MALVINAS ARE THEY ARGENTINE ?

'The Falklands are Argentine' By Daniel Schweimler Buenos Aires The Malvinas is viewed as part of Argentina's identity Twenty five years on from the invasion of the Falklands how do Argentines view the anniversary and do they still believe they have a claim over the islands in the South Atlantic Ocean they know as Las Malvinas? 'Las Malvinas son Argentinas - the Falklands are Argentine.' And for most Argentines they are and always have been. They have been claiming the islands since the British first settled there in 1833. Any map produced in Argentina indisputably includes the Falklands as national territory, the first thing any visitor sees when entering the country is a map of the islands and almost all Argentines, from an early age, know the words to the Malvinas March. So when the military government led by General Leopoldo Galtieri, sent troops to take the Falklands by force on 2 April 1982, tens of thousands of Argentines were on the streets to celebrate. We didn't live the pain and suffering of that time but we're living with the people who did Student Florencia It is difficult to find anyone now who will admit to being one of those flag-waving patriots - most now see the invasion as the last desperate act of a disgraced military government that had already murdered 30,000 of its own people. The shambolic organisation of the battle with Britain and the humiliating surrender two months after the invasion helped bring that government down and pave the way for a return to democracy. There is still anger they sent ill-trained, poorly equipped teenage conscripts into a war against a professional army, misleading the Argentine people throughout the conflict that they were winning the war. However, most Argentines do believe Las Malvinas son Argentinas. 'Dark period' A large part of today's population were born after the conflict but everyone still has a view. At the Lenguas Vivas School in central Buenos Aires, 17-year-old Juan Augusto says: "The war was unnecessary since the United Nations always supports Great Britain. It was Argentina against the world." Florencia, 17, adds: "We didn't live the pain and suffering of that time but we're living with the people who did." Jose Luis Ferreira survived the Belgrano sinking Dario said: "I'd like to meet the people who were attacked, to ask them how they feel today." Their classmate, Ayelen, is one of the few who disputes Argentina's claim to the islands. "They are so British we should not get them back," she said. "We lost them in 1833. The Malvinas represents a bad history here." The conflict with Britain came at the end of seven years of brutal military rule. It was a dark period in Argentine history which many afterwards found difficult to talk about. The returning soldiers were a painful reminder of a futile and costly military adventure. More than 600 died in the conflict. But a further 400 or so veterans have committed suicide in the past 25 years as they tried and failed to find a place in a society that wanted to forget them. HAVE YOUR SAY As an Argentine who was sent a draft notice I remember the conflict well JPW, Toronto Send us your comments It was a common sight in Argentina after the war to be approached on buses and trains by haggard young men in faded uniforms asking for loose change. Dr Enrique De Rosa, a psychiatrist who treated Falklands veterans, said: "There have been victims, we have to accept that. "These people have needs, social needs, they have no jobs, they don't have anywhere to live, they don't have any kind of social network to protect them and they don't have medical and psychological treatment. One of those veterans Jose Luis Ferreira, was 19 when he served on the cruiser, the Belgrano, sunk on 2 May 1982 by a British submarine, with the loss of 323 lives. He spent 24 hours in a leaking life-boat lashed by 10-metre high waves in a storm before being picked up. He works with veterans in the Buenos Aires suburb of Adrogue, helping them find a place in a society that is finally beginning to remember and take responsibility for the years of military rule and the war with Britain. "We asked the local government to create a department that deals with employment and health for the Malvinas veterans," he said. "Those have been the two main issues, especially because it is not a clinical matter but a psychiatric one." The Argentine government has set up a special committee to look at the issue and is asking the British government to negotiate. Britain will not do that until the islanders say that is what they would like. Symbolic significance Regular talks do take place on fishing rights, 20 or so Argentine scientists live and work alongside British colleagues on the islands and Argentine citizens can visit without a visa. President Kirchner will emphasise his country's peaceful claims Sporadic reports in the British media about increased Argentine aggression over the issue are met with incredulity in Buenos Aires. But it is still a sensitive issue. This is election year in Argentina and President Nestor Kirchner will strongly emphasise his country's peaceful claims to the Malvinas. No-one here will contradict him. Malvinas veteran Edgardo Esteban wrote about his experiences in a book 'Illuminated by Fire' which has been made into a film, shown in Argentina and Britain. "When you talk about Argentina you talk about Eva Peron, Gardel, Maradona and tango. "For us the Malvinas is part of that identity, it is a symbol, we learn about it at school from a very young age. "There is no town, no matter how small, that hasn't got a monument, a street, a square or a school called Islas Malvinas, or Malvinas Argentinas." The Malvinas issue has not gone away. It is being discussed in the media, President Kirchner's government is paying some attention to the veterans and the Argentine authorities continue to press their case in diplomatic circles. But most here recognise it is not a simple case of examining yellowing 19th century documents to ascertain who has the most valid claim. They realise exploration and fishing rights, national pride, international politics and the wishes of the Falkland islanders all play a part. Argentina has been waiting since 1833 to fly their flag over the Malvinas Islands and few expect that wait to end any time soon.

