Uite aici citatul care m-a pus putin pe jar:

“Cânt te uiţi cum merge POS-T te dumireşti: în şase ani de la integrarea în UE, POS-T, cu cele 96 de mari proiecte aprobate, a atras de la UE doar 295 mil. euro, 6% din totalul fondurilor de peste 4,5 mld. euro alocate de Bruxelles în perioada 2007-2013. În total, în proiectele din POS-T au ajuns 467 mil. euro (bani din rambursări de la UE, prefinanţări de la UE şi cofinanţarea statului), adică 4,8 mil. euro în medie pe fiecare din cele 96 de proiecte aprobate care, fiecare, costă zeci şi sute de milioane de euro. Ce poate spera Metroul să ia de la UE şi ce poate spera şi tronsonul de autostradă Sebeş-Turda trecut şi el pe finanţare europeană din POS-T? Praful de pe tobă!”

Cifrele sunt corecte. Realitatea e trista. Dar, chiar si asa, argumentatia lui Iulian Anghel e de genul: daca nu am reusit pana acum, de ce sa mai incercam? Un fel de miorita secolului 21 – in loc sa fac ceva sa ies din groapa, mai bine sa nu incerc si sa-mi planific inmormantarea, nu?

Mai mult decat atat, face si o analiza economica, in care spune ca Guvernului “[...]BEI i-a acordat o linie de finanţare de peste 450 mil. euro. Lucrările au pornit, dar când a venit vremea să pună bani, Guvernul a zis stop jocul”.

Practic, zice Iulian, aveam finantare, dar ne-am oprit ca sa obtinem bani de altundeva. Corect, cu o mica corectura: o linie de finantare este un credit, un imprumut. Adica tot tu, ca si Guvern, respectiv tot noi, ca si contribuabili, o vom plati. In timp. Dar, si aici e diferenta, optional.

Pe cealalta parte, finantarea prin POS-T este o finantare nerambursabila. Da, un tip de finantare la care n-am excelat deloc pana acum, dar care are niste avantaje clare: e nerambursabila! Adica nu trebuie sa o platim inapoi. Sau, mai bine spus, e o finantare pe care tot noi o platim, indiferent daca o folosim sau nu, prin contributia noastra la bugetul UE. 

Cred ca fondurile europene sunt deocamdata singura sansa sa se reuseasca ceva in domeniul marilor proiecte de infrastructura. Nu spun ca sunt premize foarte bune pentru orice fel de reusita, dar sunt convins ca sunt mult mai bune decat asteptand finantare de la bugetul de stat. Iar mediul de business ar trebui sa sustina atat accesarea fondurilor europene ori de cate ori e posibil, cat si implementarea unor controale si criterii de performanta pentru oamenii implicati in domeniul finantarilor europene care sa creasca acest grad de absorbtie ingrat.

La final, sa dau credit articolului care mi-a atras atentia asupra subiectului: http://chitustefan.ro/ce-parere-ai-despre-magistrala-de-metrou-4/

Well, I couldn’t have found a better reason to start writing again than to bring up the topic of someone else giving up a cause. It’s a cause I’ve cared about theoretically for a long time, but only took a more personal and active role with in the last year because of people like Valeriu Nicolae – this is about him.

Please see his depressing (and pragmatic, real and sincere) article. If this is a new topic for you, look over his blog – he’s been writing a lot about the huge problems with Roma inclusion programs, EU funds and everything associated with it. I won’t dwelve into his articles, he’s a lot more eloquent than I could ever be:

http://valeriucnicolae.wordpress.com/2013/02/12/why-i-quit/

I really hope Valeriu won’t quit. He represents a lot more than just the leader of one of the most successful NGOs in Romania. His work with the Policy Center and the Ferentari shelter has proven that, with a lot of personal involvement (add a lot of time and a big chunk of money), there is hope for children who are considered lost. For kids whose childhood has been hijacked by poverty, disease, prostitution and crime. Hopefully, Valeriu’s example will inspire more and more people to support these children. Cases like Totonel’s (http://www.policycenter.eu/en/recomandare-de-film) will hopefully move things and provide the much needed fuel for change.

