hell

“Hell is other people”

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The history of philosophy is full of round phrases that (in theory) synthesize the way of thinking of their authors. Also from ambiguous interpretations or directly wrong. Perhaps the clearest case is made by Jean-Paul Sartre, one of the icons of existentialism. Often his phrase “Hell is other people” It is understood in its most literal and stark sense, as if it were the misanthropic cry of someone tired of living in society. It’s not like that. Sartre himself was in charge of clarifying it. An unexpected hell. In Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) there was a double quality that does not always accompany the great philosophers. A deep look. And an ability to express complex theories in a clear, even engaging way. Hence, he expressed his way of seeing the world both in essays and in novels, scripts and plays. The phrase in question comes from one of the latter, ‘Huis Clos’from 1944, which is usually translated into Spanish as ‘In camera’. In it, the French philosopher presents us with three characters (one man, two women) trapped in a room. The interesting thing comes when we understand that the room in question is hell and the actors we see on stage represent condemned souls. The three of them expect the kind of torture they have read about and seen in pictures, but as time passes they realize that nothing happens. No devils with tridents or flames. No Dantesque scenes. Nothing remotely resembling ‘The Garden of Delights’ of Bosco. “L’enfer, c’est les autres”. Throughout the play, each of the three characters confesses their story and the sins they committed in life, weaving a frustrating love triangle. Towards the end of the performance, one of them, Garcin, utters what is perhaps the most resounding and certainly the most famous phrase, not only of the work itself, but of Sartre’s entire legacy: “I would never have believed it… Remember? The sulfur, the bonfire, the grill… Ah! What a joke. There is no need for grills, hell is the Others.” To be more precise, what Sartre wrote in the original, in French, was “L’enfer, c’est les autres”so there are those who have believed that the translation “Hell is the Other” better fits the author’s intention. Well, it’s pretty clear, isn’t it? Not so much, actually. If literature (art in general) has something good, it is that it can be discussed, but since practically the 1940s, readers and viewers of ‘Huis Clos’ have tended to interpret Garcin’s phrase in a way that is not entirely correct. Not so much because it is erroneous in itself but because it impoverishes the meaning that its author wanted to give it. We know that Sartre was an atheist, so it is not unreasonable to think that when he presents us with a personal hell, without torture, devils or rivers of lava, what he wants to suggest to us is that in reality our authentic condemnation is “the Other”, the obligation to understand each other with the people with whom we share our time, just like the prisoners of ‘Huis Clos’, right? “The executioner is each one for the other two”, comes to say at one point in the play one of the characters. “It has been misunderstood”. The truth is that the above is a simplistic approach. Of course, that is not the meaning that Satre wanted to give to his words. And we know this not because critics or academics dedicated to studying the work and life of the French author have suggested it. No. It was Sartre himself who, in 1964, years after premiering the work, he complained that his misinterpretation. “‘Hell is other people’ has always been misinterpreted. It has been thought that with that phrase I meant that our relationships with others are always poisoned, that they are invariably hellish relationships. But what I really mean is something totally different,” clarifies the philosopher. “I mean that if relationships with another person are distorted, flawed, then that other person can only be hell. Why? Because… when we think about ourselves, when we try to know ourselves… we use the knowledge that others have about us.” And what does that mean exactly? The fundamental thing is not so much how we deal with others or whether this is easy or complicated for us, but how we build our self-understanding. It is best understood with the metaphor of “mirrors”, a tool that is also very present in Sartre’s play. When we want to know what we are like physically, on the outside, it is easy for us: we resort to the reflection that the glass returns to us. But… How do we form our self-knowledge? “When we try to know ourselves, we use the knowledge that others have about us,” Sartre explains to uswho warns however that the ‘reflection’ we receive in that case is not like that of the crystals. “We are judged with the means that others have and have given us. In everything I say about myself, someone else’s judgment always enters. In everything I feel inside, another’s judgment enters. That does not mean at all that one cannot have relationships with other people. It only highlights the fundamental importance of all other people for each of us,” insist the philosopher Trapped characters. The three characters in ‘Huis Clos’ are trapped, but not (alone) in a closed room. Each one of them is a prisoner of the judgment that the rest have made of him in a complex relationship. That is his true punishment, his hell, not the monsters and flames that we see in Hieronymus Bosch’s paintings. Their penance is that the three characters are condemned to define themselves through the “distorting mirrors” of their companions, people who give them a negative reflection and in turn cause the same effect, adds Kirb Woodward.. Sartre himself poses this concept of the tyranny of “being for others” in another way in ‘Being and nothingness’: “By the mere appearance of the Other I see myself in … Read more

