Please read this exchange
Stephen Borg Fiteni has just sent in this comment.
Thank you for writing this post, Daphne, and letting me know that I am not alone in thinking so.
I am 19 years old and in this election I engaged in many discussions with extended family and family friends who are voting Labour or abstaining in this election and who voted Nationalist last election (I wouldn’t have bothered discussing with anyone who voted Labour their entire life, their opinions are of no value to me).
I got this feeling that they are extremely immature and stupid – for example a woman who didn’t vote because she didn’t get a promotion, a homosexual uncle who voted AD because PN wasn’t liberal enough for him, and countless people saying they’re voting Labour to remove corruption.
I began to doubt my choice to vote Nationalist but your blog is one of the reasons I went to vote for them with pride and absolute certainty last Saturday.
I’ve seen many comments that you lost the Nationalists this election but I’m sure you’ve helped to open the eyes of many people, such as mine. Thank you.
This is my response.
Thank you for bothering to write this, Stephen. Yes, I have seen the endless comments accusing me of ‘losing the general election for the PN’. But I have worked in media and communications for long enough to know that this is but the latest line fed into the system for repetition through Facebook.
It is also the latest line which members of Forum Zghazagh Laburisti, who have colonised the internet for the last few years, have been instructed to take.
Of course, they do not realise the contradiction inherent in their argument, because of the very immaturity you mention. When people vote out of spite towards a woman they don’t like (my gender is part of it, but let’s not go into that here because it’s another complicated discussion about the deeply-embedded misogyny in Maltese society and culture), it’s not the woman who’s to blame but the people who react so viscerally to the sight and sound of a woman who doesn’t give a damn about what they think of her, and who doesn’t have the mind of a child, speaking her thoughts in public.
Some women, in a small and antiquated society that programmes its women to compete for male attention from an early age, become deeply envious, at a level and in a way they barely understand, of what they can only see as a whole lot of attention being directed at another woman, especially when that woman doesn’t fit the definition of what they have been told from birth a woman should be like.
I don’t flirt, I’m not coy, I don’t wear make-up or killer heels, I don’t laugh at men’s jokes if they bore me, and I threw away my small clothes a long time ago. Yet men still pay attention, and to the perplexity of these other women, they pay attention for the very thing those other women have been programmed not to do: have an opinion, be informed and talk about it. “Never show men that you’re clever,” Maltese women of my generation and older were told (with luck, this doesn’t happen any more) “because it will scare them away.”
And as for the men who react badly to me, the Jeffreys and Jesmonds and Francos of this tinpot island, and their equivalents in anonymous society, they are the flipside of the situation I described above, the men we girls were warned about, the ones who would react negatively. Women like me make them feel emasculated and under threat. Their fragile egos, the product of growing up in a very backward society (the first two are my age, so I know what I am talking about when I describe Maltese society of the 1970s and 1980s as backward) with the double disadvantage of a narrow-minded and repressive upbringing (something I was fortunate enough not to have had) mean that they are completely incapable of handling a situation in which they are mocked and criticised by a woman in public and in full view of others.
A psychologically and emotionally sound mature man, especially one in public life, would handle it with ease. A really stable and sophisticated one would ring up and ask me to lunch (yes, it has been known to happen) and would even be amused. But these petty Sicilians, with their badges of honour and respect and manliness, go blind nuts.
It is obvious to anyone sane, to anyone coming in from outside Maltese social culture, that it is they who are the problem, they who are in the wrong, and not me.
You do not forcibly silence a woman blogger, a woman columnist, because male politicians with small egos and unstable personalities cannot handle her. That is not just a threat to freedom of expression; it is also the open validation of southern Mediterranean misogyny as an acceptable way of life.
There’s something wrong with them, not something wrong with me. I do what columnists and bloggers do all over the free world. What I do is perfectly normal. It’s just not normal in Malta. But Malta has to grow up one day and join the real Europe, leaving Siculo-North African conservatism, honour-and-shame imperatives, and prejudice behind.
A grown, fully mature and psychologically sound man or woman does not choose a government on the basis of personal spite towards a single individual who is not even a politician, whoever that individual may be. Boasting about it is an admission of, if not severe psychological and emotional shortcomings, then certainly a great lack of intelligence.
But this is not the case anyway. People vote negatively, when the government and economy are sound, not because of individuals but because of personal anger and boredom which is generalised and needs to be directed at something specific. What we have seen this past weekend is the culmination of a couple of years of restlessness and of mental and emotional fidgeting.
Lawrence Gonzi fought the election by telling people that under his government Malta was a place in which they had nothing serious to worry about. But that is precisely why he was voted out.
As for the fact that the Labour Party and its fellow travellers are still targeting me even though Labour has won the election with a resounding victory, the reason for this is clear.
They have realised with a sort of delayed shock that I will now be scrutinising them in government, and that this fact alone gives the lie to the propaganda they have repeated over the last five years: that I only write as I do because I have the government’s protection. Now they are the government, I don’t have their protection (rather the opposite, with constant threats) and I am still writing.
That’s the way it’s going to stay. When I voted Yes in the referendum on Europe in 2003, and then for the Nationalist Party, I did so because I want to live in a free society after having grown up in one of the most oppressive societies imaginable outside the Iron Curtain, Mao’s China, Fidel’s Cuba, Gaddafi’s Libya and various South American dictatorships, all of which were contemporaneous.
Nothing is going to change that – nothing, no number of threats, insults, offensive accusations, lies (like the slander that I am paid by the Nationalist Party), bitching by spiteful women of all ages on Facebook, childish remarks by young men who are confused and perplexed because I don’t fit the mould of their mothers, or public tantrums by infantalised men my age with fragile egos and honour-and-shame fixations.
