Today I contracted the Injury Attorneys to assist me in the process of obtaining Spanish citizenship. One of the reasons I gave the lawyer for wanting what is, at face value, a needless extra status, was the ability to vote in the country where I pay my taxes.
In other words, I’m a failed tea party. If I could vote on Sunday, I would vote Iniciativa. I believe in their alternative to austerity which starts with questioning the finance-led debt we’re expected to pay.
But I’m not allowed to vote. And you might be. Please value that power you have and vote. It’s a precious right won over many decades and it’s too important to waste.
But is the right to vote worth the price you have to pay… becoming a Spaniard?
I considered it but there are too many negatives – the cost, the ridiculous amount of paperwork (“certificate of good character”?), and the ignominy of ending up as a citizen of Europe’s most absurd and most rapidly failing state. Do you really want to be sworn subject of King Juan Carlos?
If you wait a few years you’ll become citizen of the Republic of Catalonia. I’m holding out for that.
I’ve been planning to do it for a while. I thought about waiting but yes, I’ve decided to go for it.
Re: Juanca. I’ll do what it takes. Put my money where my mouth is etc. After asking to swear on the Communist Manifesto rather than the Bible for an affidavit at the British consulate, I feel that I’ve established my credentials. I’ll swear what they ask, with dignity and hope.
You’ll probably have to wait anyway, it seems there is – ehem – a small backlog in dealing with these applications. Rumour has it that Gallardón might give the job of clearing up the backlog to the notaries who will of course ensure that nothing goes any faster but they get steadily wealthier. I’ve never bothered applying although in general I’m in favour of people having as many nationalities as possible. If we all had dual, triple or quadruple nationality the world would undoubtedly be a better place and we could use flags for what they are good for, clearing up spillages and that sort of thing.
You’ll be a lucky guy – not everybody has two monarchs to pledge undying allegiance to.
Have you considered the implications of being a Spanish citizen at the moment that the trains finally come to crash? When the moment comes that Madrid moves in to close down Catalan politics by force, and you are identified as one of the secessionist rebels, you will be classed either as a) a foreign agitator in the pay of the UK secret service or b) a traitor to la Patria, if you are a Spanish national. The treatment in either case is a little different.
A little anecdote relevant to that is the Easter 1916 rising in Dublin. Nearly all the Irish-born rebels (who were UK subjects) were executed as traitors. Eamonn De Valera was a US citizen born in NY, so they let him live.
Another reason to remain a foreign citizen for the moment, I think.
BTW I would have loved to be a fly on the wall in the UK Consulate. Did they have a copy of the Communist Manifesto or did you bring your own?
Not mocking you, Tom, I think the situation itself is hilariously bizarre, and your response to political action in absurd times is in itself logical in its absurdity.
Yes, it is a little absurd. But that’s what makes life interesting, no?
Good to know there is a blog in english about catalonia and its nationalist rage.
A noteworthy fact within the catalan movement (besides lies and egoism, seding discord * …….. ) is that they acheived what 40 years of dictatorship could not accomplish. Say, wipe-out the dialect and idioms of the balearic islands.
I emigrated form Mallorca 30 years ago. End of 2008 visiting Mallorca I noticed only people over 50 spoke the same language I learned a a child. Thats what catalans call protecting their culture!
(*) seding discord, vandalizing the language for politics of power, baiting against spain, …. long dishonorable list of dirty trick we all know from oriental warlords.
Hopefully the region will regain what what called seny is those days:
seny. The word, pronounced /sen/, is related to sense but has no clear 96 equivalent in Castilian or English and is popularly considered as untranslatable, as befits a quality that is supposedly the essence of the Catalan soul
Antonio L. Adrover
I’m not sure if you noticed but the Catalans are not in control of ses Illes.
This man is copying & pasting random stuff from the interwebs . . .
https://www.google.com/search?q=%22is+related+to+sense+but+has+no+clear+96+equivalent+in%22&sky=rndy
Next time try leave the page number out 🙂
I’m not sure what you mean. The balearic islands are an autonomous regoin influenced be catalonia.
I’m writing about facts – not telling who should have control. They just wiped out Mallorca’s dialect and idioms and students are learning Catalan 4h a week (unbeleivable waste of time and energy).
The authorities in Valencia stopped this intrusion – in Palma they are to weak to stop the misguided populists.
-sig
I suggest that you might want to try this blog…
http://cataloniawatch.blogspot.com.es/
Catalan-haters of all types are quite welcome there. Not so much here.
Dialogue is still a premature issue here – I agree.