Sitting on the riverbank I watch what floats by. The stream brings a child sitting on a hospital bed. He must be 12, about my son’s age. A bandage hangs from his left shoulder where his arm should be. He cries conpulsively, in a foreign language, so I can only imagine what he is saying. His wailing reminds me of phantom pain, and the tearful words seem to mourn the sudden amputation of his childhood, possibly performed without anaesthetic. But then I realise that his cries may refer to a deeper pain. Maybe the blast that took his arm also took his mum. Maybe all his family, as many in Gaza these days. Before this story enters into a loop, I flick it away with my thumb, making the stream move forward. Another image stops in front of me. Three young men on a desert road dance to Staying Alive by Bee Gees. Their faces look very familiar to me. But it’s not easy to see their faces. They are partially covered with helmets and their bodies are surrounded by military gear. They don’t sp
No dia de Reis, estiveram frente a frente na CNN Portugal duas estrelas. De um lado A.ventura, a agora decadente estrela dos debates Presidenciais 21. Do outro Rui Tavares, a estrela em ascendência dos debates S.bento 22. Os dois homens-estrelas têm em comum serem lideres de partidos que são quase pseudónimos de si próprios, sendo ambos partidos que aparecem nos boletins de voto escritos em letras maiúsculas. Para além destas 3 coincidências, o homem-CHEGA! e o homem-LIVRE não poderiam ser mais diferentes. O debate teve muitos 'pontos altos', quase todos da responsabilidade de Tavares, mas o comentador-de-cabelo-lambido da CNN destacou aquele em que A.ventura mostrou uma folha de papel de fotocópia em branco para ilustrar o trabalho legislativo do LIVRE no combate à corrupção . ‘Um grande momento de televisão’ disse Rui Calafate antes de se recostar na cadeira com ar de satisfação pelo momento de televisão que ele próprio tinha acabado de protagonizar. Este especialista em c