This is a free country, no thanks to Labour, and those who don’t like it are just going to have to deal with it. It is not the government, any government, which protects people who write as I do. It is the Maltese Constitution.
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We will be discussing more serious bread and butter things than gay rights in the near future.
Fantastic. Well done, Daphne. From somebody non-Maltese who lived and worked in Malta for several years but has since left.
Simon Busuttil on facebook.
“A first unconstitutional step by the new Labour Government – they demanded the resignation of the members of the Broadcasting Authority which is an independent body. SB”
Now let the real counting begin …
Martin Schultz find him on wikipedia
Vera prosit, Daphne, well said.
I was and I will remain your follower. I never miss one of your articles. You are the only one in Malta who is courageous and writes the truth no matter who are they. Keep it up.
Stephen Borg Fiteni pretty much summed up my thoughts too. I wish I had been so mature at 19.
Thank you, Daphne, for your blog. I share the same ideas, thoughts and opinions.
And I surely know what you’re talking about.
And by the way, I’m a women your age who is constantly told to shut up. But I will not shut up.
I want to discuss and find an answer to this madness that has happened to our country.
I agree entirely as I am one of those, who is constantly told to shut up in meetings, to pass on ideas but not as my own and am sniggered at by men as well as women you so aptly described in your statement.
“Some women, in a small and antiquated society that programmes its women to compete for male attention from an early age, become deeply envious, at a level and in a way they barely understand, of what they can only see as a whole lot of attention being directed at another woman, especially when that woman doesn’t fit the definition of what they have been told from birth a woman should be like.”
The worst of it is that men pretend equality exists but in reality they do everything to stop it in the boardroom when capable women walk in.
The reason is that they are exposed for who they are, incompetants. The only way to break this mould is co-education, which I strongly believe in.
Wow ! fantastic article. Thank you !
How dare you call Malta a tinpot and then have the right to say that you are talking in the better interest of Malta? How dare you insult the intelligence of the Maltese people just because they do not have the same views as you do? Who made you the president of what the people consider right or wrong? I do not take lightly to someone calling me an idiot because I did what I felt what was right and I sure as hell am not going to take it from someone as narrow-minded and opinionated as yourself. I let people decide for themselves what is right or wrong and I respect their decision be it the same as mine or not but I am not going to accept that someone like you tell me what is right or wrong
seriously get a life and stay out of ours
Idiot.
@hahahaha “seriously get a life and stay out of ours”
and yet you are here commenting on Daphne’s blog.
The contradictions in the comments to this blog are just too unbelievable to ignore.
And time and time again, comments intended to disprove the article only add merit to it.
No one is insulting anyone’s intelligence. If you are truly as intelligent as you believed yourself to be, you’d walk away from the insult. Remember, this is a blog, not a letter addressed personally to you.
If you did what you felt was right, why are you taking this so personally? Are you doubting yourself?
And if you respect other people’s decisions be they the same as yours or not, then why on earth have you posted this in the first place?
I’m not trying to stick up for Daphne Caruana Galizia at all. But to ask a blogger to ‘get a life’ (while it is perfectly clear that she has one) and stay out of yours (while you read her blog avidly and post comments) is just too unbelievable.
For the record, I’m not interested in your reply, nor do I trust you will assimilate much of this. It’s just my opinion. And I do have a life.
“How dare you…” is just the kind of introduction you’d expect from someone described in the post above. VSB as we would say in my country (meaning “that which were to be proved”). Turn your frustration towards something meaningful instead of illiterate indignation.
Dear hahahaha,
Mrs D writes as she does because we are a democratic European country.
Daphne, I’d better stop reading your blog because you confirm my opinion of what Maltese men and women think about women, and if I don’t manage to escape from this reality I’m going to go insane.
It’s just so hard to adjust to it.
[Daphne – Do what I do and don’t adjust. Just tell them to bugger off and look for the company of different people. Maltese society is cliquey and based on group thinking and group conformity. These groups use social ostracism and sniping to get others to conform. It never occurs to them for one moment that their society might not be sought because there is more interesting society elsewhere. It is the Marsa Club/Tigne Beach mentality through to the village bar and klabb tal-banda.]
Agreed, DON’T ADJUST.
I think you have such strong feelings about this because you are a woman…us men aren’t so cliquey and bitchy
@ian – You are right, men don’t like to say they are cliquey and bitchy but call it networking instead which usually involves a closed network of men only. Wow, what a difference I must say.
Go girl!
“Never show men that you’re clever,” Maltese women of my generation and older were told (with luck, this doesn’t happen any more) “because it will scare them away.”
Well, not quite. I mean yes, I’m sure that’s how it has been often phrased, but it’s not ‘clever women’ who ‘scare’ men. It’s more the type of woman who thinks being clever means being sarcastic, belittling, finding fault with everything, and being a nagging ball-breaker in general who thinks she’s the centre of the universe.
[Daphne – That’s not at all the sort of woman I mean, and that has nothing to do with gender. Both men AND women with that kind of personality are actively avoided. The fact remains that, like it or not, women of my generation were trained to play down their intelligence and to never let a man think they are smarter than he is. Women older than I am had it even worse: they were trained in the arcane skill of convincing a man subtly that their idea was actually his.]
Not bothering to associate with such a person is just a sensible decision, rather than being scared. Who wants to spend time with someone who can only make you miserable? Otherwise true intelligence, open mindedness and sensitivity is usually appreciated.
[Daphne – I don’t suppose you realise that this statement plays into exactly what I am talking about. Sensitivity? Ah yes, a feminine trait.]
Agreed 100% on what you say about freedom of speech. As the famous principle goes, I may not agree with all you have to say, but I will defend your right to say it.
