Another Scissorhands

Posted on 01. Aug, 2010 by jacques in Uncategorized

Fausto wonders why I am fascinated by the internal workings of a party I (presumably) don’t vote for and of which I am not a member. Pedants like Majistral have a habit of acting extremely naive in such circumstances and ignoring the basic fact that a political party and its mechanisms are fair game for political punditry whether or not one favours them – which is why J’accuse took as much of an interest in the Labour leadership developments as it does in the paradoxical convolutions of PN Executive Committee conclaves. Even worse than the naiveté on the matter of scrutiny of party works is the apparent surprise with which Fausto greeted the link between a budget document and social policies of a government. Of course a budget is not a do or die element in whether or not we get our divorce law but we all know how the strings of the treasury are often used in order to incentivise the strengthening of social units such as for example the family. Compartmentalising budget talk (ideas, vision, discussion) from other principled talk would mean accepting a party of ambivalences. A party has to be able to stand up and be judged for the totality of its actions – including statements thrown in to pep up its budget act.

Which is where Marthese Portelli comes in. This is yet another “politician” caught in the trawler net of “anything goes” by the party proletariat at the time of elections and which tends to hang on afterwards having mistaken the opportunistic gambit made by the schemers at Dar Centrali as some sort of faith in her political nous. Sadly multiplying votes in the Gozo district (or any other district for that matter) does not automatically transfrom a “mother and lawyer” (as Marthese reminds us in her leaflets and PR) into a politician. Having enjoyed the electoral limelight and reaped some reward for running on the ticket of one of the two parties that tend to get votes (most PLPN candidates would fare hopelessly were they to run on an AD ticket – it’s not the person, it’s the party that gets the vote and up yours Mr Constitution) Portelli starts to think like many others of her ilk – she believes that whatever she pens down counts – whether it makes sense or not.

For some reason I cannot fathom, the Indy seems to have a new love affair with Portelli. Last week Stephen Calleja gave us an example of investigative journalism at its Lou Bondi best (smell the irony). A one page interview that told us absolutely nothing about Portelli apart from the fact that even though she has moved to Saint Helen’s parish she is still in love with the people who voted for her and has come up with an idea – Jobs for the Boys and Girls in Gozo. Gee that’s new.  How come nobody came up with that one before. Eager to carry on the spin Portelli has an article of her own this week. 569 words about the new Belgian Presidencyof the EU. Which would have been spiffing. Had there been one inkling of original thought in it that is. Instead it turns out that a one liner link to this document called the “Programme of the Belgian Presidency of the EU Council” would have saved Marthese lots of cutting and pasting and the Indy some valuable column space.

Marthese Portelli is currently President of the PN Executive and chairs the meetings of the conclave discussing divorce.

Image via Wikipedia

***

Last Saturday, the day before MaltaToday splashed his holiday on Nazzareno Vassallo’s superyacht all over its front page I happened to meet Paul Borg Olivier at Ghadira Bay. In our short conversation Paul could not resist a jibe at my ever growing waistline by putting it down to my incessant blogging at the computer. I wish I could have snapped a shot of the look of disgust as he mimed me typing away at the computer. It only stands to reason. Nationalists must not have such a big love affair with computers. It all started with the infamous story of Austin Gatt destroying a PC as the results of the 1996 elections came out and went on all the way to PBO’s gaffes of pressing the wrong buttons and David Casa and Marthese Portelli still not realising that cut and paste is not such a sly move in today’s computing world.

