MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Uruguay’s president cancels last leg of European tour on medical advice
Uruguayan president Jose Mujica, 78, cancelled the last leg of his European visit, Italy, saying he was exhausted and suffering from jet-lag. He has been in the road since May 22, with a first official three-day visit to China, later to Spain, the Vatican and to Galicia and the Basque country, from where his family came. Read full article
Comments
Disclaimer & comment rules“Mujica, originally ‘Muxica’, underlined the close links of the Basque people [...]this meeting will boost cooperation between our peoples”
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 06:46 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Using the word 'peoples' to describe the population of an specific area of Spain!!!! Will have some Argentineans on here going into meltdown mode.
Or perhaps they are all a bunch of hypocrites??
I 'THINK' we already know the answer to that one.
screenname
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 09:01 pm - Link - Report abuse 0That one is easy.
Mujica doesn't speak English, and your literal translations kills the flavour of the language.
He's an old guy and clearly doesn't look after himself. He should take it easy.
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 09:45 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@2 Stevie: 'flavour of the language'
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 09:55 pm - Link - Report abuse 0PMSL
The translation of population or people seems VERY important to some of the numpties on here...
Maybe the Latin squatter should have stopped in Spain, or is he a hypocrite?
He went from Uruguay to China, to Spain, to Italy, to Spain Again and was set to go back to Italy. The man is 78 years old.
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 10:51 pm - Link - Report abuse 0You don't know what you are talking about. Not only about the language, but also about Pepes travelling.
Why do these old birds feel the need to be in power and running things at such an old age
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 11:12 pm - Link - Report abuse 0He didn't, we put him there.
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 11:15 pm - Link - Report abuse 0same thing really he obviously made himself available I never get it why these old ones want to carry on running things
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 11:35 pm - Link - Report abuse 0screenname ....stevie is correct, you cannot get the context of what someone is saying in another language with literal translations, there are just too many nuances to each language and it seldom if ever crosses in literal translation. Spanish is not a language one can take individual words and piece together a sentence.
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 11:42 pm - Link - Report abuse 0As for pepe, he deserves a little credit. He sees the downward slope in SA and going it alone to do what he sees best for Uruguay. But than again, perhaps he has ulterior motives, but I think with kirchner putting up a wall has him reaching out.
@5 Stevie:
Jun 03rd, 2013 - 11:49 pm - Link - Report abuse 0you don't seem to know what I'm talking about, but I know exactly what I'm talking about: hypocrisy and bigotry. Your mob seems to have great difficulty with justice, but whatever your moral code is you could at least have the good grace to apply it universally.
@7 Stevie:
you really do seem to have difficulty with logic. andy65 has a very valid point, it's not like this bloke is a monarch and is tied into the job till death. On the other hand if he is absolutely deluded to his capabilities, I suppose the blame goes lie with the numpties that thought he was competent and voted him in.
3 ElaineB . Totally agree with you . At his age he should be very careful with long plane trips . They can have a very bad effect at that age .
Jun 04th, 2013 - 12:38 am - Link - Report abuse 09 Captain Poppy . Also agree with you . He has seen that Mercosur is a mess , in particular Argentina , and is now looking for new markets . According to Stevie he has done a good job with foreign investment . New railroad , new harbour and more .
I don't mind having an 87 year old Head of State as she sits above politics.
Jun 04th, 2013 - 02:37 am - Link - Report abuse 0I don't mind having a 70 year old Governor-General as she also sits above politics.
But I am thankful that our Prime Minister is only 51 as she is young and energetic enough to handle the stress of the job.
Funnily enough all these roles in Australia are currently filled by woman.
In 2011, the Queen managed 10 days touring of Australia at the ripe old age of 85.
Our spritly 70 year old Governor-General has just started 2 weeks of meeting throughout Europe and recently returned from Antarctica.
And our youngish Prime Minister is getting ready to lose her job in 3 1/2 months. But is still running the country.
That is what I like about a constitutional monarchy compared to a presidential republic. The roles and duties are spread out and not concentrated in one person. Skills and roles overlap so that when Julia loses her job in September, Quentin will still be in her role.
But I do agree that Mujica does a good job for Uruguay. He is out and visual and expanding Uruguay's precense on the world stage. He is outward looking and expanding trade and diplomatic relations. This is why I think Uruguay is a better fit within the Pacific Alliance and not Mercosur. He could be building on the extensive ties and free trades agreements already made by Colombia, Peru, Chile and Mexico with places like China and the EU.
Uruguay has a lot in common with Australia. It is a small country next to a prickly larger one (Argentina/Indonesia) and overshadowed by a nearby giant (Brazil/China). You have to get out and bring the trade and attention to yourself or you are lost behind your neighbours.
With regard to Spanish and the nuances and flavours of the language. I am 67 and trying very hard in a relatively short time-frame to come to terms with this highly illogical (compared to English) form of communication.
Jun 04th, 2013 - 07:32 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Not only does Spanish have these attributes it also has extremely wide variances in the approach to what seems at times a completely different language. Mexican Spanish and Uruguayan Spanish I am told are almost unintelligible one to the other. Uruguayans going to Spain are very embarrassed by the laughter that accompanies their attempts to communicate with what they see as their own people.
I think yankeeboy (as right as ever) pointed out that you should have all your contracts in English due to these flavours and nuances giving rise to unscrupulous people weaselling their way out of certain requirements in Spanish written contracts.
AND, this is before the local dialects in Uruguay are taken into account which can also change in the local area as well.
I find that people who do not know me, but know I am English, cannot understand my Spanish because they KNOW that THEY cannot speak English and get confused. I can absolutely prove this happens and my Spanish teacher agrees. She is a Uruguayo and teaches English Literature at ‘big’ school and the college and is exasperated at this phenonomen ‘it is as if they shut their mind’ she says.
I used to think English was the worst language for any foreigner to learn: I was wrong, it is Spanish.
Chris
Jun 05th, 2013 - 05:57 am - Link - Report abuse 0My experience with languages is, as with everything else in this life, that you can only learns what you do in practice.
Uruguayan Spanish can be hard spoken, but written it's quite similar to the royal one. I suggest you start reading the newspaper is Spanish, if you aren't already. I'd say la Republica, but I guess el Pais is more of your liking.
Then just use the words and never care for what others might say. The very reason the language can be so hard spoken, is because the ones before you didn't care.
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