Category: Languages, mankind, empires, the family

Rubalcaba and the German electoral system

Josu discusses what the PSOE candidate might have meant and the possible consequences. Key para: De hecho, sii trasladáramos a España el sistema alemán “entero”, con reparto nacional, umbral del 5%, y con sus excepciones, resultaría que suponiendo unos resultados como los de 2008 (supuesto imaginario, porque la gente vota distinto con reglas distintas) ni…

La mayoría

–¡Qué gracioso que la mayoría de los guiris decís “avellanas” en vez de “havaianas“! –¿Eh? No me suena, y ¿qué quieres decir con “la mayoría”, { 50% + 1 } o { casi todos } ? –Bueno, la hermana de X lo dice… Al DRAE le falta el primer matiz, el segundo quizá puede esperar.

Counting the corrupt

A numerate, corrupt mayor, some innumerate anti-corruption campaigners, and de Tocqueville.

100% of Spanish graduates interviewed (sample size: 1) said this <a href='http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rechentisch.png'>abacus</a> was in fact architect's plans for a bowling alley.

Run like a gypsy

With Imanol Arias as El Lute, retired generaliser George Borrow, and walking and running style as social differentiators.

The Turks' gypsy hangman on the point of giving the Greek hero a new walking style in a scene from a Greek shadow puppet play (<a href='http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/search_the_collection_database/search_object_details.aspx?objectid=3291073&partid=1&fromADBC=ad&toADBC=ad&titleSubject=on&physicalAttribute=on&numpages=10&images=on&orig=%2fresearch%2fsearch_the_collection_database.aspx&currentPage=6'>British Museum</a>). An Ottoman custom? A Barcelona cop tells me that his Algerian colleagues stamp on the ankles of bagsnatchers, making them easier to identify and capture next time.

New World Order

Someone remind me why Gaddafi is to be pursued for crimes against humanity but Laurent Gbagbo is not.