5 minute read
WATER WOES OUR VIEW
A whole generation of young children who not only have no respect for their elders, but truly do believe they are actually superior. Unfortunately, ever increasing numbers of them would rather walk into the class with a knife than a ruler. What I did find interesting this week however was the reaction to something I shared on FB. I literally received hundreds of ‘likes’ to the following notice, publicly displayed on a notice board by a youngster of around seven or eight. It read. ‘I’m not old enough to drink, let alone choose my sexuality or gender. How about you let me enjoy being a child and leave me alone?’ Sounds good to me; perhaps there is still some semblance of true stability in their young lives yet? You listening out there? All you woke infested imbeciles that should actually be locked up and would be if I had any say in the matter. Keep the faith. Love Leapy. Leapylee2002@gmail.com expatradioscotland.com
Mon and Fri. 1pm till 4.
AFTER the devastating rainfall which hit Almeria as well as parts of Costa Blanca and Murcia last week it seems that the weather simply isn’t being favourable to Spain at the moment. Certainly, there have been repeated fears of drought conditions across parts of the country which is threatening the livelihood of a very large number of farmers, yet torrential rains are also likely to devastate crops.
There is internal wrangling, some of it clearly political, about the allegedly illegal incursions on protected areas of wetlands where farmers are being allowed to drain water and to some extent, we must recognise commerce may on occasion be stronger than conservation.
The governments of Spain and Portugal are now jointly approaching Brussels asking for the adoption of measures to alleviate the effects of the drought on European agriculture and this of course means that they want more money and to be able to give more money to the agriculture section. Water however doesn’t grow on trees although it does help trees to grow and neither does money, although with €2.2 billion already allocated by the Spanish Government to drought relief it might appear that it does. If aquifers are being raided and there isn’t enough rain, it seems that one option is to build more desalination plants in order to provide water, hopefully potable, but if not, at least suitable for agricultural purposes. Another option is to ensure that sewage plants, many of which simply seem to exist to cause nasty smells around their vicinity are updated so that they can supply more water for agriculture and the ever thirsty golf courses that so many people enjoy.
REBECCA SERWOTKA “We sell houses!
It’s what we do, it’s ALL we do!” Cerfied API Associate 00493. Your favourite local resale property expert, of Inmobiliaria Estate Agents in Ciudad Quesada. Prestige Award WINNER for Real Estate Agency Of The Year 2021/22 & 2022/23. Luxury Lifestyle Awards WINNER, Alicante Spain 2023.
Buying a home in Spain? You’ll need to budget for legal costs that are on top of your purchase price.
Here’s a brief summary based on purchasing a property on the Costa Blanca without a mortgage, for a purchase price of €100,000.
1. Property Transfer Tax (Stamp Duty).
Buying a resale property, this tax is 10 per cent of the agreed purchase price. Example: €100,000 x 10 per cent = €10,000.
2. Notary and Land Registry fees. Allow around €1,000 for both these fees together. (‘The Notary’ are government appointed officials that draw up the Title Deeds. They don’t work for the buyer nor seller).
3. Lawyer’s fees. At a cost of around €1,000, they are worth every penny! More than checking for debts and making sure the property is legal, they’ll give you peace of mind your investment is safe.
By budgeting for these legal costs upfront, there’ll be no hidden fees once you’ve found your dream home!
THE dramatic departure of ‘smiley’ sofa host Philip Schofield from ‘This Morning’ coincided with that of the equally ‘smiley’ couple whose renovations of a derelict property in northwest France provided the basis for the reality TV show ‘Escape to the Chateau’.
Basically, unreality television! And there’s so much of it: the ohsocosy repair workshops and getrichquick property and antique shows. That’s why I can’t watch any breakfast news programmes or morning chat shows with copresenters. It’s all too sickly and unreal with their false smiles and scripted banter. ‘The One Show’ is another example. It’s just too nice and they all sit too close together... ugh!
So many sofa hosts ooze professional fake charm. That’s showbiz. Just like politicians of all parties do all the time, being friendly, pleasant, seeking your blessing. As politicians they’re after your vote; as TV celebrities, your rating. They’re all about performance, the dark art of deception. Mutually desired outcome: career advancement. Sofatype breakfast shows and political appeals to camera are exactly alike.
This Holly and Phil saga demonstrates why we shouldn’t idolise celebrities, and I really hope it is symptomatic of a sea change in how people view entertainers, especially of the light entertainment kind.
Nora Johnson Breaking Views Sofagate
even relatively benign nonentities like Holly and Phil are indicative of a similar sort of thing.
These people are not your mates. You don’t know them or have any personal link with them. They’re just individuals who are photogenic, charismatic and ambitious enough to provide linking chatter between musical acts or to present breakfast shows. You don’t know them any more than you know the nice estate agent attempting to flog you a flat by complimenting your getup, hairstyle and keen eye for property. Believe it or not, he might just be attempting to flog you a flat.
As for me, I always had my doubts about Hughie, ‘Sincerely folks’ Green, the presenter of ‘Opportunity Knocks’. Thankfully, however, the real monsters have been unmasked. For years, Jimmy Savile, Rolf Harris, Stuart Hall and pop star Gary Glitter were adored by fans but the horrifying truth of how they abused vulnerable fans and junior employees finally emerged. These men national treasures unmasked as national disgraces were serial abusers, getting away with impunity for years and years.
The most serious, toxic examples we’ve seen? The Saviles, Harrises, Glitters etc. But
Years ago, a pal of mine a media PRworked with a male presenter who was adored by women of a certain age for his massively popular morning show and who came across as warm, cuddly, caring and empathetic. Behind the scenes, though, he was really unpleasant, particularly to junior staff, and mean ‘thank you’ was rarely said and he had a vast sense of entitlement. Fundamentally, he was an actor he could switch on the charm and charisma at will, particularly when on air or in the limelight.
And we’re still reminded of the contradictory personas TV celebrities so often project with the recent death of the disgraced children’s entertainer, artist and convicted paedophile, Rolf Harris...
As usual, Shakespeare put it better and more succinctly: “One may smile, and smile, and be a villain” ‘Hamlet’.
Nora Johnson’s 12 critically acclaimed psychological suspense crime thrillers (www.norajohnson.net) all available online including eBooks (€0.99; £0.99), Apple Books, audiobooks, paperbacks at Amazon etc. Profits to Cudeca cancer charity.
