Rogues Gallery - the name and shame blog - DISCONTINUED

According to the Cambridge English Dictionary "beyond the pale" means that something is unacceptable. The behaviour of US president Donald J Trump, since he took up office for the second time a year ago, is totally unacceptable. He breaks the "rules" constantly; ignores the votes of the Senate and the Congress; tears up agreements on trade tariffs; cosies up to Vladimir Putin, president of Russia; threatens to pull out of NATO; ignores the views of Europe; and makes sure that papers relating to Jeffrey Epstein are heavily redacted to protect himself.

[Vektor Stock]    

And now he has invaded a sovereign country (Venezuela); kidnapped that country's prime minister, Nicolas Maduro; and slung him in jail in New York.

Millions of people look on in shock and horror, powerless to do anything. But, perhaps there is something we can do, which is not illegal, aggressive or threatening ..... BOYCOTT US PRODUCTS!

    [Metro] 

The USA and I

I started my boycott last year in protest against US tariffs. I shall continue it from now on with even greater fervour. If you too are horrified at what Trump is doing, why don't you do the same?

I shall also boycott the country and will never attempt to set foot on American soil again.

    [The Daily Orange]

I went for a month with my young family in 1986 and, although we enjoyed our stay immensely, there were things I didn't like about the place even back then, nearly four decades ago:

• the blatant racism against Native Americans, African Americans and Mexicans, as well as darker-skinned people in general;
• the food;
• the ridiculous licensing laws;
• the poor quality of many hotels;
• and compulsory tipping

[Harvard Gazette]    

Nowadays, following two Trump presidencies, and the legislatures of Joe Biden and, some say, Bill Clinton, JC and even Barack Obama, the USA has become a lawless land again, reminiscent of the Wild West.

School shootings, police killings, terrorist attacks have all increased and fires (arson in many cases) burn land, crops and properties.

[The New York Times]    

My Boycott

I no longer buy American clothes, preferring clobber from the Far East, which is readily available in Europe, although there are ethical issues attached to that, to be fair.

I do not use American airline companies and I have never owned an American car. And I certainly won't be buying a TESLA anytime soon.

As for food, nothing American gets into my shopping trolley.

I have stopped buying products made by HJ Heinz ..... 

..... although the ones we get in Europe tend to be manufactured in Wigan (UK), Paris (France) or La Rioja (Spain).

[Grocery Gazette]    

There are plenty of near alternatives which are produced in the UK, France, Ireland and Spain. And they are invariably cheaper than the Heinz versions.

HP Sauce is nowadays owned by Heinz, but it is manufactured in Italy and Spain. So, it's ok to continue buying HP, isn't it?

US beers are virtuably undrinkable, so I never buy them anyway. Budweiser and Corrs, two big brands are not my cup of tea (beer?), although I do like Budvar (the original Budweiser) from the Czech Republic.

American wines, eg from California, are delicious, but expensive, so I don't buy them anyway. There are equally good wines from Europe, eg Spain, France, Italy, Germany and Luxembourg, as well as from countries like Hungary, Croatia and Greece.

McDonald's, Burger King and KFC are places I loathe, so never use them anyway.

    [Peritaciones Mga]

Confession Time

• I have been using AirBnb and Booking.com to book accommodation, so I'll have to find a way around that.
• I recently switched my internet provider to Starlink and signed a one-year contract. I subsequently found out that Starlink is owned by the ghastly Elon Musk, he of TESLA fame and of the Nazi salute at a Trump rally.

[Shop4Tesla]    

But, Musk is South African, isn't he? So, that's OK, or is it?

By the way, I wouldn't accept a TESLA car if he gave me one free!

Links:

© The "Namer and Shamer"

Pictures:

Grocery Gazette, Harvard Gazette, Metro, New York Times, Peritaciones Mga, Shop4Tesla, The Daily Orange, Vektor Stock

Thanks:

Eye on Spain, Paul Whitelock, Secret Serrania de Ronda, The English Food Company, Wikipedia, www.help-me-ronda.com

Tags:

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As we approach the end of the year, it's time to announce the shortlist of the 10 worst human beings of 2025.

Some of them appeared regularly on the lists for previous years, like Bashar al-Assad, Kim Jong Un, Putin, and Trump.

    Bashar al-Assad [LISA News]                           Kim Yong Un          Putin [both Wikipedia]  Trump [BBC]

Others have made their "indelible marks" on the world just in the last 12 months, eg Milei, Maduro, and Netanyahu.