[Daphne – This is 2013 not the age of Voltaire. I do not need defence from individuals, because I have the Constitution and the law for that. But thank you for the sentiment – and if this strikes you as a ball-breaking remark, deal with it. There is plenty about men that drives women right up the wall, but we don’t make a song and dance about it.]
[Daphne – I don’t suppose you realise that this statement plays into exactly what I am talking about. Sensitivity? Ah yes, a feminine trait.]
Yes, you can see it that way. And why not? Men prefer feminine women, just as women prefer masculine men. Generally speaking at least. I think we should learn to deal with this too..hehe.
[Daphne – I am afraid you are wrong. History and experience should have shown you that men actually prefer women who look feminine but think and sometimes even act like men. The reason for this should be obvious: men get along better with other men and find the company of women trying. The most iconic femmes fatales in history have all had definite masculine behavioural/rational traits linked, though not necessarily so, to good looks.]
There’s nothing shameful about it either. Acknowledging traits traditionally associated with femininity, in no way implies a woman should be stupid, for instance.
I remember in a recent post you mentioned that Dr Gonzi elicits more favourable responses from women than Dr Muscat, at a visceral level, precisely because he embodies more of the classical masculine traits like trustworthiness, being a good provider, etc. So I don’t think you really want to rubbish completely what biology has programmed into us either.
[Daphne – This is 2013 not the age of Voltaire. I do not need defence from individuals, because I have the Constitution and the law for that.]
True.
[But thank you for the sentiment]
You’re welcome.
[and if this strikes you as a ball-breaking remark, deal with it]
It is, but I’ll think I’ll survive.
[There is plenty about men that drives women right up the wall, but we don’t make a song and dance about it.]
Uhm .. you don’t? Didn’t you just launch into a lengthy attack on maltese men and their weak egos? :)
Take care
[Daphne – No, I did not launch into a lengthy attack on Maltese men and their weak egos. You need to learn how to read. And you are also a cliche, using challenge as a form of perverted flirtation, even if you are not aware of it. I have been dealing with men like you all my life, and I am now thoroughly bored of it. So please move along and find a younger woman to whom this kind of thing is novel.]
‘Why can’t a woman be more like a man’, protested Professor Higgins.
[Daphne – EXACTLY.]
Not to butt in or anything, but do you want my views, as an, ahem, aesthete?
[Daphne – Yes, thank you.]
In my guilty, haunted, wandering life, I have met all sorts of women, from all continents (except Antarctica of course), of all shapes, sizes, dispositions, social strata and, dare I say it, sexual orientation.
And I found, much to my bewilderment, that the ones who got all hostile were almost all Maltese.
Perhaps it’s because I don’t go all erotic on them the moment I see them. I have always held that sex should be left out of office life, and that one should know one’s limits.
This seems to irritate the hell out of them. Then they get into an intellectual arm-wrestle (with me! Why? I’m not out to prove anything.) and the whole thing usually degenerates into a volley of thinly-veiled barbs directed at me, or me finding some excuse to get as far away as possible.
It doesn’t help, of course, that I am far from the CEO Adonis they all seem to covet. Or that I have opinions about things.
Years ago, when I thought I was still in the running for a Maltese girlfriend, I found that it was the homelier ones who would be drawn to me. Years later, after I’d seen the world, and clinked champagne flutes with supermodels (I have) and scrummed it out in the mud with big butch rugby players (I also have) and clashed across the boardroom with tight-bummed power-females, I began to understand.
It’s all about expectations.
My friend Spud, who is an unsung genius, once told me “Baxxter, in-nisa Maltin minghalihom li jiswew miljun dollaru, mentri jiswew 12.99, postage and packing included.”
The ones who think their fanny rules the world will not take kindly to Mr Average, or Mr Below Par.
But I’m rambling.
Take Ira Losco. Probably our closest thing to a true celebrity (well, she did mention a nude photoshoot). I used to know her, all those years ago. Last time I saw her, I was looking for Private Eye at my newsagent’s. Or it might have been Combat & Survival. No matter. The fact is, she noticed me and said “Aw, orrajt?”. And this was after her Eurovision triumph. Which was awfully decent of her. She speaks to mere mortals. It might have something to do with her life story. She’s probably been to big celebrity Elegabalus-style parties, has seen it all and done it all, so she knows where to draw the line between professional, social and sexual.
Trouble starts when you mix all three. Now the Maltese are famous for that. Including the men, I hasten to add.
God, I’ve rambled.
What was the question again?
I think that all the “Never show men that you’re clever, because it will scare them away” thing is due to the fact that most Maltese men do not know how to cook, do the dishes or iron their shirts.
This fact never ceases to amaze me.
All foreign males (except maybe Italians and excluding the cooking part) aged 16 and over are capable of taking care of themselves. But not the Maltese.
Thus, when they find a women who is their equal (or superior) intellectually they feel intimidated because deep down they know that such a person would never replace the role their mother had in their lives.
This could also explain why most of these men end up “importing” women from Thailand or eastern Europe.
Hey Baxxter. I’m listening to a Swiss ice hockey game on the net, watching an American college basketball game on TV and reading your ‘ramblings’ on Daphne’s blog. A perfect evening.
Harry here is obviously a multitasker. No wonder women open up to him.
I feel I must step in to correct some misconceptions about “Eastern European” women.
The ones you see walking around in the arms of absolutely horrible, overweight Maltese men, perhaps lawyers and government ministers too, are Ruthenia’s equivalent to Madlen tal-xHamster.
They belong to the lowest social strata and back home would have been tacking on zips in a factory, or cleaning out floors, for a few Kopek a day. The more entrepreneurial, and better looking, will go into the lucrative sex industry.
