I.M. Jack - second edition

I.M. Jack - the weekly round-up on j'accuse

a. War
The UN will send 6,900 troops to police the Lebanon - Israel border. The irony of such solutions is that the policing will be done on the side of the aggressed. The UN will not be taking care of the disarmament of Hezbollah. That will be the job of the Lebanese troops in the area. The 6,900 troop force falls 7,000 short of the necessary troops to successfully patrol the area. The main contributor to the force is Italy with 3000, followed by France (2000). Spain, Belgium, Poland and Scandinavian countries are also sending troops. The Republic of Malta is toying with the idea of sending a token support force.

b. Israel
The minus points garnered by Israel in this war continued to accumulate. Israel was once again forced to apologise for a regrettable accident when a Reuters cameraman and reporter were injured in airstrikes. Meanwhile the US state department will examine whether Israel misused US made cluster bombs on civilians in the Lebanese conflict. It would seem that while God was prepared to save Sodom of there were just 10 good people, the modern State of Israel is prepared to sod'em all off to kingdom come.


c. Cheap'n'Cheerful Saga
The low-cost airline saga in Malta turned another chapter. The marketing campaign of Brand Government seems to imply that by opening 'underserved routes' to low-cost carriers Malta is getting a share in the market. The proverbial pepper for people's eyes comes in the form of flights to Luton, Dublin, Mulhouse-Basle and Pisa. On the other front, main routes like Brussels, London, Paris and Rome continue to be 'underserved' by the national fat cat and decorated with taxes that have been challenged at Commission level.

d. Sport
Valletta began their league commitments with a 5-0 victory and then moved on to a 2-2- draw in the classic encounter with the team from the suburbs. Fans in Malta were relishing the 5-1 trouncing of champions Birkirkara by upstarts Msida St. Joseph on the same day that Pieta Hotspurs were decisively routed 5-0 by a ten-man Marsaxlokk who are guided by miracle man Brian Talbot. Elsewhere Juventus progressed to the next rounds of the Coppa Italia where they will meet Napoli in a packed San Paolo stadium. The Italian Supercoppa final was played between two of the most ridiculously entertaining teams in Italy. It would seem that they decided to play a half-each - which allowed the playing team to play lovely flowing football as the other team watched in a fake conjuring of bafflement. It was thus that Rigetta led Fair PLay Utd 3-0 by half time with brilliant displays of football against a somnambulent defence and it was even more thus that Fair Play Utd managed to do the impossible and turn the score around. Both will go on believing that they have the best team in the world.

e. Sports Law
Both Moggi and Juventus moved a step closer to Luxembourg with their appeal to the Regional Tribunal of Lazio. A couple more appeals and Lucky Luciano as well as Cobolli Gigli could be gracing the halls of the Court of Justice in what will definitely be an interesting case.

f. Malta Television Awards
It would seem that over 120 persons have been nominated for the first Malta Television Awards. This ceremony will definitely be another occasion for the trash to congratulate itself, tap itself on the back and guarantee that quality TV will be absent from Malta for another century. God help us and the letters page on the times.

g. Weather
The weather in the Grand duchy of Luxembourg is grey. Daily temperatures average around 16 while at night we average 13. Regular showers alternate with spats of sunlight. The only entertainment in the area is the Schuberfoer - or fun fair. It is here that Luxembourgers go to drown their misery by paying to be thrown and hurled in the air at amazing speeds and turned and twisted and spun and whatever. Throwing up is not an option but an obligation. Which is why j'accuse prefers card games.

h. Food
Luxembourg can unveil some culinary delights if you look hard enough. Cherubino in Rue Notre Dame is one such guaranteed festival of nosh. It specialises in food from Puglia - and almost every plate is fun to eat. Try the Rabbit - divine. Another such delight is to be found in the Rue de l'Acierie in Hollerich close to Marx area. The restaurant / lounge bar is called Cat Club. Prices are a bit steep but all the plates are excellent.

Have a nice Sunday!