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London 12.08.2012 - In the last few weeks, some items in the news have shocked me. It may be that I am still to overcome the naiveté and ignorance that's part of the cultural baggage that one carries after having been born and having grown up in a developing country. When one arrives in these, so called, "civilized and advanced" societies, one tends to think that over here the law is upheld and observed by all and sundry. But actually, nothing could be further from the truth.
London was the capital of the great British empire. As "sophisticated" places go, is right up there, if not at the top, certainly very close to it. Culturally, socially, artistically, financially, and politically, London is a powerhouse. No point in denying it's place in history either, for nearly every one who has been some one has lived, at one time or another, in this most wonderful city. As in any other place, however, the good mix with the bad and the ugly. One only has to take a walk, along Knightsbridge, Mayfair, or Chelsea to witness obscene displays of wealth from people who, most probably, did not sweat for it, but rather stole it from some under-developed country in Africa, the Middle East, Russia, Eastern Europe, China, or Latin America. London is ever so welcoming to all these thugs, ever so eager to take a slice of their ill-acquired money.
But I'm digressing. The shock is that I am finding no differences between certain people and institutions in a utterly corrupt country like mine, Venezuela, and the UK. And here is where Standard Chartered slots. We have a saying back home: "lo agarraron cagando y sin papel", which could be translated into "getting caught with your pants down and without toilette paper when you're defecating." Standard Chartered basically was caught in the act. If Benjamin Lawsky, New York superintendent of financial services, is to be believed Standard Chartered has been flaunting Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) prohibitions for nearly a decade. The charges against Standard (SBC) are very damaging:
...The only explanation I find is that the judiciary and government has been slowly invaded by a "lower class mentality and drugsters and systemists", who think they are smart, but real dumb. They are slowly destroying everything, and even themselves ! They make a caca surrounding to which they have to live in also !
...to live in the mire of Caracas you have to be a dirty pig...! and to live in what seems to not be a mire and muck and dirt like Canada or USA or the UK, you do not have to be a pig...! they are the inward muck completely !
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