The other huge item in Spain’s agenda is Cuba’s outstanding debt to Spain, well over 1 billion dollars last time I saw ny numbers.
Yeah, well, that’s supposedly what we have in the DR right now. But it’s all rather fictional. You either “agree” with the US-style democracy, or, if you’re lucky, name your price, get it, and quit whining. Otherwise you go the way of Orlando Martinez (Google him if you don’t know what I am talking about).
And there are no semantics involved in what BG or myself said: rather doubtful (in fact, not doubtful at all) that he Republicans or the mostly right-wing Cuban exiles would “allow” anything akin to the Canadian, EU, Scandinavian social-democratic systems with its integrated “broad social net.” Which is exactly what is much needed in these Third World Nations if any sort of semi-equality is ever going to be achieved.
Lastly, allow me to mention the last action of the Spanish Government that left me agape: I already have two different private insurances, one local and one international, thus I am obviously not in need, nor a target of the action. But get this, just by virtue of being born in Madrid and registered as a citizen there, just this week I got a letter AND a health insurance card that covers any and all illnesses I might incur in, simply by virtue of traveling to Madrid! And here’s the kicker, the current President of the Comunidad Madrileña is Esperanza Aguirre, a well-known member of the PP (Aznar’s toy) but her incredibly thoughtful initiative was approved by the PSOE.
Now, these are the sort of things that give me hope for a better world – even if I don’t live to see it.
I’m not even sure that Franco was “granted” the pallium, (although he may well have been), based only on my awareness that Franco unilaterally demanded a few honors of the Spanish clergy (and was also granted a few honors by clergy more than willing to help him after his “defense” of the church from the communists).*
The pallium is not merely a sign of honor but a particular badge of office that newly minted archbishops must “request” of the pope before they can carry out their duties as metropolitans of their provinces (even though they would not have been elevated to the archbishopric without the full approval of the pope, to begin with). It is all a bit arcane to me. I have heard of Franco getting odd honors from the church and this could be one of them–certainly I have never heard of anyone not a bishop receiving a palliium, before.
*(Without in any way approving of Franco or the church’s horrible entanglement with him, it should be noted that priests were primary targets for assassination by the government under the regime that was overthrown just before the Civil War and that during the Civil War, the Reds continued that happy practice, extending it to nuns, teachers, and prominent laymen. I do not think that that justified many of Franco’s actions or the support of his heinous actions by the church, but as a human reaction by members of the clergy and hierarchy, it is pretty understandable.)
The interesting thing is that a democratized Cuba has the potential to become considerably more dem-sosh than anything you’ll find in Europe. From the Encarta:
This system would be radically more grass-roots democratic than anything we’ve got in the U.S., if the Communist Party were not in absolute control of all key decisionmaking at every step at every level.
Now imaging taking the Communist Party out of the equation. And imagine the people don’t immediately vote to privatize the whole economy – but, instead, let it remain under control of genuinely democratized state bodies and mass organizations.
That’s what the Revolution was ideally supposed to be about in the first place.
I just hope the system – at least, those salvageable elements described above — outlives Castro and the CCP.
Thank you kindly, Tom, appreciate your input. I take it from what you wrote that I was indeed right – in the sense that the pallium bit is an honor normally reserved for the clergy itself. Growing-up in Franco’s Spain as I did, I distinctly remember watching live transmissions of a few masses (especially the one for El Dia De Los Caidos, or The Day of The Fallen, from the majestic Valley of the Fallen, built entirely by POWs and whomever else he decided to jail and not kill) where he in fact went in under pallium.
OTOH, yes, you’re right, the Rojos did indeed launch a virulent campaign agaist the clergy. Me, I don’t really take sides on our civil war as I had members of my family fighting on either side – nothing untypical of that war btw. Just wish it never would have happened. Never mind the 40 years of dictatorship – and my dad’s unrepentant adoration of the man.