    Maduro [EL PAIS]                                       Milei [France 24]                                          Netanyahu [BBC]

One has only just emerged, in December - José Antonio Kast, president elect of Chile. Is he a bad guy? We'll soon find out .....

10 "Bad Guys" for 2025 - in alphabetical order

Bashar al-Assad (ex-President of Syria)

A highly educated man, a medical doctor no less, Bashar al-Assad studied in England and speaks perfect English.  He is married to an Englishwoman. To all intents  and purposes a civilised and cultured human being.

When his father, in power for more than four decades, died, Bashar was summoned back to Damascus to take over the  reins of this brutal regime.

    [Leviathan]

For more than a decade he ruled Syria with an iron fist, imprisoning and killing opponents and dissidents with impunity.

Throughout 2024 large sections of the population had had enough and had taken to the streets to protest. Despite brutal violence meted out by the police and the army these agents of the regime were outnumbered and began to  lose control.

On December 8th it was announced that al-Assad had fled the country and gone into exile in Moscow. It was reported by the German weekly Die Zeit that the al-Assad family and entourage are living in 20 luxury apartments in a tower block overlooking the Moskva river and that they also have a dacha in the countryside outside the Russian capital.

For his brutal record, his apparent chumminess with Putin and for being a "sick" human  being, he is well worth a place on my list.

Jose Antonio Kast (President Elect of Chile)

José Antonio Kast Rist (b. Santiago, 1966) is a Chilean politician, lawyer, and the president-elect of Chile after winning the 2025 presidential election.

Between 2017 and 2021, Kast was described by some media and scholars as far-right, but in 2025 he adopted a more pragmatic policy agenda.

    [Youtube]

José Antonio Kast Rist was born into a German family. His parents were originally from Bavaria. His father served as a lieutenant in the German Army during World War II and was a member of the Nazi Party.

Kast's father immigrated to Chile in December 1950. His mother and two siblings followed in 1951. In 1962, the family founded Cecinas Bavaria, a small sausage business that became the foundation of their wealth.

Kast started a law firm in 1990 and also directed a family-owned real estate company in the 1990s. He taught civil law and commercial law at Chile's Institute of Economics.

It's too early to say whether Jose Antonio Kast will turn out to be a bad guy, but it looks likely. He's cut from the same political cloth as former Chilean military dictator Augusto Pinochet and is already "cuddling up" to Javier Milei (qv) and Donald Trump (qv).

Kim Jong Un (President of North Korea)

Kim Jong Un (8 January 1983 or 1984) is the supreme leader and dictator of North Korea, and general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).

A member of the Kim family, he is the third son of Kim Jong Il, his predecessor as supreme leader, and a grandson of Kim Il Sung, the founder of North Korea. 

    [El Mundo]

Following his father's death in December 2011, state television announced Kim as the "great successor to the revolutionary cause". 

Kim Jong Un rules North Korea as a totalitarian dictatorship, which has been accused of human rights violations. He reportedly ordered the purge and execution of several North Korean officials including his uncle in 2013 and his half-brother in 2017.

Kim Jong Un's ideology departed from his father's military-first policy, professing a "people-first policy" and renewed commitment to communism. Kim revived the policy of parallel development of the country's economy and military, focusing on its nuclear  weapons programme. 

Kim oversaw four nuclear weapons tests and extensive missile tests, which led to heightened tensions with South Korea the USA and China, culminating in the 2017–2018 North Korea crisis.

In 2018 and 2019, Kim took part in summits with South Korean president Moon Jae-in and US president Donald Trump leading to a brief thaw in relations.

In December 2023, Kim declared that North Korea had formally abandoned efforts to reunify Korea. In June 2024, Kim signed a security and defense treaty with Russia. In October, Kim sent North Korean soldiers to assist Russian units in the Kursk campaign of the Russo-Ukrainian war.

So, is he nuts or what? Evil beyond comprehension, say I. Worse than Putin? Possibly. A strong contender for 1st place in my list.

Nicolas Maduro (Prime Minister of Venezuela)

Nicolás Maduro Moros (born 23 November 1962) has been president of  Venezuela since 2013. 

Beginning his working life as a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade union leader before being elected to the National Assembly in 2000. He was appointed to a number of positions under President Hugo Chávez. 

    [BBC]

After Chávez's death was announced on 5 March 2013, Maduro assumed the presidency. He has ruled Venezuela by decree since 2015 through powers granted to him by the ruling party legislature.

Shortages in Venezuela and a lowering of living standards led to a wave of protests in 2014 that escalated into daily marches nationwide, repression of dissent and a decline in Maduro's popularity. 