how the hell to census 1.4 billion people

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It doesn’t matter what you do, what sector you work in or the number of people you are in charge of. Your tasks will hardly be as complicated as the one the Government of India has just faced: censusing 1.4 billion people, more than triple of the population of the European Union. The mission is so titanic that it will require more than three million of technicians, a whole legion of censors who will visit around 640,000 villages and almost 10,000 towns and cities. The task is difficult, but it is key if New Delhi wants an updated ‘photo’ of the country that allows it to make decisions adapted to its economy and population. One census to rule them all. India is not just any country. In 2023 the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) estimated which had become the most populous nation on the planet, surpassing China. According to their calculations, that same year the (new) Asian giant far exceeded the 1.4 billion of inhabitants, almost three million more than the country led by Xi Jinping. Now New Delhi has proposed to go further and know in detail how that population is distributed. multiply by 3.1 the EU-wide registry. As? Creating him who, according to some analystswill be the most ambitious census of its kind. One figure: three million. Census of 1.4 billion people is imposing, but that is only one of the many figures that give an idea of ​​how enormous the task will be. There are others just as impressive. For example, a few days ago The New York Times needed that shaping the census will require an investment of around 1.2 billion dollars and mobilizing more than three million technicians. The vast majority will be civil servants and teachers. Such a legion of censors will have to travel from top to bottom of the most populous country in the world. To be more precise, it will be dedicated to covering 36 states and territories, 7,000 subdistricts, more than 9,700 cities and 640,000 villages And how will they do it? The million dollar question. Or rather, the 1.4 billion. It is known that from the outset the Government wants to divide the work into two phases. The first one started this month and will last until September, six months during which the technicians will dedicate themselves to preparing a complete list of homes and inhabitants. Its mission will be to record the size and characteristics of the households and whether, for example, they have access to services such as internet or sanitation. The second phase will start in 2027 and will focus on individuals. It will then be when the censors collect data from each person, documenting names, sexes, ages, marital status or educational and salary level, religion or other characteristics, such as whether they have migrated or have some degree of disability. The work is enormous, but the officials will have a new tool: an app that will make their work doubly easier. Not only will it save them from handling printed paper forms. Citizens themselves will be able to use it to provide their data. Then the censors will only have to check them. Is it something new? No. This is not (far from it) the first census carried out by the Indian authorities. The country has updated its records every 10 years since 1881, when it was still under British rule. I had previously done a try with a questionnaire that would allow you to collect basic indicators. Since then the census has been varying, adding and losing items depending on the concerns of each moment. For example, in 1901 the technicians added a section that sought to clarify what English proficiency existed in the country. A pending task. That tradition sustained since 1881 broke in 2021when COVID prevented updating the 2011 registry. Since then the task has been postponed for different reasons until reaching April 2026. Just because technicians have already started collecting data does not mean that we will know their conclusions soon. CNN precise that the final count will not be made public until next year. Only in the first phase, people who participate in the census must answer just over 30 questions. Why is it important? That the Indian Government is willing to deploy resources, hours of work and millions of dollars to improve its census is no coincidence. The State needs an updated ‘photo’ for such basic issues as designing policies and offering specific services and programs aimed at employment or rural areas. Right now the most detailed image you have is from 15 years agowhich has forced the authorities to use sampling. “This census is crucial: it is the definitive snapshot of India, capturing everything from caste and religion to jobs, education and services. It offers the most complete picture of how people live,” explains to the BBC Ashwini Deshpande, from Ashoka University. His comment slips a couple of keys: the census will not only update the rural, urban and peri-urban map, it will also help decide what parliamentary representation each territory should have and will give an idea of ​​the caste system, one of the points most controversial of the study. Image | Neelakshi Singh (Unsplash) In Xataka | China knows that its population is going to collapse but it already has a long-term plan to solve it. Of course, thanks to AI

