THE GREEK´S TRAGEDY

By: Felipe Argote

The financial crisis is not developing in hours or days, even weeks. What happens is that analysts’ generally uninformed people react after the explosion of the crisis and analyzed retrospectively from the comfort of their offices the reasons for the carnage. It is similar to those Monday morning office coaches, explaining precisely like specialists why their favorite team lost the game on Sunday afternoon.

The Greek crisis does not start a week ago, even in February when there was talk of Greek tragedy as if it were the theatrical performance of Sophocles' tragic poet, that V century BC which Oedipus is perhaps his better known tragedy. The crisis began under the previous Greek government and continued during the current. In December last year, the Greek Prime Minister George Papandreau presented a plan to reduce the budget deficit to 8.7% of GDP. At that time was estimated at 12.7%, well above the 3% that under the agreement is the roof of the countries member of the European Union. The response of the risk rating agencies, namely Standard and Poor's, was breaking down the Greek sovereign bonds from A to BBB+. This grade would be cause for celebration for the Panamanian government if it were the sovereign risk rating of Panama, but not for a developed country member of the euro zone as Greece.

It is in February when it became known Papandreau plan, after approval by the European Union. These include, inter alia, raising the consumption tax known worldwide as VAT (value added) and in Panama known as the hardest ITBMS (imposed on the transfer of goods and services). This tax would raise no less than 21%. Additionally, reduced to 30% bonus to civil servants (thirteenth month in Panama)

This starts, of course, resistance movements of the population that translate into marches and strikes, while the finance ministers of the European Union decide to help finance a loan of Greek 35.000 billion Euros while the International Monetary Fund, always ready to do business in times of crisis will invest 15.000 million. Meanwhile, rating agencies are lowering the sovereign rating of Greece. Eurostat raised the budget deficit calculation of Greece to 13.8%.

Finally the catalyst is given on Tuesday 27 April when Standard and Poor's rating Greece reduces BBB+ to BB+ with that out of the investment grade better known as junk bonds. This generates the panic of debt holders who were trying to get rid of them like hot potatoes to the danger of bankruptcy in Greece and therefore non-payment of its obligations. As is the story repeatedly, comes the domino effect. The Greek crisis has had its effect throughout Europe starting with Portugal, then Spain, where unemployment levels have reached 20%, most recently Mexico and even the stock market in New York.

Finally, the euro has lowered its value to $1.32 per euro. According to Dominique Strauss Kahn, International Monetary Fund Managing Greece needs an injection of 150,000 million dollars to avoid bankruptcy and the subsequent effect on the global economy. This is three times as estimated by the timid European Union measures less than a month of May 19 when starting the maturity of bonds by almost 30,000 Greeks billion.

THE ISLANDIC VOLCANO

By: Felipe Argote

Everyone talks about the Islandic volcano. Probably due to the intricacy of venturing the pronunciation of his name. The volcano Eyjafjallayokull stopped European air traffic for over a week. But is not the first time an Icelandic volcano caused difficulties for Europe. In 1783 and 1784 the volcano Laki killed a third of the population of Iceland and caused many deaths, with a drop in temperature in Europe, but its effect on monsoon winds caused a temperature rise in Egypt up to two degrees Celsius, which had the effect of reducing the elevation of the ancient Nile, essential for the harvest of the valley. An estimated one sixth of the population of the Nile Valley died of starvation as a result of the eruption of Laki.

The Eyjafjallayokull is located on a glacier of the same name only 120 kilometers from the island's capital Reykjavik. Iceland is a frozen island northwest of England. Just over 100,000 square km on 2006 only managed to surpass the fpopulation of 300,000. With a gross domestic product per capita of $ 63000.00 is one of the countries that enjoy a higher standard of living in the world.

Some people remember Reykyavik as the capital of the chess world since the American Bobby Fischer won the world title there Boris Spasky into Russian in 1972 amid the Cold War, shortly before the end of the Vietnam War. In the same the country American chess player died in January 2008 where he lived as a political refugee after being accused by the U.S. government of treason for traveling to Yugoslavia in 1992 to play chess against the same Spasky in exchange for three million dollars.

Iceland is currently governed since 2009 by a woman named as unspeakable as the volcano that erupted recently: Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir. Icelandic Prime Minister, born in 1942 is the first leader of the world in recognition of the LGBT community. Openly lesbian is legally married to the journalist and playwright Jonina Leósdóttir Icelandic, born in 1954. His political career began from working as a flight attendant and became the leader of the union. Before becoming Prime Minister she was elected for the parliament, then vice president of parliament, president of the Social Democratic Party and Minister in four governments.

