After the Easter cake, there's still a trace of chocolate in the bakeries. In supermarkets, if you look closely, you can find an egg among the laundry detergents. Or a rabbit near the drinks. There's never too much chocolate. When you meet someone who doesn't like it, you're suspicious. You think it's not normal to miss out on one of life's great pleasures. Even if you later remember that pleasures are personal and non-transferable. Nevertheless, you're suspicious. 

There are things that don't change. Like the change of time. It doesn't matter that the seasons are distorted by climate change and that we're on the time of Nazi Germany because Franco had to align himself with the prevailing fascism. Let's see who's brave enough to change it. And even less so now that fascism is trending again and there's so much nostalgia for the eagle that if you're very distracted by the world and see all those people with expired flags, you might think they're an environmental group defending an endangered animal. Of course, in Spain, the eagle on the Francoist coat of arms has never fallen into disuse. And if you confuse an environmental group with a fascist one, it means you're more lost in aesthetics than Lamine Yamal's hairstyle. But we were talking about the time. About change. About things that don't change. Like the collateral damage of a war. As if the main damage, which also doesn't change, wasn't enough. Bombs that destroy. Bombs that kill. Bombs to make more bombs. Bombs to send more bombs. Although it's logical that if your goal is to cause harm and the only human life that matters to you is your own, the more harm you do, the better. The extent of harm for an evil person is infinite. The more people suffer to survive, the better. And with this bunch of psychopaths who are constantly measuring their trumpets to see who has the longest, suffering seems assured. For everyone. Because there are things that don't change. Like resolving conflicts by creating new and worse ones. It also doesn't change that you are rewarded for peace after generating a war. Perhaps the newest thing is that since you're not rewarded by those you expected, you're rewarded by some who believe that football promotes peace. I won't be the one to question that. Because anyone can face a hooligan, a synonym for pacifist. I'm just saying that good taste certainly isn't promoted. And since so many people follow them, they could at least have houses that didn't look like a funeral home. Inside and out.

It's been months of red carpets. An excess of catwalks and an excess of discomfort. Not only the discomfort generated by some of the award winners' speeches, but also by the outfits women choose, which continue to present images unheard of in the 21st century. But if we're being strict, in the 21st century, the world is also governed by ultra-violent narcissists who are leaving a landscape that hasn't changed in centuries. And since little more can be said about the brutality of a system that allows the bombing of whatever a few wretches fancy, and since we seem to have to accept violence as a necessary evil in this rotten world of self-interest, let's turn the tables and look at what is apparently permanent, and what many people consider a free choice. And they're right. Because women's formal attire is the perfect symbol to explain where we still are. And the damage it does isn't comparable to war, but it still leaves many dead. It's the imprisonment of the body. Of the standards of beauty. Of scandal disguised as glamour.

News in 3Cat. A woman applies for a job at the Som Energia cooperative. She's pregnant and doesn't have high hopes, but she applies anyway. Her starting point is realistic. Who would hire a pregnant woman? The unusual thing is that, after the interview, she's told she's been chosen from among the 13 candidates. The job is hers, despite being pregnant. Everyone's happy. Overjoyed. Until the administration gets involved.

With another March 8th approaching, feminism is facing a disastrous situation. The movement is suffering setbacks worldwide, and according to the results of a survey published in this newspaper, 60% of men in Spain believe they are being discriminated against simply for being men. Data like this neither surprises us nor is it foreign to our society. Often, in the very articles I write each week, there are men who automatically feel... offended Just for using a feminine adjective. Even if the adjective could include me, a woman, it doesn't matter if we're talking about the beacon scam or living past 100. These are individuals, almost always anonymous, who cling to the tradition of thinking only of themselves. Nor to the tradition that women can be discriminated against. But woe betide them if a generic term doesn't make them feel included! (They are there, but they want to maintain their status. Besides, they shouldn't be everywhere, either.) These men are terrified of losing what they believe is their birthright. But these men's feelings are also tied to egocentrism and a deliberate desire to harm. Because, seeing the state of the world, they show not even the slightest empathy for verifiable facts and for a fundamental reason: demanding human rights is exhausting. We have other things to do in life. But we want a fairer life for everyone. And we want to use adjectives however we please.