BACK TO SCHOOL

• OUR NEW   SCHOOL YEAR

For us school year  starts as early as January, since we must coach our applicants to UBA, LENGUAS VIVAS AND JOAQUIN V GONZALEZ . February has brough t already some students who are eager to start , so we have had new courses also in February. Now March

We are very happy to announce that REGULAR CLASSES  FOR THE 2012 ACADEMIC YEAR ARE DUE TO START ON MARCH 12TH for the early groups. Other groups will be starting the following week and then those APRIL LATECOMERS.

So we teachers are indeed  very keen on meeting you. If you have queries, please register at www.centroingles.com.ar  and well be glad to respond.

• NEW BRANCH 

This year  THE CEI C-65 has  a  NEW HOUSE  at WARNES 281  PARQUE CENTENARIO WE WISH TO WELCOME OUR NEW NEIGHBOURS .

Prof ALEJANDRO ALTIMIR will be in charge of your questions at WARNES  281. Please register   for timetables

• WE HAVE BEEN HONOURED with  being chosen as TEACHERS OF THE ARGENTINE ASSOCIATION OF HUMAN RESOURCES PROFESSIONALS  ACILTHRA . 

This means dealing with over 200 companies,small and medium sized companies.

We  thank them for trusting our commitment with excelence , expect to meet their demands  and welcome them as our prospective students !!

See you at facebook, twitter and of course  at our premises ,

Yamila , Alfred, Alejandro, Ana, and Patricia

'We do not depend on any country, not even England,' Malvinas official

Dick Sawle, a member of the Malvinas Islands’ Legislative Assembly rejected the possibility of a greater economic integrity with Argentina and assured that the island “doesn’t need anything from any country, not even England,” although he admitted that they do rely on the UK for protection.
“When talking about the Malvinas, there are three parts involved in this: the British government, ours, which is a democracy and Argentina,” although Argentina only acknowledges the United Kingdom for negotiations.
“We are always willing to talk to Argentina about many issues except our sovereignty, because we want to continue with our self-determination and determine our own future. Our sovereignty is not negotiable,” he assured.
Speaking as a guest on a radio programme, the Malvinas official minimized the arrival of Prince William to the islands, second in line to the British Crown, and pointed out that his arrival, as well as the deployment of the destroyer ship HMS Dauntless to the South Atlantic archipielago “had been planned several months in advance.”
“There are things going on here all the time, such as Prince William doing his job as a helicopter pilot. If people want to read something else into that, then it is not true. And the HMS Dauntless is a type 45 ship replacing a type 42 one, which was already pretty old. Its deployment is normal and something like this happens in any modern military force,” he stated,
Sawle then rejected an eventual integration of the islands’ economy with Argentina's because “their economy is pretty strong.”
“We do not depend on any country, not even England, expect for their defence of the islands, necessary due to Argentina’s aggression in the past, which has continued since 1982,” he said.
Sawle mentioned several matters that both sides discussed in the past which allowed Argentine citizens to visit the islands with their passports in 1999 or their engaging in talks to protect the area’s natural resources, “but unfortunately Argentina only wants to talk about one thing: our sovereignty. And that is something we don’t want to negotiate.”
He said however, that the current diplomatic spat between Argentina and the UK is “nothing but a war of words.”
“Deep inside, I believe Argentina is a peaceful nation and the Government has always said that they do not want to aim their guns at us. I believe this is true. We are very peaceful people too and we don’t want any conflicts like the one we lived in 1982,” he stated.
After assuring that the islands’ administration would continue with their policy of granting permits for oil exploration, Sawle said that “most of the Malvinas population sees itself as islanders first and British second.”
“Deep inside, we’re all very British, and many tourists visiting us say we’re more British than the British. We have our own traditions and British traditions as well. We also have people from other countries living peacefully among us. People from Chile, Saint Helena and Argentina, who we have no problem with. There is no discrimination towards other nationalities,” he concluded.

