Travel Blog entry #1 - Security

As I was getting in line for the security inspection at the [Ben Gurion] airport, you know, where they x-ray your bag, the man in front of me started to take off his coat, belt and shoes, when the x-ray machine operator told him in a really thick Israeli accent “no, no, there is no striptease here”, to what the man responded with an incredulous “what do you mean”, the Israeli security guard then said “we don’t do that in Israel, no need, here fine.”

That’s cool, I thought to myself without making too much of it; but life can surprise you sometimes with this kind of little things. Got on the plane and four and a half hours later I landed in Paris, got off the plane and started to try to make sense of the crazy disarray of how the Charles DeGaulle airport is built. I finally figured out that I had to take a bus to terminal 2E, when the bus finally showed up, the doors of the building opened to let us out and to let us feel the freezing cold outside (0°C or 32°F). To my surprise, the bus was as cold as the outside, no heating! And every time it stopped, the lady driver would leave the doors open to let nobody in and us freeze inside! It sucked! I don’t think any of the airport terminals are really conditioned, it’s so freaking cold!

I finally got to terminal 2E, got my boarding pass for the next flight and got in line for the security inspection. Oh boy! French security is retarded!!! A line of about 10 people took about half an hour! They made everyone

take out of their bags laptops, phones, ipods, mp3 players, cameras, camcorders, disk on keys, phone chargers, any cables or anything electronic related. Other things that had to be put in those plastic trays to be x-rayed were: coats, hats, belts, shoes, jewelry, change, etc. It took for freakin’ ever!!!

Then I started walking around the terminal to find out that there isn’t a single place where you can smoke, and worst of all, the whole airport smells like perfumed fart! Everywhere smells like fart, just with a little perfume on top, it’s disgusting!!!

But after those two completely different experiences in security screening, I have to say that I still trust about 50 times more the relaxed, super high-tech security check in Israel than the slow but “thorough” security check in France. I know that the plane leaving from Israel won’t get highjacked or explode in mid air, while the plane that leaves from Paris, well… who knows? And if you’re wondering about rudeness, the French turned out to be way more assholes than the Israelis… at least so far.

Bottom-line, can’t wait to get out of stupid Frenchland, where they charge for the internet and a cup of coffee is 5 Euros!

The only good thing that I found in this place is that there are a couple PlayStation3 demonstration stations where you can actually play for free… mostly non violent demo-limited games, but hey, it’s free PlayStation! Gots to play!

(Still smells like fart)

About the following posts

I'm traveling in Mexico and in this blog I will try to plasm an anthropological image of my experience here, and of what used to be my day to day life, with all the folklore that becomes part of the routine and the ordinary for somebody who lives here, but that is exotic and interesting to foreign eyes.

I hope it comes out well.

I haven't written in a while, and in English even longer... Keeping up a blog is hard, even though I have thousands of ideas that cross my mind every day, and there is always something worth dedicating a moment to contemplate, sometimes I even think of writing about it in this blog.
But things happen so fast and situations lead to other situations, and by the time I reach a computer so many things have happened that created a whole experience, a complete day, and I can't get myself to reflect upon only one thing to spill it in this blog.

I guess that is the frustration of the newbie bloggers, who don't know what to write about, can't find the time to do it, or are just procrastinating and just can't get themselves to do anything at all (all apply to me, yes).
Sometimes, there is a kind of pressure that prevents you from writing in your blog. Like what are the readers going to think? Will they like it or not? Will they be offended by something I wrote? Can they misunderstand my intentions? Do they think this is stupid? Will they disagree? And a million more other questions that just don't let you write.

But the truth is that a blog is supposed to be anything, or not nothing... well, anything. Got me?
Postmodern? Oh, fuck yeah! But it is important to understand, that [at least] this blog is just a collection of thoughts, images, sounds and other random shit that appears before me and that I choose to share with you.

About all the questions that I wrote before, the truth is that I don't care about the answers, this is my blog, if you like it, you are invited to read it and participate; if you don't like it, well, thanks for coming anyway.

If you're still reading this, good for you! ;) I'll keep doing what I've been doing. Wishful thinking makes me want to say that I'll write more, but you know how it is, blogging and procrastination come hand in hand.

Today I'm writing not because I'm not busy, because I really am, but because I came around to my blog and was sad to see that I haven't updated it in a while, so here you have me.

As a reward for your patience, I share with you this link for an awesome auto-cooperative game, help yourself have fun and enjoy! http://www.nekogames.jp/mt/2008/01/cursor10.html

Visit my cellphone photo blog and my website for other random stuff.

