HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
(video of the week by Yasone)
The Big Bang Theory

All I want for Christmas is you (Slow version)

Hi!!
I've just found this version of the song that we are going to sing tomorrow. It's shorter than Mariah Carey's song. I hope you like it!!

See you!

All I want for Christmas is...

How will Newtown shootings change the US gun debate? (BY TONI PEÑAS)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20742508

The Connecticut school shootings have horrified America. But what impact, if any, will they have on the nation's gun laws?

Even in a nation with a roll call of gun massacres so long and familiar - Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Jonesboro and many others - the killings at Sandy Hook Elementary have a singular capacity to shock.
Twenty children and six adults lie dead. A gunman who forced his way into the school took their lives and his own.
The tragedy has re-opened the debate over the nation's gun laws as long-term supporters of reform have issued calls for tighter controls.
After the shootings, an emotional President Barack Obama promised "meaningful action", adding: "As a country, we have been through this too many times."
According to a July 2012 study by the magazine Mother Jones of 62 mass murders carried out in the US since 1982, three quarters of the 139 firearms used by the killers were held legally. Of these, more than 60 were semi-automatic handguns and over 30 were assault weapons.
But in a country with an estimated 300m guns, where the right to bear arms is mentioned in the constitution, gun control advocates are wary of claiming that change is at hand.
Public support for stricter gun legislation has been on a downward trend in recent years, along with overall levels of violent crime.

Barack Obama: "We have endured too many of these tragedies over the last few years"

This, after all, is a nation where the pro-gun National Rifle Association (NRA) has more than 4m members. According to the Small Arms Survey, there were 88.8 firearms for every 100 Americans in 2007.
Likewise, US legal and political trends have been moving away from supporters of greater controls, says James Jacobs, director of the Center for Research in Crime and Justice at New York University.
"All of the policy momentum in the last 20 years has been in the direction of gun owners' rights," he says.
The Supreme Court decided in 2008 that the US constitution's second amendment gives Americans the right to own guns for personal use, rather than just protecting the collective right of states to maintain militias.
The House of Representatives is currently controlled by the Republican party, which has ties to the NRA. Republican President George W Bush allowed a federal ban on assault weapons to expire in 2004.
Meanwhile, the backlash against Democratic politicians who passed gun control bills in 1993 and 1994 frightened centre-left candidates into steering clear of the issue, says Kristin Goss of Duke University.
"The Democrats have a belief that it's not a winning issue for them," she adds.
As a result, gun rights were barely an issue during the 2012 election, apart from when President Obama reaffirmed his support for an assault weapon ban in response to a question during one of the presidential debates.

Other countries have responded by tightening their gun laws following public outcries in the wake of mass shootings.

Access to firearms were restricted in the UK following the 1987 Hungerford massacre and handguns were effectively banned in the aftermath of the 1996 school shooting in Dunblane.
Australia introduced sweeping new gun laws after 35 people in Port Arthur, Tasmania, were shot dead in 1996. Finland - which has some of Europe's most relaxed firearms legislation and highest rates of gun ownership - placed extra restrictions on handgun permits in the wake of a 2008 college shooting which killed 11.
But not all such atrocities have provoked this response. Norway, where firearms restrictions were already robust, did not tighten its gun laws after Anders Behring Breivik's 2011 attacks.
Certainly, in the US, earlier mass shootings - there have been 13 such attacks in 2012, according to the Washington Post - have failed to provoke change.
The scale and nature of the Connecticut massacre, however, has put gun control back on the agenda in a way that other tragedies have not. Likewise, liberals hope the president's fresh mandate following his re-election will give him greater confidence to speak out on the subject.
While not impossible, fresh firearms legislation remains a long shot, says Robert Spitzer, a professor at the State University of New York and author of The Politics of Gun Control.
"People are genuinely shocked by this," he adds. "Obama is in a position to exert some leadership on this issue. But it's very difficult for me to imagine the new Congress enacting new gun laws."

Even if the president were to take the initiative, he says, institutional barriers would stand in his way.
The US system means that most gun legislation is set by states rather than the federal government. Connecticut has relatively tight firearms restrictions by US standards.
A whole range of legal loopholes would have to be unpicked, too. The Brady Act, signed by President Bill Clinton in 1993, requires federal background checks on firearm purchases by flagging up buyers with a criminal record or a history of mental health problems.

But 40% of gun sales are not affected by the legislation because they take place between private individuals - including at gun show stands or through the internet.

