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Jump To Comment: 1 2 3didn't feature in the NYT report or the annual Yale round-up. But the five most important words uttered in any political or geopolitical context this year were beyond a doubt said in Spanish by the King of Spain.
"porque no te callas" (= "why don't you shut up") clocked up multiple youtube vids with several million hits so far & within a day was (& still is) heard around the world on as a mobile phone ringtone. The Spanish King addressed Hugo Chavez in the familiar form "tu" asking him why he didn't shut up as Chavez heckled his (the king's) prime minister Zapatero describing the former pm of Spain as a "fascist". The incident didn't really provoke as much diplomatic fuss as anyone might have hoped for. Both Chavez & the King came out of it quite well in retrospect and curiously Chavez used the "royal we" for the next week demanding a formal apology until he lost a referendum & went "q-u-i-e-t".
The Spanish prince Felipe who it emerged is a correspondent of Chavez met the latter some time later at the investiture of Mrs Kirchner as the new president of Argentina. By which stage the fun had gone out of the exchange & their words ( hello how are you tonight ) & smiles were over shadowed by the hugs & cuddles as Mrs Kirchner succeeded her husband Mr Kirchner as president.
The incident as I've written has multiple vids on youtube complete with translations into many languages not just its first (spanish the second most spoken tongue on the planet which beat english into third place this year) but many others too. It also sparked comment here & pages & pages of news organisation coverage - the BBC english version alone managed to generate 8 articles & one "voxpop" out of the wonderful :-
Why don't you shut up!?
"I looked at the great George Bush and told him I wanted to be sure to sure and he assured
me"... (Bertie Ahern, who cannot spell government)
its on you-tube, though the one of Sarko pissed out of his skull at the G8 is pretty good too.
Of the quotes which were appraised in English language as defining 2007 - "don't taze me bro!" quickly became a lame t-shirt and never really made a hit as a mobile phone ringtone download. The King of Spain's "why don't you shut up!" yelling effort at Hugo Chavez really did enter popular culture.
Chavez complete this year's arms buying trips to Russia and Belarus with a drop-off in Madrid and then meal with the Spanish King on the island of Mallorca today.
The King gave him a "porque no te calles" t-shirt. If you've no idea what that's about, you're not only insular but in need of reading the comment above and the article it accompanied. It might help if you get past the username thing. Coz you just never know. Do you?
further indymedia coverage - http://indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/07/404586.html
BBC coverage