So don’t go thinking that Eastern European women are dumb subservient bimbos. They’re not. I should know. Ritienska earns five times as much as me, plays the stock market, is loaded with MBAs, and can kick my arse at chess. She could probably also build a log cabin out in the taiga, but we haven’t tried that yet.
I agree with Baxxter 102%.
Thank you. You’re marvellous. As a woman myself, I had to refrain from clapping in a public place like a mad seal upon reading your article.
Thank you, again. Keep doing what you’re doing. I’d say ‘Be careful’ – but I don’t think you really care, and I admire you for it.
Same here.
“…Now they are the government, I don’t have their protection (rather the opposite, with constant threats) and I am still writing.”
Amen to that.
And may you keep writing for years and years to come because – and I think I speak for many here – we were a little bit lost (and a little bit worried) when you weren’t around for those couple of days when the results were announced.
The popularity of your blog brings with it a responsibility to keep up your sterling work because, frankly, there is nowhere for us to turn for real news. Sure we’ve got The Times for a bit of reporting here and there – but there are no journalists left.
[Daphne – http://www.independent.com.mt is now better than The Times.]
I’m not buying the Times anymore. This is the time for the Independent to build up its readership as the only true independent newspaper on the island.
Well after many years than I care to remember I am taking the plunge and dumping The Times and start taking the Independent – hope it lives up to expectations.
Very well written!
You manage to put so many of my thoughts into words, that I find myself saying “so true” and “exactly” while reading your blogs.
Well done for this piece. You have just described my exact mentality.
I was born in the 60s and grew up in Zejtun (until 22 years).
I feel so unfortunate that I lived my childhood and youth during the dark ages of MLP rule and Zejtun was one hell of place in those terrible days, almost always in the news.
Yet, as a child and as a teenager I was never afraid to display the ‘In-Taghna’ (no need to go into the details why it was called like that in those horrible days) in full view instead of doing like so many others who use to hide it.
Then, I started my work-life in a large ultra-male environment, at the Dockyard/Malta Shipbuilding (just imagine) and even there I was never afraid to show my true colours.
In the early 80s under the MLP regime I affiliated within the PN and was a representative in one of their committees, but because I exercised this right, I was maliciously mentioned (name, address and all) in the Labour periodical called ‘Ix-Xewka’.
They thought that I was going to be afraid and leave. On the contrary, when some bullies came to verify whether what was printed was true, I told them with my head held high that yes I was affiliated within the PN committee mentioned and told them that if they want they can do the same.
After that incident, some of them began to admire me, but most of them began scheming, without success, as to how to make me leave. Fortunately, for me in 1987 a great PN statesman – Eddie Fenech Adami – was elected and I remained there for another 8 years to their dismay.
Dear Daphne, i have been reading your articles for a few months now. In the beginning I was just curious about this DCG since I was told she is cruel, idiot and all that non sense…. But you are quite the opposite. An article like the one above is just excellent. I don’t come from tal pepe far from it cos I live in the very south of Malta and all those who call you all sorts of names do not even merit to comment or judge your intelligence. Keep up the good work
[Daphne – They’ve probably never even read anything I’ve written, stef. They’ve been on about me for years. I’ve become such a mythical figure that when they see me in real life they do a double-take. You know, as though they’ve suddenly seen the Roadrunner walk out of a cartoon and past their restaurant table.]
The intention behind blaming you for the PN’s loss is simply to wreak havoc on any opposition. Divide more than ever appropriating the raison d’etre of dissent.
Zrinzo Azzopardi was at pains to describe ‘Malta taghna lkoll’ yesterday. Democracy cannot ever be based on a national plebiscite towards the great leader. It implies fragility in spirit propped by strength in numbers alone.
It will be interesting when this sinks in and the gut reaction manifests itself.
I cannot believe the attempt here is still to encompass all aspects of public life and its dialogue.
If you’re the enemy of the PL, which is now ‘essential’ to progress, by default you’re the enemy of the state.
I don’t know what’s worse, throwing into a ghetto the weakened PN or trying to use you to eradicate lucid memory.
Food for thought. If what they wanted in their miserable little lives was some spice, why this moral suasion to stop you from providing it?
The material elite reduced to an appeal to give up itself. Tragic.
Welcome back. A fantastic article.
They want you out Daphne because unlike others you DARE EXPOSE their weaknesses. They might even change their minds and ask you to join their MOVIMENT.
Remember that they believe the end justifies the means.
Keep up the good work, Daphne, but expect no pats on the back.
This is the type of analysis where you excel. It’s simply beautifully written.
Social media is being used as a tool to put pressure on people like you.
We are also seeing a similar type of attack on Simon Busuttil going on at the moment.
There are those who have a clear agenda to try and blame him for PN’s defeat so as to discourage him from contesting the leadership election. I hope they do not succeed.
He showed tremendous strength of character and loyalty in coming to Malta to fight a battle that was already lost. We have already lost one gentleman in Gonzi. We cannot afford to lose another.
Regardless of who wins the leadership race, Simon Busuttil is not to blame for the fall. On the contrary, he gave a much needed boost during the last two months. I dare suggest that were it not for him the migration of votes would have even been bigger.
I also think that he’s coming in for criticism because there was such a huge loss of votes. If the difference had been minimal it wouldn’t have impinged on his role.
However, life is not fair and Simon may have made a personal wrong decision which one can only assess with hindsight.
I agree with AE. It’s ridiculous to blame Simon for the heavy loss at the elections.
He was only here for a short period and nothing wrong could ever be said about him. On the contrary, I believe that if it weren’t for Simon we’d have suffered a much worse defeat at the elections.
I love your brilliant mind Daphne. Your blogs have been my safe haven for these past months.
