Not one to miss out on

So, finally the moment of truth is almost upon us. Soon the long-awaited September 27 elections will be here and voters in Catalonia will get a (sort of) chance to decide the future of the country. Naturally, it is not what everyone would have chosen, but it looks like the best that can be done given the circumstances.

To be honest I'm amazed it's got this far. I have been hearing about the independence issue since I first arrived two decades ago, and as far as I can see very little has been done until now to make it happen (with some notable exceptions, of course). My opinion on the issue whenever it has come up in conversation has usually been encouraging. After all, aren't we always advised not to give up on our dreams? However, I will also admit to increasingly thinking: “Well, get on with it, then. What are you telling me for, go and tell the government?”

Well, it seems as if people have finally decided to do something about it rather than just bitching to the likes of me, who doesn't even get to vote. And I have to say that the political elites have responded to the call of the people and, again given the circumstances, have presumably done a fairly good job in getting this far rather than messing it up, which at one point it looked like they were going to do.

Whether you have a vote or not, whether you are in favour of independence or not, it is probably a good idea to at least be paying attention over the next few weeks. When the dust settles after the election, it will probably be an advantage to know how we got to wherever we end up. And to do that, we at least need to know how the board looked before the dice were thrown.

Fortunately, that is exactly what we have in this edition of the magazine (pages 20 to 25): an overview of the pre-electoral situation, detailing who the main players are, where they stand and what is supposed to happen next. We also have an in-depth interview with Raül Romeva (the guy on the front cover who is heading the pro-sovereignty cross-party list, Junts pel Sí), as well as opinion, news and a focus on some of the relevant side issues of the sovereignty process. You won't learn everything you need to know about the issue here, but it's a good place to start. If that sounds like the sort of thing you are looking for, then why not go back and check it out, if you haven't already. These are exciting times, and vote or no vote, I for one don't want to miss a thing.