Podcast #12

Si es que alguien tiene la necesidad de hacer algún comentario sobre el podcast #12, por favor háganlo aquí.

Cometín: Seguro tu tienes algo que decir al respecto no?

http://mauweb.net/

Bart Simpson's wet dream

Smoker's area... more like Smoker's dead trap

I've been meaning to write this post for a while now, inspired by my last few trips out of Israel since I took up the new [nasty] habit of smoking.

I noticed that smoking is prohibited in most public places around the world, but in the major airports around the world they managed to understand the stupidity of all the human beings that decided to smoke despite the known deadly consequences of this deadly habit. In all these airports that I'm talking about (Madrid, Rome, Poland, Mexico City, etc.) smoking areas with air purifiers, smoke exhaust fans, windows, and other ventilation systems, were set up around the premises of the airports to allow the smokers to indulge in their vice.

Frequent cleaning of these places is a constant in all these airports, these areas are also easy to find (plenty of signs around) and they are small enough to encourage the smokers to have their cigarette and leave to make room for other smokers.

The Ben Gurion international airport in Israel seems to be the exception. The smoking area located in a difficult to find corner of the airport (almost no signs at all), has no ventilation or air purifying system, it's dirty, sticky, crowded, smokey and disgusting! The garbage, cigarette butts, and ashes pile up in disgusting stinky mountains. Sometimes, there are so many people in there smoking that you would need infra red gogles to find your way around this thick smoke filled room.


Last time I was flying out of Israel, I found myself sitting in this little room with a bunch of time and a laptop, so I decided to write an email to the person in charge of Public Relations of Ben Gurion Airport (telmas@iaa.gov.il), and it read as follows:

"Hello:

I am an Israeli citizen and resident, and a smoker. I travel a lot from and to Ben Gurion airport around the year and I am dissatisfied with the smoking areas at the airport.

I do not intend for you to make this areas bigger, more central or more comfortable. All I ask is for some ventilation in there. It is really unpleasant to walk in there and smell the scent of old cigarettes and smoke. While I don't think that these should be central areas of the airport, I think that at least you could organize some ventilation in there and an hourly clean-up.

I know I'm not the first person to comment on this, and I respectfully urge you to do something about it.
Thanks in advance,
------------"

Several months have past since I wrote that email and I haven't got any responses. I encourage you to write as well and demand that these people, the smokers, are treated with respect and dignity. And if you don't want to do it for the smokers, do it for me! Cause even though I don't fly out of Israel that often, I would like to be able to have a cigarette before I get on the plane and not have my clothes, hair and body smelling like a beduin after cooking for the whole chamula for a straight week!

Dedicado al dictador argentino eSe >:( !!!!

Ya saben, el que tiene nombre de actor de telenovela.


MINGA TU CHADRE BASDITO MALTARDO!
Los que entendieron este post, dejen comment.

Efemérides

"Yom HaShoa ve HaGbura" es el Día de Conmemoración del Holocausto y de la resistencia y el levantamiento en armas de los Judíos en el Holocausto, se celebra el 27 de Nissan del calendario judío, que es una fecha diferente cada año en el calendario gregoriano. Este año se la fecha coincidió con el 1° de Mayo, que es otro día importante para la sociedad mundial.

Yom Hashoa es un día que se observa en Israel de forma oficial, los negocios trabajan solamente medio día y el ambiente es muy solemne en todo el país. En la radio se escuchan solamente canciones relacionadas con el Holocausto y la televisión no transmite programas de entretenimiento. Generalmente solo hay dos o tres canales locales que muestran documentales u otros programas relacionados con el tema. A las 11:00 am se escuchan sirenas por todo el país a lo largo de un minuto, en ese momento todo el país para. Los peatones se detienen e inclínan la cabeza, los autos en las calles y las carreteras se detienen y la gente baja de sus autos. Otras personas permanecen en sus casas con sus familias y en la noche asisten a ceremonias de conmemoración que se celebran en todos los centros de las ciudades del país.

El 1° de Mayo, el "Día del Trabajo" es un día en el que se celebran los derechos de los trabajadores, la jornada laboral de 8 horas, vacaciones, retiro, sindicato, etc. En muchos países alrededor del mundo, incluyendo Israel, se celebra saliendo a marchar a las calles exigiendo el cumplimiento de los derechos de los trabajadores y celebrando la existencia de los mismos, además de ser una manifestación es también una gran fiesta.

