[Igurisu]

I saw this on the main news this evening.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-19892976

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2012/10/2012109171254742993.html

Doesn’t stack up for me, Spain is not asking for a bailout but the red cross are launching an appeal to feed hundreds of thousands of starving people.

I understand that is over simplifying matters, and there is much more to the story. Many people who don’t follow life in Spain and only see it as a holiday destination won’t realise that. I can’t help but think that this will not be good for Spain as a tourist destination, one of the country’s main sources of income.

[Anonymous]

It’s difficult. Those who live/lived in Spain could see what is going on. There have always been the Red Cross or Church groups handing out food parcels. The Mayors did it often just before elections 😉

At the start of the crisis it would be the usual suspects, the gypsies and Moroccan/African/Ecudorian immigrants lining up for the free food.

Then bit by bit the Spanish, who would previously have put off lining up due to the shame of it, now actually have no choice. They have no money to buy food so they have to take the hand outs.

The Red Cross is one which for me is a bit tricky. There are those who are ‘do gooders’ who storm in and don’t see the whole picture. Great that they used to show up in a bad area of town and hand out food, medicine, clothes and even new mountain bikes to the Africans who were arriving in droves. The guys had arrived with nothing or worked long hours picking lettuce for little pay.

BUT, they did it in full view of the ‘gypsy’ area and it can’t have helped local tensions. If people are going to get hand outs I think that it should be available to all.

The Red Cross held Spanish lessons and I know of one English guy who stopped going because they didn’t learn anything apart from what hand outs the Africans could be able to claim for.

Help for all but also the system needs a bit more control maybe? I used to see some queue up for the church food at the end of the high street and then i’d see them with a full trolley in Mercadona……

To end, there must be thousands of genuine people in Spain starving because they do not have the level of benefits that other countries provide. Poverty is rife there sadly and articles need to highlight it. Why would it not be good for tourists, what reality in Spain do they see anyway??

[Author]

Posts