I do not mean to flatter you or sound corny but you have been my inspiration.
I learned a lot and have won many small personal battles thanks to your blogs. THANK YOU.
[Daphne – My pleasure.]
I can relate, your blog is absolutely brilliant.
And I second to what Judy just said. I’m totally addicted to your blogs, Daphne. Thank you.
It’s the only place in Malta I can call home.
Thank you, Daphne. I owe you my sanity.
Same here!
Daphne, your blog has kept me going during the electoral campaign. Living in a place that is staunchly Labour drains you in more ways that one.
To read about insights that you’ve been wondering about but there’s no way you could voice them kept me SANE, and I’m so grateful for daring to do it and going where angels fear to tread.
Who’s the idiot who blames you for shooing away PN supporters? Are you kidding me? Have you ever lived in the south in an absolute minority?
Daphne, your blog doesn’t scare PN followers, it only turns them into Nazzjonalisti ifferrocjati.
Now that’s what I call a real diet.
Ditto. Ditto. And more ditto.
I too live in the South and I get people walking up to members of my family admonishing them to be careful because “they’re starting to think you’re Nationalist”.
Daphne,I would like to hear your views re: new leader,and other vacant posts in the PN.. Anne Fenech anyone?
Thanks and hope you will gives us your ideas.
[Daphne – I’m staying out of it for now. All this speculation is unhelpful at this stage.]
The thing that bugs me the most about Malta is the lack of investigative journalism.
In any other western democracy, the supply of electricity to the illegal boathouses would have led to in-depth articles and demands for accountability.
I mean, be honest, without electricity those places would not flourish.
Whoever authorised Enemalta to give power to those boathouses should be exposed and called to account.
Here though it’s seen as part of normal life.
Eddy Privitera
Today, 12:58
I suggest to all GonziPN fans to watch John Bundy’s AFFARI TAGHNA this evening. You will be in a position to know why GonziPN was demolished on March 9. You will hear this from “nationalist” sources- Robert Musumeci, Franco Debono, J.Pullicino Orlando and Jesmond Mugliett !- Times of Malta.com
Da bis-serjeta?
Demolished?
GonziPN left a legacy. As far as I know, legacies are there to stay. Nothing was demolished!
GonziPN will be triumphant, in the end. And the end, will come.
They have to keep up the momentum until they cash in their reward.
Labour are trying to deflect attention from their imcompetance that is starting to show.
They changed and added ministers even after DOI issued the press release.
They keep on switching entities till today between the different portfolios.
They are going mad because they didn’t realise they dont have enough office space for all their ministers and parliamentary secretaries.
This is not going into the merits of the mess that the new head of civil service excuse me designate is perpetuating.
Talking about investigative journalism…would journalists in another country, allow a prime minister to call himself an economist when he is clearly not one? Why do we allow such blunder to happen?
I can sense it building up: the Times and Strickland Foundation have decided (foregone conclusion) that Mario Demarco is to be anointed as next leader of PN.
Well what about Simon Busuttil and Beppe Fenech Adami?
And Robert Arrigo still sitting on the fence after being tainted by association with Franco Debono, JPO(S), Jesmond Mugliett and John Dalli.
As you said in a previous post, Arrigo’s extended family have been openly declaring before/after last Saturday that MLP will get their vote.
It would have been more sensible for Bundy to discuss in a programme why PL won, and what PL in Government are going to do, how and when all the ‘weghdiet elettorali’ are going to be implemented.
People are now expecting answers. Discussing programmes about what went wrong is an utter waste of time.
With Europe facing a continuous global economic crisis, the future is what’s on people’s agendas. People want to know if the quality of their life is going to improve significantly within the next five years.
GonziPN is a legacy, right and wrong shouldn’t be discussed. The legacy speaks for itself.
Well well. A piece of the puzzle falls into place?
Daphne, you moderated one of my previous comments regarding this. I’m assuming you don’t want to get involved. Very well. I won’t comment further.
How about Tonio Fenech and Clyde Puli? I think they should be considered too.
Prosit Lestrade. Ilqatt il-musmar fuq rasu.
Iktar nahseb kienet it-Times li ghamlet hsara lil PN milli Daphne. U mbaghad Demarco jippretendi jkun il-kap ! Wiccu bla zejt
The PN doesn’t belong to the Strickland Foundation.
It will dissolve the PN the moment it tries.
Well done Daphne, keep it up. My family and I follow you all the time, and we all admire you for your courage in stating plainly what you feel and what is true, without fear. You also keep us entertained and in stitches in these dark times :)
I left Malta a while ago with no intention of ever returning. Part of my reason was the way I was treated as a woman.
I’ve admired your guts, Daphne, especially when people call you “ugly” and the standard Maltese male criticism, “qahba”. I am amazed at how often these insults creep up with respect to women.
I was also regularly called a whore, amazingly after voicing some ill-received opinion. I won’t bother specifying how much male company I have enjoyed in my life. That is nobody’s business.
In the office, my looks were the subject of male attention and comments: positive comments (e.g. great tits) were as disturbing as the negative comments.
I got fed up and depressed, and quite frankly lost the will to live there anymore, NOT because I care that someone said I was spotty; more because someone thought I should care so much that their opinion mattered.
Apparently, you’re meant to put your virtue and looks above all else as a woman in Malta. I became amazed at how backward Malta is.
I left, won an extremely competitive UK scholarship (after being rejected by the Maltese scholarships boards four times) and am now doing a PhD. Over here, I have been selected as an early career leader in research.
Over there, I left an interview in tears, being told I was a failure and would never amount to anything (literally).
But I am still sad that I had to do this and that I have left my home behind and mostly that I was incapable of rising above it the way you seem to be able to do. It is not a happy place to live, on so many, many levels. There are serious societal issues which I am afraid will never be addressed.