Coincidentally, only yesterday I witnessed in Targu Mures a much too common incident regarding an “educated” Romanian and a family of young, delinquent Roma. I wasn’t shocked by the language used by the “educated” one, wasn’t even shocked by the curses thrown at him by the young mother holding her infant in her arms nor by the piece of ice thrown at the old man. What shocked me was the overall approval of the “educated” man’s actions by the people I was with. The all too common attitude of  ”the police can’t do anything about these people; they should beat the hell out of them, no questions asked, at least they’ll learn by fear”.

It’s a very sad issue. A defining issue for today’s Romania, and the overall EU. I know the solution won’t come from Valeriu’s NGO or the actions of a handful of people. I don’t know the solution, but I know it will take decades to advance. But there are few people that can raise awareness on these topics. These are the people that understand the system and have the levers to fight with it. The people that have the courage to stand their ground. To not back away when their tires are slashed by the organized crime in the Roma communities or when others accuse them of a hidden agenda. The people that inspire others to act. People I can use as an example in my small and perhaps insignificant fight against racism in Romania.

Valeriu, I know you won’t quit completely. I know you won’t give up on the kids in Ferentari. But I ask you to continue to aim high. To aim for structural changes, not just individual solutions. To continue being an inspiration, and not only advance the cause of the kids in Ferentare, but of all the kids whose childhood risks being stolen from them.

The first day was a long one, with quite a bit of adventure, accidents, injuries and little stomach inconveniences, but nevertheless, a great day. So after that day, we decided to take it a bit easier and chill out on a second, shorter and more predictable (i.e. we actually had a map of the entire itinerary to start with!) route.

We started again in Biertan, and we headed to Richiș, a gorgeous little village South of Biertan, a short ride (6 km) to a famous church that we wanted to visit. The road was mildly uphill, but an easy ride overall. The village, a nice village, some nice houses, but also some run down ones

A run down house at the entrance in Richis

We got to the church, a beautiful building, but nothing very different from the ones you see all over Transylvania. Well, nothing until you actually step inside and let the church curator, a very funny and lively old man named Herr Schaas – a man with an incredible talent for storytelling  - guide you into the mysterious world of the Richiș church.

Mr Schaas began by giving us the historic context, how he came to become the curator of the church, how he wanted to restore it, and how he made the Discovery accidentally. How the Green Man became part of his life. The Green Man! A mythical character – the way he describes him – is part of his life, the same way the Green Man’s destiny is part of Mr. Schaas’ destiny.
So who is this Green Man? It turns out, this Green Man is a face present all over the church, in the most peculiar of places, hidden yet ubiquitous, discreet  yet watchful, simple yet extremely complex. A remarkable turn of spiritual and cultural events brought this pagan Celtic figure into a Christian Church, in a face off with Jesus himself (literally)!
I won’t go into many details about the research done into this “occurence” as I rather let everyone go and discover the story themselves – the way Herr Schaas tells his story adds to the facts exponentially. I’ll just end this little story by saying we spent over an hour and a half listening to an old man talking about some Green Man in a Saxon Church in Central Transylvania while making jokes about John the Baptist’s (lack of) clothes and the way girls’ scrupulous eyes always had something to be ashamed of during the sermon.

an interesting scultupure of a sacrificial lamb with an ear on its back (the Ear represents Christianity)

One of the Green Man faces in Richiș

another of the Green Man appearances – this is the one in the face off with Jesus

Mr. Schaas – a true living human treasure

After this superb visit to Richiș and a brief hesitation whether to just stop for beers rather than continue biking, we actually started riding again helped by the thought that we were starting on a downhill ride rather than more uphill. So off we go, to the village of Ațel, a great little… place on the map. That’s as much as we knew about it.