On March 14, 2018, the official car in which Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman Marielle Franco was traveling with her press secretary, Fernanda Chaves, and driver Anderson Gomes was intercepted in the city center by another vehicle, which opened fire on the councilwoman's car. Marielle, 38, and Anderson, 39, were killed in the shooting. Fernanda miraculously survived.

The Spanish flag in Madrid's Plaza de Colón is not withstanding the elements. Oh dear. The year hasn't even started two months ago and it's already been torn three times. The latest incident occurred this week, in an image that must be added to the collection of anecdotes about Spanish flags taking damage. There are quite a few. Even involving paratroopers and lampposts. The repertoire is extensive. It can't be said that Spain skimps on resources in this regard. On the contrary. The flag in Madrid's Plaza de Colón is also worth a lot of money. It's enormous, 294 square meters, and weighs 35 kilos, which is overweight for a flag. But when you have an attack ofexhibitionism Patriotism is far better than a flag stuck on a stick. Furthermore, the Spanish state needs to assert itself, not because it is recognized as a state, but simply to be recognized. But speaking of recognition, exhibitionism flag It's not exclusive to Madrid or Spain. Many nations practice it. And even unrecognized nations, which might make a bit more sense if one weren't allergic to flags, as is the case with those who call themselves "citizens of the world." Now, when there's a battle between gusts of wind like the ones we've been experiencing lately, flags lose in the first round. And because they're so symbolic, they immediately project the image of a broken country. This time, we Catalans have nothing to do with it. What a shame. The loss of prominence we've suffered in such a short time is comparable to a flag torn by the wind. However, we may be partly to blame. It's ironic that the new storm is called PeterThat would never have occurred to me. But speaking of symbolism, Pedro breaks up Spain. And speaking of jokes, this one's bad, I know.

Catalonia is experiencing strange days that are dragging on longer than expected, if such a thing as strange days even has a time limit. It feels like we're living in a disaster movie, with everything unfolding in a chain reaction, like those lives that can't seem to get back on their feet. All we needed was the wind. It arrived with a warning, though, complete with an alarm, and when you hear it in the street amidst all the other alarms, it feels like a contemporary concert. It's come to assert itself amidst so much inclement weather, as if we'd been missing it. The wind, a bothersome phenomenon when it's just a breeze. The wind, which brings no answers and bursts forth with the force of someone who has no arguments. This aggressive wind, like an authoritarian leader around the world. The wind, which doesn't love trees. The noise of the wind, which keeps us awake and seeps into our brains as if a ghost wanted to speak to us. No, not that wind now. We're all too tired. But we're pinning our hopes for calm on the anticyclone that's about to arrive, they say, and that will bring a weather respite. Because you can't please everyone, and too much rain is usually harmful. They say there will be days of sunshine in a row. Perhaps we should also set an alarm to help us get all the vitamin D we're lacking. Although it's also on sunny days that everything is laid bare and the disaster becomes clearer. Just in case someone is unaware that Catalonia has been paralyzed for years and that the wind is the last thing to enter through the door. This is what happens when you leave it open. They already told us that it's wise to be careful with the draftsIn any case, you don't need to be particularly esoteric to see that everything is a sign, not very subtly, warning us that we're at the limit of too many things and that it's time to start moving in the right direction. With the wind, we must wait for it to stop, but many other situations are within human control and can be resolved.

The US Department of Justice has released three million pages, 180,000 images, and 2,000 videos related to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. All this material has been made public because the law requires it, but after the deadline and, according to the lawyer for the victims of this serial rapist, poorly. Because some of the victims' names have also been revealed. And yet they claim that the censorship in all this documentation is precisely to protect them. Judicial blunders are international. And so is sexism.

The chaos in Catalonia is unprecedented because it's currently colossal, but it was foreseeable long ago: we've been living with the commuter rail chaos for many years, directly or indirectly, and its users have been undervalued for many years, going viral despite themselves. That's why political rhetoric is so damaging. Because reality too often reveals priorities and interests. Despite the incessant rain and snow, everything eventually comes to light. The trains aren't running, but all these people who lose hours and patience on each journey, if they even manage to travel at all, are a large part of those who keep the country running every day. And the country is tired, angry, and disappointed. Because Catalonia, many days after a tragic accident, is, as they say, a house of cards. A place that hangs and unhangs, as we used to say at home. Say what you will.