No Bikini At-all

Posted on 27. Jul, 2010 by jacques in Uncategorized

The Bikini gets its name from the Bikini atoll which was the area targeted for a nuclear test at the same time as the fashion symbol and style hit the catwalks in Europe. Western Europeans got over the initial fuss when the seaside attire was popularised by the great Hollywood divas and anyone outside the world of Talibans and Mujaheddins no longer is impressed by the appearance of a bikini in littoral towns nowadays. Not so in Balluta Bay Malta:

An indecent attitude
Dunstan Crockford, St Julians
The other day I witnessed a modern form of “lynching”. A young foreign student was wearing a bikini in Balluta Square. At first nobody said or did anything but as she decided to leave and was walking down the few steps to the pavement, a mature woman loudly screamed and ran towards her.
This attitude sparked off a crowd of around 10 persons all howling names at the bewildered girl: “dirty”, “go home”, “shame”, “get dressed”. One even threatened to throw her in the sea! At this point the foreign girl was joined by her friends and plucked up some courage. She crossed the road and took photos of the hostile crowd. Naturally this provoked more insults.
In no way am I condoning the girl’s attire but surely there are decent ways to approach situations like these!

That’s from the Times’ letter section. Which is obviously a good time to point out why it makes so much sense to have a referendum on such things as divorce. Are you still so sure about that Lawrence?

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Kullhadd Gallarija

Posted on 30. Mar, 2010 by jacques in Uncategorized

Yesterday’s whirlwind of meetings has begun to take its toll. It’s either that or the travails of a five-a-side match (4 goals) and a loaded kosksu (2 gbejnas and one egg). In any case it’s been a hectic 36 hours. This time round it has also been a series of meetings with blog related contacts and exchanging of a series of new ideas. I am thrilled to see all the vibrant possibilites that do not always transpire through the fabric of the virtual. There was also time to conduct my first ThinkAbout It interview and begin to delve in the world of “poverty” in Malta but more about that in a dedicated blog.

One thing impresses me. It might be my blogging connections, my role as an opinion columnist or just a repetition of what is happening to everyone else but the black hole vortex that is the subject of The Runs vs the Dispensers of Familiar Medicine seems to suck away at any reasonable conversation and people seem to be interested on exchanging “takes” on the matter. We had been warning for what seem like aeons that the mingling of politics with the world of slander and mud can only result in the mediocre (but curiously sensational trouble). Predictably the TYOM site attracted the same (same same but different) number of adulators as the Runs had managed to once it embarked on the road of cheap marketing. If some battle for democratic rights and representation and cleansing for institutional malaise had existed beneath the mud slinging and colourful expositions it is now buried even deeper as the salvos continue to be exchanged. I wonder what Joe Borg and Lou Bondi would make of it now (yes, it’s a rhetorical question loaded with irony and sarcasm).

In any case, it has been “educational” to see that there is life beyond this vortex (if you really make an effort) and that not all is lost for the new media. It will take just a little effort from J’accuse and the right friends to set about getting the record straight. Look out for more news on these pages. Meanwhile I retire to rest my weary head before what threatens to be a night of voluminous consumption at Marleys.

check out:

• Cafe Cuba’s splendid Ceasar Salad (with chicken) and crunchy tuna ftira (@the point)
• the divine menu at La Mere in Valletta – india meets arabia meets malta

thankyous

ms anna abela writing in the insiter for the words of praise she had for this blog and its author. we are honoured and flattered (and it does not good to our already supersized ego). a letter to the insiter is due to answer the conundrum she poses – should I stay or should I go?

Non piú andrai

Posted on 28. Mar, 2010 by jacques in Uncategorized

Most of my spare reading time nowadays involves anything that I can get my hand on about the Roman Republic at the turn of the first century. Far from being the yawn inducing concoction of togas and legionnaires suitable only to feed Hollywood blockbusters of the sixties, the very fabric of Roman society at the time of Cicero, Crassus and scandalous Claudii presents an anthropological tour de force that still has many lessons and (astonishingly, given the 2000 year gap) similarities for today’s world to ponder upon. Run through a modern news programme and you will find the same themes as would have been popular two millenia ago.

Patricians and plebeians fighting out on the political chessboard have been replaced by the haves and the have nots – the affluent and the affluenza infected. The poor and disenfranchised struggle for their rights always finding a champion for their causes (whether sincere or simply a marriage of convenience remains alas anyone’s guess). Scandal was an integral part of the political game as men wove their political moves in the fora (or in backrooms plotting the latest backstab) while their wives and mistresses aided and abetted such plotting from the most intimate of courtrooms.