[Daphne – It helps that I have a bit of a background in anthropology, CBB. It means I’m able to break down and analyse the behaviour and, more crucially, that I’m able to stand outside it as an observer. But yes, it is an extremely nasty and vicious place to live, with real malice beneath a thin veneer of bare civility. The reason people acquire what they call friends here (in reality they are a network of acquaintances) is for protection from each other.]
Interviews!
Been there, done that, been rejected. Then as if by magic, you sit before a foreign board, and it’s “well done, come right on in”. Even when you’re not selected, you’re treated with respect.
(And that’s the reason I conceal my name here. Many of the people I criticise as subliterate and unfit for service have been on my interview boards.)
So I reiterate my appeal: Leave Malta if you can. There’s always room at the top. But not in Malta.
Simple, my friend. During your interviews, the board members would instantly recognize you superior intellect and, as we all know in Malta, would recoil in fear that you were a threat to their feather-bedded position. Thus, rejected.
Or more likely that I was a complete nobody.
“Never marry a girl who could be more intelligent than you” was the advice given to my husband when he started going out with girls. Which explains your blog, I think.
There’s a Darwinian explanation for the deficient IQ’s on this rock.
Spot on.
In a Maltese culture that is fascinated with winning, power and violence, I would think that it is unrealistic to expect that people will not be influenced to seek power through violence in their own lives.
CBB, don’t forget that many young people of your time grew up expecting that violence is an acceptable way to get what one wants.
I am a woman in my late 30s who is constantly told to shut up. It seems to many that to have ideas and a strong opinion means you have something wrong with you.
I don’t shut up. I put everyone on the shelf that he deserves and continue to live my life with my head up high.
For the record I didn’t get the promotion I wanted, either – less qualified Labour people did and yes I voted PN all the same.
I voted PN cause I dont want my daughter to grow up in a caountry where having a different opinion means you are afraid and harrassed as happened to us in the 80s.
“Noi siamo venuti su con troppo vento e quel vento ci e rimasto dentro.” I will never forget the police with dogs or the SMU in the mass meetings.
How can I now remain silent when we are already being shown the incompetence of this goverment? It’s a time to stand up and be counted.
A Maltese Professor once said (and I fully agree):
“Biex tifhem lil Malta, trid tohrog minn Malta”.
I say:
“Biex tifhem lil PN, il-PN iridu johorgu ftit minn posthom”.
I say the above with great sadness and disbelief that PN are not in power, however, PN will emerge stronger than ever before.
PN need to organise themselves after last week’s result, but they’re going to be stronger this time.
A little exposure to Middle Eastern societies would suffice. To my horror, I’ve repeatedly found that debates with many people here reminded me of those I had with Arabs and South Asians.
I have been living on this island for the last five years. I have now decided to jump ship before it ultimately sinks.
In my pursuit of trying to unravel the minds of the staunch Nationalists and the staunch Laburisti, I attended several mass meetings of both parties.
The sights at the latter party’s meetings were certainly an eye-opener.
Having witnessed what I have, I am really afraid for Malta. First on an economic level, but secondly I see a nation of takers, who lean on the state for every aspect of their lives, and shirk off any personal responsibility as it will be it-tort tal-gvern.
I saw this happen in my own country, I don’t want to see it happen here.
‘is for protection from each other’ an alternative perhaps to ’fraternita’ terrore’ ?
Just to let you know. I haven’t bookmarked your site on my new laptop yet (I tend to visit your site from another pc). While googling for it I got a ‘Reported attack site’ notice.
Went back to my pc, and tried again through the recent history cache with no problem.
The anthropological/evolutionary aspects of such discussions are very interesting.
I feel that one may easily divide the Maltese population into 2 groups:
Those who are fanatical about politics without any critical thinking; fanatical/obsessed about a football club which is located miles away from home country (probably a remnant of the centuries of colonisation by other populations);
and those fanatical about religion in a totally irrational and superstitious way, which include the festi, obsessesive compulsive praying and endless deals with the ‘lord’ – this is the majority.
The minority are the ones who actually think, rationalise, observe and are skeptic about the general situation. Those who make decisions based on such scrutiny and not on unquestioned tradition.
You could easily sum that up as a predisposition to ideology and communalism.
Most of the voraciously anti-Catholic, non-biased, Gaia-loving liberals I’ve met tend to exhibit the same intolerance and fundamentalism as their religious and politically active counterparts.
You don’t change culture and attitudes by merely swapping labels and creeds.
[Daphne – I’m glad you pointed that out. I’d just been jotting down notes on how Muscat’s campaign was based entirely on messianic messaging, and the reason it worked is because it was deployed on a population raised in religious cult conditions and who are therefore open to and uncritical of that dialectic.]
*non politically biased , Gaia loving, Sliema liberals
Daphne, brilliant, as always. I have realised that I’m not the only one to get this urge to stand up and shout out to everyone to read your articles.
I feel that it’s a waste that only a few thousands(?) get to read your blog. You should be addressing the nation on tv.
Well written article, Daphne.
I have been living in the Middle East for quite a few years now and I can see many similarities to what you have perfectly analyzed, and to what I live to every day here in the Gulf.
As you rightly say, democracy was imposed on the Maltese otherwise from a political point of view the similarities are even more obvious.
They were afraid that someone would have overstepped the acceptable threshold.
Brilliant Daphne – superb – i am baffled how we are suffering this major defeat when we have such a think-tank as you.
Don’t adjust!
When I’m discussing various issues with friends or colleagues, most of the time I feel I’m swimming against the current, but I stick to my guns.
Sometimes I have the feeling that they see me as a threat, which means that they are insecure.
