A journey through the remains of Expo 92. At least it hasn’t all been stolen, as tended to happen to unguarded buildings in Andalusia during the construction boom.

It would be Švankmajer-nice to think that the wide-scale conversion of Spanish country restaurants into brothels is the logical, albeit unexpected consequence of a social craze for abandoning what is feared to be cultural in favour of what is assumed to be natural. However, the replacement of cooks by pimps means that we have not simply zinged from one end of the Levi-Strauss (happy birthday!) raw/cooked axis to the other: although Almerian meat may no longer cultural, is is still socialised. (This post should not be taken to imply that African society is in any way less advanced than Iberian.)

Newland v Horsman, 1681: “thereupon Dalmasie appealed to a superior Court; then Dalmasie removed the Appeal on Pretence of Preventing several Appeals; the Master finding his Freight lodged so that he could not have it till the Cause was heard in the highest Court, which was not like to be in some Years Time, comes away without any Freight or Relading there for his Principals Account” (Query here. Via Transblawg)

Check out this substantial bombshell being chucked at the Spanish establishment at all levels and in all territories for its collective refusal to confront (indeed for its participation in) the flagrant, widespread, long-term abuse of individual property rights. But will the threat of a Bulgarian-style loss of European funds to the common weal be sufficient to persuade the substantially interchangeable brands who govern us to fine and jail their in-laws? I would have thought not: a poor man is the living image of Our Lord, begging is blessèd, and the doctrine professed by both the PP and the PSOE is essentially Catholic, albeit veiled in the latter case in flea-Marxist frippery.