An opposition-led National Assembly was elected in 2015 and a movement toward recalling Maduro began in 2016, which was ultimately cancelled by Maduro's government; Maduro maintained power through the Supreme Tribunal, the National Electoral Council (CNE) and the military. The Supreme Tribunal stripped the elected National Assembly of power and authority, resulting in a constitutional crisis and another wave of protests in 2017.

In response to the protests, Maduro called for a rewrite of the constitution, and the Constituent Assembly of Venezuela was elected in 2017 under voting conditions that many concluded were irregular. On 20 May 2018, presidential elections were held.

President Maduro was sworn in on 10 January 2019 with widespread condemnation, and the president of the National Assembly, Juan Guaidó, was declared interim president on 23 January 2019 by the opposition legislative body—kicking off a presidential crisis that spanned nearly four years and divided the international community.

In 2024, he ran for a third term in an election which the Maduro-aligned National Electoral Council claimed he won—without providing evidence—plunging Venezuela into another political crisis. Vote tallies gathered by the opposition showed that their candidate, Edmundo González, had won the most votes. Maduro was sworn in for his third term on 10 January 2025. 

On 24 November 2025, he was designated as a member of a foreign terrorist organization by the USA.

Maduro is widely considered a dictator, leading an authoritarian government characterised by electoral fraud, serious human rights abuses, rampant corruption, and severe economic hardship.

According to estimations by the United Nations (UN) and Human Rights Watch, under Maduro's administration more than 20,000 people have been subject to extrajudicial killings and seven million Venezuelans have been forced to flee the country.

The UN Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela concluded that the country's justice system's independence has been deeply eroded; the mission also identified frequent due process violations, including external political interference and the admission of evidence through torture. 

Most Venezuelan television channels are controlled by the state, and information unfavourable to the government is not covered completely. 

In 2018, a Board of Independent Experts designated by the Organization of American States (OAS) alleged that crimes against humanity have been committed in Venezuela during Maduro's presidency. 

In 2021, the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced the opening of an investigation regarding the situation in the country.

Maduro is a fan of John Lennon's music and his campaigns for peace and love. Maduro has said that he was inspired by the music and counterculture of 1960s and 70s, mentioning also Robert Plant and Led Zeppelin.

This guy is worse than I thought before I did the research. Why are there so many bad people in powerful positions in the world? Sorry ..... bad men! There are no women on my list!

Javier Milei (President of Argentina)

Argentina, the most European of countries in Latin America, with its influx of Italians, and fleeing Nazis after World War II, plus a significant number of Welsh shepherds who headed for the region of Patagonia, has never had a stable, democratic government.

The regime of Juan Peron and his wife Eva was by no means the romantic one portrayed in the Tim Rice/Andrew Lloyd-Webber musical "Don't Cry for me Argentina".

    [El Confidencial]

After the Perons there were military leaders like General Galtieri who invaded The British Falkland Islands (Las  Malvinas) leading to a brief war with the United Kingdom.

And now with the election of the eccentric, foul-mouthed, right-wing clown Javier Milei, it's no better.

Why are Argentinians leaving their home country in droves and coming to Spain? Because they need to earn money and not live in fear of imprisonment and death if they do or say the wrong thing.

Milei is not the worst, but he still deserves his place in this top ten.

Benjamin Netanyahu (Prime Minister of Israel)

Once upon a time I liked Mr Netanyahu, but he's spun out of control, is clearly a war criminal and should be indicted as such.

The October 7th 2023 attack by Hamas was unforgiveable and the Israeli government was right to respond in the way it did initially.

    [Noti Bomba]

But now it's got completely out of hand with attacks on areas occupied by women, children and old men, massacring them on a massive scale.

The reaction in many countries of the world against Jewish communities is an outrage. Most Israelis are Jews, but Jews living in London, Manchester, Madrid, Berlin and other cities ARE NOT ISRAELIS! Is that so difficult to understand? I despair.

Netanyahu has to be a shoe-in for the number 3 slot.

Viktor Orban (Prime Minister of Hungary)

Hungary is a member state of the European Union. That means it has obligations. So, why is Orban allowed to cosy up to Putin and pretty much align himself with the outcasts of this world, namely North Korea, China, India and, of course, Russia.

Kick Hungary out of the EU, I say, and look for a legal way to chuck Orban into gaol and throw away the key! 