Keep your mind open, read and travel.
The hysterical reaction of some people to this blog reflects everything that is wrong with the general mentality in our society.
This blog is informative, written in a style that is witty and provocative. You can agree or disagree, but at the end of the day if you are open-minded enough, you arrive at a point where you need your daily ‘fix’ of it. Few authors can provoke this reaction from their readers. Chapeau!
When I read Dapne’s informative, humorous and provocative comments, and compare them to the top women commentators in the USA, Maureen Dowd and Peggy Noonan, I am often perplexed (however happy) that she continues to persist and truly educate the Maltese in a manner no others can.
Daphne’s style and content are standard in the British press, or the press in the Western World for that matter. Columnists are meant to provoke thought.
That’s why we call it “biting commentary”. It’s in their job description.
But not in Malta. Over here, we call it “vitriol” or “vicious personal attacks [sic]”.
I’ve seen op-eds in the foreign papers that would make Daphne look like Enid Blyton.
Truly, we are nation of wimps.
I am someone whose opinions about politics differ greatly from yours (i.e. Laburista).
But I can wholeheartedly agree that misogyny is deeply rooted in Maltese society. Women are seen as weaker, and less capable of legislative decisions than our male counterparts.
This is still heavily ingrained into modern-day society, ingrained into every man.
And God forbid a woman should have an opinion, and be vocal about it.
As I said before my political views differ from yours, but if I cannot relate to you at all, I can relate on this point.
I’ve been on the receiving end of a slew of very mean and condescending insults for just that, having a strong opinion.
This is especially notable on Facebook. Recently, from the election, as was in my right I expressed my thoughts on the result on my wall and this progressed into a discussion with one of my male friends on the site.
I won’t clutter your blog with the whole story, but I can say that it escalated to the point of threat of sexual assault from his part.
It made me sick, if I had been a man would he have threatened me like that? I don’t think so.
Misogyny is a big problem, a giant glaring flaw in our society that claims to be ‘liberal’ and ‘equal’.
I do think that some of the animosity people have towards you stems from the fact that you are a woman.
[Daphne – Most of it does, Gabriella, not some of it. A man writing as I do would never be targetted in the same way or subjected to the same level of – how can I best describe it? – hatred stemming from fear, I suppose. It’s pretty much the same sentiment that had women hauled before the Inquisition Tribunal on the accusation of being a witch. We’re still so culturally backward it’s unbelievable.]
Some of your articles do sting my ‘Laburista’ skin, that is true. But this is your blog, whoever views this blog is viewing it purely of their own choice.
I personally view this blog and others, I might add because as a liberal I believe that all opinions are relevant, regardless of what those opinions are.
Really, thank you for your time reading this.
[Daphne – And thank you, really, for writing in.]
Of course, some men would argue about misandry, but we all know that that too is derived from misogyny.
It’s a never ending debate.
God bless you Gabriella, I hope that you continue to militate in the Labour Party. It needs your open-mindedness badly.
If you have been following Daphne’s blog as long as I have, you would have also noticed that the most lurid, mean, threatening and foul comments have indeed come from women.
God Bless You Daphne! I simply cannot help but admire your writings and above all your great courage. I just wish that you could address more people who do not make it to this blog. Keep strong girl!
I agree with your views on Maltese society unreservedly. It is precisely because of that patriarchal, conservative mind-frame that I voted in favour of a party proposing gender quotas, progressive tax, and civil liberties in line with the 21st century and the rest of Europe.
Incidentally I’m of the understanding that the Maltese constitution as it stands is one that still identifies Maltese people as Roman Catholic and condemns criticism of the Catholic institution/ideology, as well as entrenching the ideology in the education system.
I would argue that this philosophy of life (one renowned for its patriarchy and fascist ignorance) forms and safe-guards the Neanderthal thinking prevalent on the rock.
The only party to insist at a University debate that the Church not be privileged in discussions of national importance was AD.
And here comes one of the progressive, tofu-eating, environment-conscious elite trying to justify his voting for a party of people who admire communist dictators.
I’d argue that patronising wankers such as yourself are going to have a lot to answer for in these coming five years. Good thing many of you have effed off to other countries and let people like me bear the brunt of it.
Stop whining about the Catholic Church. Your ideology is just as rancid and patronising as Catholicism. No one needs patronising by middle-class fops who live in ivory towers.
The only party to insist at a University debate that the Church not be privileged in discussions of national importance was AD.
Kalma, hunters and squatters get to have their say.
If anything the problem has been the detente between the Church and the Labour Party.
Daphne, you are my queen and I bow to you.
It looks as though The Times has been taken over by Labour. There are too many pro-Labour staff reporters and too many pro-Labour columnists.
It is to me a totally different The Times from the one I was comfortable with. So I have stopped buying it.
I want you to know that I appreciate your blog and thank you heartily for it.
All Malta has been taken over by Labour. Now we have Labour majorities in the government, the local councils, the European Parliament. The media is pro-Labour too.
The Moviment is everywhere.
This is one of the ways in which Daphne opened my eyes, by reporting things which weren’t on The Times – perhaps they are just incompetent rather than biased.
It amazes me how the Yana Mintoff land scandal wasn’t reported in the media and how nobody checked to see if the so-called ‘switchers’ at Labour’s (very late) revealing of their electoral program were actually switchers.
It is also appalling how Labour managed to get away with fraud by presenting a taparsi tal-pepe switcher who is really a woman born from Mintoffian parents who own a Labour Party Club in one of the areas in the South.
However, what began my distrust of The Times was the way they handled the death of Mintoff, as they seemed to deliberately leave out a lot of facts.
While in Brussels, did our Joey pay a courtesy call on “invalid” Johnny Cash ?
