It has only been about 60 years since tourism arrived in this poor land, actually very poor, dry and with little hope for the future that was Lanzarote. A thirsty land that had to bring drinking water from other islands, because the puddles left by the rain were not enough. Yes, because although many do not know it, not long ago here they drank muddy water.
Many have already forgotten, but while the developed world was already developed, on this island there was neither electricity nor running water to shower. Then, thanks to the technological revolution of mass transportation, by the way, transportation invented by evil capitalists, this island finally inaugurated the 20th century when two-thirds of that 20th century had already passed.
Technology and the benevolence of our climate came together so that a land as poor as ours could do business with tourism.
And, then, where there was no water, a network of pipes was born that dispensed clean and crystalline water, like an oasis that opens violently in the middle of the desert. And where there was darkness, there was light, as easy to turn on with a single finger as if by magic. By the way, light, another invention of the evil capitalists.
And where there was poverty and lack of hope, a new world opened up. The men and women of Lanzarote would no longer be condemned to the inertia of history as if they lived in the Middle Ages, but began to have the means to forge their own future. Of course, the world did not come as a gift, but now there were means and anyone, by working it, could forge their future.
But now everything has changed. Where there was tourismophilia and hospitality with foreigners, now the dominant thought of many is tourismophobia: hatred of tourists. Graffiti has begun, demonstrations have begun and political demagoguery has reached new heights, news and events that are already echoed in the countries of origin of tourists. Tourists who have begun to wonder whether or not they should come to our beloved territory.
But let's take off the masks and speak properly: tourists have not done anything to us. They are no worse than before, they do not bring less prosperity than before and they continue to drink beer and get drunk just like before. None of that has changed.
And what has changed and what is the true root of tourismophobia? that there is no housing and that when there is, it is at stratospheric prices for wages, a shame of great gravity that does not allow satisfying the right to decent housing guaranteed by the Spanish constitution.
The wave of nonconformity with the current situation is completely logical, because we are talking about a real and very serious problem, both for individuals and their families and for the economic development and future of the island, where multiple jobs are unfilled because there are no employees who can come to the island since there is nowhere to stay.
But that wave of nonconformity is, due to ignorance or the blindness caused by ideologies, misfocused. Like a small child who throws a tantrum and doesn't know why... It is not the fault of our tourists, whether they stay in hotels or vacation homes, but of the disastrous government we have in Spain, the worst in all of democracy.
The housing crisis is not exclusive to Lanzarote, but is a crisis that occurs throughout Spain. Anyone who reads the news knows it, so blaming our dear tourists for it is a wrong, absurd and very counterproductive strategy for the well-being of all.
But blindness is blindness and it is easier to blame others for the bad things that happen to us than to admit that perhaps the problem is in oneself. Nothing surprising, something so human.
If there is no housing, it is always someone else's fault. The tourist, the greedy capitalists, the politicians of the fachoesphere, the vile forces that conspire day after day so that the most humble do not have housing. I don't know, the Illuminati?
But reality is stubborn and it is another. The problem is that we have a government that has been in power for 6 years and that with its laws and measures has managed to drown the real estate market. Pretending to defend the weakest, in words, they have only managed to sink them further into misery.
Friends, policies should not be judged by their intentions, but by their results. And the result is what it is. The fault is not outside, but inside each one who voted badly, who voted for a populist government allied with the extreme left, which just as it leaves 1,000 rapists on the street, leaves without housing those they claim to defend.
As I usually say, enjoy what you voted for and if you want to change things vote differently. But don't spit in the face of the tourists who feed us.
