Majorca today

I know we should be grateful to Britain and British tourists for providing Majorca with much needed tourism revenue but I object to all our best potatoes going to Britain! Surely some of those fantastic looking new potatoes which we saw in yesterday's Bulletin could be sold locally? I am a great fan of new potatoes and I object to the best of the crop being sent to Britain. With so much emphasis on boosting other industries can't Majorcan farmers grow more and keep both Britain and Majorca happy and nicely supplied.

Graffiti

I am no supporter of the local government's new road building proposals. I do, however, believe that we are to blame because our love affair with the car continues. There is a strong anti-road movement across the island with the Inca to Manacor motorway being exceptionally unpopular. Full marks to this ardent group of campaigners. But to get their message across they have turned to graffiti with slogans being sprayed on walls and pavements across the island. There are ways and means of getting your message across and vandalism isn't one of them. There are already complaints that there is too much graffiti in Majorca and this is only making the problem worse. The people opposed to the second ring road in Son Sardinia have got the right idea. They had written their slogans on sheets which have been tied to trees and lamp posts along the main Soller road which is a far better idea. Incidentally, if you are opposed to the road building plan don't forget that there is the big protest march in Palma this weekend. Thousands of people are expected and yes, city centre roads will be closed to traffic.

Parties for all

THE majority of the parties fielding candidates in the general elections next month will get less than one percent of the vote. The full election list with all the candidates was published in the Spanish press this week. There are parties of all denominations including three versions of the Falange basically all supporters of the Dictator Franco, various left wing republican parties and even a break-away detachment from the Greens. What I was amazed to see is that there are no independents fighting for a given cause. You would have thought that this would be an ideal opportunity for the anti-roads lobby. According to the latest polls the right-wing Partido Popular will take the lion's share of the vote giving them five MPs for the Balearics and leaving the socialists with three. That is for parliament. Standing for Congress or the upper house is the former Mayor of Palma, Joan Fageda, who does not appear to have lost his relish for politics despite presiding over the city for almost 12 years.

The end of the line

IT is the end of the line for Palma's military hospital which closes at the end of this month after 150 years. The building in Palma's Calle Olmos is being taken over by the Balearic government who intend to transform it into a home for OAPs. It is a fantastic looking building and its demise is all part of the sweeping defence cuts which were introduced when conscription was abolished. Most of Majorca's main military bases have now been closed and are all set to be redeveloped. It was quite amazing what the army actually owned or administered in Majorca. You have to think that until recently the island of Cabrera was a military firing range

Another demise

WHILE the number of people going to the cinema continues to grow Palma's smaller cinemas are still feeling the pinch. The latest to close is the Hispania in Palma. When it first opened it cost one peseta to see a film and the first one it showed was Ben Hur. As the owner said, a single screen cinema can no longer compete.

The cinema will make way for an apartment block. It is certainly a sign of the times and clearly shows that you have to be big to survive.
I must admit I've got no complaints with the larger cinemas...as long as they keep on showing films in English.