A friend told me she was able to go to work today because she bought a high-speed train ticket yesterday and slept at my mother's house. Thank goodness. But she doesn't know how long she'll have to do the same. Because nobody says. What's certain is that it won't be worth it for her to work if she has to keep paying for high-speed train tickets for a journey she should be able to make with a regular train. train of the commuter rail. This is one example. But there are hundreds of similar and much more serious ones. Because the problem is that, long before the recent accidents, she, like so many other people who travel around the country on these commuter trains, had a history of accidents. trains Renfe's commuter rail service lives in a permanent state of uncertainty. And anguish. Because now the cup has overflowed, but users have been living with this situation for years, and no one offers them any solutions. Their jobs, their livelihoods, depend on their mobility. So do their hospital visits and any other visits they might want to make. All that's missing is permission for people to travel according to the purpose of their trip.

I must confess my deep envy of men's football fans. I feel it much less for women's football fans, because although it's generating more interest now, it doesn't occupy the same space. Let's not kid ourselves. I envy them because their entertainment, or their religion, I dare say, occupies many prominent spots in radio and television programming, and above all because, when it becomes news considered relevant, everything else is set aside and that topic is treated as if nothing else were happening in the world. If you're not interested in football, you can't believe the amount of time that can be spent discussing topics you wouldn't dedicate more than zero or a minute to. But what I envy is that in weeks like this one, full of terrible news for the world, or like the previous one, also filled with bad news, football fans are able to abstract themselves from this reality, prioritizing the fact that there's been a change of coach or a good result in a match. For those who are always overreacting, and I'm never sure if they understand what I write, I'll add that I know you might like football and be worried about the world political situation. But the football fans They have this refuge where everything that happens is important, even if its relevance is debatable. And it's not snobbishness that makes me uninterested in football. At another time in my life, I used it as a sedative. But it's like other things I've tried that haven't quite grabbed me, like mushroom hunting or spending the summer at the beach. However, I'm not reading books while everyone else is watching a football match. Or not always, in any case. It's possible that while I'm listening to the fans' shouts, I'm watching a bad TV series or talking about other trivial matters in the kitchen.

The cold isn't meteorological. That it's cold in January is good news, especially for those of us who are constantly anxious about climate change and are lucky enough to have a warm roof over our heads. The cold isn't low temperatures or collapse: it's the snow falling on an old Europe. The cold and the collapse are those democratic dictators who parade their evil openly and with complete impunity because they're armed to the teeth. But, in reality, this cold doesn't freeze, because it's neither new nor do they mount secret operations trying to disguise invasions, depose presidents, and install puppets. Now it's done openly. A bit like the Louvre robbery. As if the whole world has given up on protecting itself. The world no longer hides behind a few... curtains And it shouldn't surprise us. It should only overwhelm us.

We've barely begun to form the first memories of the year. Those that, in December, which now seems so distant, might come to mind. We'll wonder if they're from this year, or from another, or much further back. Especially if we're not part of that group of people who remember dates and places exactly as if they were reliving them each time. Especially if we're among those who remember absurd dates and minuscule events, if one can even consider each of our lives insignificant. In a diary, historical events are mixed with the events of personal stories. But, in the end, all stories make up the history of the world. And although we may believe we're the center, perhaps we should ask the volcanoes or the Universe. But our History, the history of humanity, is told with all its biases, and the account that has been given is so subjective that if those who lived it could whisper it in our ear, we'd burst out laughing. And crying. As happens when we listen to memories. The real ones and the ones we invented over the years. Now we know how to measure time, but when we were young, the days seemed much longer, and our goals, if we had any, were in such a remote place that they seemed impossible to grasp. Some are still there. Waiting for us. Without us waiting for them. We've stopped wanting some things to want others. It's a blessing to be able to choose our desires.

It had been expected for some time, but as a Christmas present, it's unfortunate: the European Commission has decided to indefinitely eliminate the ban on selling combustion engine cars, which was scheduled to end in 2035. In other words, environmental measures facing significant economic pressure are once again the big losers.spirit Christmas is fading away, and in the European Union, it seems like they're asking for coal for Three Kings' Day. There's still the signing to be done, and so on and so forth, but the right and far right, which together hold a majority, are already clear that there must be a reduction in environmental measures—in other words, a kick in the teeth—because it makes no sense to stop polluting when it's already been shown that the planet can only withstand so much. And humanity votes only as much as necessary to avoid reversing the system. That said, we no longer have plastic straws for drinks. A great advance that has changed our lives, improved them qualitatively, especially when we consider that with the amount of plastic blister packs that are still allowed, we could drink with grimaces for centuries to come. It's clear that significant changes aren't easy to implement, but it's also clear that without firm policies, change will never happen. Meanwhile, the polar ice caps continue to melt, and diseases continue to thrive on all the toxins that help them survive. And if not, windmills destroy the landscape and the farming community, and replacing peach orchards with seas of solar panels isn't the brightest idea, but if you love glitter, go ahead and become a magpie. And above all, let's not talk about lowering energy costs or what AI will need to feed itself; it'll take a heart attack.