Source: Buenos Aires Herald   FEB 7, 2012
Posted by Mateo Consagra

Parents start to educate their children("Homeschools")

I find this Newsweek's article interesting to read and discuss in class: Could parents replace teachers at home? What should be parents' role as regards education? Are they able to educate their children? What about meeting new people and work in groups? Here is the link: http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/01/29/why-urban-educated-parents-are-turning-to-diy-education.html

7 Charged as F.B.I. Closes a Top File-Sharing Site

By BEN SISARIO

Published: January 19, 2012

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In what the federal authorities on Thursday called one of the largest criminal copyright cases ever brought, the Justice Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized the Web site Megaupload and charged seven people connected with it with running an international enterprise based on Internet piracy.

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Associated Press

An undated screenshot of Megaupload.com, which allowed users to transfer large files. The U.S. shut the site on Thursday.

Related in Opinion

• Room for Debate: What's the Best Way to Protect Against Online Piracy? (January 18, 2012)

Coming just a day after civil protests in the United States over proposed antipiracy bills, the arrests were greeted almost immediately with digital Molotov cocktails. The hacker collective that calls itself Anonymous attacked the Web sites of the Justice Department and several major entertainment companies and trade groups in retaliation for Mega-upload’s seizure. The Justice Department’s site and several others remained inaccessible for much of Thursday afternoon.
Megaupload, one of the most popular so-called locker services on the Internet, allowed users to anonymously transfer large files like movies and music. Media companies have long accused it of abetting copyright infringement on a vast scale. In a grand jury indictment, Megaupload is accused of causing $500 million in damages to copyright owners and of making $175 million through selling ads and premium subscriptions.
Four of the seven people, including the site’s founder, Kim Dotcom (born Kim Schmitz), have been arrested in New Zealand, the authorities said; the three others remain at large. Each of the seven people — who the indictment said were members of a criminal group it called “Mega Conspiracy” — is charged with five counts of copyright infringement and conspiracy. The charges could result in more than 20 years in prison.
As part of the crackdown, more than 20 search warrants were executed in the United States and in eight other countries. About $50 million in assets were also seized, as well as a number of servers and 18 domain names that formed Megaupload’s network of file-sharing sites.
Ira P. Rothken, a lawyer for Megaupload, said in a phone interview on Thursday that “Megaupload believes the government is wrong on the facts, wrong on the law.”
The case against Megaupload comes at a charged time, a day after broad online protests against a pair of antipiracy bills in Congress, the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, in the House, and the Protect I.P. Act, or PIPA, in the Senate.
The bills would give federal authorities expanded powers to crack down on foreign sites suspected of piracy. But technology companies and civil liberties groups say that the powers are too broadly defined and could effectively result in censorship. On Wednesday, Google and Wikipedia joined dozens of sites in political theatrics by blacking out some content and explaining their arguments against the laws.
Anonymous, which has previously set its sights on PayPal, Sony and major media executives, was more blunt in its response. The group disabled the Justice Department’s site for a time, and it also claimed credit for shutting down sites for the Motion Picture Association of America and the Recording Industry Association of America, two of the most powerful media lobbies in Washington, as well as those of the Universal Music Group, the largest music label, and BMI, which represents music publishers.
“Let’s just say, for #SOPA supporters their #SOPAblackout is today,” Anonymous wrote in a Twitter post. In an e-mail, a spokesman for the group said it was responsible for the Web attacks.
The Megaupload case touches on many of the most controversial aspects of the antipiracy debate. Megaupload and similar sites, like Rapidshare and Mediafire, are often promoted as convenient ways to legitimately transfer large files; a recent promotional video had major stars like Will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas singing Mega-upload’s praises. But they have become notorious inside media companies, which see the legitimate uses as a veil concealing extensive theft.
Mr. Dotcom, a portly 37-year-old with dual Finnish and German citizenship, has made himself a visible target. He splits his time between Hong Kong and New Zealand and casts himself in flamboyant YouTube videos. His role as one of the most prominent Web locker operators has earned him a half-joking nickname in Hollywood: Dr. Evil.
According to the indictment, he earned $42 million from Mega-upload’s operations in 2010.
The indictment against Mega-upload, which stems from a federal investigation that began two years ago, was handed down by a grand jury in Virginia two weeks ago but was not unsealed until Thursday.
It quotes extensively from correspondence among the defendants, who work for Megaupload and its related sites. The correspondence, the indictment says, shows that the operators knew the site contained unauthorized content.
The indictment cites an e-mail from last February, for example, in which three members of the group discussed an article about how to stop the government from seizing domain names.
The Megaupload case is unusual, said Orin S. Kerr, a law professor at George Washington University, in that federal prosecutors obtained the private e-mails of Megaupload’s operators in an effort to show they were operating in bad faith.
“The government hopes to use their private words against them,” Mr. Kerr said. “This should scare the owners and operators of similar sites.”