   [France 24]

Vladimir ("Hijo de") Putin (President of Russia)

What more can we say about this vile sonofabitch (hijo de puta is much stronger)? Judged a war criminal by the ICC for the way in which he has invaded Ukraine, a sovereign territory, there is a warrant out for his arrest if he sets foot in a NATO country. Despite international sanctions he has still been able to sell oil and buy arms.

He seems intent on razing Ukraine to the ground and is not interested in a peace treaty. He's my number 1 bad guy for 2025.

    [The Guardian]

Donald J Trump (President of the USA)

Is this convicted criminal, adulterer, rapist(?), and embezzler, who claims to be a peacemaker while planning to invade Venezuela, expect to be taken seriously?

Well, he is by a majority of the US electorate, apparently, whereas the rest of the sane world despises him and looks on aghast as he breaks every rule in the book. I don't approve of assassinations, but why were the apparent attempts on his life such abysmal failures. Must be a strong contender for  the No. 1  spot against Putin.

    [NBC News]

Mel Gibson (Hollywood film star)      Sylvester Stallone (Hollywood film star)

    [El Mundo]                                                                    [Anon.]

Two examples of famous celebrities who express their views loudly in support of Donald Trump. They should keep their deluded opinions to themselves.

Last Words

Whether you agree or disagree with my choices, please add a comment below.

But, please remember the rules: no personal insults; no foul language; no bullying; be respectful! And preferably don't hide behind a nickname - be proud of your views!

If you don't stick to the rules, your posts will be blocked!

[Freepik]    

Links

Eye on TRUMP

Rogues Gallery - the name and shame blog

The History Man

©  The History Man

Images:

Anon., BBC, El Confidencial, El Mundo, EL PAIS, Freepik, Google Play, Leviathan, LISA News, NBC News, Noti Bomba, The Guardian, Wikipedia, Youtube

Thanks:

BBC, La 1, Paul Whitelock, RTVE, Wikipedia, www.help-me-ronda.com

Tags:

10 worst human beings of 2025, Assad, Anon., Argentina, BBC, Chile, El Confidencial, El Mundo, EL PAIS, film star, Freepik, Google Play, Hollywood, Hungary, Israel, Kast, Kim Yong Un, Leviathan, LISA News, Maduro, Mel Gibson, Milei, NBC News, Netanyahu, North Korea, Noti Bomba, Orban, Putin, Russia, Sylvester Stallone, Syria, The Guardian, Trump, USA, Venezuela, war criminal, Wikipedia, Youtube

AirBnb, Booking.com, Holiday Lettings, Travelnest, VRBO - they are all the same. Good for clients, maybe, but DEFINITELY NOT FOR PROPERTY OWNERS.

By far the worst, according to many "propietarios" is Booking.com, the market leader, the biggest and most dominant of these "shop windows".

[Image courtesy of Hosteltur]    

Preamble

I know no owner, be they hotelier, guest house owner or private holiday home renter who has a good word to to say about this US company. And, believe me, I know loads, who are friends, neighbours and acquaintances who live here in southern Spain.

[Photo courtesy of LinkedIn]    

"But they are the biggest holiday rental website, so they provide us with the majority of our bookings, so we have to put up with it!" is a common refrain.

But if they make a mistake, which they frequently do, you cannot contact them to sort it out.

Travelnest

This is not a reservations site. It's a booking platform.

Travelnest works with the booking companies as a kind of "host" and deals with clients - mugs - like me, in exchange for five per cent of the cost of the booking.

That's on top of the 15% charged by the companies. So a grand total of 20% gets deducted, and for what?

    [Travelnest]

It's really not good value for the poor service these companies provide.

The worst aspect of Travelnest is that their telephone lines and chat service are closed for a staggering 72 hours at weekends, which is precisely when most problems occur, since Friday nights, Saturdays, Sundays and Monday mornings are popular changeover times.

My latest problem

Without going into all the mundane details I received a message from Travelnest on Saturday night congratulating me on a new seven-day booking which was due to start today, Monday. This is a mistake by either Travelnest or booking.com, since these dates are blocked on my calendar, ie not available.

Could I contact anyone to sort it out? Of course not.

Booking.com are infamous for their poor interaction with property owners and Travelnest was shut! For two-and-a-half days (see above).

    [Image courtesy of Freepik]

I contacted the clients to inform them that they should not turn up at my house as it was not available. Not their fault nor mine. This is an error by the companies.

All I got was a tirade of abuse from the "clients" using the most vile language imaginable and threatening to turn up, break into my house and destroy the contents. The clients are Italian and maybe "mafiosi".