Above all Roman life was based on unabashed ambition. From birth, the citizen was honed to improve the state of his family affairs and was expected to aspire for more. You may have been born into a well-placed family but you were expected to confirm their position by climbing up the social ladder yourself – again. The Romans had a word for what we would call the greasy pole – they would call it cursus. Literally it meant the race – the chariot races held at the Circus Maximus. “In the Republic sport was political and politics was sport. Just as the skilled charioteer had to round the metae, the turning posts, lap after lap knowing that a single error (..) might send his vehicle careering out of control, so the ambitious nobleman had to risk his reputation in election after election.” (Tom Holland, Rubicon)

Commenting in the Philippics, Cicero states that “the track which leads to fame is open to many”. A sort of American Dream therefore but a weird one at that, one that brazenly accepted the competitive element and prized ambition to succeed to the point of rewarding what we would nowadays call the scrupulously Macchiavellian. There would be many paths indeed to succeed – the rules of the Republic being such that they allowed you to reach positions of influence whether you kicked off as the son of a powerful family or whether you could benefit from the tribunal pathway as champion of the plebeians. Take things to far, irritate too many people on the other side and your descent from power might be steep (and painful).

Non piú avrai questi bei penacchini

Standing among the buildings of the Capitoline hill was the Villa Publica – a complex of government buildings full of splendid statues and paintings that witnessed the opulent success of the Republic. The Villa Publica had an important function since every five years citizens were required to register there. This was full disclosure in a time when Data Protection was about as useful as a facebook page with no security. A man would declare the name of his wife, children, his property and all his possession. By all his possessions I mean all – from the bangles on his wife’s neck and arms to the ready cash he had available. This was less Athenian democracy and more Orwellian big brother.

The state had the right to know everything. Even, as Plutarch puts it in Cato the Elder, “personal tastes and appetites should be subject to surveillance and review”. Underestimate the importance of these values and you were a lost man in the resplendent Roman republic. Intrusive knowledge was the very building stone of Roman society. The essential ranks in the cursus were highly influenced by the census at Villa Publica. All the information collected by the scribes would be scrutinised by two magistrates known as censors – senior and reputable citizens entrusted with deciding the social fate of each censored citizen. They had the power to reclass citizens or promote them in accordance to their worth.

Forget facebook. A man in Roman society intending to have a social life or put some stadia (Roman measurement – roughly 185m)   between him and his competitors in the cursus would make sure to live as public a life as possible. He would live a purposely ostentatious life without verging on the extravagantly opulent (too much, and you were out). His villa would be open to the public all day – a sort of big brother on the go – and all acts were designed to be as much in the public eye as possible in the hope that the proper favour has been curried with the right electors who would gather in the Field of Mars to throw their votes.

Let us not be too surprised therefore that our ambitious society has resettled on this time-old tradition of interfering knowledge. In Rome, to be a magistrate with the function of censor at the Villa Publica was considered to be almost as prestigious as achieving the crown of consul (although the word crown is probably the least apt to describe the highest position in the monarch unfriendly Republic). We may have new definitions for the words censorship and censorability but in a way the values of a society not too different from our own might help us understand the workings of our own.

If you have any doubts about the similarities of the two societies you need look no further than Cicero’s In defence of Plancius:

Those of us who are storm-tossed on the waves of popular opinion must devote ourselves to the will of the people, massage it, nurture it, try to keep it happy when it seems to turn against us. If we don’t care for the honours which the people have at their disposal, then obviously there is no need to put ourselves at the service of their interest – but if political rewards are indeed our goal, then we should never tire of courting the voters.

Cicero’s own wheelings and dealings led the greatest lawyer in Rome to defend many a corrupt returning governor from prosecution. Horsetrading was an inbuilt part of the system – as was an immense amount of litigation in the very public courts. Curiously, a prosecutor of a public person could also win certain rights equivalent to the rank of the accused should his prosecution be successful. Above all, the electorate mattered greatly. Cicero had this to say about them: “(in the Republic) there was nothing more fickle than the masses, nothing more impenetrable than the people’s wishes, nothing more likely to baffle expectation than the  entire system of voting” (Defence of Murena – yep, the guy did many a defending).Plus ca change.