Este año, al coincidir ambas fechas y con el evidente conflicto de sus formas de celebración, se tuvo que cambiar la fecha de una de estas efemérides. No voy a entrar en detalles de las consideraciones que se tomaron en cuenta para llegar a la conclusión, la onda es que cambiaron la fecha de celebración del Día del Trabajo para este 5 de Mayo.

El 5 de Mayo se conmemora la Batalla de Puebla, en la que el Gral. Ignacio Zaragoza venció al Gral. Charles Ferdinand Latrille al frente del ejército francés de Napoleón III. Es un día de orgullo mexicano, se celebra haber vencido al ejército más experimentado y reputado de la época. Aunque siempre ha sido un día feriado y celebrado en México, en los últimos tiempos, con la migración más extensa de mexicanos, los paisanos han tomado este día como una forma de celebrar la independencia en las narices de los colonizadores. No es sorpresa que el lugar del mundo donde más personas celebran el 5 de Mayo es en EEUU; de la misma forma en que los esclavos negros del siglo XIX inventaron canciones de protesta que cantaban frente a sus amos y ellos ni cuenta se daban de lo que se trataba, los mexicanos hoy hacen lo mismo con la fiesta del 5 de Mayo.

O sea que aquí el único que se jodió fui yo! Este año no podré celebrar el 5 de Mayo... ¡chale! Con lo que me cagan los franceses!

Always use protection...

Ley anti tabaco, Vips, corrupción, manipulación... ¡huevos!

No cabe duda de que los seres humanos y las sociedades seguimos patrones de comportamiento.

En mis últimos viajes a México, he visto como estos patrones se van siguiendo. Un ejemplo de esto es lo que ocurre con las leyes anti tabaco. En Israel ya pasó lo que está pasando ahora en México, y esta es una predicción de lo que va a suceder con la ley anti tabaco en México.

Los primeros pasos fueron la separación de áreas de fumar y no fumar, después solo se podía utilizar una parte de la sección exterior para el área de fumadores, luego solo se podía fumar en áreas separadas por una barrera (pared y puerta), posteriormente se prohibió fumar en cualquier área del establecimiento, o sea todos los lugares se convirtieron en aviones.
Y hablando de aviones, debo denunciar que en el aeropuerto Ben Gurión de Tel Aviv, el "área de fumadores" es un cuartito cucho en el culo del aeropuerto, separado por una pared de vidrio del resto de los seres humanos, para entrar ahí hay que estar preparado para salir apestando como si te hubieras fumado mil millones de cigarros y a que alguien te pegue alguna enfermedad venérea. Ahí los fumadores son mostrados a través de la vitrina, señalados y marginados. No los mataría hacer algo por la ventilación de ese espacio y una limpiecita por lo menos cada seis horas. El "área de fumadores" es asquerosa y degradante.

En el aeropuerto Benito Juárez de la Ciudad de México, en la nueva terminal número dos, la más moderna y avanzada de Latinoamérica, no existen áreas para fumadores, cero, nada, ni una esquinita. Solo se puede fumar afuera de las instalaciones, y no cuentan con ceniceros ni basureros en el exterior, y si te ven tirando la colilla, ahí están los polis listos para salirte con el clásico "¿Qué pasoo jefeee? Aquí no se puede tirar basura, a ver muéstreme sus papeles, que se mi hace que aste'es terrorista. A ver pareja búsquele las bolsas, si nos sale narco también hasta salimos en la tele ." hijos de su p#]@ %!"#$8/()=?¡]¨*_:[*¨}]?/&%)( !!!!!!!!!!!!
Después de mucha presión (lobbying), sobre todo por parte de los restauranteros (restaurantes, cafés, bares y demás tuburios), en Israel la ley cambió para volver a permitir las áreas de fumar en los lugares públicos siempre y cuando exista una barrera física que separe las secciones.

Ahora en México, Vips está liderando el camino para llegar a esta misma conclusión, solo que con una pequeña diferencia, y esa es la gente que está detrás de esta iniciativa. En Israel fueron los pequeños negocios y la cultura de la sociedad, en México también lo es la cultura de la sociedad, representada por un corporativo internacional.


La cadena de restaurantes Vips promovió el primer amparo contra la Ley de Protección a la Salud de No Fumadores del Distrito Federal, lo que significa que esta ley no se aplica en sus establecimientos, o sea que ahí se puede seguir fumando. Eso le da a la cadena Vips una ENORME ventaja contra la competencia: pequeños cafés, restaurantes y bares; que no cuentan con áreas para fumadores.

Pero, ¿quién es dueño de Vips?
Vips pertenece a WalMart, la empresa más grande y poderosa del mundo con ventas de casi el 60% del PIB de México. Si Walmart fuera país sería la potencia económica 15 del mundo.

