By Paul Whitelock with Jennie Rhodes
Finally they nailed the b**tard! The worst human being I’ve ever come across. Mysoginistic, a bully, racis
t, corrupt, an adulterer, a liar and generally unpleasant man. I think even his unfortunate wife, Ivana, now knows this.
Trump guilty
Finally, Trump is a convicted “felon” – I love that word, so much more vivid than the rather tame “criminal”, as we mealy-mouthed English say. By rights, Trump should get gaol time, but he won’t, of course.
Difficult as it is to believe, the fact that “The Don” has been convicted of a crime, 34 actually, does not bar him from running for president of the United States. And, because of his stupid supporters, he is quite likely to get elected to the presidency in November. I despair.
It makes you ask yourself, if this is democracy, maybe we need a benign dictatorship.
Democracy in the UK
Look what happened in the UK! We got Bojo the Clown as Prime Minister. Didn’t we intelligent and insightful people know it would end in tears?
So, democracy in Britain is also discredited. How can you justify a first-past-the-post system, whereby, more often than not, an MP is elected with more votes against him/her than for?
Why do so many people not bother to vote? Because they are not impressed by the unfair system nor by the second-rate politicians we have these days, with no principles, no ideas, few skills and no experience of anything.
Disenfranchised
Having said all this, I would vote if I could. As a foreigner who is resident in another country, however, I am not allowed to vote, except in local elections.
I shall have to change nationality, get a Spanish passport, then I shall be able to vote in general, regional, local AND European Elections.
And apparently, I shall be able to visit one more country than I can with my current UK passport. Which one? No idea! .....
Some have done it
When I switch nationality and become un español, I shan’t be the first by a long chalk.
Adrian Stone Mills and Hannah Morrish Wilson have lived in Malaga province since 2002, where they own and run a small hotel. They say:
"In the years running up to Brexit we had reached our eligible years for taking out [Spanish] nationality and it was something we had discussed but never pursued. Brexit gave us the push we needed and in 2016, after the results were declared, we started the process for ourselves and our two children.
"Now as European citizens we will be able to vote in the upcoming European elections. We have our ballot papers at the ready the research is done and we ready to go."
Lawrence Renaudon Smith has lived in Mallorca since 1993. After Brexit he decided it was time to apply for Spanish citizenship.
"Of course I will be voting in the European elections this time. The main thing for me about having Spanish nationality is that now I am once again living in Spain as my right, like I did as an EU citizen," he explains.
David Eldridge has lived in Mallorca since 2008. He says he started the process of applying for Spanish nationality in 2019.
"Basically I didn't want my European citizenship taken away and had a way to avoid that. Voting is the main practical advantage, but others are slightly easier bureaucracy and much easier travel."
But he says the biggest advantage "is a psychological one. Once again, my passport reflects my European identity. Having lived in different countries including outside Europe, my number one identity is European."
***
The journalist Jennie Rhodes has lived in Spain for many, many years, and recently wrote extensively on the subject in SUR in English.
Apart from offering examples of British folk who had changed nationality (see above), she confessed she had not done it yet herself:
".... I could have got myself organised to apply for Spanish citizenship (I have lived in Spain for far more than the obligatory 10-year minimum to do so). But like many other things on my 'to-do list', I haven't got around to it."
As for me, I’m a bit like Jennie, in that I've been contemplating doing it since Brexit. I did all the research, did a sample exam online (I got 98% correct!), and then ..... I never pursued it. But now, I’m sick and tired of having to join the “Outside the EU” queue at passport control, while my EU contemporaries just swan through the blue channel.
Also, important for me is the vote. As I’ve indicated, I can now only cast my ballot in local elections. I want to vote in all elections and have my say in the country I chose to live in over 15 years ago.
© The Curmudgeon with Jennie Rhodes
Further reading:
Why can’t we have the vote? - Secret Serrania de Ronda
Acknowledgements:
BBC
Diario Sur
El Correo
Facebook
Jennie Rhodes
Paul Whitelock
SUR in English
YouTube
Tags:
Bojo the Clown. Boris Johnson, Brexit, Diario Sur, Donald Trump, Election, Europe, European election, EU, European Union, general election, Jennie Rhodes, Paul Whitelock, president of the USA, prime minister, SUR in English, UK, USA, vote