Malvinas revisited

By Michael Soltys
Buenos Aires Herald Senior Editor
They might not know it, but the leaders of Argentina and Great Britain are doing each other a political favour with the jingoist raspberries they are blowing in anticipation the 30th anniversary of the South Atlantic War. Last year President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner called Britain a decadent colonial power, and British Prime Minister David Cameron on Wednesday said it was Argentina that’s colonialist for not respecting the islanders’ right to self-determination. The name-calling contest into which the Malvinas Islands issue has degenerated seems to serve the natural talent of these politicians for populist posturing well. The spat is now turning into a contest to see who will go furthest to satisfy the local audience. Cameron announced a contingency plan to swiftly increase Britain’s military presence on the islands in case of an emergency. What emergency? The diplomatic neck-twisting is one thing, but Cameron must be told from Buenos Aires that there is absolutely no chance that the Argentine government will consider using military force to win back the islands.
Instead of wasting time in following the shouting match itself and wondering about the highly unlikely prospect of another war, it’s more interesting to note that when Cameron spoke Britain’s Foreign Secretary William Hague was on his way to Brazil for an official visit. Fernández de Kirchner arguing with Cameron is more of the same, but what does seem to be a novelty is the way in which London has been irked by the regional support Argentina’s sovereignty claim has garnered. Brazil, Chile and Uruguay have all delivered on their pledge not to allow ships flying the islands’ flag into port. In Brazil Hague said that the flag ban is meaningless because ships will be allowed to dock if flying any other flag (including Britain’s Red Ensign). But speaking at a press conference with Hague, Brazil’s Foreign Minister António Patriota said that Britain knew perfectly well that Brazil stood by Argentina on the Malvinas issue. Hague must have realized there and then that this is not 1982.
Here’s the news: the region has changed. So sobering must have been the moment that Hague has acknowledged that Britain had neglected Latin America for too long. “We have begun Britain’s most ambitious effort to strengthen ties with Latin America in 200 years,’’ Hague said. “The days of our diplomatic retreat from your region are over,’’ he added. Let’s toast to that in peace.

Souce: Buenos Aires Herald. Sun 22, 2012
Posted by: Mateo Consagra

We are indeed very very happy

Hi

CONGRATS !!

We teachers rarely write on the blog, because we like to leave the blog to you students who  sent so many articles  in 2011
But  this time   we thought you should  know that we are very proud of  you for having  used this blog to learn and enjoy reading and listening. We  teachers believe that you made good use of it in 2011  which showed in how many articles you contributed and how many more you read than in previous years when the blog didn t exist.
This blog has been your creation
Welcome to 2012 

Let s see what fantastic idea you have for this year . 

Yamila, Patricia and Alfred
the blog is yours