the toxic hell of Tehran after the bombing of the worst fuel in the world

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The water in emergency reserves is no longer transparent; It has turned a thick black. The city’s once passable streets are covered in a slippery, dark layer. “Night became morning and morning, with all the smoke, became night again,” said one astonished resident. These are not scenes from a dystopian movie, but the reality that describe The New York Times after the bombings on the oil infrastructure in Iran. The attacks have left Tehran residents facing a rain laden with oil and toxins that stains cars, roofs and hanging clothes. Faced with this unprecedented situation, the Iranian authorities and the Red Crescent have been forced to ask the more than 9 million inhabitants of the capital to lock themselves in their homes, with severe warnings for children, the elderly and pregnant women. What falls from the sky is no longer just water; It’s poison. A fog that reaches space. The constant military bombings against multiple fuel facilities in and around Tehran, such as the Shahran and Aqdasieh depots, have left a black scar. As detailed GuardianDays after the impacts, satellite images showed that the facilities were still burning, sending columns of dense smoke into the atmosphere. But the problem is aggravated by the type of fuel that burns. An exhaustive analysis of The New York Times reveals that the clouds They are extraordinarily toxic because Iran burns and stores large quantities of “mazut.” This is a very low quality residual fuel, the “bottom of the barrel” that remains after refining the oil, and which contains very high levels of sulfur. Although much of the world prohibits its use, Iran depends on it due to its aging refineries and international sanctions. And it started to rain black. When the facilities were blown up, smoke laden with soot, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen compounds rose to the skies. Why did it rain black? Akshay Deoras, scientist at the University of Reading consulted by Guardianand the magazine Nature They explain it with a clear metaphor: the raindrops acted like “sponges or magnets”, absorbing all the pollutants and oil suspended in the air before collapsing on the city. Furthermore, Tehran is a victim of its own geography. As the magazine explains NaturelThe city is surrounded by the Alborz mountains. This generates a phenomenon known as “thermal inversion,” where a layer of warm air traps cold, contaminated air near the ground, functioning as a lid that prevents toxicity from dispersing. The invisible enemy. The citizens they expressed thatAlmost instantly, they began to suffer headaches, eye and skin irritation, and severe breathing difficulties. The Iranian Red Crescent issued urgent alerts warning that the mixture of humidity and sulfur dioxide was generating acid rain, capable of causing chemical burns on the skin. However, the medical community’s real fear is long-term. This is the “invisible enemy” that Professor Armin Sorooshian talks about in The Conversation. Not only do explosions release petroleum smoke, but the ammunition itself contains heavy metals such as lead and mercury. Exposure to fine particles (PM2.5) that penetrate deep into the lungs brings with it a devastating legacy. As John Balmes, professor emeritus at the University of California, warns, in The New York Times: “Can you imagine a fire in an oil depot in Manhattan? That’s what we’re talking about.” Experts predict a future increase in cardiovascular disease, cognitive damage, DNA alterations and various types of cancer due to the carcinogens present, such as benzene. The threat also filters into what the population drinks and eats. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) have warned that spilled oil and toxic rain are contaminating groundwater, public canals and farmland, poisoning the food chain in a country already suffering from a severe drought. Beyond: ecocide. The magnitude of the disaster brings legal loopholes and massive collateral damage to the table. Iran has called the attacks “ecocide,” a term that makes sense when analyzing international law. The legal limbo that allows this horror. It may seem paradoxical, but bombing a fuel tank is not technically a chemical attack. Expert Alexandra R. Harrington explained it in detail in The Conversation: Although the Geneva Conventions prohibit destroying civil infrastructure, they do not specifically shield gasoline tanks or industrial products. Added to this is that international treaties on chemical weapons only punish the use of weapons manufactured expressly for this purpose. The result? A huge legal loophole that allows a refinery to explode and an entire city to be poisoned without having fired a single factory-made toxic missile. A black sea in the Gulf. The disaster is not only in the sky of Tehran. If we look towards the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, the war has turned the water into another ground zero after direct hits against oil tankers and desalination plants. Oil spills are already spreading across the sea, putting local fishing communities on the ropes and drowning coral reefs. Species that were already on the verge of extinction, like dugongsthey are now swimming in a death trap. The smoke that crossed half the world. The gigantic column of black smoke that was born in the Iranian deposits has not remained stagnant there. The currents have been dragged eastwarddrawing a dark line over Afghanistan and China until it sneaks into Russian airspace. The big fear now is that if all that accumulated soot falls on the high mountain ranges, it will act as a magnet for the sun and drastically accelerate the melting of the glaciers. The hidden climate bill. There is collateral damage that is hardly talked about and that Deutsche Welle has put on the table: The military machinery is an insatiable devourer of fossil fuels. Bombings and troop movements are injecting millions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere in record time. The most frustrating thing about this situation is that the current climate agreements have a “fine print” that exempts countries from accounting for emissions derived from war in their official balance sheets. An indelible toxic legacy. Historically, … Read more

spring will be hell for allergy sufferers

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Spring is just around the corner, and although for some it is good news for being able to start making plans outside the home more frequently, for allergy sufferers it is very bad news. Recent meteorology and the climate crisis have been simmering a scenario that experts already classified as extreme and that causes diagnosed allergy sufferers (and even those who are not) to start showing symptoms early. The experts. The Spanish Society of Allergology and Clinical Immunology itself has given the alarm voicesince the spring that we are about to begin is shaping up to be one of the most intense and harsh in memory for those allergic to pollen in Spain. And it is not that this year there is “a lot of pollen”, but what is happening is that the behavior of the plants is changing completely. The combination of very intense winter rains with very mild temperatures has generated an “explosive cocktail” that is already beginning to show its first symptoms. The pollen map. To understand the magnitude of the problem, you have to look at the figures from the SEAIC, which uses meteorological, hydrological and aeropolinic sampling data to draw up its annual forecast. This year, the south and the center of the peninsula bear the brunt, with ground zero in Extremadura, where forecasts point to skyrocketing ranges of between 10,000 and 12,000 grams per cubic meter in both provinces. In the case of AndalusiaWe must highlight Seville, where very high concentrations of 6000-8000 grams per square meter are expected, while in Jaén, the fact that it stands out for its wonderful olive trees means that it also faces “intense” levels. The center and north of the peninsula. MadridToledo and the rest of Castilla-La Mancha will range between moderate and high levels, easily exceeding the thresholds that trigger the most serious and annoying symptoms. But the good news is that the north of the peninsula, the Mediterranean coast and the Canary Islands will, in principle, register mild or moderate levels. The perfect storm. Historically, allergy temperatures followed a fairly predictable biological clock, but not anymore. The abundant rainfall that has drenched the peninsula during the winter months has left the land in optimal conditions. The plants, especially grasses and olive trees, have grown strongly, developing deep roots and dense crowns. Added to this is the second ingredient of the perfect storm: premature heat. The mild temperatures have caused pollination to come forward, and as the vice president of the SEAIC explains, the environment is increasingly “more hostile” for patients. Pollinosis is no longer an exclusive problem in May and June, but rather begins much earlier and ends later. Much more allergy. If we look at the trend that has been followed in recent years in this time of allergy, we can see that 2026 is fulfilling the trend that has been set in previous years, so we are talking about a new normal. A recent study from the University of Córdoba confirmed specifically, the pollen season in Spain has lengthened by about 25 days since the 1990s. The increase in temperatures and desertification are not only stretching the allergy calendar, but are introducing new allergenic species such as amaranths, in areas where they did not proliferate before. And other factors. Experts point out that the quality of the pollen is something that is also having a lot of influence this season. To understand it, we look at the increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which acts as a fertilizer for plants, which causes them, in addition to producing more pollen, to also express more proteins that are detected by our immune system, generating a greater response that gives us the classic allergy symptoms. Added to this is also the atmospheric pollution that weakens the respiratory mucous membranes and makes it easier for pollen to penetrate deeper into our lungs. Take action as soon as possible. With all this data, you have to start taking the treatment (when recommended by the doctor) when these dates are approaching and not wait until you start to feel the infernal itch in your nose or eyes. Besides, consult official sources pollen levels and wearing a mask at times of higher concentration of pollen to which one is sensitive is the most recommended today. Images | Brittany Colette In Xataka | It’s normal to make fun of the sudden matcha tea craze, but there is someone who does take it seriously: science

What the hell is C-RAM, the most “science fiction” system that the US has?