Scratch needle Pero no quiero hablar de WalMart ni de la maldad que representa, además, este no es un post de esos propagandistas que dicen que WalMart es evil (aunque si lo sea) solo intento mostrar como las leyes de México son manipuladas a conveniencia de una empresa privada y no a conveniencia de la sociedad y de los seres humanos.

YO personalmente soy fumador social, o sea que la ley me afecta directamente a mi, estoy a favor de la separación pero en contra de la prohibición, y me caga la madre que una pinche empresa privada sea la que dicte como tiene que ser la ley. ¡Me caga! Aunque estoy de acuerdo con lo que creo que va a ser la conclusión de este drama, que será igual que aquí en Israel, odio lo que lo la impulsa.

Pero fumadores, no desesperéis, que nosotros los humanos seguimos patrones y llegarán a la misma conclusión a la que llegamos aquí, se puede fumar en el mismo establecimiento si las áreas están bien separadas.

Comprendo a las personas que sufren del humo de los fumadores, yo también sufro de lo mismo. Aunque fumo ocasionalmente, realmente me molesta el humo de segunda mano, conozco los efectos de su inhalación y además hace que me ardan los ojos. Pero creo que todos tenemos que vivir en equilibrio con los demás, aceptar a todos como son y respetarnos mutuamente. Todos tenemos que ser más conscientes de la existencia de los demás y aprender a coexistir de verdad.

Relaaaaaaaax!!!

Jan 10, 2008: Yotzim la derech

Words can hardly express exactly what happened in there, after many years of knowing what the right thing to do is, after a long time of trying to reach compromises to make things work, after having several meetings to try to reach a solution, and after all that failing, the time came to take one of the most important steps in the development of the bogrim (alumni) movement of Habonim Dror.

Confrontation has always been a very difficult thing for, to have to confront a person that I appreciate and I like, was particularly hard for me. I went into that office after not sleeping well for two weeks, very anxious and nervous. At the beginning of the meeting I was all choked up and wishing myself in a calm beach in the Mexican Pacific. One of the things that kept me going was knowing that We knew that this is the right thing for the movement and that the chaverim of the movement are doing this together, as a movement, because we recognize that it is our responsibility to take this movement back to its historic place of being the hard-core of the Jewish people.
I naturally had to refer myself to the authors, the movement founders, the historical leaders of this movement, for instance, Zivia. In a different way than any time before, I understood what Zivia meant by saying that "The Movement always knew how to demand everything from its members. The Movement’s goal has always been to educate a new kind of man, capable of enduring the most adverse conditions and difficult times while standing up for the emancipation of our people, of the Jew, of mankind. It was our Movement education which gave us the strength to endure." I pushed myself to confront my fear of confrontation and do what's right.

The meeting went well, with a good, pleasantly tense and calm atmosphere, things were said very clear from both sides, and an agreement was reached; the agreement was on disagreeing and on going on a struggle where the winner will be the one that stands by their principles the longest and who receives the support of the rest of the members of the movement around the world, not to mention whoever can do all this while still managing to pay the rent and feed their spring.

At the present moment we are all in shock, all parties involved and bystanders. We are thinking and re-thinking every thing that happened in the meeting and after it, every comment, every phone call, every muscle spasm. I honestly thought that after today's meeting I would be able to go to sleep easily, but I don't think that's exactly what's going to happen, I still feel a nut in my stomach and feel more responsible than ever to do what's right for this movement, the movement that taught me to stand by my principles, to fight for my rights, to not accept to ever be oppressed, to believe that all human beings are equal just for being humans and to live by my values (among other things).

These are crucial times that will determine whether Habonim Dror will become, first of all, a real movement with education as it's most important priority, and then the movement that it aims for by working in the bettering of Israeli Society and positively affecting the future of the Jewish nation, or whether it will become a pluralist club with no values to actualize in it's center, a place where educational processes are not the priority, a pyramidal structured organization, "an empty semel" (symbol) that will eventually disappear because of apathy or bankruptcy.

Our recognized enemies are apathy, greed for power, capitalism and post-modernism, our allies are our values and principles, and knowing that we are part of a movement of people that is willing to live according to their beliefs.
If you are a member of Habonim Dror from any country, and somehow got to this post, you are welcome to email me with your concerns, advise, questions, comments, or any thing you can think of. I only represent my own opinion and view, but more than anything, I'm just writing to express what I'm personally going through in this stage of my life as a life-long member of Habonim Dror.

Ale v'hagshem!

Mauri