Eyjafjallayokul volcano had not erupted since 1821. Despite the drawbacks raised in its environs, where there was a need to evacuate about 600 people and damage on some sheep farms from the effects of certain gases which can be toxic, as well as damage to the vegetation, the biggest drawback caused by the eruption of the volcano Eyjafjallayokull is Air Navigation in Europe. The cloud of ashes raised from the volcano stopped air operations in nearly 60% being the worst airline crisis in European history and affecting six million passengers at airports in 20 countries in Europe.

All this because the ash particles that after being expelled to 10 miles above the volcano are left floating in the atmosphere and can cause serious damage to the fuselage of the aircraft in danger of stopping the aircraft engine in flight. As I write this note the Icelandic volcano is still pouring ashes on the old continent.

THE ISLAND UNDER THE SEA

By: Felipe Argote

Dance, dance, Zarité, because slave who dances is free... while dancing.

Toulouse Valmorain is summoned to a remote island called Saint Domingue, formerly called Haiti by the natives Arahucos, to work temporarily with the planting of his ailing father. He never suspected that the illness of his father was syphilis and he, himself, would be in charge of the plantation until the slave revolution that achieved independence from the French colony.

But most of the history of the novel, The Island Under the Sea is the story of Zarité, the beautiful slave with whom the slave owner had a son and a daughter, how she survived the cruelty of his master and about the uprising of the slaves which led to corollary the only triumph of an insurrection of slaves who have triumphed in all of history.

Zarité does not live but survives as a domestic slave since child silently suffering inhuman treatment of his master, rapes and being witness to the cruelty of the overseer to the slaves of the plantation. Staying alive, just gnawing their hatred with the hope of escaping to freedom.

But when slave uprising finally arrived to the plantation instead of collecting his revenge she saves the life of her master just because he was the father of her children. This rewards her with the promise of freedom but he never thought he was going to make this come true. Not even worth the nobility of Zarité for the cruel slave owner to tell her where was her first male child who had been given to somebody else, according to custom, to avoid the male bastard to dare to the future ownership dispute with his step-son the son of the slave owner´s legitimate wife.

Also the story is about her emigration to New Orleans Zarité always as a slave, and finally that although freedom is not much better than the life they suffered, there can be nothing worse than slavery.

The Island Under the Sea, which gives the title to the novel, is a paradise after death, according to the religion brought by African slaves who survived despite the ban on pain of death by the evil slave owner´s Christians that branded as demonic. For the slave the cultivation of sugar cane was so demanding that people did not work but using beast as they call black people who had an average life of eighteen months.

Isabel Allende since its first publication "The House of Spirits" in 1982, has done nothing but surprise us with a fluent pen, high literary value, capable of developing such diverse topics as "Ines del Alma Mía" which recounts the colonization de Chile and "The City of the Beasts", a youth adventure. Isabel Allende is undoubtedly one of the best writers today. Born in Perú to Chilean parents has lived since 1988 in California. We recommend The Island Under the Sea because it is one of the best historical novels I have read and Isabel Allende, one of the best novelists.

THE TWINS WHO STOLE THE MOON

In 1962, twin boys decide to steal the moon. There he begins an adventure that became the most-watched children's film in Poland, directed by Jan Batory. But this adventure of identical twins does not end there. In real life Lech and Baroslaw Kaczynski, who starred in the film, would have much time to keep the attention of the Polish public.

In 1980 exploits the strike in the Gdansk shipyards. In this and other strikes comes the Solidarity trade union led by an electrician who did not work in the yard. This is Lech Walesa, who climbed the fence at the time the Lenin shipyard strikers had seized the company and became its leader. This is the beginning of a popular uprising that faced the Communist Party government which ruled for the best interests of the Soviet Union. Most of the people did not accept the situation of Russian semi-colony. It is at this moment that reappear Baroslaw and Lech Kaczynski twins. Lech, who had just graduated as a lawyer was appointed consultant of the strike committee, a coordination of strikers led the Solidarity trade union and eventually served for the creation of party solidarity. The Solidarity Party leaded by Lech Walesa was a popular right-wing organization supported by the Polish Catholic church at that time and had the support of Karol Jozef Wojtyla, who was appointed Pope John Paul II in 1978.

But Kaczynski twins were more so to the right and participate in the formation of the Solidarity Party-Civic Alliance of Right, a right coalition of conservative Catholics, including the most right wing of trade union Solidarity. Then he founded the Law and Justice party with which far-right election win in 2005. Lech Kaczynski was elected president and then appointed his twin brother as prime minister. Two years later the government loses the early elections called after a corruption scandal in the ministry of agriculture. But according to the electoral polish system, Lech Kaczynski still holds the post of president until new elections.