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For some time now, when night comes in the middle of wars or armed conflicts, there are sounds that remain recorded forever. They are not explosions or sirens: it is a mechanical noise that seems to come from another world. In fact, they remember a lot to the metallic roar that Spielberg imagined to announce the arrival of the aliens in War of the Worlds. Only, this time, it’s not cinema. And it’s really happening. The roar that is not forgotten. Occurred two days ago. At night in Baghdad, when the sirens sound and the sky seems calm for a few seconds, there is a sound that cuts through the air like a giant chainsaw. It is not a plane or a conventional explosion: it is the C-RAM going into action. That roar, often described by those who have heard it as an almost unreal metallic roar, is the sound of thousands of projectiles fired in a matter of seconds to destroy rockets, drones or mortars before they fall on a base or an embassy. Just a few days ago it was heard again at the American embassy in Baghdad, when a Katyusha rocket attack activated the defensive system. According to Reuterswas an attack by Iraqi militias aligned with Iran. The sirens sounded, the gun got started and one of the projectiles was destroyed in mid-flight before reaching the diplomatic complex. The result was the same as on many other occasions: no impact inside the venue. But the episode once again reminded us why the sound has become one of the most disturbing in modern warfare. The naval origin. He C-RAM (acronym for Counter Rocket, Artillery and Mortar) was not originally born to protect cities or embassies, but warships. Its technological heart comes from Phalanx system of the US Navy, developed in the 1970s to shoot down fast-approaching anti-ship missiles. That automatic defense was based on a simple and brutally effective concept: a radar detects the threat, calculates its trajectory and a rotating machine gun automatically opens fire to create a wall of projectiles that destroys the target before it hits. Over time, the Pentagon realized that the same principle could be applied on dry land to protect military bases exposed to attacks with mortars or improvised rockets, a constant threat in conflicts such as Iraq or Afghanistan. Shoot like a storm. The most visible element of the system is its M61 Vulcan cannona gatling gun six-tube capable of firing around 4,500 20-millimeter projectiles per minute. That bestial cadence is precisely the reason its characteristic sound. When the system goes into action, the rotation of the barrels and the continuous firing generate a mechanical roar that is reminiscent of a cross between a chainsaw and a turbine. It is not a simple acoustic effect: the weapon needs to launch a veritable cloud of projectiles to increase the chances of destroying a rocket or mortar in mid-flight. Each shot uses explosive ammunition with programmed self-destruct to prevent projectiles from falling intact on populated areas if they do not reach their target. A technological umbrella. Behind that cannon is actually an entire network of sensors, radars and command systems. The C-RAM is not just a weapon, but an adefensive architecture that combines mortar detection radars, fire control systems and command stations capable of analyzing trajectories in seconds. When a radar detects a rocket or artillery projectile, it calculates its path and determine if it will impact in a protected area. Only then does the system activate the cannon and fire automatically. Within seconds, the weapon tracks the target, corrects its aim and opens fire. This whole process happens so quickly that for those on the ground there is only one sequence: the siren, the metallic roar of the cannon, and an explosion in the sky. The defense of the Green Zone. The system was first deployed years ago in Iraq to protect the called Green Zone of Baghdad, the enclave where the American embassy and much of the Western diplomatic and military infrastructure is located. Since then it has intercepted hundreds of rockets and projectiles launched by insurgent militias. In tests and real operations it has proven to be able to destroy between 70 and 80% of projectiles within its coverage area, making it one of the most effective point defenses in the world. Each unit costs between ten and fifteen million dollars, but its true cost is in the ammunition: each interception can consume tens of thousands of dollars in projectiles. Science fiction of modern warfare. What makes C-RAM so peculiar is not only its effectiveness, but the experience that generates when it comes into action. In a matter of seconds, the sky is filled with tracers that draw lines of fire towards an invisible point while the weapon roars with an almost surreal intensity. To those nearby, the effect is so impressive that many describe it as a scene straight out of a science fiction movie. However, this technological demonstration has a very specific function: to prevent cheap weapons such as improvised rockets or mortars from causing casualties in diplomatic bases and complexes. Announcing the war. Be that as it may, the rocket attack against the embassy American in Baghdad this week has once again recalled the role of this system in current conflicts. Directly framed in the Iran warAlthough one of the rockets was intercepted before falling inside the compound and there were no casualties, the episode confirmed something that American soldiers and diplomats have known for years: when that metallic roar sounds in the night, it means that the defensive shield is working. And also that the war is much closer than it seemed seconds before. Image | United States Air Force In Xataka | Iran’s drones have aimed at the same target as the US. And now that they have pulverized it, they are going to unleash their most dangerous weapon In Xataka | Iran has spent decades excavating its “missile cities.” Satellite images have just … Read more