So we rode for about 1 km down the main road (back towards Biertan) and then took a left onto what the map said was a county road but what reality called a little cart trail with a beach-like feel (the drought made it very sandy). A bit of a steep uphill and then we went on a long downhill, all the way to the village where we stopped for water. Once we arrived, we realized that what we thought would be just a place on the map, was actually just that – a place on the map. A village, nice, but not really worth a detour. Except, perhaps, for one thing! We saw the Green Man again here, but a very different incarnation – see the picture below

the green man on the garbage can

After spending a whole one and a half seconds looking at this green man, we got back on our bikes and started riding all the way to the Mediaș-Sighișoara road and then back to Biertan on the main road. A nice 25 km stretch, just good to get our blood pumping but also perfect to let us start our car ride back home at a decent hour (and escape a 15 minute summer rain that would’ve completely drenched us – evenso it missed us by minutes).

Oh, a final little detail. As we were biking back, in a village before Biertan, we stopped to ask for water. And a nice lady, wearing a red dress with black stripes, long dark hair and a pile of files in her hand, invited us with her to get some water. A friend and me went (two guys, that is) with this good looking mid-30′s woman into her courtyard. While we were filling our water recipients, a dog was barking at us. A dog lover myself, I started talking to the dog, telling him how I know he’s the master of the domain, how we’re not gonna be long and let him reclaim his property. And then the lady interjected saying “Yes, he’s the man of the house. The ONLY man in this house”, really insisting on the “ONLY”. The two of us (me and the other biker) looked at each other, pondered for a while, and left, as we had two girls waiting for us outside, but with a sense of real pride, as we had just discovered what true Transylvanian hospitality is all about.

This sums up the biking weekend story. I hope you enjoyed it. If you want to see the actual trails we went on, I uploaded them onto bikemap – click here for the map of the trail we went on this day. Sorry guys, I did not put an “X” on top of the lady’s house, you have to try your luck for 32.8 km to find it

Ever since I worked in the travel industry I’ve been thinking about Transylvania’s potential as a destination for cycling. When interviewing for Backroads Inc. right out of college (interview that I failed because I was applying for a bicycle guide position, while I hadn’t ridden a bike in 15 years) I was looking at their itineraries and began imagining fantastic bike getaways in Romania, in exactly the type of setting this article describes.

However, I only started thinking about cycling in Transylvania after I met a group of great people this summer, people who are very much into cycling, hiking and overall outdooring. It took only a few conversations, email threads, Facebook messages and phone calls to plan a cycling weekend through the villages of Central Transylvania – home to the famous fortified churches of the Transylvanian “Saxon Triangle”.

Once we decided on a weekend, we searched for itineraries, advice and housing recommendations in Biertan (which was our central point) – we talked to our dear friends at Fundatia Adept (Ben and Cornel, thank you!) who helped us immensely – and we set sail on a Friday evening. We grouped in Biertan in the evening, unloaded the bicycles, drank a few bottles of wine along with some incredibly stinky Munster cheese I had brought from France (our host was convinced the cheese is rotten and should be thrown away) and then we went to sleep.

The guesthouse was ok, nothing too fancy, bad mattress/sofa, but enough to provide for shelter. The first night I actually slept outside under the clear sky in my sleeping bag (no, not because of the wine, it was a choice rather than a physical challenge preventing me from entering the house).

In the morning we woke up, had breakfast, and around 10 AM we hopped on our bikes and headed out on the trail.

The first part of the path was a steep hill,  just what we needed to get our blood pumping until we got to Copsa Mare, a beautiful little village built around a superb fortified church that we explored extensively (including tolling the bells – an activity that was frowned upon by the locals):

The Church Tower

A remarkable entrance portal

Light sneaking in

The Church Bells

The village of Copsa Mare as seen from the Church Tower

The tower clock mechanism

Music corner – at the corner of neglect and depopulation

As we left the village of Copsa Mare, we took a shortcut to actually reach our itinerary – we were still not on the planned route, and we knew itinerary only starts on the next valley. Thus, we took the direct route across the hill and started climbing on a narrow path, completely non bike-friendly and very steep. We ended up push-bike-ing (my new favorite term in bicycle-slang) until we reached the summit. We missed the planned route slightly, but still, we knew that however we went down, we’d reach the road, perhaps a bit further down than we wanted to.