BG,
Thanks for that cite. It is indeed a great system if they could take the CP out of the equation – which I think was the lady I was telling you about had in mind. She also remarked that people ought not mistake the unity of the Cuban people as a whole – the the embargo, damaging at it was and is, made them even stronger in their resolve to reject an outright Capitalist system.
What I can’t tell you is how much it was true and how much was idealism on her part. I do hope for the best for them – and I don’t think naked capitalism is it.
I don’t know about the pallium thing, but Franco did appropriate some of the traditional ceremonial prerogatives of a Spanish king:
Here we go: Franco under pallium.
Happy union between the RCC and a fascist dictator – notice the fascists salutes all around.
No, he’s under a canopy – hitherto a royal prerogative.
A pallium is a strip of cloth a bishop wears draped around his neck.
BG, if I’ve learned anything in my already protracted life, is that seldom things are as black or white as many would have it.
By that I mean, I grew up under Franco, and there probably wasn’t a safer – or more prudish – country in the western world to live in. Crime was virtually unheard of…just as rare as seeing a naked boob anywhere; getting a hold of a Playboy, through some kids we knew that lived in Torrejon de Ardoz (The Spanish/American Air base) was practically a heroic feat. Censorship of movies was so ridiculous that sometimes (Hollywood stuff) flicks made no sense at all, i.e. The Graduate.
Having said that, as a kid, I didn’t give a hoot about politics – for me it was all about sports and just plain having fun. So, in that sense, it was a great country to grow-up in. Parents had nary a worry about drugs, porn, crime, etc. BUT, and there’s always a but, you best not DARE say anything anti-government, because odds were at least 50/50 that if you were overheard, someone would turn you in. And who the hell knew if you were ever going to get out. As per usual, the biggest problem areas were the large universities, who had a steady share of riots/protests. Lots of broken heads and kids off to jail.
Personal anecdote: my only uncle from my Mom’s side, all of seventeen when the war broke-out, was a loyal member of the Youth Falangists, thus he was obviously recruited to fight for the Nacionalist as soon as hostilities began. Smart kid that he was, he had taught himself morse-code as a hobby, thus he was sent to a communications outpost under a couple of other officers. Turns out one night, he’s alone in the outpost and a message comes in. Being a kid and quite curious, he proceeded to interpret the message prior to calling his superiors. In walks one of them, sees him doing this and he is immediately jailed, charged as an enemy-spy and sentenced to death by firing squad. Only thing that kept him alive was the fact that my Grandmother, who widowed very young, had remarried a politician of some clout on the right. Long story short. spent the better part of his youth in jail – 14 years – upon release, migrated to Canada where he earned a PHD in history and went-on to become a uni professor. But of course, Spain was always in his heart…and armed with his now Canadian passport, he made regular trips to Spain, normally to small towns in Asturias were he was originally from. Once there, he’d go to the local tavern, get loaded on apple-cider, and raise all sorts of hell against the regime. Result: he was deported at least five times before being permanently black-listed from entering Spain. Oh, and I’ll never forget the arguments from hell him and my Dad used to engage in…had to be broken apart by others (myself included) more than once. Both dead long ago. But the memories remain vivid.
And they are not in black and white.
Hope that made some sense.
Of course, Franco was never a fascist the way Mussolini and Hitler were. Fascism is a 20th Century phenomenon, consciously rooted in the past, but simultaneously forward-looking and futuristic on a hubristic scale. It was also in some respects a populist, anti-elitist movement with some socialistic ideology and rhetoric. Franco was more of a reactionary authoritarian – he didn’t want a glorious new Spanish Empire, he just wanted Spain to remain forever as it had been before 20th Century, with the gentry and RCC in power and the peasants knowing their place.
Yep. Pretty much spot-on. That’s how I’d encapsulate that time.