where the hell to put a garbage can

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Madrid has discovered that there is something even more delicate than the ‘tazo’ of garbage: where the hell to install a garbage canton. The Consistory takes years planning one of these facilities in Montecarmelo, a residential area in the north of the city, but has encountered radical (and belligerent) opposition from its neighbors. The problem is not so much the complex itself but what dimensions it will have, what functions it will perform and how it will affect the daily life of the neighborhood. The controversy is served. What has happened? May Montecarmelo has declared war to the garbage canton that the Madrid City Council wants to install there. That is indisputable. What is more difficult is to gauge the scope of the project. For the Consistory it is about a “small” installationwhich will include changing rooms, offices and a small warehouse for machinery. Nothing else. Things change if we ask the residents of the area. They talk more about a “megacanton” of around 10,000 square meters that will turn the life of the neighborhood upside down. Is it something new? No. The issue has been on the table for several years now. In fact it can go back at least until 2023when the residents of Montecarmelo already took to the streets to show their rejection of the canton. At that time (election year) the work they came to a standstill both in Montecarmelo and in other districts of the capital in which new cantons were proposed, but the project was never ruled out. He was not spared from controversy either. The neighbors have brought your claims to Brussels (the European Parliament has agreed to investigate) and a few days ago some 8,000 people took to the streets, called by the No To Canton Platformto show his rejection. Why is it so controversial? Because the neighbors are convinced that the canton will be a “industrial installation” incompatible with the daily life of an urbanized area. Residents warn that the “megacantón” (10,000 m2) will be located between homes and three schools and that it will have a negative impact on the daily life of the neighborhood. Specifically, they warn of the dangers posed by the handling of solvents and the storage of flammable products, the bad odors, the noise that the facilities will cause and the movement of trucks that will be generated. According to your calculationsthe canton will add a flow of 117 vehicles (80 of them trucks) to an area already overwhelmed during school hours. What are they based on? The group assures that their fears have been confirmed by the environmental memory published at the end of last year, a document that, they insist, shows that it will be “a heavy industrial installation.” “The document contradicts more than two years of official political discourse,” censorship the Regional Federation of Neighborhood Associations of Madrid (Fravm). The entity warns that, beyond its “extraordinary dimensions”, the project will integrate an urgent cleaning service (Selur) in the “heart” of a residential neighborhood, between homes, schools and “destroying” a green area. Would it cause so much inconvenience? “The report describes machinery and processes typical of a large-scale mechanical workshop. It mentions truck lifts, hydraulic presses, welding equipment, electronic diagnosis, parts washing, oil changes and other dangerous and polluting liquids… Nothing to do with what the mayor and (the delegate of Urban Planning, Environment and Mobility Borja) Carabante say,” warn from the neighborhood group. What’s more, the document recognizes that the canton could generate up to 106.5 dB, well above the recommended (and permitted) limits in inhabited areas. This is what Fravm maintains, who compare it with the noise of a plane taking off. What does the City Council say? It considerably reduces the impact that the complex will have. And they defend their necessity. So claimed it a few days ago Borja Carabante, who insisted on talking about a “small canton” of garbage. “The neighbors told us to reduce the installation to a minimum, we have done so by only installing changing rooms, some small administrative offices and a small warehouse for them to have the carts,” says the municipal leader who recognizes that, although 10,000 m2 have been fenced, that will not be the final size of the canton. “It will certainly have less than half that area.” What is the problem then? “The neighbors have gone further because it is no longer that they just want a canton with changing rooms and a small warehouse, it is that they no longer want the canton not only in the neighborhood, practically in the district,” Carabante assures. “We cannot assume that because we are building 15 cantons throughout the city without in any of them we have had the controversies, the complaints, the claims that we are having in Montecarmelo.” Is it so controversial? That the Montecarmelo project has generated so much controversy is explained by several factors, beyond the surface (and scope) of the infrastructure. To begin with, the controversy goes back years. Furthermore, it does not occur in just any neighborhood. Montecarmelo is located in the district of Fuencarral-El Pardo, an important fishing ground of PP votes in 2023, which has given even more interest to protests aimed at a popular Government. The issue has not taken long to become politicized, with pronouncements of the different municipal parties and institutions such as the Ombudsman. As if the above were not enough, the residents of Montercarmelo have not hesitated to use all the resources at their disposal to stop the project. And that happens both by going out into the streets, organizing mass demonstrationssuch as taking their case to the courts or the European Parliament, which has committed to investigate the canton project. Among the residents there is also no shortage of those who relate the project to the Madrid Nuevo Norte residential development. Images | FRAVM 1 and 2 In Xataka | In the midst of the housing crisis, more and more people do something in Madrid: donate their house … Read more

For many people, making an appointment with the SEPE is hell. So there are already “managers” charging 99 euros to sneak you in

