse-driven city tours -- we guarantee no miscarriages.


26. Advertisement for donkey rides in Thailand: Would you like to ride on your own ass?


27. On the faucet in a Finnish washroom: To stop the drip, turn cock to right.


28. In the window of a Swedish furrier: Fur coats made for ladies from their own skin.


29. On the box of a clockwork toy made in Hong Kong: Guaranteed to work throughout its useful life.


30. Detour sign in Kyushi, Japan: Stop: Drive Sideways.


31. In a Swiss mountain inn: Special today -- no ice cream.


32. In a Bangkok temple: It is forbidden to enter a woman even a foreigner if dressed as a man.


33. In a Tokyo bar: Special cocktails for the ladies with nuts.


34. In a Copenhagen airline ticket office: We take your bags and send them in all directions.


35. On the door of a Moscow hotel room: If this is your first visit to the USSR, you are welcome to it.


36. In a Norwegian cocktail lounge: Ladies are requested not to have children in the bar.


37. At a Budapest zoo: Please do not feed the animals. If you have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty.


38. In the office of a Roman doctor: Specialist in women and other diseases.


39. In an Acapulco hotel: The manager has personally passed all the water served here.


40. In a Tokyo shop: Our nylons cost more than common, but you'll find they are best in the long run.


41. From a Japanese information booklet about using a hotel air conditioner:
    Cooles and Heates: If you want just condition of warm in your room, please control yourself.


42. From a brochure of a car rental firm in Tokyo: When passenger of foot heave in sight, tootle the horn. Trumpet him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles your passage then tootle him with vigor.


43. Two signs from a Majorcan shop entrance:
    - English well talking.
    - Here speeching American.

Saving the pennies

Why is a 99p price tag so attractive?

The tactic of shops ending prices with 99p is nothing new, but a study has found it's as effective as ever in getting shoppers to part with their cash. So why is one of the oldest tricks in the retail trade hard to resist?

In terms of familiar retail ruses employed to entice shoppers to part with their money, ending price tags with 99p, rather than rounding up to the full pound, is right up there with buy one, get one free promotions and half-price offers.

But according to a French study the phenomenon still swings a considerable number of shoppers. Researchers found that lowering the price of a pizza from 8.00 euros to 7.99 euros boosted sales by 15%.

For consumers, the saving is minimal and the copper coins they receive as change when paying with a note seem to be more of a hassle than a benefit - in 2005, Britons discarded or stashed away £133m in unwanted coppers, according to Virgin Money.

So if shoppers aren't concerned about saving mere pennies these days, why are they falling for the 99p effect?

Emotional difference

One theory is consumers just aren't up to the maths. Dr Jane Price, lecturer in psychology at the University of Glamorgan, says we "tend to put numbers in categories like 'under £5' or 'under £6' - rather than them representing a value. Shoppers are aware of what is going on, but don't respond to it because they don't think logically about how close numbers are - such as £99.99 and £100."

She thinks shoppers tend to focus on the big denomination - which the pound sign draws the eye to - rather than the smaller denomination: the pence. There is also the emotional incentive - people like to feel they are getting better value for money.

Robert Schindler, professor of marketing at Rutgers Business School in the US, has published several papers on the "99 effect". He expresses it slightly differently, observing that people overweigh the left hand number.

"When a price changes from $30 to $29.99, the change from three to two makes more of a difference than the value of that money could predict," says Mr Schindler. "It is like when a 39-year-old turns 40, the birthday feels like a big deal. Or when 1999 ends and 2000 starts. It feels like an emotional difference."

Discount associations

It's sometimes suggested the "99 effect" was adopted as a control on employee theft - cashiers had to open the till for change, reducing the chances of them pocketing the bill.

But Mr Schindler thinks it has a different origin. It was introduced for sale items, to emphasise the discount.

"I studied adverts in the New York Times from 1850 - where there were no 99 endings - to the 1870s and 1880s where they started to appear. Although department stores were doing it - which would fit with the cash register hypothesis - they were advertising discounts. But for the regular price they would use a round number," he says.

He thinks the retail practice developed from there, to communicate discount or the impression that things are on sale - even when they are not.

But it is a subtle effect, which works when consumers are susceptible to price sensitivities and are making a snap decision, rather than deliberating over big items like cars and houses. And high end brands which exude a classy image tend not to use the tactic.

Pressure on income

Nick Gladding of Verdict Research, is sceptical shoppers are fooled by the "99p effect". However, in these more straitened times, even tiny adjustments in price can be enough to win over hard up consumers.

"We are seeing fuel prices going up and down by 1p - it is a tiny amount of money, but people want to hear about it," he says.

So are there any other numbers that the unsuspecting shopper should be aware of?