The downhill was very steep and the path was again anything but bike-friendly, so we biked down carefully until the path leveled and we could bike safely. Actually, most of us biked carefully, as one of us, who went in front, lost control and, via a spectacular crash, broke his shoulder thus ending his bike trip prematurely. Consequently, we had to walk our bikes to the road where our injured friend’s girlfriend came and picked him up. This breather gave us plenty of time to enjoy the sights thoroughly – including the lushest green we saw throughout the weekend in this beautiful meadow:

The lushest green

With our reduced team, we continued on our perceived path. “Perceived” because at this time we started misreading the maps rather than aiming for them. So we are back on a steep climb to reach the next valley – we actually took a detour over the hill in order to avoid a sheep farm and their gracious, beautiful, mean and protective sheepdogs that the locals warned us about.  So back we are, push biking.

One “pit stop”, with the village in the background

We eventually made it to the top, we entered the forest enthusiastically (did I forget to mention this was the hottest day of the year?) and started our descent to our actual path (we were 4 hours into our bike trip and still we had not reached the path we chose for the day!). We reached the main road safely, and there we go, the paved road, the roses, and the beautiful village of Malancrav, home to a beautiful manor house and a great little factory producing some of the finest apple, pear and other organic 100% natural juices. We had a few litres of this juice and then headed back on our trail.

The Malancrav Manor House

After this, we went on a sprint as we were 1) excited to have paved roads and be able to actually bike fast and 2) the organic juice on an empty stomach was a BAD idea and we were desperately looking for a bathroom. It took 20 km of speed biking to reach the village of Danes, a hotel and a wedding whose attendees were totally surprised to see two sweaty bikers in full bike gear and with backpacks on cutting through the middle of the dance floor aiming for the bathrooms.

After we rested and cooled off our stomachs, we headed for the chill part of the itinerary, through a few beautiful villages, a small but continuous incline followed by a long downgrade only disturbed by a few mean dogs and the town of Dumbraveni and its beautiful Armenian Catholic Cathedral

We ended the evening in the Unglerus restaurant in Biertan, with some great food, pain from all the cycling and, creme de la creme, a beer courtesy of our stomachs that decided to forget about the natural juices and settle down.

Below, a map of our actual path, rather than the map we wanted to follow:

The next day we went on a different path, shorter, but even more interesting – Day 2 Cycling in Transylvania

Se pare ca Basescu ramane la Cotroceni. Doua subiecte:

1. Referendumul nu a fost castigat de Basescu. Referendumul a fost pierdut de USL. De ce? Cateva motive:

a. Motivul legal: in 2007 nu se punea problema cvorumului. In 2012, cand chiar ai sustinere populara, te lasi manipulat in asa fel incat sa apara cerinta cvorumului? Da, stiu, a fost impus de UE/SUA/cine-o fi. Dar asta arata cat de incompetent ai fost in strategia pe care ti-ai impus-o. Daca mai rabdai cateva saptamani cu Senatul, Camera Deputatilor, poate ca nu se mai criza nimeni in halul asta. Si argumentai mai bine si incalcarile Constitutiei facute de Basescu drept motiv pentru referendum (decizii economice, refuzul de a numi PM, etc.) si aveai mult mai multa liniste. Si acasa, dar mai ales afara.

Sa nu uitam ca lumea il vrea plecat pe Basescu, dpdv democratic. In momentul in care ai 40% din intreaga populatie cu drept de vot  (ultimele alegeri au fost castigate undeva intre 25 si 30% din total) votand demiterea, deja esti tu prost ca nu stii sa profiti de acest lucru.

b. Mesajul: In loc sa vina cu un mesaj pozitiv, in care sa explice necesitatea schimbarii felului de a face politica in Romania, au mers pe acelasi tip de mesaj distructiv promovat de Basescu din 2007 incoace. Un mesaj de care majoritatea lumii e satula.