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Where you see something as unremarkable as an appointment with the SEPE, there are those who see something quite different: easy money. A juicy business that is cooked between networks, chats and platforms on-line of advertisements and that skirts the law to reach clients desperate to deal with the State. Its dynamics are very simple: managers appointments take advantage of the weaknesses of public administrations and their reservation systems to monopolize (free) appointments and then sell them. What do you urgently need to be attended to at the SEPE to process the unemployment benefit but there is no way to reserve an appointment on the official website? Do you need a procedure in Immigration? No problem. Pay and have an appointment tomorrow. five seconds. That’s how long it takes to find advertisements of people who offer to find and book appointments to carry out procedures at the SEPE. All (of course) in exchange for a payment that can range from 10 to 30 or even 100 euros. Your business it’s not entirely newjust as it is not the situation which they take advantage of: a cocktail of factors in which the staff cuts in the administration, failures in computer systems and the mischief of people willing to get rich by flouting the law and marketing a public service: prior appointments for citizens who need to make urgent arrangements, such as requesting unemployment benefits or presenting documents at the Immigration Office. “There were no appointments”. A few days ago elDiario.es published an article which gives an idea of ​​to what extent this has become chronic. illegal marketing of SEPE appointments, at least in part of Spain. The newspaper recounts the case of a 35-year-old woman, Sofía, who after losing her job did the most logical thing: go on the Public Employment Service website to request unemployment benefits. No luck. He did not find available appointments to go to the agency’s offices. Neither in Lleida (its province) nor in nearby areas. He tried it the next day with identical results. And on the other, and again on the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh day. Always without success. In total, he spent ten days in front of the computer, pressing the F5 key every so often in the hope of finding a free space. “It’s an abuse”. “I would have been willing to drive hours if necessary. But there was nothing at all,” confesses desperately Sofía, who saw how the deadline was consumed 15 business days that was available to request unemployment without losing benefit time. In the end she managed to get treated, but not thanks to a stroke of luck. She got the appointment through a friend’s contact, a stranger who, in exchange for 45 euros, scheduled an appointment for her in 48 hours. Maybe 45 euros seems like a lot of money for a free public service, but she herself recognizes There are those who charge up to 99 euros. “It’s an abuse.” How is it possible? For several factors. To start with the tensions in the administration. a few months ago The Country denounced the difficulties that citizens in Spain are having in getting appointments in the offices of the old INEM, especially those distributed along the Mediterranean coast, the islands and Madrid and Barcelona, ​​a phenomenon that is explained by the thinning of the workforce, the workload and failures of those they have already warned the unions. “Between 2022 and 2024 we have had 1,412 retirements. In 2025 we have lost 725 people,” laments in elDiario.es Manuel Galdeano, from the CSIF. From UGT they recognize that a service that should be provided by 12,000 personnel must be content with 7,300, which in their opinion translates into a work overload for the SEPE staff, but also a decrease in service to citizens. Taking advantage of the system. The other key that explains the ease with which people like the one who helped Sofía get appointments when the SEPE seems collapsed must be sought in the bowels of the system. Those who market with shifts They have their “tricks”such as bots and resources that allow them to automate searches and collect dozens of appointments daily. Then they just have to advertise their services on networks and chats and wait for vulnerable citizens to knock on their door. When that happens and they ‘hunt’ a desperate user, the managers appointments only have to cancel one of the many reservations they have made and request that space again, in seconds, with the personal data (name and surname, ID, postal code…) that the client has previously provided them. In exchange they charge 10, 20, 30, 40 or more euros via Bizum. In some cases almost 100 are required. Easy, simple… Ethical? Communication is online and clients are recruited through call centers, WhatsApp groups, social networks and advertising websites. In some case the managers dating sites advertise as companies and, assures elDiariothere are those who even try to appear more authoritative by using images of professional organizations without any permission. Their business relies mainly on the anxiety of users who need to contact the administration. Also in ignorance. The SEPE website allows, for example, to carry out a pre-application unemployment benefit that prevents users from losing days of unemployment even if it takes more than two weeks to get an in-person appointment. Is it something new? No. And perhaps that is the most curious thing. A quick search in the newspaper archive arrives to verify that the marketing with prior appointments with the administration It is not a new practice. In fact in 2020 the SEPE has already denounced before the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office of Barcelona the resale of appointments to resolve procedures in its offices, a practice that USO had warned about shortly before. Nor is it something that exclusively affects Employment. The same illicit business affects immigration services, a practice reported by officials and that has even led to police operations with dozens of arrested. In the case of the SEPE, … Read more

In Barajas there is an isolated baroque hermitage in the middle of a roundabout. The question is how the hell did it get there?