Even where checks are performed, they are not foolproof.
Jared Loughner, who wounded US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and killed six others during a 2011 shooting in Arizona, was sold a Glock 19 handgun despite having had several run-ins with the police hand having been thrown out of his college for erratic behaviour. But he had never been convicted of a crime nor assessed by mental health professionals.
In response, supporters of gun rights argue that clinical outreach, not new regulations, is the answer.
"I think this is more of a mental health problem than a gun control problem," says Mr Jacobs.
Advocates of greater regulation point to the fact that the US has 3.2 firearms homicides per 100,000 population compared with 1.6 for Canada, 1.0 for Australia and 0.1 for England and Wales, according to a 2012 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
But even the staunchest gun control supporters concede it may be impossible to ever envisage UK-style gun laws in a nation where there is currently nearly one firearm for every citizen.
Ultimately, says Ms Goss, any political pressure for change will have to come from the bottom up rather than the top down.
"I don't think leaders are going to lead on this," she says. "I think they are going to follow."

Video of the week by Eva Gómez

In this days maybe this story could have been like this...enjoy it.
Have a nice Christmas and a Happy New Year 2013

It's so cute!

My suggestion: Last Christmas - Glee Cast by Noelia

Lyrics:
Last Christmas lyrics by Glee Cast

Last Christmas, I gave you my heart
But the very next day you gave it away
This year, to save me from tears
I'll give it to someone special

Once bitten and twice shy
I keep my distance, but you still catch my eye
Tell me baby, do you recognize me?
Well it's been a year, it doesn't surprise me
Happy Christmas

I wrapped it up and sent it
With a note saying 'I love you', I meant it
Now I know what a fool I've been
But if you kissed me now, I know you'd fool me again

Last Christmas, I gave you my heart
But the very next day you gave it away
This year, to save me from tears
I'll give it to someone special

Last Christmas, I gave you my heart
But the very next day you gave it away
This year, to save me from tears
I'll give it to someone special
Special
Yea yea

A crowded room, friends with tired eyes
I'm hiding from you, and your soul of ice
I thought you were someone to rely on
Me, I guess I was a shoulder to cry on

A friend to discover with a fire in her heart
A man under cover but you tore me apart
Now I've found a real love, you'll never fool me again

Last Christmas, I gave you my heart
But the very next day you gave it away
This year, to save me from tears
I'll give it to someone special

Last Christmas, I gave you my heart
But the very next day you gave it away
This year, to save me from tears
I'll give it to someone special

Last Christmas, I gave you my heart
But the very next day you gave it away
This year, to save me from tears
I'll give it to someone special
I'll give it to someone special

My suggestion II: Happy Xmas (War is Over) by John Lennon and Yoko Ono

I love The Beatles, so I suggest this song too. I hope you like it!!

My suggestion: Last Christmas by Wham (George Michael)

I think this song is easy to sing, and everybody have listened it!! (I think so!)

And if you want to see the original video here you have the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8gmARGvPlI

My suggestion: All I want for Christmas is you by Mariah Carey.

This is my suggestion for the Christmas Carol. I think the lyrics is easy, but maybe the rythm isn’t (too fast for us?). Well, you can try to sing it at home. Or we could sing just a piece of the song... I don’t know. What do you think?

Video of the week

Now cupcakes are trendy as as Christmas is very close I thought that this video is a good idea. Have you ever sen so original Christmas trees? Someone of class wants them???

Article of the week, by Noelia Olmedo

I found a very interesting article by Reporters Without Borders that discusses a hot topic in our country: the Catalan health system corruption. I think it's interesting to read and comment. Do you think that is fair the judgment against Caféambllet? Do you think that you can do something to stop the corruption of politicians and others involved? Here you can read the article, and in the end I leave the link if you are interested to investigate further. A greeting.

SPANISH MAGAZINE SENTENCED TO A 10,000 EURO FINE FOR INVESTIGATING CORRUPTION IN THE CATALAN HEALTH SYSTEM

REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS PROTESTS AGAINST THE CONVICTION OF MARTA SIBINA AND ALBANO DANTE, JOURNALISTS AND EDITORS OF THE MAGAZINE CAFÈAMBLLET.

ON 24 OCTOBER, SIBINA AND DANTE WERE FOUND GUILTY OF DEFAMATION AGAINST JOSEP MARÍA VIA, HEALTH ADVISOR AT THE GOVERNMENT OF CATALONIA. DANTE AND SIBINA ACCUSED VIA, AMONGST OTHERS, OF LINKS WITH CORRUPTION. THEY WERE CONVICTED TO PAY A FINE OF 10,000 EUROS. JOSEP MARÍA VIA JUSTIFIED HIS COMPLAINT WITH THE TITLE OF THE VIDEO (“THE BIGGEST ROBBERY IN THE HISTORY OF CATALONIA”) AND SPECIFICALLY THE WORD “ROBBERY”. OF THE ORIGINAL SUM OF 20,000 EUROS, THE JUDGE CONSIDERED ONLY HALF OF THE COMPLAINT AND FINALLY CONDEMNED THE MAGAZINE TO PAY 10,000 EURO. VIA, WHO MANAGES THE HOSPITAL DEL MAR IN BARCELONA, SAID HE WOULD GIVE THE AMOUNT TO CHARITY.

