1. Tomorrow is the 65th anniversary of the end of the Spanish Civil War. Paul Preston is preparing a book called The Spanish Holocaust, to be published in 2005: in an El País interview today, he states that the mass graves in Iraq are no different from those in Spain and that "con la Guerra Civil, los historiadores tenemos trabajo para 50 o 100 años más". So much history yet to uncover. The interview includes the following overheated question, as the interviewer, presumably in search of a good quote, compares the alleged media manipulation following the bombings with Franco's denial that the Guernica bombings had taken place:

P. El 11-M y el manejo que hizo el Gobierno de Aznar de la información, ¿pueden leerse como un regreso a viejas prácticas de la derecha española que en su momento intentó incluso negar el bombardeo de Gernika?

Preston is quick to put the lid on such an irresponsible question. If there was media manipulation, he says, it has less to do with the Civil War and more to do with the cynicism and ambition of politicians:

Yo soy reacio a hacer comparaciones entre lo que ha sucedido recientemente y la Guerra Civil. Creo que hay que verlo en su propio contexto. Si hubo un intento de ocultar el origen verdadero del atentado y las atrocidades de Atocha, no se relacionan con la Guerra Civil, sino con el cinismo y la ambición de los políticos. Intentar sacar provecho de ese horror y ese dolor masivo es una indignidad.

Anyway, call it shameless pluggery if you will, but the contents of PdS's small-but-vital contribution to the issue of the war and its lengthy aftermath can be viewed here.

2. Anna Kisselgoff of the New York Times wrote back in 2001 that "At 18, Farruquito is already one of the great flamenco dancers of this new century", and I mentioned him on PdS blog after seeing him perform in Madrid, brilliantly, last year. His international star was on the rise: he's performed regularly in the U.S. But now he seems to have got himself into trouble. It's a slightly tawdry story which doesn't have much to do with the grace, dignity or passion which journos inevitably talk about when discussing him.
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