Spies

I have just realized that in days when I feel physically exhausted is when I feel more inspired and I need to write or to express my concerns the most. Today, I have been reading thoroughly the newspaper while I was having a cup of tea after lunch. The bar where I usually go to have a coffee or a tea after lunch was quieter than usual. There is a good explanation for that, there are two main events in the surroundings. Firstly, today is a day of celebration in the neighborhood. On the other hand, in the nearest town there is a major event, widely known, and a main attraction for a lot of foreigners and locals. This two celebrations and high temperatures in the area last days contributed to keep people in bed having some rest after a long night, or enjoying a day sunbathing on the beach.
My situation was a bit different this year, therefore I went to bed quite early last night after a long hard day. This morning, I decided to go for a ride on my mountain bike, and I was pedaling for two and a half hours. When I got home I was considerably tired and, after having lunch, I had to take a nap to recover. Then, I went out and I had my tea while reading the newspaper.
After these lines explaining why I am writing this post, I am going to briefly make a comment about one thought that came to my mind while reading. I have found an analogy between spies and journalists. They are always searching for information, they always want that information before anyone else, when they publish some information the effects can be unpredictable, and they are not really independent because there are a lot of economic and politic interests involved and big companies own all or part of the shares in main communication media all over the world. In conclusion, when we read and article in a newspaper we should not expect to find the truth, just one of the sides' version. This is a bit different when there is a military conflict, then the winner takes it all (like Abba sing in one of their songs), and writes history from his own perspective. The more I think about this subject, the more similarities I find between spies and journalists. Maybe the main difference is that journalists are in the public eye, while spies prefer to keep their identities hidden in order to make their job easier and safer. Another important difference is the area where they focus their attention. Spies usually trade with classified data from big companies, or compromising information about governments or well-known politicians and businessmen. The explanation for that behavior is all about the money, spies are a kind of elite team of mercenaries available to obtain, or even create, the information necessary to carry out some sort of plan. In summary, they both do a similar job but with a different goal in mind.