Molto onor, poco contante.

If I have managed to tickle an interest in the affairs of the Republic then I strongly recommend the highly readable Rubicon by Tom Holland – to whom I am greatly indebted for most of the quotes in this article. If you are hungry for more similar titles drop a comment on J’accuse and I will duly oblige. Meanwhile, last Monday saw the kick off of the Thinkabout It third blogging competition that I had announced earlier. At the launch conference in Brussels I met bloggers from around the world – from Madagascar to Malaysia to Malta – and got an idea of the subject matter we have been entrusted to blog about for the next few months.

The main theme that will be explored are the UN Millenium Development Goals and one subtheme is the problem of poverty in the world. Poverty is no longer the image of kid in Africa with a bloated stomach and surrounded by flies. Different societies are experiencing different levels of poverty. Whether there is or can be a global standard for poverty is a moot point. At the end of the day not being able to make ends meet and bring food to the table daily could be the obvious, but not necessarily practical, starting point for calculation. What is definite is that while some might fixate about “manners” and whether bringing the mouth to the food is less proper than bringing the food to the mouth we might be better off examining whether it is difficult to bring the food to the table in the first place.

Even if we ignore the prissy discussion instigated by the gossip vending Marie Antoinette’s of this world we would do well to ponder whether the plight of our poor is being immorally misappropriated by those with ulterior motives. What I mean is that rash statements and bandwagon riding ideas about what constitutes poverty can only damage informed programs and educated analysis in the long term. Harsh as it may sound, the issue of whether utility bills are too expensive is not the be all and end all of what poverty is about. One more thing to consider is the notion of a society afflicted with affluenza.

Affluenza – a portmanteau of the word affluent and influenza – has been defined as ” a painful,contagious socially transmitted condition of overload,debt, anxiety and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more” (John De Graaf et). We must not confuse the negative psychological and material effects of trying to keep up with the Joneses with and create a skewered idea of poverty. The debate is open – thanks to Labour’s fixation with the utility bills – let us not be carried off our feet with populist assertions.

Ed in vece del fandango, una marcia per il fango

Note to the Malta International Airport operators. The restrooms at the luggage collection area are in a filthy state. What is all the refurbishment worth if the restrooms are in a third world condition? Health and safety conditions at work are no joke. They are not just there to provide a good shop window for the tourist industry but also to ensure that everyone who respects his job performs it in optimal conditions. There have been too many accidents this week on the island. I am often accused of living a detached life since I blog and write from abroad. Apart from this accusation being a ridiculous fallacy that only befits those who have no better argument, the viewpoint from yonder allows you to see trends that other people do not necessarily notice. That we have had too many accidents to feel comfortable about them is one of them. It is useless moaning to “the authorities” if we do not take some responsible action ourselves.

Che le palle in tutti i tuoni, all’orecchio fan fischiar.

So it seems that Piano’s Piani have obtained the go-ahead. Political instrumentalisation will probably head to another topic soon enough while we will wait to see the final polished product. I still cannot and don’t feel the need to “take sides” on this issue and can only hope that the final product returns a semblance of busy gentlemanliness to the city built for gentlemen. All the pooh-poohing of the Parliament at Main Gate was a bit over the top for me. The Romans had quiffs of their own – particularly over the rebuilding of such sites as the senate and the Temple of Jupiter. When Sulla had a new senate built to accomodate the bloated numbers of the body (thanks to his violent reforms) the senators complained about the loss of decorum. Sic transit gloria populi.

I am not being defeatist or snidely supercilious here and I do hope that the calls for a proper home for theatre, opera, and for a contemporary art collection are answered (separatelyif necessary). What matters right now is that Valletta will have a new face. That matter has to be quite separate from the issue of the use of the old opera house and I for one am quite happy with the progress made.