I advised this man that I would be informing the local police of his threats and that they would be waiting for them.

My good friends, also property renters, advised me that these were most likely empty threats, but I shall denounce them nevertheless. Just in case.

[Image courtesy of iStock]    

Conclusion

I can name and shame these two organisations, Booking.com and Travelnest, because I have the evidence that they are guilty as charged.

I'll let you know what happens.

But one thing is certain. I shall contact Travelnest as soon as they open this morning (not until 11.00am Spanish time!) and inform them that they need to sort the problem out urgently with Booking.com and advising them that my relationship with them is over - for good!

Footnote:

Listen, Travelnest is a relatively new hosting company. They started in 2014 in Edinburgh, UK. I've been a host for my and other people's properties since 2002, so I have a dozen years' more experience than this company.

I was available 24-7, always greeted my guests and saw them off - even "out of hours" - and I made very few mistakes in nearly a quarter of a century of "playing host" to guests from all over the world. Being a fluent speaker of French, German and Spanish, as well as English, helped enormously.

[Logo by RS print]    

If Travelnest - young, inexperienced and prone to errors - would like to hire me as a consultant, my rates are very competitive.

You can contact me here:

Help me, Ronda - HELP ME RONDA

[Paul Whitelock with Site 123]

Update - Wednesday August 13th

Everybody seems to have calmed down. My house wasn't vandalised. I didn't denounce the mafiosi from Fuengirola. I have private clients moving in on Friday for the weekend (it's feria). But I shall still "dump" Travelnest. I intend to sell Casa Real as soon as possible and use the money to start on my "bucket list", ie travelling to new places before I get too old!

A Year in the Life – 2020 - Secret Serrania de Ronda

2025 - Our year of travel - Eye on Spain

© The "Namer and Shamer"

Acknowledgements:

123, Eye on Spain, Freepik, Hosteltur, iStock, LinkedIn, Secret Serrania, Travelnest

Tags:

123, AirBnb, Booking.com, bucket list, Eye on Spain, Freepik, guest house owner, Hosteltur, hotelier, iStock, LinkedIn, mafiosi, "Namer and Shamer", Paul Whitelock, private holiday home renter, propietario, Secret Serrania, Travelnest, VRBO, www.help-me-ronda.com

New examples of bad practice, fraud and downright poor behaviour crop up all the time, so some of the posts I intended to write when I set up the "Rogues Gallery"  have been relegated to the "back burner". They'll keep for another day.

[Image courtesy of  Wookleepedia]    

The latest matter to come to my attention, because it affected me and hundreds of other airline passengers flying into Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport on Monday night and will do so every night for the unforeseeable future concerns the new policy of shutting all exits from the terminal building bar and suspending the lift service from arrivals up to ground level and level 1.

    [Photo courtesy of Sol Villa Real Estate]

What was the result?

During the day (and night until recently) everyone being picked up and in the know would go up to the Departures Car Park to be picked up or to get their hire car or bus (Who designed this airport, where the Arrivals Car Park is "miles away" from where you arrive?).

This was fine and the 10 minutes free parking was long enough to escape parking charges..

With this new regime it's impossible to get to the Departures car park in 10 minutes, so if you're being picked up you incur parking fees. In my case, because it was not obvious how to get  there with no lift and most of the doors locked, my wife exceeded her parking time by 30 minutes! Not cheap!

    [photo courtesy of LinkedIn]

Why?

I wanted to know why they were shutting nearly all the exits and suspending the lift.

So I asked a copper (guardia civil officers have responsibility for security at airports, ports and borders).

[Photo courtesy of Antena 3]    

"It's an instruction from AENA* to prevent tramps and vagrants entering the airport to sleep at night."

"Won't they just come earlier?" I asked straight-faced. The guardia just shrugged and smiled at me.

* AENA is the Spanish equivalent of the BAA - British Airports Authority.

Unintended consequences

I'm sure AENA didn't realise that this would mean that many users of the airport would incur parking charges because their 10 minutes would run out.

What do I think?

They should program their smart car park machines to double the free period to 20 minutes when this rather silly action plan comes into action every night.

Or just increase it to 20 minutes for the whole day.

"Come on, AENA, pull your calcetines  up!"

[AENA logo courtesy of Wikipedia]    

Links:

Police check in Spain - Secret Serrania de Ronda

Ryanair - the world's most successful airline - and the most hated

Spain's three police forces explained... and who does what!

