Maricarmen is not a serial name

And then, our Homeric protagonist, pursued by judges, chased by the opposition and abandoned by his partners, still had the strength to stand up and proclaim: “And I, Maricarmen, have a message for you: the government is working against the clock to bring the royal decree-law on housing on Tuesday, because it is not a question of ideology, it is a question of humanity”.Audiovisuals have long taught us that there is nothing more exciting than an impossible mission hanging on a life-or-death countdown. It is a matter of hours before the decree is signed. The problem is that Maricarmen is not the title of a series, nor are we citizens mere spectators.Contrary to what the Spanish president says, the issue is one of ideology: if it were only a question of humanity, the problem would already be solved. I certainly believe it is a matter of ideology, from the moment that market laws, the right to housing, the right to property, the anxiety over the end of rental contracts for many tenants, and the savings of not a few small holders collide. If not, why does Pedro Sánchez (like anyone else) find it so hard to square the circle? Bound by his investiture agreements with both the right and the left, he now finds that, unlike the biblical advice, whatever he signs with his right hand will end up being known by his left hand.It is sad, because Maricarmen is not the metonymy of a sudden flood or an unexpected pandemic. For decades, housing has eaten up the good intentions of governments of all colors. This Tuesday's decree will, at most, cushion the blow. But without negotiating, yielding, and abandoning demagoguery, Maricarmen will continue to be treated like a series and not like what it is: the problem of our time.