Narcisetto, Adoncino d’amor. Cherubino, alla vittoria!

It’ll be a busy eight days on the island for J’accuse. There’s the new book by Mark Camilleri (Prima Facie) to buy, good food to consume (Mgarr Farmers Co-op here I come) and many many people to catch up with. I will also be taking some time to investigate the notion of poverty in Malta – anyone who has a story to tell or pointers to give could be kind enough to drop a comment or two on the website (www.akkuza.com). Next week I hope to tell you more about a renascent Maltese blogosphere. Die dulci freure (have a nice day).

www.akkuza.com will also have posts on development.thinkaboutit.eu throughout the next few months. Is poverty all in the mind? Have your say on J’accuse. Headings for today’s article are taken from the aria “Non piú andrai” from Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro

Disenfranchised

Posted on 27. Mar, 2010 by jacques in Uncategorized

It’s been a lovely first day on Melita. My first task on the island was to perform my civic duty and vote for one or more of the candidates contesting the election for the Hamlet of Paceville. Having dispatched this week’s article to the folks at the Indy I headed for the Millenium chapel for the first ever vote for Paceville’s reps.

Fast forward to the moment of truth when I handed my I.D. card to the electoral oompaloompas behind the desk. Tragedy struck. It appears I was not alone but an entire swathe of inhabitants of Paceville’s Golden Gate – Triq San Gorg have been struck off the confines of the hamlet. We were not eligible to vote because Triq San Gorg of Champ, Burger King and Telemalta fame is not conmsidered to be within the electoral limits for the Hamlet of Paceville. Darn.

Serves me right for not having switched to my new address in Triq Salvu Privitera (full Paceville territory) a full six zears ago. I had reckoned that while I was in Luxembourg whether I had San Gorg or Salvu Privitera on my ID card would make little practical difference. That and six years of procrastination for switching the darn address have led to my being involuntarily excluded from this great moment in Pacevillian history. I’m switching address soon enough – I hope to be in time for the next round of elections.

The photo is a funky treatment of the view across Balluta bay from above Neptunes pitch. Ah the salutary walk along the front complete with coffee and fiordilatte ice cream from Dolci Peccati. One battle is left – I have to convince First International Car rentals that a Peugeot 206 that stinks of dead animals (or post-prandial farts on new year’s day) and makes weird noises is NOT a decent car to rent out to anyone. I lost the first battle over the phone – the guy at the desk seems to think that stinky cars (and I mean filthy stink) are what you should expect when you rent cars. Will report round two tomorrow from the MIA.

The Day Journalism Died

Posted on 28. Feb, 2010 by jacques in Mediawatch, Uncategorized

The J’accuse column on the Independent today – a summary of this week’s analysis of an episode of Bondiplus – Winner of the Best Current Affairs Programme at the Malta Television Awards.

(more…)

PM discusses sleeping habits with Debono

Posted on 17. Dec, 2009 by jacques in Politics, Uncategorized

Sleeping Franco & Prince Gonzi

From The Times:

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi had a meeting with Franco Debono this evening, two days after the Nationalist MP missed two votes in parliament, denying the government its majority. Dr Debono also did not attend a meeting of the PN parliamentary group on Tuesday, and could not be contacted. Party whip David Agius late on Tuesday denied claims that pressure was being put on Dr Debono to resign.

Dr Debono attended the first part of Monday’s parliamentary sitting, but was absent during two votes on amendments to a motion on the setting up of a Select Committee. The Speaker had to use his casting vote. Dr Debono later returned to the Chamber and voted with the government. The motion was approved.

This evening’s meeting was held at Dr Debono’s residence in Ghaxaq. Mrs Gonzi also attended.