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Sometimes the story leaves us with hints of such fine irony that they seem like the work of the best of screenwriters. It happens in Barajas. It has stood there for more than three centuries a baroque hermitage dedicated to Our Lady of Solitude, the landlady of the district. The passage of time and the development of the area, marked by the proximity of the Madrid airport, has made the temple a true tribute to that very thing: loneliness. After all, it stands isolated in the middle of a roundabout. The question is… How the hell did it get there? A nod to history. In a way the hermitage Nuestra Señora de la Soledad is more than just a small baroque temple. It is also a reminder of a style and philosophy of religious architecture that shined in its day and faded with the passage of time. This is what the Official College of Architects of Madrid says, which remember on your website that the building was part of “the network of chapels, hermitages and humiliations that dotted the roads of Castile” centuries ago. “This dense network of small pieces has been progressively disappearing, depending on the growth of neighboring populations and the decline of the program they proposed,” COAM explains. “However, some of these pieces have been saved from the process, almost always for rather random reasons, such as their location in points of little speculative interest or their relationship with the memory of the place. Both occur in the case of Nuestra Señora de la Soledad.” But what is the temple like? A baroque hermitage from the mid-17th century made up of four aligned structures: an access portico, the nave of the faithful, the sanctuary and a semi-detached house at the head. “All of this composed with attention to a truly exquisite scale, whose containment in plan reinforces the ascending character of the complex,” explains the school, which refers to the building as “a true treatise on wise popular architecture.” Inside stands out a baroque altarpiece with busts of the Virgin, Jesus and Saint Rita. The most curious thing about the hermitage, however, is not its structure, its interior architecture or the pieces of sacred art that it preserves. Not even its importance as an example of the region’s religious heritage. If there is something that attracts attention, it is its location, something that can be appreciated with a simple glance to Google Maps. Instead of being located at the top of a mountain, a meadow, a square or a town, the hermitage is located inside a gazebo, surrounded by a ring of asphalt. It was actually there before the land became a roundabout. Trapped between cars. Your case is so peculiar that years ago Madrilanea treated him and more recently dedicated a report The Confidential. Both explain that to understand the location of the hermitage we have to go back decades, when the high traffic on the road from Vicálvaro to Barajas led the authorities to think about ways to improve the road. The problem is that there was something that hindered their plans: the temple of Nuestra Señora de la Soledad. The possibility of demolishing the hermitage or even moving it was put on the table, an idea difficult to execute considering that it was built based on brick and masonry. Neighborhood pressure ensured that both proposals were shelved and the building remained in place, although next to the road. Was that all? No. In the 90s the temple once again generated debate because it was located in the middle of the project to connect Plaza de Castilla with the airport through the M-11. Once again, the hermitage survived again, but at the cost of being left in an even more peculiar situation: the solution that was put on the table to avoid demolishing it was to open a tunnel under the ground. As the years went by, the old walls of the temple would see another project to improve the connection of an area that has ended up marked by the growth of the capital and the pull of the Madrid-Barajas airport, which today is an entry, exit or transit point for more than 60 million of travelers per year, in addition to thousands of tons of merchandise. The hermitage has endured, but it has not come for free: now it is isolated in a roundabout, converted into a junction of roads. Breaking the norm. The COAM admits that Barajas is not a common case. “We must recognize how unusual it is to know how to make the conservation of these monuments compatible with the layout of large infrastructures such as, in this case, the express access route to the airport,” points out the schoolfor which the temple is today “a strange monument”, “practically useless for its former purposes, isolated at the roundabout at the intersection of the expressway and Logroño avenue.” The situation of the hermitage is far from being ideal in any case. And not only because it has been left “alien” to the town, connected by a zebra crossing. There are those who warn that, like other historical monuments in a similar situation, the temple is very exposed to road traffic, with its load of pollution, smoke and the vibrations generated by the passage of cars, buses and trucks. Images | Google Earth and Wikipedia 1 and 2 In Xataka | There is a new very profitable and not at all legal business in Madrid: charging immigrants a fortune to register them in their homes

Spain has been wondering for years what the hell to do with the “castle of the tricorns.” Tourism has come to their aid

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More than a decade and a few auctions Then, a long (and fruitless) succession of bids during which its sale price fell little by little, the Maqueda castle It finally has a new owner. The Canarian firm Amcotur (América de Construcciones y Turismo SL) has decided to buy this old Toledo fortress from the State for 3.25 million of euros to convert it into a hotel. Its sale is important for several reasons. The bastion sees its future clear after a long (very long) administrative soap opera. The people trust in winning a stimulus that will boost their economy. And the Ministry of the Interior is getting rid of a property in which it invested millions of euros and which it has been trying to get rid of for a decade. In a place in Castilla-La Mancha… Although the last years of the Maqueda castle (known as “the castle of the tricorns”) have been moved at an institutional level, in reality they are only a chapter in the vast history of this fortress, located 75 km from the center of Madrid, in a town of just 500 neighbors. Its origins can be traced back at least 981when Almanzor decided to reinforce a fortress that already existed. Since then its history has been full of twists, turns and big names (it is said that Isabel la Católica stayed in one of its towers): in 1157 the bastion came under the control of the Order of Calatrava, in the 15th century it was almost completely rebuilt and over the centuries it ended up in interior handswhich was initially assigned to the Civil Guard units. What do we do with it? In your file of the Junta de Castilla-La Mancha explains that until “recently” the fortress basically acted as a Civil Guard barracks, but the truth is that its recent history is somewhat more complex. Between the 90s and early 2000 An ambitious remodeling was carried out to convert the bastion into the headquarters of the Armed Institute’s historical archive. The idea was left half-finished. As relates The Countrychanges in the Government and economic ups and downs marked the project. First it expanded, adding a museum to the archive functions; But the 2008 crisis caused the plan to go into a tailspin. During the time of Mariano Rajoy at the head of Moncloa, it was decided to put the property up for sale (along with many other assets) to inject funds into the public coffers. Although the dream of converting the fortress into a museum-archive did not materialize, it did have consequences: a new block was built between the castle walls, in the parade ground, a modern concrete building with three floors and a basement. In total, the remodeling cost the State 7.4 million of euros. Until recently the property was still listed in the catalog of the GIESE (State Security Infrastructure and Equipment Management), where it was specified that it has a constructed area of ​​3,060 square meters. The plot adds 2,861 m2. Dropping in price. The castle is impressive, it has new construction and the plot is classified also as urban land suitable for residential, public or hotel uses (among others), which opens the range of possible uses. None of this prevented Interior from struggling and wanting to free itself from the fortress. In 2014 he asked 9.58 million. In vain. Nobody bid. The following year it adjusted the starting price, leaving it at 7.47 million. Another failure. The figure continued to decline (first to 5.9 million, then to 2.76) without whetting investors’ appetite. In 2023 its value was established at 3.25 million, the price for which the Canarian company has now decided to buy it, owned by Yusef Nasser and with experience both in the hotel sector and in the management of historic buildings. Among the accommodations in its catalogue, the company includes a four-star hotel located in a Burgos castle from the 15th century. Although the figure for which the bastion of Maqueda has been acquired directly is much lower than what was requested in 2014 or 2017the hotel group assures to Canarias7 that the operation has been closed at the “official appraisal” price. You will probably have to add the cost of the works to the purchase amount. Next stop: a small rural hotel. In mind, the company plans to set up a rural hotel, a four-star accommodation, with a spa, swimming pool, restaurants and conference room, according to precise laser. The station clarifies that the establishment will allow you to visit the surroundings of the walls and their archaeological challenges. For that we will have to wait. From the company recognize that to release the accommodation it will be necessary to invest in the reform and rehabilitate the old wall that surrounds the castle, declared in 1931 artistic historical monument. The idea is that the bastion, popularly known as “Castle of the Tricorns” will open its doors to guests in about a year and a half, around mid 2027. “It will give life to the town”. The mayor of Maqueda, Andrés Congosto (PSOE), admitted these days to SER that in the town they are “very happy” about the news about the reactivation of the property after “more than 10 years” of projects and ideas that had not quite come to fruition. At the time, it was even proposed to convert the bastion into a museum dedicated to democratic memory, an approach presented by the City Council and the Manuel Azaña Association to the Government years ago. The councilor has recognized elDiario.es now feels a certain “frustration”, but he then clarifies: “At least a private owner has not bought it and it will be a rural hotel. That will give life to the town, promote tourism and employment.” Images | Giborn_134 (Flickr) and Junta of Castilla-La Mancha In Xataka | Toledo has had enough of the mass tourism that saturates the city center. His plan to change it: China