Argumentatia era chiar usoara: doar asa putem scoate Romania din criza politica in care sta din 2007, doar asa putem uni din nou o tara polarizata de PD-L, doar asa putem reveni la o normalitate pe care ne-o dorim cu totii. Mergand pe mesajul distructiv, i-au alienat pe multi care poate ar fi votat, sau macar ar fi considerat legitim referendumul si ar fi votat impotriva demiterii.

In schimb, Ponta si Antonescu faceau spume la gura cand vorbeau de Basescu. Il demonizau, si le dadeau apa la moara celor care spuneau ca Basescu e singura piedica in calea celor doi de a distruge democratia (cat de ironic, sa ajunga Basescu aparatorul democratiei – cred ca si Iliescu e gelos de felul in care i-a iesit pasenta lui Basescu).

c. Plagiatul lui Ponta: Ponta s-a compromis, a fost jucat, si va pleca pe usa din dos. Din pacate pentru el (eu personal nu am nici un motiv de regret) istoria il va tine minte poate ca o steluta mica in index, si cam atat. Daca era un om principial, isi recunostea greseala, o dadea poate si la intors (da, a fost o greseala tehnica, se poate spune ca am plagiat, renunt la doctorat si il voi reface, etc.) si arata putina onoare. Dar a dat de pamant cu orice urma de onoare si, implicit, le-a dat armament la greu celor din PD-L.

2. Viitorul suna prost (de tot)

Basescu, in primele discursuri, a vorbit doar de romanii care n-au votat. Ei sunt aparatorii democratiei, luptatorii impotriva mogulilor. Nu a vorbit de faptul ca 40% din populatie chiar il vrea demis, oameni care, in mare parte, cred ca l-au votat in 2004. Nu, Basescu e in continuare incapabil sa devina presedintele tuturor romanilor. Sau, mai simplu, presedintele Constitutiei.

Ponta, in primul discurs, si el a dat-o pe “vom lupta pentru a le face dreptate celor 8 milioane de romani care au votat demiterea”. Nici el nu intelege ca un Guvern e un Guvern al tuturor romanilor, nu doar al celor care au votat pro masurile luate de acel Guvern. Din nou, a aratat ca ii lipseste viziunea sau, mai pragmatic, acea sclipire politica menita a-l ajuta sa identifice oportunitatea de a iesi din negura in care s-a infundat

Antonescu. singurul om fata de care sunt optimist, pentru ca inca n-a zis nimic. Poate se tine de cuvant si pleaca, si lasa PNL-ul sa-si revina.

“Alternativa” – MRU, Mihail Neamtu, etc. Acei oameni care promovau “o alta politica, o noua cale” erau in primul rand, langa Basescu, mai ca nu strigau cu totii la unison “Un fleac, i-am ciuruit”. Halal alternativa.

In incheiere, tot ce pot sa zic e ca vreau o noua Constitutie! Aaa…si o astept pe Principesa Margareta sa candideze la Presedintie 

Mi-am dat seama ca ramasesem dator cu o concluzie a procesului pe care l-am avut cu asigurarile legat de accidentul meu de la ski din Austria in 2010.

Dupa cum am spus in postul acesta, am castigat procesul, dupa putin peste 2 ani. Si dupa inca vreo luna, compania de asigurari a platit toata suma datorata, plus tot ce am cerut: dobanzi, diferenta de curs valutar, cheltuieli de judecata, onorariu avocat, chiar tot ceea ce am cerut.