“WE CONDEMN THIS VERDICT AS A CLEAR LIMITATION OF PRESS FREEDOM. IN THE CONTEXT OF THE ECONOMIC CRISIS IN CATALONIA IN PARTICULAR AND IN SPAIN IN GENERAL, IT IS EVEN MORE IMPORTANT TO INVESTIGATE WHAT PUBLIC MONEY IS ACTUALLY SPENT ON,” REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS SAID. “SUCH A BIG FINE IMPOSED ON SIBINA AND DANTE IS LIKELY TO CREATE A CHILLING EFFECT ON INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING INTO CORRUPTION CASES, WHICH ARE OF OBVIOUS PUBLIC INTEREST.”

After salaries were cut in several hospitals in Catalonia, CaféAmbLlet made public its findings on the scale of corruption in the budgets of the Selva and Maresme public health system districts. After two years of investigation, Marta Sibina and Albano Dante, who are running the magazine, published a YouTube video investigating the spending of public money. The report cited high-level state employees of the regional government, which is chaired by Artur Mas. According to the video, the Catalan health system has become a network of companies that are winning tenders through their personal contacts with the politicians in charge.

Sibina and Dante claimed that the firms belonging to Ramon Bagó, former president and member of the Catalonia Health Council, were winning tenders worth millions of Euros. This report prompted proceedings by the Catalan anti-fraud office.

CaféAmbLlet is also facing charges for investigations into Xavier Crespo, deputy of the national political party CIU, who was said to have received 15,000 Euros from one of the subsidiaries of the Health Corporation of Maresme and Selva together with his wife.

Albano Dante and Marta Sibina, who are running the magazine alone, are determined to appeal the verdict. “We have demonstrated that we are not talking about isolated cases but that this is a network that is beyond fiscal control”, Dante said. “We showed that this is made possible by the principal parties of Catalonia (CIU and the Socialist Party) and the pressure that they are exerting on all the authorities that should ensure transparency.”

The link: http://en.rsf.org/spain-spanish-magazine-sentenced-to-a-10-09-11-2012,43660.html

My best friend by Mar.

One of my best friends is Isabel. I knew her 15 years ago. She's very friendly and sociable. We met up at college and after that we met up again in the university. When we was studing at the University, We had the opportunity to go to do part of ours last course in Strasbourg. There, We lived in a studients residence near of the "le petit venice" an incredible place to visit. In Strasbourg We shared a lot of live experience with a lot of different people. These was amazing to our personal growth. After that we lost the contact because Isabel went to work to Costa Rica. She was working in small villages like a teacher and supporting differents N.G.O. When she came back we met up again, because she was looking for a room, and we deciced to go to lived together. She was my flatmate during two years. In this time I really knew her. She's very empathic person, when you have a problem is the person who always help you. Now she lives and works in Lleida, and every one of us has her own life, but We always bring a moment to meet up and share ours life. Definetely, Isabel is one of the best person I have found in my life, and one of my best friend.

Let it snow, by Dean Martin - My suggestion. Any other suggestions for the Christmas carol we need to sing together?

Vancouver (Video of the week by Marta Garcia)

I have decided to upload and share with you this video about Vancouver (British Columbia). I have been reminding my time there. I recomend you to visit this city. If you can, you should go there once, at least.
I hope you like it!  

A good friend

This is my good friend Rosa. Currently, Rosa is maybe my best friend. I know a lot of people but she’s more special than others. She lives in Premia de Mar and she has a daughter called Paula.

I think that I met Rosa six or five years ago but I can’t remember which day. She’s Jose’s sister . Jose is a friend of mine. Her real name is Rosa but her friends call her Rosiki. It’s a nice name.

Rosiki is an intelligent woman with a strong character. She’s sincere and her face shows what she thinks . She’s a hard-working, open-minded and very talkative but sometimes when she’s a problem she’s reserved because her life has not been easy. I think that she’s a fighter. She’s a loyal friend, she always listens to your problems and gives you good tips.

Rosa and I have similar hobbies and we enjoy going shopping (we love Desigual clothes). We try to pass time together but both of us have different schedules and we only can meet Friday evenings or the weekends. New technologies let us be in more contact more often; whatsapp is an amazing invention.

In summary, Rosa has a heart of gold and I hope that our friendship will never lose.