© The "Namer and Shamer"

With thanks to:

AENA, Antena 3, Linked In, Malaga airport, Sol Villa Real Estate, Paul Whitelock, Wikipedia, Wookleepedia

Tags:

AENA, airport, airport security, Antena 3, Gatwick, guardia civil, hand luggage, homeless, Linked In, Sol Villa Real Estate, tramp, vagrant, Wetherspoon, Wikipedia, Wookleepedia

In the same week that the British government announced its backing for a second runway at the UK's biggest airport, Heathrow, it closed down completely yesterday as the result of a fire in a local electricity substation.

    [Photo courtesy of Daily Express]

The story

Is this a joke? One of the world's busiest airports shut because of a fire off the airport? Shouldn't a major modern airport have its own independent electricity supply, with back-up?

[Video courtesy of Dailymotion]    

The UK's airports - many of them run by Spanish-owned AENA by the way - are a laughing stock around the world. Heathrow has been majority foreign-owned for almost two decades. Its current owners include French private-equity firm Ardian and funds from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and China, among others.

The Press has had a field day, with scathing headlines.

    Today's front pages [Composite courtesy of SKY News]

The impact

The airport had been due to handle 1,351 flights on Friday, flying up to 291,000 passengers, but planes were diverted to other airports in Britain and across Europe, while many long-haul flights returned to their point of departure.

Heathrow is the fifth-busiest airport in the world.

    [Photo courtesy of BBC]

Airlines including JetBlue, American Airlines, Air Canada, Air India, Delta Air Lines, Qantas, United Airlines, British Airways and Virgin were diverted or returned to their origin airports in the wake of the closure, according to data from flight analytics firm Cirium.

The airline industry, facing the prospect of a financial hit costing tens of millions of pounds and a likely fight over who should pay, questioned how such crucial infrastructure could fail without backup.

The repercussions

With stranded passengers looking for accommodation, the prices at hotels around Heathrow jumped massively.

Booking sites were offering rooms for 500 pounds (ca 600€), roughly five times the normal price levels.

The Wall Street Journal asked: "How could one of the world’s most important international hubs be so vulnerable to a single power failure?"

    A Heathrow hotel [Daily Mail]

Heathrow is the main gateway for Americans travelling into the region. Last year, 84 million passengers passed through the hub.

Chief Executive Thomas Woldbye said in an interview carried live on the BBC:

“Contingencies of certain sizes we cannot guard ourselves against 100%. And this is one of them. This has been a major incident and, short of anybody getting hurt, this is as big as it gets for our airport.”

The first last word

There is much more to come out over the coming days, but rest assured it doesn't look good for Heathrow.

It's an embarrassing state of affairs. Especially given the government endorsement of a second runway.

Although that too has upset many politicians.

[Composition courtesy of BBC News]    

© The "Namer and Shamer"

Photos and Images:

BBC, BBC News, Daily Express, Daily Mail, Dailymotion, SKY News

Acknowledgements:

BBC News, MSN, Reuters, SKY News, Wall Street Journal

Tags:

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We shouldn’t forget to name and shame Vladimir Putin, president of Russia. Not only wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague for War Crimes, indicted for umpteen (alleged) murders of dissenters around the world and in Russia itself and for committing genocide in Ukraine, he thoroughly deserves his Spanish nickname (hijo de puta is a pretty strong expletive in Spanish; its direct translation in USA – sonofabitch – is too soft; better the English equivalents c**t and f**king bastard).

Wanted war criminal Vladimir Putin [Photo courtesy of Wikipedia]  

Latest developments

As Donald Trump, Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron, Europe, the EU, NATO and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine, are trying their utmost for a peace deal, Putin and his vile henchman, foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, are stalling and continuing to bomb Ukrainian cities and in so doing murdering  innocent Ukrainian women, old men and children, including Russians.

         [Cartoon courtesy of The Guardian]

                 Trump raging [NBC News]                            Starmer  statesmanlike [El Periódico]

                Macron resolute [El Correo]                   Zelenskyy ready for peace [Business Standard]

Sergey Lavrov is the same age as me - two months older in fact. He turns 75 in five days’ time. 

He should be long-retired, like I am!

He could be enjoying life relaxing somewhere away from Russia in a  sunny southern European country.

For example, he could be playing golf in Andalucía - in Putin's 9 million euro villa at La Zagaleta, between Benahavís and San Pedro de Alcántara.