The “foodies” have turned the historic centers of Italy into hell, so the cities are getting serious

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Italy is at war. In a not so particular one that it shares with other countries and cities: the battle to stop mass tourism. He is trying with all his might through higher rates, entrance fees that they folded After initial success, a veto key boxes and even taxes on tourist dogs. Now, several cities have agreed on one thing: stop the ‘foodies’. As? Prohibiting the opening of new restaurants in historic centers. In short. Going through the historic center of any Italian city is like entering a culinary amusement park. There is not only restaurants wherever you lookbut these constitute a fair in which eye-catching posters appealing to tradition and artisans who prepare fresh pasta in front of the windows of the premises, like circus animals, are a constant. Now, cities like Rome, Turin, Florence, Palermo and Bologna have launched restrictions when opening new restaurants in their historic centers. Displacing the population. Although Italians love their traditional cuisine as much as anyone, they are getting tired of their city centers becoming theme parks. There are especially bleeding streets, like Via Maqueda in Palermo or Via del Pellegrino in Rome (to a lesser extent), which are basically a succession of premises. As he comments The New York Timeshundreds of new restaurants have opened over the last decade in just a few streets of those tourist spots, establishments that dress in tradition, but are not and displace the local population far from their homes. It is something that is seen in many other cities in the world in which the tourism is doing that the price of land rises in very specific points, also that of rents, and the locals see how traditional businesses disappear while others linked to that consumerism flourish. “We must protect the center”. In the case of Italy, the aim is to fight against gastronomic gentrification, which is replacing historical markets and local stores with businesses aimed at mass tourists, and they also want to protect the authenticity and daily life of citizens. But we also want to preserve tradition and diversity compared to more homogeneous or franchised models. Luisa Guidone, Councilor for Commerce of Bologna, comment that “the center must be protected, maintaining the mix of existing stores that allow citizens to have their daily experience when shopping.” Everyone makes their war. As we say, the prohibition or limitation on opening premises is not part of a national initiative, but rather of each municipality. In Palermo, new restaurant licenses have been expressly prohibited in emblematic areas such as Via Maqueda. In Florence, no new openings of bars, restaurants or any food establishments in more than 50 streets in the center and some peripheral ones. In the aforementioned Bologna, until June 2028, new projects aimed at commercial activities that want to open in the historic center and in Rome or Turin will be carefully studied. more of the same (especially around the Vatican). Then, there are exceptions. For example, Florence allows you to open establishments such as art galleries, bookstores or crafts, anyone that is not focused on mass hospitality. Not just food. But this goes beyond gastronomic gentrification. In it Corriete di Bologna we can read that the restrictions They imply that, until 2028, it will be prohibited to open new money exchange stores, call centers (which are telephone centers, Internet connection points and money transfer points) in the historic center, as well as “buy gold” or automatic cash machines.slot machine‘. Debate. Now, promoting something like this is complicated when tourism represents almost 12% of the Italian economy and the gastronomic tourism It is an important source of income. In fact, in the NYP article they include statements from tourists who only want to eat. Also those responsible for FIPE, the Italian Federation of Food and Tourism Companies, who point out that “sometimes, the Coliseum is an excuse for an American among a cacio e pepe and one amatriciana“In addition, it is criticized that each city is waging war on its own and there is no law promoted at the national level. In any case, as we said at the beginning, it is evident that Italy has a problem with this mass tourism that is displacing the population that really lives in those cities. Traditional businesses have closed or have been converted, going from selling useful foods for citizens to traditional dishes wrapped in a striking way for tourists. And finding the balance seems tremendously complicated. Images | Anna Church, Maxime Steckle, Matej Buchla In Xataka | “Fodechinchos free”: in a bar in Galicia, tourismphobia is being redirected against Spaniards from other regions

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