Epistles from the Moncloa

Well, now that we are in the era of rapid communication, based on short messages issued through the networks and that Sánchez criticised so much Rajoy's famous ‘plasma’, it turns out that the Sánchez-Gómez couple, official residents of the Moncloa, have rescued the old and tedious epistolary mode to communicate with others, where everything has a place and also avoid having to answer annoying questions or give explanations to anyone because their letters do not wait for a reply.   

Although the medium is the same, the ends pursued by the two are quite different. The lady began by using them to introduce, present or recommend products or the very companies that produce, supply and apply them to official bodies, which at the time have at their disposal funds from a wide range of sources and destinations, some of which are EU aid, the spending and application of which should be governed by much stricter and more serious rules than the national ones. 

But, since the fact came to public attention, Sánchez saw in the epistles, open and published by all the media, the way to address many more people than if he had to do it individually to those he intended to address in order, without getting his hands dirty, to intimidate them, deceive them or try to co-direct their thoughts; especially if, as is currently the case, we are in the midst of a European election campaign - in which it seems that his party, or what little is left of it, is not doing very well - as another way of boosting his own party and discouraging the little hopeful right-wing voters in elections in which, traditionally, the general lack of appetite is public, pathetic and manifest.    

His wife, with her letters, tried to slip in - quite successfully, it has to be said - some excellences, which were not such or were so clumsy that they needed personal support and praise from her, for being who she was - the president's wife and not the president as the ineffable Patxi López says -, and even, if necessary, as happened in some cases, from the president himself and several of his ministers, taking advantage of the fact that the Ebro passes through Zaragoza or the Pisuerga through Valladolid.   

However, Sánchez, after his unbearable five-day tragicomedy to ‘reflect’ on the news that they already knew well at the time and hid it from us, has twice used his epistles to exaggerate his anger, lie like a fool to his own and others and to muddy even more, if possible, the rotten stage he has turned Spain's political arena into during the time he was supposed to preside over it and regenerate it politically, as he promised in that pretended motion of censure based on pure lies and with the support of all the most important members of parliament, some of whom, by the way, he now criticises for possibly turning against him and allying themselves with the right.   

It is well known that the second parts of any event, even if it ends successfully, are not usually as well accepted as the first and that insisting on punishment is not good for going out through the main door on a sunny afternoon of bullfighting. In this life, everything has its measure, and to do so in an insistent and strident manner can lead to a loss of interest in the person who is speaking and clamouring for our support. On the other hand, there is a Catalan saying that is very applicable to this moment: To be good (BO) once is fine; but to be good (BO) twice is to be a BOBO.  

Playing at impressing the general public with flaccid and banal verbiage or dazzling them with implausible decisions or ‘positive’ data - mercilessly inflated to the point of exhaustion in order to present them as such - aimed at the very coffee drinkers and the cohort of media that have surrendered to their feet due to ideology or other more financial interests, tends to have great risks. In the end, it is clear that with the continuous and fleeting flashes they are only trying to draw attention away from what is important and what interests and worries us all. ​

When it comes down to it, everything proposed and so angrily presented is reduced to issues of little significance, with little or no international follow-up and possible reprisals or punishments that we Spaniards will have to pay for later; because, unfortunately for us, spontaneous boasts that are not very sustainable, half-truths and outbursts against the tide, lead to our licence plate being taken and, at the slightest opportunity, we are cut off from imports or exports, we are scorned in important forums or demanded to fulfil our promises, as will happen at the next NATO summit, where Sánchez will not be received by Biden - we will once again chase him through the corridors - and we will be reminded - with fewer escape routes, if possible - of our failure to fulfil our promises, I fear that our ‘real capabilities’ in the event of bad luck with Russia, Iran or other jihadist fronts are far from being taken into consideration in the international arena, given the real effort we are making in various deployments and support for Ukraine and against piracy, all of which are only for show and of little real effectiveness.   

I hope and pray that Sánchez has realised the importance of this second mistake, that contrary to what he intends, he is tiring us all with his lack of rigour, lies, attacks and insults to our intelligence, that he will not continue along this path and will put aside his epistles, except to give clear and reliable explanations of what his wife has done and his real degree of knowledge and involvement, or to proclaim that he is truly leaving the presidency of the government and will call elections as soon as he can and the law allows him to do so.