Septuagarian Sergey Lavrov [Photo: Wikipedia]

Photos and Images:

AP News, BBC, Business Standard, El Correo, El Periódico, Facebook, NBC News, The Guardian, Wikipedia 

© The "Namer" and "Shamer"

Acknowledgements:

Paul Whitelock, Wikipedia

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áéíóú

by The "Namer" and "Shamer"

Sorry to go on about this, but The Orange One HAS TO BE STOPPED before he does any further damage!

The following statements have all been fact-checked, so they must be TRUE!

Trump having a rsnt [NBC News]    

FACTS ABOUT TRUMP

• 64 Times Mentioned In Epstein Report.
• 97 Times Pleaded The Fifth.
• 34 Felony Convictions.
• 91 Criminal Charges.
• 26 Sexual Assault Allegations.
• 6 Bankruptcies.
• 5 Draft Deferments.
• 4 Indictments.
• 2 Impeachments.
• 2 Convicted Companies.
• 1 Fake University Shut Down.
• 1 Fake Charity Shut Down.
• $25 Million Fraud Settlement.
• $5 Million Sexual Abuse Verdict.                                       
• $2 Million Fake Charity Abuse Judgment.
• $93 Million Sexual Abuse Judgements.
• $400+ Million Fraud Judgment.

 [Cartoon by Cartoon Movement]   

• First President in history to serve a full term to increase the deficit every year he was in office.
• First President in history to maintain a debt to GDP ratio over 100% for his entire term.
• Highest annual budget deficit.
• Most added to the national debt in a single term.
• Most new unemployment claims.
• Largest single day point drop in the history of the Dow.
• First major party candidate in half a century to lose the popular vote twice.
• Longest government shutdown in history (and he did that while his own party controlled both chambers of Congress).
• First President in the history of approval ratings to maintain a net negative approval rating for his entire term.
• First President to be impeached twice.
• First President to have bipartisan support for his conviction after impeachment (which happened both times).
• Most indictments, guilty pleas, and criminal convictions of members of an administration.
• First president to have a mug shot.                                           

Official prison mugshot [Photo: BBC]    

WHO VOTED FOR THIS GUY?

Note: This was sent to me by my cousin Ann Herfindahl who lives in California. She is not a fan of Donald J Trump!

Photos and Images:

BBC, Cartoon Movement, NBC News 

© The "Namer" and "Shamer"

Acknowledgements:

Ann Herfindahl, Joe Varco

Tags:

Ann Herfindahl, BBC, Cartoon Movement, Donald Trump, Joe Varco, NBC News Paul Whitelock, Rogues' Gallery, The "Namer" and "Shamer", The Orange one, Trump

Preamble

I have quite a long list of people, public bodies and companies which have “swindled” me here in Spain that I plan to “name and shame”.

However, there is one man who is NOT here in Spain, nor has he “done me over” personally.

Yet his behaviour over the last six weeks, not forgetting his criminal record, means that he more than deserves to be “named and shamed”.

Trump talking through his a**e [Vektor Stock]

Who is it?

If you haven’t guessed, that man is Donald J Trump, who, despite being a convicted felon and a thoroughly unpleasant and vindictive man, was inexplicably elected as president of the USA and de facto leader of the western world last November.

After his inauguration on Monday, January 20, 2025 this racist, sexist, anti-establishment figure and all-round evil person has unleashed his warped vision on the world.

Trump loses his temper [Vektor Stock]

What has he done?

The “Orange One” claims to be a deal-maker, yet he has plunged the world into chaos.

His import tariffs are only going to damage the US economy.

His “cosying up” to Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, threatens to destabilise eastern Europe.

Trump has upset the whole of western Europe, the European Union and NATO. The only dissenter is Viktor Orban, president of Hungary, who is Putin’s pal.

The "Orange One" [Cartoon: Shutterstock]    

Trump has also provoked China into action against the West.

The official nuclear powers in the world are the USA, France, the UK, Russia and China. However, it is believed that North Korea, India and Iran have unofficial and unapproved nuclear weapons, ie they are illegal.

It is widely believed that Trump is after the Nobel Peace Prize if he can bring peace in the Ukraine and Gaza. Yet over the last 40-odd days he’s done everything to make this seem very unlikely.

Trump has been offered an unprecedented second state visit to the UK and he has received a written personal invitation from King Charles III.

What happens next?

In the light of his actions over the past week, if that invitation is not cancelled or postponed indefinitely, it will be a much-watered-down version, with no visit to Buckingham Palace, no pomp and ceremony and polite but short shrift from the monarch.

Trump, with all his arrogance, has f**ked himself good and proper.

Even more traditional fellow republicans are against him. If an assassin doesn’t get him, his own party will.

