La Tecla Asustada

Escribe Sebastián Lacunza La agitada sesión de la comisión de Relaciones Exteriores del Senado estadounidense de la semana pasada que puso contra las cuerdas al elegido por  Barack Obama  como embajador en Buenos Aires,  Noah Mamet , no fue una excepción para ese tipo de exámenes. El mismo día hubo otros casos que encendieron polémica en EE.UU., como el propuesto para Noruega,  George Tsunis , quien ni siquiera sabía que en ese país escandinavo no hay presidente sino primer ministro y rey.  Quienes conocen el paño del Senado estadounidense confían en que las objeciones recibidas por Mamet -un amigo y eficiente recaudador de campaña de Obama- no bloquearán su designación. Ven lo ocurrido durante la audiencia del jueves 6 de febrero como un juego típico de la política norteamericana antes que un choque de fondo.  Sin embargo, dado el tono exacerbado de las dos principales espadas que cuestionaron las calificaciones de Mamet para ocuparse de un país que enf...

US Senator for Florida, Marco Rubio, in a file photo. By Sebastián Lacunza Herald Staff Obama’s gov’t sees improved freedom of expression landscape throughout 2013 Two US politicians appear to be in very different places of the political spectrum. One is seen as the hopeful promise for hardcore conservatives, the bearer of the needed charm and the refreshing message that could win a reshaped US electorate in 2015. The other is an old-guard lawmaker, a populist representative of a Democratic stronghold in the Northeast coast. But Marco Rubio and Robert Menéndez share common features. Both members of the US Senate Foreign Relations committee anticipated a deep crisis in Argentina and criticized the local democratic standards last Thursday, during the heated hearing to address the Barack Obama’s nominee to become the next US ambassador to Buenos Aires, Noah Mamet, a friend of the US president and a prolific fundraiser for his two presidential campaigns. The similar...

By Sebastián Lacunza Herald Staff The AFSCA media watchdog will tackle next February 17 and 24 the adjustment plans submitted by the main players in media market, according to the requirements set up by the 2009 Media Law. The proposals by the Clarín Group and cable company Telecentro will be the first to be discussed and both are likely to be approved. The Telefónica/Telefe, Spanish Prisa Group and Vila-Manzano holdings will be adressed a week later. The head of AFSCA Martín Sabbatella told the Herald in Jaunuary that the Clarín plan complies “on its face” with the 2009 law. And considering its cable unit Cablevisión has partially fulfilled requirements to adjust its grid layout as ordered by AFSCA, there is little room for doubt that its plan is likely to be approved. However, it seems clear the key discusion will be centred on who will become the owner of each one of the six units the company is seeking to divide itself into. Meanwhile, the plan presented by Telecentro — ...

Senator Marco Rubio talks on Capitol Hill in Washington on Wednesday. By Sebastián Lacunza Herald Staff Hardly anybody of any influence in Washington defends CFK’s administration In recent weeks the Argentine government has faced a barrage of criticism from both politicians and press in the United States. This time the ferocity of the onslaught was not limited to Tea Party allies like the Florida Senator Marco Rubio or the fiery columnists of The Wall Street Journal. Not very far from such rhetoric were media generally considered progressive in the US such as The New York Times and The Washington Post. Fareed Zakaria, one of the most liberal pundits in the US media mainstream, considered last January on CNN that Argentina was “becoming a dictatorship,” not without preceding this sweeping generalization with the gaffe of saying that Evita (1919-1952) was the “populist widow of Perón” (1895-1974). Why not try checking up your facts once in a while? As for Rubio, what ...

El sábado me rehusé a mostrar mi mochila a la salida de Coto de Abasto. Cada tanto hago uso de ese derecho. Superado un primer filtro, me topé con el jefe de Seguridad de la sucursal, B., quien se presentó como cabo 1º de Prefectura. Sus consideraciones fueron: "No tengo tiempo para escuchar pelotudeces", "un pelotudo como vos", "escribí lo que quieras (en el libro de quejas) que después me cago de risa cuando lo lea", "no entrás nunca más acá, quedaste filmado",  etc. De inmediato, una empleada de Coto me pidió disculpas. Pedí hablar con el jefe de B., quien me escuchó con atención. Le solicité que hiciera volver a B. al lugar del conflicto. El cabo de Prefectura regresó a los cinco minutos y sus palabras fueron: "Le pido disculpas, estuve mal. Estaba tensionado por un problema de afuera". "Bien, espero que no se repita", le dije, y me fui.