Getting tickets has become one of the most stressful competitions of recent times. Whether they're paid or free. Of course, there are still plenty of shows that would love to sell out, but the feeling that we're missing out because we're not on top of things or moving fast enough is growing. Before, queues were physical; people would get up very early or sleep on the street to get a concert ticket. Now, queues are virtual; people wait in their pajamas at home in front of a sign on their computer screen indicating their number in an endless queue. The technological lottery will decide whether you've been lucky or whether your day will be ruined by not being able to get a ticket for a unique event that will happen a year from now. Or more. Because spontaneity is dead. And we, perhaps before even attending the show, are too. But the important thing is having gotten the tickets.

In the midst of this era of rampant consumerism, a relatively surprising piece of news emerges: one fraud related to the mandatory consumption of the V-16 beacon that all cars will have to have them from January onwards if they don't want to receive a fine. Facua, a consumer rights organization, has accused the DGT (Spanish Directorate General of Traffic) of promoting massive fraud by the laxity Regarding the approval of this mandatory lamp, many consumers have purchased a model that is theoretically approved but, in reality, is not, meaning they will have to incur additional expenses if they want to avoid the corresponding fine. In the event of an accident, not having a light approved by the DGT (Spanish Directorate General of Traffic) will cost €200. And €80 if you are caught without one during a routine check. Regardless of what we think about this system invented by two former Civil Guard officers to supposedly prevent accidents when placing warning triangles—and which, for the moment, will only be used in Spain, as if other countries didn't have accidents caused by triangles—and about the possibility that the DGT-approved lights only serve to keep us in the dark. Whoever gets the money. Because, ultimately, poor management always ends up costing consumers extra. And if you have to file a complaint, add the extra time and patience.

A couple—she Australian, he English—decided to make a radical life change and settled in Italy, in a house in the woods where they lived with the bare necessities and raised their children in a way that was unconventional for most. Now, the Italian courts have decided to remove their custody of the children, alleging that the children—six-year-old twins and an eight-year-old girl—are not in school, lack basic services, and live in isolation. The children are in a foster care center while they await a judge's final decision on what is best for them. family It has been shown, with data from the Italian Ministry of Education, that a teacher continues her education at home and that her children play with other boys and girls in the area. They use solar panels for energy and draw drinking water from a well. The children show no signs of abuse. They don't have cell phones or television. They are not vaccinated. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but what exactly is being judged?

In 1688, the 19-year-old Swiss physician Johannes Hofer presented the thesis Nostalgia medical dissertatio, oder Heimwehe to explain the feeling of sadness experienced by some soldiers while on the front lines, far from home. It was the first time the term had been used. nostalgia, created by the young man himself from the Greek words uswhich means return, and algaePain. The sorrow of the soldiers who longed for their homes and surroundings was also concentrated in this German word, Heimweh, which unites, Heimhome, and Weh, pain.

The Milan Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation to verify whether it is true that Italian citizens and citizens of other nationalities paid to murder civilians for pleasure during the Bosnian War. This macabre tourism, which has been aptly defined as "human safaris", It consisted of paying a sum of money that could range from 80,000 to 100,000 euros to travel to besieged Sarajevo in 1992 on a trip organized specifically for the purpose of killing people. The price varied depending on the murder. The most expensive targets were children. The most defenseless. The most innocent. The "safari" also included, in addition to any type of adult, pregnant women. Another prized target. This savage practice was denounced in a 2022 documentary by the Slovenian Miran Zupanic, titled Sarajevo Safari. Now, based on statements from a former Bosnian army general and former intelligence agent who spoke with an Italian journalist, the prosecution has launched an investigation to determine if these events are true and to convict the perpetrators for crimes that, in principle, have not yet expired.