Since Franco Debono was probably “asleep” at his house during a routine vote* one should therefore imagine that the PM’s courtesy visit at the Ghaxaq Residence (probably during waking hours – you know what they say about letting sleeping dogs lie) was simply to discuss a possible variation in his sleeping habits. We’d hate to imagine Franco sleeping through the whole of this legislature…

* from Running Commentary:

Franco Debono becoming ‘another’ pain in the ass?
[Daphne - No, it's not. There was a routine vote, MPs on both sides of the house were away from Malta, and it was a 'draw'. Franco Debono failed to turn up because he was asleep and had to be woken by people who turned up at his house for the purpose. The rest is just wishful thinking and the sort of 'rumour as fact' reporting we have come to expect from Maltastar. The Labour party even sent out a viral SMS yesterday, claiming that the prime minister was to call for a vote of confidence at 3pm. Yes, right.]

Chicken & Egg Dilemma

Posted on 11. Dec, 2009 by jacques in Uncategorized

J’accuse: Il Bello di San Vito

Posted on 23. Aug, 2009 by jacques in Uncategorized

This article and accompanying Bertoon appear in today’s edition of The Malta Independent on Sunday.

One of the top selling books in Italian bookshops this August is called “Scusami ma ti voglio sposare” (I’m sorry but I wish to marry you). An apology before a request to marry would seem unusual unless one is of the idea that marriage as an institution is more of a punishment than an ideal situation. Again, the question of “marriage” is dealt with from the point of view of current Italian legislation on the matter and not in abstract.

The title is funny in itself and of itself – even if one fails to agree or disagree with the basic import of its statement. It’s a bit like saying, “I’m sorry we’re going to have to fly abroad” – a weird statement until one learns that flying abroad involves low-cost carriers that force you into an immediate heightened sense of consciousness as to each and every gram contributed to your inflight baggage (hand or checked-in). You see, normally you would not be sorry to have to fly or go abroad, but flying with low-cost carriers can have the abnormal effect of removing part of the fun of travel.

All this gripe because as I type during my last few minutes in the rented villa on the outskirts of Mazara del Vallo I still have on my mind a bottle of cinnamon grappa that is surplus to the overall weight limit of the group of six who will be boarding the plane from Trapani to Malta in a few hours. It kills me to have to leave it behind and I can only thank god that the ridiculous suggestion of charging passengers according to their weight has not already been taken up for I fear that the copious amounts of delicious food consumed here would have had an adverse effect on the excess bill charged by the unobliging ground staff employed at arms length by the kings of consumer dissatisfaction.

Mazara
Mr Manzo, the architect whose family own the magnificent rented villa (and who suspects that the Knights of Malta had something to do with the management thereof at some point) had suggested a quaint shop in town to buy home made artisan ceramics to take to Malta as a souvenir. When we did find the shop in Via Itria in Mazara it was immediately clear that the architect’s suggestion was not a frivolous one. The couple who ran the shop and who hand-made all the goods had an impressive range of products on display. Even the least interested of ceramic non-enthusiasts could get lost in a whole new world of designs and historic patterns brought back to life by this artisan couple.

Punters interested in the ceramics could even avoid being ridiculously overcharged for extra in-flight weight by shipping packages from the Mazara post office straight to their doorstep. Anyways, I mentioned Mr Manzo with the owners and they confirmed that he was one of their prime patrons who never missed an opportunity to buy his wedding gifts from their establishment. There we go again. Weddings and wedding gifts. I couldn’t help but wonder about the recurring theme -from the bookshops in the various towns, to the wedding gifts in shops to the weddings being celebrated in the boiling heat in churches – marriages seemed to be an underlying theme on the holiday. (more…)

J’accuse: Thinkaboutit! (Tech-no-log-ic)

Posted on 25. Jan, 2009 by jacques in Uncategorized

The fish shaped island with an almost insignificant population had weathered more than one storm in its centuries old history. Discoverers had passed through it on their way to other continents linking the old and the new. It had recently reared its proud head and tried to stand alone notwithstanding its size. Its fishermen had braved the high seas for centuries and its hunters proudly defended their culture. Its people were ambitious and they travelled the world far and wide to earn good money to send back home. Then one day the big storm came… the one that was too hard to weather… the one that crippled their savings and threatened their very livelihood.