I told you so, the Barcelona Forum is full of crap.

Barcelona 2004: Multinational Grab in Multicultural Garb

BARCELONA - The multinational companies backing what they call the Universal Forum of Cultures here would like everyone to believe this really is about culture.

There are after all about 1,500 performances and cultural shows including 400 concerts and 45 conferences that will take place at the Forum until September.

The bluish mirror-glass triangular block where it will all happen is ”a new creative space for reflection and experimentation in relation to the main cultural and social conflicts humanity is facing,” organizers say.

All fake, say critics.

Several intellectuals invited to the forum including Noam Chomsky and Naomi Klein have refused to attend. The prestigious School of Culture of Peace at the University of Barcelona declined participation. Several non-governmental organizations that had planned to join withdrew on the grounds that the forum talks peace when its sponsors are making money from the war in Iraq. The La Caixa bank that is funding the forum is involved in reconstruction projects in Iraq.