The Lord of the Mountains

The ranking in terms of population (source wikipedia) says that the Catalan Countries would be the fifth State in the USA. Only California, Texas, New York and Florida are above in the ranking. And the next one would be Illinois and Pennsylvania. The ranking in terms of territory or area (source wikipedia) says that the CC are 45th between Massachusetts and Vermont. Of course the CC are a small territory.

So the answer to the question is: NO, Manhattan is not larger than the Catalan Countries.

Manhattan = 1,537,195 people in 33.77 sq mi (22.96 sq mi land + 10.81 sq mi sea)
The Catalan Countries = (but more information in the Catalan version, I think you can understand the basic one) 13,534,721 people in 27,227.92sq mi (only Land)

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Yesterday, Xirinachs was found in a forest in the Pyrenees. Xirinachs gave his life to counteract the cowardice of the Catalan leaders. He was a priest and also a senator but he was very popular as an anti-Franco fighter, during the transition, and an active independentist of the Catalan Countries. From this Blog I want to thanks everything. Today we are a little freerer thanks to him.

After to be found in Ogassa (Girona), the next letter was discovered in his office.

I have lived seventy-five years as a slave
in settled down Catalan Countries
by Spain, France (and for Italy)
since centuries ago.

I have lived fighting against this slavery
all the years of my adult life.
A slave nation, like an individual slave,
is a shame of the humanity and of the universe.

But a nation will never be free
if their sons do not want to risk their life
in its liberation and defense.

You, my friends, accept to me that victorious end
of my fight,
to counteract the cowardice,
of our leaders, people-overcrowders.

Today my nation becomes absolute sovereign in me.
They have lost a slave.
My nation is a little freer,
because I am in you, my friends!

Lluís M. Xirinacs i Damians

Barcelona, August 6th, 2007
________________________________________
Original letter (in Catalan)

He viscut esclau setanta-cinc anys
en uns Països Catalans
ocupats per Espanya, per França (i per Itàlia)
des de fa segles.

He viscut lluitant contra aquesta esclavitud
tots els anys de la meva vida adulta.
Una nació esclava, com un individu esclau,
és una vergonya de la humanitat i de l’univers.

Però una nació mai no serà lliure
si els seus fills no volen arriscar
llur vida en el seu alliberament i defensa.

Amics, accepteu-me
aquest final absolut victoriós
de la meva contesa,
per contrapuntar la covardia
dels nostres líders, massificadors del poble.

Avui la meva nació
esdevé sobirana absoluta en mi.
Ells han perdut un esclau.
ella és una mica més lliure,
perquè jo sóc en vosaltres, amics!

Lluís M. Xirinacs i Damians

Barcelona, 6 d’agost de 2007
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The Catalan Countries have an own traditions.. get a better idea watching the next movie.

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The Spanish Constitution says in the CHAPTER 3 when it talks about Self-governing Communities, but more precisly in Section 145

“Under no circumstances shall a federation of Self-governing Communities be allowed.”

It means that there are no circumstances to allow two communities to create a federation. If we observe the history in the Spanish State, we can see that not many autonomic communities are interested to create federation of autonomies. I could say that only Catalan and Basc people can be potentially interested (Valencia, Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Catalan-Aragonian area, and Navarra and Basc country respectively). However in the TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS, in section four says:

In the case of Navarra, and for the purpose of its integration into the General Basque Council or into the autonomous Basque institutions which may replace it, the procedure contemplated by section 143 of this Constitution shall not apply. The initiative shall lie instead with the appropriate historic institution (órgano foral), whose decision must be taken by the majority of its members. The initiative shall further require for its validity the ratification by a referendum expressly held to this end and approval by the majority of votes validly cast. If the initiative does not succeed, it may only be repeated during a further term of office of the competent Foral body and, in any case, after the minimum period laid down in section 143 has elapsed.

So what we observe is that the Spanish Constitution says indirectly that federation between autonomic communities can exist except for the Catalan People. So it means that never in Spain, Catalans can form an unique Spanish community, and we should be split longer. Why Spain attacks continuously to the Catalan integrity? I’ve some ideas…

References: www.constitucion.es/constitucion/lenguas/ingles.html
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