The story of the twins, as if it were a movie, is rocked by the death of Lech Kaczynski in a plane crash which also killed his wife, Maria Kaczyńska, Polish military leaders such as Chief of Staff and commanders heads of the Army, Sea, Air and Special Forces, Central Bank Governor, the Ombudsman, several deputy ministers, members of Parliament, a delegation from the Government, its political cabinet and prelates of the Catholic Church. They were to commemorate the seventy years of the slaughter of Katyn, a mass execution which is estimated at 22,000 people ordered by Joseph Stalin in 1940. The commemoration of the slaughter mobilized the entire elite of the regime in a time due to court far-right Polish government intended to do much more visible the tyranny of the Soviet Communist Party government that the massacres of the Nazis in World War II.

Contrary to what one might think Lech was not the dominant twin but his brother who is still alive Baroslaw who was not at the plane because he stayed with his mother aged 84, who was seriously ill in hospital. When Lech won the elections on the microphone said, addressing his brother: "mission accomplished chief" According to Professor Witold Malinowski, a specialist of the Pomeranian Academy of Medicine "The death of one twin for which is still alive is a huge trauma, emotional shock much stronger than can cause the death of a twin brother or sister, "according to AFP," The twin live it as an amputation.” "We must not forget that the twins were one being at the embryonic stage, before splitting into two separate beings,"

Definitely the ones who stole the moon have been and remain key players in the history of this country that gave birth 200 years ago to Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin.

THE KITE RUNNER BY KHALED HOSSEINI

By: Felipe Argote

Amir and Hassan are inseparable twelve year olds boys. They live in Kabul, Afghanistan, and if I had been asked I would say the story is set in the fifteenth century. But no, the story begins in 1975 in a society that seems to have been frozen in the middle age. Children, through their social differences by racial roots, enjoy their friendship but most of all enjoy the most popular activity of children in Kabul: flying kites. Indeed Amir is doing his best to win the annual kite competition, while Hassan only complies with help. Unknowingly Amir is the brother of Hassan, but although the first attending school, the second is illiterate. Both live in the land of his father Babb, but Amir lives in his big house while Hassan lives in a shack behind the house of his father, along with other household employees. While Amir has every opportunity to come in life, Hassan is one of the servants, so he must comply with all the household chores before going out to play with Amir who waits patiently enjoying some fruit of the season to climb together what they call the mountain where they recorded in a tree "Amir and Hassan: Sultans of Kabul." The reason for this difference is that Hassan is a Hazara a lower class, the product of a Babb´s relationship with a beautiful Hazara girl at his service after becoming widowed of Amir´s mother.

The Hazara are descendants of the Mongols of Genghis Khan, the legendary warrior who settled in the thirteenth century the largest contiguous empire in history and stranded in small nomadic groups after the disappearance of the empire. The Hazaras are no longer nomads but they are discriminated by the Pashtuns who have controlled Afghanistan for centuries. Hazara are chiítias, Pashtuns are Sunni the same as the Taliban. By the way, when Taliban got the power in Afghanistan in 1996, they banned kites because, according to them, were contrary to the Qur'an and it is a waste of time. This gives a greater connotation to the title and the development of the book.

The Kite Runner is a story of human misery. Starting by Amir, that despite the great friendship with his brother Hassan, he is not able to help him when he was raped by a sadistic teenager named Assef. This, despite the fact that it was a revenge because he had helped Amir giving an accurate stone in the eye to Assef with his slingshot, when he intended to give a beating to his brother with a group of his cronies. Then, feeling ashamed of his conduct, Amir invents a theft by Hassan to force him to be expelled from the land of his father, just because you cannot see his face after his cowardice. Hassan leaves, against the will of Babb who insists to forgive him for an act he didn’t committed since Amir did not do anything about it.

He then refers to the time of the Taliban, those religious zealots who have nothing to yearn for the Christians of Torquemada, or the Catholic Christian priests of our time. Assef reappears here, the same sadistic pervert as one of the Taliban commanders, using their religion to kill women stoned and to rape orphans. Nothing to envy the current Catholic Christians involved in child sexual abuse and protected by their superiors.

The Kite Runner is a deep book that makes you embarrassed to be part of humanity. Khaled Hosseini does not develop a story where at the end they all lived happily ever after in the style of Paul Coelho and Hollywood films. There are no perfect heroes but yes there are tyrants that make you feel hatred. The bad news is that the book doesn´t gives more hope than to go into exile and live in California.

Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, is in exile in California since the Russian invasion of Afghanistan. There he studied medicine. This is his first book.

MALINCHE OF LAURA ESQUIVEL

By: Felipe Argote

The book, despite claims that counts on the collaboration of historians, in some ways contradicts the generally accepted history of La Malinche, Malitzin or Mallinali, the daughter of Chimalpain a tribe chief and a beautiful young noble called Cimatl. According to Laura Esquivel Malinche was not even his name if not given to Hernan Cortez by the Nahuas because it means the owner of Mallinali. Additionally, the author contends that Doña Marina, as she was baptized by the Spanish, was a humble woman given to him by his mother as a child because she interfered in her new relationship after the death of her husband, and then being as a young woman gifted to Hernan Cortez for her new family. In the history described by Bernal Diaz del Castillo in "True History of the Conquest of New Spain", Mallinalli was given as an offering after the arrival of the Spanish to Mayan chiefs in Tabasco, after the defeat of the Nahua group which he belonged. These in turn gave to Cortez to be defeated by the Spanish in the Battle of Centla. In the tradition of the indigenous people of the time when nobles defeated princesses were given as evidence of peace. Bernal Diaz del Castillo was part of the expedition of Hernán Cortés, therefore I tend to believe more in their version than in that of Laura Esquivel.

I read Laura Esquivel's "Like Water for Chocolate", "Kingdom of Love" and the latter, Malinche. I confess that the first fascinated me. When I found out that she published a new book soon went to buy it and what I read disappoint me. “The Kingdom of Love” I could not finish it. This honestly did not seem as bad as the second but quite regular to say the least. Esquivel seems Spanish colonization was a fairy tale. He invented a love story, but reading his own book one notices that did not exist. Hernan Cortez fails to comply with the commitment and oath that the Spanish have no sexual abuse of indigenous women although they were distributed as slaves. Who can believe that? The great slaughter of Cholula, where Cortes met in a closed court to all the nobles and lords of the population to thank for weeks of attention they had given him and his men and massacred them by surprise first with muskets then tearing and dismembering them with swords. Not given the slightest opportunity to defend themselves as they had been disarmed. The Indians were unable to suspect such infamy. For them the war was noble. Spanish Savages used to kill betrayal. But according to Laura Esquivel this was justified by the fact that Cortez had received information that a Mexican army sent by the emperor was waiting outside, but by her own admission this was never confirmed. Of course it was not otherwise Cortes had not been two months after the slaughter at Cholula. The subsequent deaths of six thousand out of 30,000 people in the streets of Cholula surprised by those who were not considered their enemy, especially women and children was not made by the Spanish but by their allies Tlaxcala, according to Esquivel. Even more surprising is the claim that the epidemic of smallpox brought by the Spanish and made away with 97% of the population of the empire was not brought by the Spanish but by the slaves brought by the Spanish in Cuba. Incredible!

The wording seems to Malinche Spanish aid to the invasion of Tenochtitlan because of their religious differences for the human sacrifices of the Mexica and their worship of Quetzalcoatl. But Malinche was not Maya was so Mexica as Montezuma, the emperor of Tenochtitlan, as much of the people of Nahuatl language far south as what is now Costa Rica. Like most of the inhabitants of the empire was a descendant of those who came from Aztlan, which means marshy land that gives rise to the Aztec word that is also known the Aztecs and the Nahuatl language. If Cortes took Malinche as a concubine and kept his side was because she spoke the Mayan language for having been a slave of the Mayan of Tabasco, then Malinalli Tenépatl, which means the language Marina, her ability to speak two languages, translated from the Nahuatl to Maya and from Maya to Spanish was translated by Geronimo de Aguilar, a shipwrecked from ship Santa Maria de la Barca, who had survived the sinking and with other Spanish, Gonzalo Guerrero, had been integrated into the Mayan Indians. When Cortez reached the island of Cozumel learned of the existence of the shipwrecked Spanish. While Geronimo de Aguilar translated from Spanish to Maya, Malinche translated from Maya to her native language Nahuatl to Montezuma. Gonzalo Guerrero refused to return with the Spanish because he had married and had children. It is said that even he fought the Spanish.

The writing of  Malinche, by Laura Esquivel is often heavy because it stretches too much in bloom, in the metaphorical to the point of cloying. Sincerely Malinche reading I found it in a little torture, nothing to do with the very good "Like Water for Chocolate", although unlike "The law of love" was not so bad as to prevent the read of the entire book.