From TMI:
“Neutrality will be upheld but defined differently. It will be updated to be more relevant to modern times. The neutrality clause served us in good stead during Arab spring, and it allowed us to cooperate fully with Libya,” Dr Vella said whilst addressing the diplomatic corp.
Cooperate fully with Libya during the Arab spring?? What’s he saying??
“The new foreign affairs minister ruled out any major shake ups in Malta’s foreign policy, placing a premium on continuity, peace and security.”
So we did not need a change after all??
“Dr Vella also said that EU matters have practically become national matters, thus justifying a separate EU affairs ministry. He said that the foreign ministry will still work towards maximising relations with EU states on a bilateral basis.”
Bongu Malta!! his reasoning that this justifies an EU ministry is baffling
“Dr Vella pledged to work for a more “social Europe,” saying that a healthy economy should be shared by all.”
Dr Vella, first you have to have a healthy economy – the PN was working at it most other EU countries at the moment only dream of it!
“The foreign ministry called Malta’s EU presidency in 2017 a “mammoth task, requiring bi-partisan national cooperation.””
Read: we have no clue how to handle this as for us allahares nidhlu fl-ewropa and need the PN to help us out so we do not lose face.
“Dr Vella also warned that Malta’s foreign missions abroad have to reap a more fruitful “return on investment.””
Now that he is in Government shouldn’t he start saying how, he’s not on the opposition benches any more. And if they dont give “Return on Investment”? I have a feeling some ambassadors and Embassies are in for the chop
“Embassies must act as a shop window abroad and Maltese ambassadors have to be more commercially minded,” Dr Vella said.
Don’t they already do this what’s new? Ah yes he said there will be “continuity” ie no change.
The one about shop windows has to be the most pathetic argument ever put forward.
The experiment failed miserably, nothing ever came out of it.
Unless you have a product there’s nothing an ambassador can do. Vella has no idea what the word ‘product’ means in this case.
Simply because in ‘his’ embassies, the product is European market itself.
Kif se nehlu l-ahwa.
Not all Maltese men are the same, especially nowadays.
I nearly always did my own cooking, washing, ironing and cleaning. When I was little my mum used to give me cleaning chores as much as my sisters.
Also I never liked women who are not intelligent, as after the sex I found life boring with them.
I actually prefer living on my own and never after my divorce remarried.
These last years I took care of my mum and from some months ago she deteriorated a lot as she has now dementia.
She is at a home now as I could not cope any more. I used to cook, do the shopping and wash and iron both of our clothes.
Even at this home my sisters and I take her clothes to wash back home. I do not expect myself to let only my sisters to do it and they expect me also to share.
So Daphne I do not consider myself like those men you talked about and at last Malta IS changing and has been for some time now.
[Daphne – I am sorry you are having to cope with all that. Dementia is really terrible.]
Dear Daphne you’re my inspiration as I am in my 40s and am constantly asked to shut up as if I cannot have an argument. Well to tell you that I’m addicted to your blog is an understatement. All your articles are fantastic but this one proves your grandness. Keep up the excellent work girl.
I hope no one is planning to emulate Fidel Castro’s regime on how to handle bloggers.
http://ansa.it/web/notizie/rubriche/mondo/2013/03/14/Yoani-Sanchez-New-York-prima-volta-Usa_8401826.html
I only had the time to read this brilliant piece properly, now.
Thank you, Daphne. You’re the best.
Hi Daphne
A friend passed your article to me as “it sums up my unhappiness on the island”.
Men, with egos larger than life expected me to shut up. When I did nothing of the sort, they made me feel “wrong” and blamed me for their insecurity, said I intimidate them.
Women called me a bitch and maneater. I don’t flirt or slut around but I can keep up any conversation be it about needlework, cooking, football, cars or art. Yes, this can attract attention much more than a foot long skirt does.
I will never trade in make-up or my stilettos. Likewise, I will never stop speaking my mind or being witty or clever. Regardless of how much I am outcast or battered by any society.
There comes a time, however, when a tinpot society, suffocates you enough that it halts your personal growth and the mentality described within your article spills over from the personal life onto your professional one. For this reason, I have now moved to another country. Rest assured that the tinpots exist everywhere. The difference is that the space is much larger and therefore easier to disperse.
My opinion is that the sheep mentality reigns in Malta. The need to belong to a labeled group is amplified by the restricted space. Once you become outcast there is not much place where to go to as you either bump into one side or the other. There is no place for a pig in the middle.
I sincerely hope that one day more people start realising that being yourself, having opinions and expressing them freely contributes to a more colourful life, where people grow and move forward together.
In In the meantime, I’d rather enjoy all that life has to offer than be concerned about what the drama queens and egos think or have to say about me.
Keep on blogging, Daphne. It’s a free world for speech and thought. So people are free to get upset about it as much as they want as well! :-)
Dearest Daphne,
I too would like to thank you for your blog.
You are a reliable source and through your blog I manage to get a clearer view of the political stuff going on in our island.
Although some people argue that your comments are usually insulting or cruel, thus they refer to you as a witch, I always argue that you speak your mind and speak about actual facts. Never have I read a piece of your work and realised it wasn’t real.
I’d really like to know more about Maltese politics and what it was like back in the 70s and 80s. Thank God I was still very young in the 80s to remember much.
Therefore, I’m very grateful that my parents were always there to help me figure out things and nowadays your blog is a vital part of my life too.
Could you kindly suggest a good history book about Maltese politics which actually includes facts and not biased opinions please?
One other thing … you are such an inspiration! Keep up the good work!
with heartful thanks
mm
[Daphne – Unfortunately, Myriam, there isn’t any such book and that is a major part of the problem.]