A Spanish slip

By Jason Moore SENATOR John McCain was bitterly criticised in Spain for not knowing the name of the Spanish Prime Minister and for allegedly being unsure whether Spain was an ally. This snub to Spain even became an issue during his first TV debate with Barack Obama. However, Zapatero, has committed his own small snub to a European partner and NATO ally. During a press conference on Tuesday he said “banks in England and Germany were experiencing great problems.” The last time I looked Scottish banks and even those in Wales and Northern Ireland were experiencing similar problems. Unless there has been a break-up of the United Kingdom and I am not aware of it, I would say that Sr. Zapatero meant to say Britain, or the United Kingdom. But how can a European leader make such a mistake because afterall it is quite a big one? I am sure that Gordon Brown realises that the Balearics and the Canary Islands are part of Spain. If you want to be mischievous you could even say that it was a snub to the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish. However, we are all human and therefore we make mistakes, even people who should know better. So next time a world leader or presidential candidate makes a mistake perhaps Spain should just keep quiet.