I predict that impeachment and gaol is the future for DJT.

Let’s hope so!

Trump in gaol [Cartoon: Red Bubble]    

© The “Namer and Shamer”

Images:

Cartoons by Red Bubble, Shutterstock and VektorStock

Tags:

anti-establishment figure, arrogance, assassin, China, companies, convicted felon, criminal record, damage the US economy, deal-maker, de facto leader of the western world, destabilise eastern Europe, DJT, Donald J Trump, European Union, evil person, fellow republicans are against him, France, gaol, Gaza, impeachment, import tariffs, India, Iran, much-watered-down version, “name and shame”, “Namer and Shamer”, Nobel Peace Prize, no pomp and ceremony, NATO, North Korea, no visit to Buckingham Palace, official nuclear powers, peace in Ukraine, people, personal invitation from King Charles III, president of Hungary, president of Russia, president of the USA, public bodies, racist, Red Bubble, Russia, sexist, short shrift from the monarch, Shutterstock, Spain, “swindled”, The “Orange One”, Trump, unapproved nuclear weapons, UK, USA, unprecedented second state visit to the UK, upset the whole of western Europe, VektorStock, Viktor Orban, Vladimir Putin, warped vision

áéíóú

I love living in Spain. I’ve been doing it full time for over 16 years, but there are a few things that get on my nerves, eg the bureaucracy, the police, the litter, customer service and people who don’t pay me what they owe me.

I’ve been diddled umpteen times, and I am owed quite a lot of money by people, but NONE OF THEM ARE SPANISH.

The only people who have “done me” are British, Irish, and Germans.

And they’ve all got away with it! I can’t afford to sue them, if they’re still around, or they just do a “moonlight flit”.

Astonishingly, there is no extradition treaty between Spain and the UK.

So, I’ve decided to name and shame these scoundrels, plus certain Spanish companies and official bodies, such as the police, on this new blog.

Prologue

I understand that I may do this so long as I do not name the individuals concerned.

In line with journalistic tradition, I am permitted to use their first name and the initial of their surname, as is normal throughout Europe. Not in the UK of course, where anonymity is guaranteed. If I were an alleged “criminal”, I would be Paul W. here in Spain.

But I’m not, so that’s alright.

Coming soon

Rogue 1 - Neil G.

- from Toxteth, Liverpool - owes me in excess of €6000.

Rogue 2 – Aqualei

– a wáter treatment company – DON’T TOUCH THEM WITH A BARGEPOLE!

Rogue 3 – Borja X.

– the main cause of the problem with Aqualei.

Rogue 4 – Julian M.

– “wide boy” from Leeds who “torched” my vehicle then skipped the country.

Rogue 5 – Policia Local

– long history of parking fines, most of which were wrong!

Rogue 6 - Gertraud F.

– a German horse trainer looking for a property. Didn’t pay me for my services.

Rogue 7 – Telephone companies

-YOIGO are particularly bad.

Rogue 8 - Guardia civil

– for unjust traffic fines.

Rogue 9 - Jose O. (nickname Robaperros)

– a dog thief and dog abuser. In gaol for other crimes.

Rogue 10 – Algatocín "cock teaser"

– says it all, really. Refused to pay me what she owed me.

Rogue 11 – Trish Z.

– Irishwoman who lived in my house for two years and never paid me rent.

Rogue 12 – Amanda Mc.

– Scotswoman who rented my house, but left suddenly without paying the final month, taking bedding, towels and other items with her.

© The “Namer and Shamer”

Photos and Images:

ABC, Centre for European Reform, Consorcio de Bomberos, LovePanky, The Irish Times, YouTube 

Tags:

Algatocín, Amanda Mc., Aqualei, ABC, Borja X., British, bureaucracy, Centre for European Reform, cock teaser, Consorcio de Bomberos, customer service, dog abuser, dog thief, DON’T TOUCH THEM WITH A BARGEPOLE!, extradition treaty, gaol, German, Germans, Gertraud F., Guardia Civil, horse trainer, Irish, Irishwoman, Jose O., Julian M., Leeds, litter, Liverpool, living in Spain, LovePanky, “moonlight flit”, name and shame, name and shame blog, Neil G., official bodies, parking fine, people who don’t pay me what they owe me, police, Policia Local, Robaperros, rogue, Rogues Gallery, Scotswoman, scoundrels, Spanish companies, telephone companies, The Irish Times, The “Namer and Shamer”, Toxteth, traffic fine, Trish Z., UK, water treatment company, wide boy, YOIGO, YouTube 

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