Procesul a mers incet, dar sigur. Elementele erau destul de clare – sumarul cazului l-am postat chiar la inceput aici - dar nu a fost usor. Totusi, m-am implicat, m-am asigurat ca toate sunt in regula, si pana la urma, s-a facut dreptate. Elementul decisiv, zic eu, a fost o expertiza medico-legala pe care instanta a cerut-o in Romania, si care mi-a dat dreptate pe toate aspectele, respingand expertiza medico-legala de mantuiala facuta de ceva medici anonimi, neacreditati si neavizati.

Cateva concluzii, sau, daca vreti, recomandari, daca aveti nenorocul sa va loviti de situatii similare:

1. Alegeti-va cu grija avocatul. Mergeti cu avocati care se pricep si care sunt transparenti, nu mergeti pe baza de prietenii sau asa ceva. Uneori, un prieten, cat de bine intentionat ar fi, poate sa-ti faca mai mult rau bagandu-se in ceva ce nu stie. Eu am inceput discutand cu un prieten dar, in ciuda intregii sale bunavointe, el era specializat pe altceva, si mi-am dat seama de asta. Pana la urma am mers pe o recomandare profesionala, si ma felicit pentru decizie.

2. Intrebati. Eu am contactat multa lume, intreband ce imi recomanda lumea sa fac. Am vorbit cu directori de firme de asigurari, am vorbit cu oameni din industrie, cu oameni care au patit lucruri similare, si m-au ajutat mult nu doar prin sfaturi, ci prin referinte clare la unele legi, spete, abordari. Si pentru partea asta, ocupati-va voi, e un domeniu pe care avocatii nu-l pot acoperi, si e de valoare adaugata imensa.

3. Perseverati. Daca stiti ca aveti dreptate, nu va lasati. Indiferent ce vi se spune, cine va spune, luptati-va. Nu porniti cu abordari fataliste de genul “nu merge nimic in tara asta”, “sigur sunt corupti”, etc. Nu, justitia, din punctul meu de vedere, merge. Si indiferent daca e sau nu e loc de faulturi in instanta, daca tu nu faci greseli, si esti stapan pe situatie, vei castiga. Depinde de tine (si de avocatul tau, bineinteles).

Vreau sa multumesc zecilor de oameni care m-au sustinut, care mi-au scris, care mi-au transmis povestea si care m-au ajutat cu sfaturi! Ajutorul vostru a fost nepretuit!

In incheiere, sper sa nu aveti nevoie de aceste sfaturi. Dar daca ajungeti in situatia in care aveti nevoie de ele, sper sa va ajute.

P.S.: poza am luat-o de pe http://sirklesity.blogspot.ro/2012/03/go-to-trial-crash-justice-system.html (nu e plagiat daca scriu asta, nu?)

For a while now, I’ve been eyeing some planes that were missing from my collection (especially Russian planes), and I finally ordered a new batch of planes, some of which I’ve been looking for a long time now. Here’s the list;

1. Volga Dnepr Ilyushin IL-76 1:200 !!!

2. Tupolev TU-154M 1:200 - Cubana livery - !!!

3.Lockheed Martin L-1011 1:200, ATA livery, exactly the one I flew back in 1999 to Hawaii!

4. Hercules C-130 1:200 scale,  USAF livery!

Just wanted to share the news, I’m very excited. As soon as I get the planes, I’ll post pictures in the model planes section.

Happy Tuesday!

Foto: http://www.infocarnivore.com/

Am urmarit cu tot mai multa atentie marele scandal legat de plagiatele din Guvernul Romaniei. Unul dupa altii, ministri au fost prinsi si sanctionati pentru plagiat si incorectitudine. Si-acum, cireasa de pe tort, chiar Ponta a fost prins cu matza-n sac! Genial.

O tara intreaga a parut ca ramane socata, lucru pe care eu chiar nu pot sa-l inteleg. Avem un sistem care promoveaza plagiatul de la inceput pana la final. Un sistem care-i premiaza pe cei care se muleaza pe gandirea existenta si ii pedepseste pe cei care gandesc altfel.