A .95 ending is also popular, observed Mr Schindler, although anyone shopping in Asia might be struck by how prices often end in .88. The reason? Eight is an auspicious number in countries such as Japan, Hong Kong and mainland China.

Source: BBC News

18,000 Euros to leave Spain

Spain's radical plan for migrants

On the northern outskirts of Madrid, the Tres Cantos railway station is getting a makeover.

Under a fierce midday sun, immigrant labourers from North Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe shift huge concrete slabs into place on the platform, and scatter fresh layers of shingle between the rails and sleepers.

This back-breaking work pays €1,200 (£950) per month, and everyone is making the most of it.

With the construction industry in dire trouble, their Spanish boss has no other projects in the pipeline, and the entire workforce will be laid off when this job ends.

So, any takers for the government's new offer to unemployed immigrants?

If they volunteer to go back to their home countries and not return to Spain for three years, foreigners will qualify for lump-sum benefit payments, typically worth around €18,000 (£14,200).

The scheme applies to the citizens of 19 non-EU countries which share social security agreements with Spain.

"If someone offered me that cash now I'd go," says Patrick, from Equatorial Guinea. "Back home, it would go further; I could invest it," he adds.

Guillermo, from the Dominican Republic, warns that: "if the economy carries on like this, we'll all have to leave". But given a choice, he would rather stay. "I now consider myself Spanish," he grins.

Unemployment benefits

In the space of barely a decade, Spain's immigrant population has leapt by an astonishing 800%, and cheap immigrant labour was a vital factor in the construction-led economic boom.

As long as there was work to go round, Spain mostly avoided the kind of immigration-related tensions witnessed in other European countries.

Today, however, with an EU-high unemployment rate of 10.7%, the picture looks very different.

"Immigrants were seen by everyone as helping," explains Pedro Schwarz, an economist.

"They took jobs in construction - boosting growth and keeping wages down. But today, with the jobless total rising, some Spanish-born citizens are complaining that the new immigrants are beginning to hog the unemployment benefits."

For the time being, the 2.1 million foreigners registered for Spanish social security are net contributors to the system - paying in more than they receive.

But, over the past 12 months, the number of immigrants claiming unemployment benefit has surged by 81%, to 178,230 in July 2008.

"What we're trying to do is link immigration to the labour market," says Celestino Corbacho, Spain's minister for work and immigration.

"The forecasts say it'll take two or three years for the economy to recover, so we think it's good to offer people possibilities.

"If someone is entitled to $15,000 (£8,000), that's going to create more opportunities in their home country than here in Spain."

"Thank you and goodbye"

Under the new scheme, scheduled for launch in September, participating immigrants would receive two years worth of up-front unemployment benefits - 40% when they volunteer for the scheme in Spain, the rest on arrival back in their country of origin.

To qualify, they would have to surrender their Spanish work and residence papers for the duration of the deal.

The government insists this is merely a common sense response to Spain's undeniable economic problems, but immigrant welfare groups view the policy with suspicion.

"I feel that we've been used," complains Washington Tobar of the Hispano-Ecuadorean Foundation in Madrid.

"When they needed cheap labour, the doors opened. And now they don't need us, they just say 'thank you and goodbye' - and expect us to go back to our own countries."

In a modest apartment in Madrid's La Latina district, 42-year-old Leonardo Ramirez prepares lunch for his two children.

A marketing graduate in his native Ecuador, he paid his way here through construction, until the work dried up a year ago.

Now renting out a spare room to help pay his mortgage, Leonardo is one of 100,000 unemployed foreigners whom the government hopes immediately to tempt with its offer. But he is far from keen.

"Even $20,000 or $30,000 isn't that much money, in terms of capital to invest back home," he explains.

"They are people who'll have to buy a house, and children's schooling is expensive. Also, immigrant families are integrated here - they don't want to start all over again."

Avoiding conflict

Outside, on Leonardo's housing estate, immigrant children play football, while Latino pop blares out from several apartments.

This new Spain is unrecognisable from the country of 10 years ago, and the government is controversially trying to turn back the clock.

But Mr Corbacho denies that Spain is ungrateful for the contribution made by immigrants, or that foreigners are being made scapegoats for the country's economic woes.

"Immigration is not a problem, it's a phenomenon," says Mr Corbacho.

"And phenomena are never neutral - they change a lot of things and create new challenges. Our challenge is to manage this phenomenon, so that our diverse, multicultural society avoids conflict in the future," he says.

It is a radical approach to immigration from a socialist government which appeared to run shy of the issue in the lead-up to its election victory in March.

Now, the politicians hope - quite literally - to make the problem go away. And other EU governments, facing similar challenges, will be closely monitoring the Spanish scheme's progress.
Source: BBC News

Last post on football - maybe!

On the eve of Euro 2008, I sought an assessment of Spain's chances from a waiter in a spit-and-sawdust restaurant.

"They'll be knocked out in the group stage," came the gruff reply. As I mumbled something about the virtues of Torres and Fabregas, my underwhelmed analyst was already pouring vino tinto at another table.

For decades, pessimism has been hardwired into the footballing psyche of this otherwise proud sporting nation. Only once, as hosts of the 1964 European Championship, have Spain won a major tournament.

In subsequent competitions, talented Spanish teams have shone brightly early on, only to burn themselves out or self-destruct when it really mattered.

The tag of "perennial underachievers" hurt because Spaniards, more than anyone, knew it to be true.

No longer. "We are the best!" proclaimed the respected sports daily Marca, following Spain's semi-final demolition of Russia.

In opinion columns, the Spaniards' artistry was likened to an orchestral symphony, a ballet and (inevitably) a bullfight.

"Whoever wins the final," declared Marca's editorial, "Spain is the best team in Euro 2008."

What has most delighted fans here is the way they have done it.

Occasionally criticised for a lack of physicality, Spain's triumph in reaching the final has been one of style and guile over brute force - at times, the passing and movement of the "bajitos" (little guys) has bewildered bigger, stronger opponents.

Whatever happens on Sunday night, Euro 2008 has marked a new start.

In past tournaments, Spain's failures have produced angst-ridden debates about alleged refereeing conspiracies, player cliques and the very commitment of footballers to their national team, in a nation which remains politically and regionally fractured.

This time, a fresh generation of players have quite simply gone out and had fun.

Tens of thousands of young Spaniards will throng Madrid's Plaza de Colon for the final, while King Juan Carlos will lead the travelling support in Vienna.

Millions more will watch the match on La Cuatro Television, whose studio is adorned with voodoo dolls in the colours of Spain's past victims. Already, a Germany doll has a pin through its heart.

But for most Spaniards, voodoo trickery is an unnecessary evil.

Instead, there is a mounting belief in the ability of Spain's players to secure their own destiny. The mood is best summed up by La Cuatro's one-word tournament jingle - "podemos!" ("we can do it!")

Source: BBC News

Vocabulary Practice:

Which of the expressions mean the same as or similar to the following?

1. eliminated from
2. crowd into
3. spoke indistinctly
4. compared to
5. looked for
6. increasing
7. confused
8. decorated
9. make exhausted
10. full of anxiety
11. a catchy slogan
12. brusque
13. a label
14. summarized
15. cunning

Wall Street turmoil

Shares on Wall Street plummet* 3%

Leading US stock market indexes have plummeted around 3% after the price of oil soared* to yet another record high.

The Dow Jones index of 30 leading shares fell nearly 400 points to close at 12,209 - a drop of 3.13%.

The S&P500, seen as a better market barometer, fell 43 points to 1,360.68, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq shed 75 points to close at 2,474.

Investor confidence had been shaken by a sharp increase in US unemployment, and a jump of $11 in the price of oil.

It was the largest one-day rise in the history of US oil markets, with one barrel of light crude oil now trading for around $139.

Earlier in the day markets had been surprised by a sudden rise during May in the US rate of unemployment, from 5% to 5.5% - the sharpest increase in more than two decades.

Financial services firms and airlines were the biggest losers on Wall Street, with United Airlines down nearly 15%, Washington Mutual down 12.5%, and Northwest Airlines, Continental and American Airlines all seeing their shares drop just under 9%.

The bad economic news from the United States had also startled European investors, with London's FTSE 100 index falling 1.48%, Frankfurts Dax shedding 1.99% and the Cac 40 in Paris down 2.28%.


Vocabulary Focus

*plummet means to fall rapidly while *soar means to rise rapidly. Look at the following ways to describe increases and decreases:

• There has been a dramatic increase in mobile phone sales over the last 10 years...
• .....while there has been a steady decrease in the number of people buying radios.
• The number of people buying on-line has risen sharply.
• Advanced bookings have dropped slightly this year.
• Binge drinking is on the increase among youngsters.
• Consumer confidence is continuing to tumble.
• Inflation climbed to a peak of 7.5%.
• The government's opinion poll rating has sunk to it's lowest ever.
• Crime rates have shot up since this government came to power.
• House prices have diminished substantially recently.
• Unemployment went up steadily last year but this year it seems to have levelled off.
• Church attendance has dwindled over the past 20 years.
• The cost of the project has jumped by 10%.
• My savings are shrinking fast.
• Spiralling costs mean that more and more families have difficulties reaching the end of the month.

So you see that there are many ways to express increases and decreases. Use some of the examples above to create some statistics of your own.