Well, maybe Tom can straighten us out on this. Because ‘palio’ is the word used in Spanish for what you call a ‘canopy.’ In fact, if you Google “Francisco Franco bajo Palio” you get a ton of images like the one I posted. For instance, right-click and look at the properties of that pic: franco-palio.jpg.
The point is, he didn’t have to get the pope’s permission to appear under a canopy. He would have, to wear a pallium – only the pope can hand them out, and only to bishops. The RCC supported Franco, but not enough to make him some sort of honorary lay bishop.
From the Real Diccionario de La Lengua Española:
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m. Especie de dosel colocado sobre cuatro o más varas largas, bajo el cual se lleva procesionalmente el Santísimo Sacramento, o una imagen. Lo usan también los jefes de Estado, el Papa y algunos prelados.
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m. Cosa que forma una manera de dosel o cubre como él.
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m. Prenda principal, exterior, del traje griego, a manera de manto, usada comúnmente sobre la túnica.
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m. Capa o balandrán.
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m. Insignia pontifical que da el Papa a los arzobispos y a algunos obispos, la cual es como una faja blanca con cruces negras, que pende de los hombros sobre el pecho.
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m. Paño de seda o tela preciosa, que se ofrecía como premio al vencedor en determinados juegos de carrera.
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m. Zool. Manto de los moluscos, de los braquiópodos y de otros grupos de animales.
Definitions one and five apply to what I’m saying.
Sorry, too tired to translate ATM. Off to bed as I’m waking-up at 2:30 AM to watch F-1 racing from Sepang.
Night.
We may have a problem of language and cognates, here. My (Western hemisphere-oriented) Spanish-English dictionary translates palio both as pallium and as canopy. However, as BrainGlutton notes, (in English) pallium applies only to a thin, circular stole-like vestment with eight small attached crosses worn by archbishops.
As further noted by BrainGlutton, there is a special use for canopies when used in processions. A canopy is properly used over only the Blessed Sacrament in solemn processions, but may, for special occasions, be used for bishops, legates, and “princes of the blood royal.” (Could Franco have claimed it for himself as the effective regent even though that is outside the rules?) At any rate, I have no idea whether the Spanish bishops conveyed the honor (willingly or under duress) or whether Franco appropriated it to himself.
I call it a waste of money
tomndebb: def 5 from Red Fury applies to your first paragraph, def 1 to your second paragraph. FYI.
True, but that would probably have been missed by all the Dutch-speaking Dopers. 
As I mentioned in this other thread (where you just might notice I threw “polite” out the window) all I id was toss and turn in bed for a few hours; little over an hour till race-time so I suppose its not all all bad – other than packing for my trip to Spain had no big plans for 2-morrow.
Anyway, tossing and turning I gave some thought to this this thread – no wonder the bed felt crowded – and I came up with the conclusion that, besides my memories/prejudices, Tom and BG are closer to the facts than I am, “language and cognates” aside. But not completely.
Allow me to explain, as pantom was kind enough to explain, both you, Tom and BG, are right going by the strict official Royal Spanish Dictionary definition ONE (BTW,along with its Mexican and Argentinian branches, the definitive Spanish language authorities), for AFAIK, Franco never wore the “faja blanca con cruces negras, que pende de los hombros sobre el pecho” (def 5) or as Tom translates it, “a thin, circular stole-like vestment with eight small attached crosses worn by archbishops.”
OTOH, I still have somewhat of a quibble on two fronts: Tom, in my eight or nine years of Jesuit schooling (never ming uni, because although it was a Jesuit school, I had nothing to do with religious teachings) if I am not mistaken, men had to have their heads uncovered (as opposed to women and veils) and yet Franco was allowed-in with definition one (canopy) without a murmur. Secondly, from an earlier cite of mine, Concordat with Franco, you’ll note the following:
– my highlights.
Rather exceptional the mutual concesions, are they not not?
PS-Thanks in an oblique way, guys. Only 10 minutes till race coverage starts. 