Sa ne gandim la exemplul de care m-am lovit de la inceputul scolii. Limba romana. Romane, poezii, nuvele. Scrieri superbe, altele mai putin, dar cu toate ascunzand ceva printre randuri. Si cum ne invata sistemul sa le interpretam? Prin carti de comentarii. Prin comentarii dictate de catre profesor, prin care eram cu totii invatati ca alegoria moarte-nunta reprezinta stransa legatura a poporului roman cu natura, nicidecum fatalismul care ne tine cu capul plecat in fata istoriei de sute de ani. Faceti un exercitiu de imaginatie si ganditi-va cum ar fi fost notata o teza, sau un examen de admitere in liceu in care elevul ar fi scris despre impotenta promovata de literatura de genul “Miorita”.

Trecem de exemplele astea, si mergem la facultati. Romania are sute de mii de studenti, scolile sunt platite pe baza numarului de studenti, nu pe baza performantelor academice. Daca ii intrebi pe studenti, cati din ei chiar se tin de scoala? Cati chiar merg la cursuri, cati chiar studiaza in biblioteci? Va zic, eu, foarte putini. Si de-aici, evident, apar milioanele de referate reciclate de n ori de fiecare generatie de studenti. Da, plagiat, tolerat in numele unei cauze nobile: banii!

Trecem la teze de masterat si doctorat. Mi se pare absolut inacceptabil sa nu se faca o analiza reala de originalitate asupra fiecarei teze de doctorat care ajunge in fata comisiei. Vorbim de institutii de prestigiu din Romania, nu de Spiru Haret. Cum poti tu, profesor universitar, sa conferi titlul de “Doctor” pe baza unei teze de doctorat despre care nu stii sigur ca e originala? In cazul acesta, e la fel de vinovat cel ce a plagiat cat si cel ce nu a verificat originalitatea. Personal, as recuza timp de cativa ani orice comisie de doctorat care e prinsa ca a validat lucrari plagiate.

Cat despre cazul de fata, o mica analiza pragmatica si iti dai seama ca nu are cum sa fie creatie originala a lui Ponta. M-am uitat rapid pe CV-ul lui. Pai el din 2001 era seful Corpului de Control al Prim Ministrului. Avea afaceri. Era parca deja presedinte al TSD. Intre aceste joburi si activitati care sunt extraordinar de solicitante, cum isi imagina cineva, in deplinatatea facultarilor mintale, ca micul Titulescu ar fi avut timp sa cerceteza, sa studieze si sa scrie o teza de doctorat de capul lui, fara ajutorul lui Copy/Paste?

Din pacate, doctoratul aproape ca nu mai are nici o valoare in Romania. Sustin aceasta afirmatie atat prin prisma rezultatelor generate in mediile academice de catre doctoranzii de la universitatile din Romania, cat si prin prisma seriozitatii cu care este tratat de catre cam toti doctoranzii. Pare-se ca singura valoare a unui doctorat este marirea de salariu generata daca lucrezi in mediul de stat sau prestigiul acordat daca intri in functii publice. Dar cel mai trist e ca acest fenomen ii discrediteaza si pe cei putini care chiar fac doctorate pe bune, si care ajung sa fie asociati cu de-alde Mang si Ponta. 

Una scurta, de campanie, si de vineri. Vin alegerile! la Cluj. Atat la Consiliul Judetean, cat si la Primarie. Cea mai interesanta cursa e la Primarie, fiindca riscam sa ne lovim din nou de inertia legendara a electoratului clujean, acelasi electorat care l-a votat pe idiotul de Funar de 3 ori, si care s-ar putea sa-l aleaga pe Boc din nou.  Nu, in nici un caz nu vreau sa spun ca Boc ar fi ca Funar, Fereasca Sfantul! Funar e intr-o liga doar a lui si a medicamentatiei pe care sper ca o primeste in mod regulat zilele astea. Dar totusi, nici pe Boc nu-l mai pot vota, si am cateva motive principale:

1. Apostu si tot ce reprezinta el. Intr-adevar, nu Boc a luat spagile alea, nu Boc a dus coruptia din Primarie la un nivel neimaginat nici macar in perioada de trista amintire mentionata anterior. Dar Boc l-a promovat pe Apostu. Boc l-a sustinut pe Apostu, si clujenii au avut incredere in primul rand in Boc cand l-au votat pe Apostu.  Plus ca si inainte ca Boc sa plece la Palatul Victoria, deja se stia ca vicele (Apostu) isi cam facea de cap. Avand in vedere aceasta stare de fapte, avem doua scenarii, nici unul bun pentru Boc:

a. Boc chiar nu stia ce face Apostu, si asta inseamna ca nu este deloc un lider bun, nu poate controla institutiile pe care le conduce; in alte cuvinte, el e doar marioneta, imaginea unor oameni aflati in “subordine” care au treburi mai serioase. Un scenariu chiar realist, avand in vedere si performanta lui de la Guvern. Eu chiar cred ca Boc e bine intentionat, destept si harnic. Pur si simplu nu cred ca are autoritate in fata oamenilor, nici macar la el in institutie/partid. Ultimul exemplu: nu a vrut sa candideze la Primarie, si totusi a fost fortat sa o faca.

b. Boc stia ce face Apostu, si-atunci nu mai zic nimic, situatia e clara

2. se lauda cu realizari care nu sunt ale lui – mentionez doar doua, ca n-am urmarit mai de-aproape campania:

a. Autostrada Transilvania – “am promis, am facut” e sloganul pe care il promoveaza prin oras, aratand si o poza cu autostrada. Pai sunt doua probleme:

- proiectul nu l-a facut Boc, ci chiar PSD-ul inainte de 2004 – PD-Lul a vrut sa renunte la el in 2005, si l-a pastrat din cauza penalitatilor mari si a intereselor geo-politice

- s-au facut doar 52 km. Da, s-a facut de fapt o centura a Clujului, Turzii si Campiei, si as fi zis: “bravo” daca asta ar fi fost scopul. Dar cand dintr-un proiect de 400+ km reusesti 52km, mie-mi pare un motiv de rusine, nicidecum de lauda

b. Nokia si investitiile din Cluj

Aberatie totala, daca e cineva sa-si asume creditul pentru Nokia, pentru TETAROM, pentru Aeroport, e chiar contracandidatul, Nicoara. Si, spre lauda lui, Tise. Cei doi au adus business aici, nicidecum Boc

In schimb, la CJ, il sustin pe Tise, desi e de la PD-L. De ce? Pentru ca a dovedit ca este un om inteligent. Pentru ca a preluat programele bune existente din mandatul anterior – desi veneau de la concurenta – si le-a dus mai departe. A lucrat cu fosta administratie, i-a recunoscut meritele, si a facut alte lucruri noi. A continuat proiectul aeroportului, a fost artizanul construirii Cluj Arena, si a sprijinit in continuare mediul de business. In comparatie cu Uioreanu, care nu-mi spune nimic, il prefer pe Tise. Desi, am ramas putin socat vazandu-l luand-o total razna in campanie cu “Judetul lui Dumnezeu”. Dar ii mai dau o sansa, am incredere in ipocrizia populismelor foarte ieftine necesara doar pentru a mai strange niste voturi.

In concluzie, vreau sa vad un Cluj de concubinaj. Un concubinaj Tise-Nicoara, in care sper ca cei doi adversari politici, care s-au respectat pana acum, vor lucra impreuna. La fel cum si dezvoltarea anterioara a Clujului (2004-2008) a fost in mare masura datorata colaborarii foarte bune intre Nicoara si Boc.

Inchei referindu-ma la o tura de alegeri infinit mai interesanta: cea de la localele din Bucuresti. Pe langa un personaj inedit si din total alt film (Nicusor Dan) avem niste personaje delicioase, si o campanie senzational de “originala” (a se citi “patetica”). Doar un exemplu de afis mai jos, definitoriu pentru cele mai ridicole prezente: