Forgotten Weapons
Published Jan 3, 2024The best of the submachine guns made in Croatia during the Homeland War was the Ero, made by a company called Arma. The Ero is a basically perfect, parts-interchangeable copy of the Israeli Uzi that was developed in 1992 and adopted into Croatian Army service in 1993. The only really distinguishable difference between the Ero and Uzi is the Ero’s use of Croatian-language selector markings (and receiver markings). Between 15,000 and 20,000 were produced, and they remained in service long after Croatian independence was secured. They were issued to vehicle crews, military police, special forces, and reconnaissance units.
Arma was a subsidiary of a major Croatian engineering firm, and after the Ero production it developed the APS-95 Croatian AK (which is a story for another video). They were a very competent company, but the details and quality of the Ero are so good that I believe it must have been made with tacit or explicit assistance from Israel. Croatia does have a strong Jewish community, and there were rumors during the war that the technical data package for the Uzi did find its way into Croatia. There is no official acknowledgement of this happening, but it would certainly not be hard to believe. But however the development happened, the result was a very high quality submachine gun.
A big thanks to the Croatian Police Museum (Muzej Policije) in Zagreb for giving me access to film this cool piece for you! Check them out at: https://muzej-policije.gov.hr
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April 5, 2024
Ero: The Croatian Uzi (With Israeli Help?)
January 3, 2024
Highlights of Diocletian’s Palace in Split
Scenic Routes to the Past
Published 6 Oct 2023A Roman historian’s tour of the Palace of Diocletian in Split, Croatia.
Chapters
0:00 Diocletian and his palace
0:59 Overview and layout
2:37 South facade
3:07 East facade
3:39 Porta Aurea
4:09 Peristyle
4:48 Temple of Jupiter
5:49 Reception rooms (vestibule and substructures)
6:23 Mausoleum of Diocletian / Cathedral
January 2, 2024
Vugrek’s Cell Phone Gun for Organized Crime
Forgotten Weapons
Published 11 Sept 2023The Vugrek family of Croatia (Marko Sr, Marko Jr, and Ivan) were talented firearms designers, who ended up supplying organized crime. Their best-known development was the Agram 2000 submachine gun, a very well-built weapon submitted to Croatian military trials in the early 1990s. In the wake of prosecution for making the Agram illicitly after its military rejection, Marko Vugrek developed a number of guns specifically for illicit use, including this well-done cell phone gun. They began to turn up in the Balkans and throughout Europe around 2007, and investigations traced them back to their Croatian creator.
A big thanks to the Croatian Police Museum (Muzej Policije) in Zagreb for giving me access to film this rare piece for you! Check them out at: https://muzej-policije.gov.hr
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November 13, 2023
Krešimir: Croatia’s Truly Insane Grenade Launcher
Forgotten Weapons
Published 17 Jul 2023The Krešimir is honestly the most bonkers weapon I have come across in a long while. Made by IM Metall in Croatia at the beginning of the Croatian Homeland War circa 1991, this is a semiautomatic grenade launcher. Most grenade launchers fire a big cartridge with an explosive warhead, but not this thing. Instead, it uses a 5-round magazine of M50 hand grenades with percussion fuses. A second magazine holds 7.62x39mm grenade-launching blank cartridges. Pulling the trigger drops two strikers in succession; one to ignite the hand grenade fuse, and then one to fire the launching cartridge. What could possibly go wrong?
When you do fire, the recoil cycles the whole barrel and bolt backwards like a long recoil action, although it appears to be blowback and not locked. This loads a fresh grenade in the barrel and leaves it ready to fire again with the next trigger pull. We don’t know how many of these insane creations were actually made, but I have multiple reports of their actual wartime use from veterans of the conflict.
Thanks to the Sisak Municipal Museum for giving me access to film this!
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August 23, 2023
Slovenian SAR80: Sterling Out-Simplifies the AR-180
Forgotten Weapons
Published 15 May 2023The British Sterling firm designed the SAR-80 (specifically, their engineer Frank Waters) as a very simple rifle to sell to countries outside the main NATO/Warsaw Pact spheres of influence. Sterling ended up getting a license to produce the AR-18 though, and didn’t put Waters’ design into production.
When the newly formed Chartered Industries of Singapore came looking for a rifle to produce, the SAR-80 design was a chance for Sterling to sell a production license. CIS needed something to produce domestically to equip the Singaporean Army, and the SAR-80 met their needs. After selling the rifles to their own Army, the company went looking for export clients. They found a few, including Croatia, the Central African Republic, and Slovenia. A total of about 80,000 SAR-80 rifles were made, and this is one of the Slovenian-contract examples.
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August 24, 2022
Serbia ensures that we still have fresh concerns this summer
CDR Salamander on yet more potential trouble in the Balkans that has drawn some serious attention from the US Air Force:
USAF B-52 Stratofortress near the North Pole on 31 July, 2016 during the Polar Roar exercise.
Detail of original USAF photo by Senior Airman Joshua King via Wikimedia Commons.
I know everyone is busy and all … but you need to keep an eye on the usual problem areas.
You would think one war in Europe at a time would be enough, but you should never underestimate the Serbs.
As with most of us who were on active duty in the 1990s, I have more than a passing interest in the former Yugoslavia — and invested my quota of effort in its wars.
Later in my career I later served in NATO with Slovenes, Croatians, and N. Macedonians. I’ve vacationed a few times in Slovenia and Croatia. One of my daughters has studied, twice, in Serbia.
I keep an eye on it … and thankfully so are some smart people in The Pentagon.
The Balkans is always on the edge and has been for centuries, so it is only natural that now and then it bubbles over.
You may have missed with all the other news that the frozen conflict in Kosovo was throwing sparks again. That is why on Friday I tilted my head a bit with this announcement;
Two U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress aircraft assigned to the 23rd Bomb Squadron currently operating out of RAF Fairford, United Kingdom, will conduct low approach flyovers over Southeastern Europe scheduled on August 22.
The purpose of each flyover is to demonstrate U.S. commitment and assurance to NATO Allies and partners located in Southeastern Europe. Additionally, this will provide citizens an opportunity to take photos, videos, and enjoy the aircraft flying overhead.
That told me that the Balkans desk has run their concerns up the chain and whatever they briefed was enough to greenlight a not insignificant display.
Sure enough, off it went Monday;
A pair of U.S. Air Force B52 strategic bombers on Monday flew low over the Croatian resort of Dubrovnik and three other NATO-member states in the region as a sign of support amid the Russian aggression in Ukraine.
In addition to the walled Croatian tourist resort of Dubrovnik, the aircraft flew over the government headquarters in Skopje, North Macedonia, the downtown Skanderbeg Square in the Albanian capital, Tirana, and up the Adriatic coast of Montenegro.
The Balkans and the Adriatic Sea have lately seen increased military, intelligence and propaganda activity by Moscow, which considers the region of its strategic interest because of its access to the Mediterranean.
Serbia is about Russia’s last friend in Europe and make no mistake … the Serbs do not consider borders settled anywhere — they are just waiting for the moment to be ripe.
February 19, 2021
Quislings! – Traitors of World War Two – WW2 Gallery 02
World War Two
Published 18 Feb 2021The name of Norwegian National Socialist Politician Vidkun Quisling became synonymous with “traitor” and “collaborator”. In this gallery episode, we’ll cover some of the most prominent Quislings in World War Two.
Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory
Or join The TimeGhost Army directly at: https://timeghost.tvFollow WW2 day by day on Instagram @ww2_day_by_day – https://www.instagram.com/ww2_day_by_day
Between 2 Wars: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list…
Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesHosted by: Indy Neidell
Written by: Joram Appel
Director: Astrid Deinhard
Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson, Bodo Rittenauer
Creative Producer: Maria Kyhle
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Joram Appel
Edited by: Miki Cackowski
Sound design: Marek Kamiński
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)Colorizations by:
Norman Stewart – https://oldtimesincolor.blogspot.com/
Adrien Fillon – https://www.instagram.com/adrien.colo…
Jaris Almazani (Artistic Man) – https://instagram.com/artistic.man
Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/
Carlos Ortega Pereira, BlauColorizations – https://www.instagram.com/blaucolorizations
Dmitriy Vasilyev – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi…Sources:
USHMM
Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe
Bundesarchiv
efsyn.gr
Yad Vashem 85DO
Amsab Institute of Social History www.amsab.be
Picture of Mussert shaking hands with Hitler, courtesy of Beeldbankwo2 https://beeldbankwo2.nl/Soundtracks from the Epidemic Sound:
Johannes Bornlof – “The Inspector 4”
Philip Ayers – “Trapped in a Maze”
Cobby Costa – “Flight Path”
Rannar Sillard – “March Of The Brave 4”
Johan Hynynen – “Dark Beginning”
Farrell Wooten – “Blunt Object”
Reynard Seidel – “Deflection”
Yi Nantiro – “Watchman”
Hakan Eriksson – “Epic Adventure Theme 4”Archive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
January 15, 2021
Germany Bankrupts Greece – Countless Die in Famine – War Against Humanity 026 – January 1942, pt. 1
World War Two
Published 14 Jan 2021The early weeks of 1942 show how much of a global War Against Humanity this really is. People in occupied zones across the globe suffer under the boot of their tormentors. In Greece, thousands die in a famine, while repressive tactics claim the lives of many more in the Balkans. The Holocaust continues in cities and the extermination camp of Chełmno, while the Japanese army wreaks havoc in South-East Asia as they advance on Allied positions.
Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory
Or join The TimeGhost Army directly at: https://timeghost.tvFollow WW2 day by day on Instagram @ww2_day_by_day – https://www.instagram.com/ww2_day_by_day
Between 2 Wars: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list…
Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesHosted by: Spartacus Olsson
Written by: Joram Appel
Director: Astrid Deinhard
Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson, Bodo Rittenauer
Creative Producer: Maria Kyhle
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Joram Appel and Valantis Athanasiou
Edited by: Miki Cackowski
Sound design: Marek Kamiński
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)Colorizations by:
Jaris Almazani (Artistic Man) – https://instagram.com/artistic.man
Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/
Daniel WeissSources:
Yad Vashem 4147/72, 953, 4613/629, 85EO6
IWM KF 199, FE 255, SE 4819
Bundesarchiv
Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe
Museum of Yugoslavia
From the Noun Project: Skull by Muhamad UlumSoundtracks from the Epidemic Sound:
Johan Hynynen – “Dark Beginning”
Peter Sandberg – “Document This 1”
Skrya – “First Responders”
Cobby Costa – “From the Past”
Farrell Wooten – “Blunt Object”
Gunnar Johnsen – “Not Safe Yet”
Cobby Costa – “Flight Path”Archive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
June 3, 2020
The Wehrmacht‘s License to Kill the Innocent – War Against Humanity 012 – May 1941
World War Two
Published 2 Jun 2020As the Blitzes of Britain slow down considerably, violence in Croatia increases dramatically as the Ustaše government purges the country of Jews and Serbs and the Wehrmacht gets deadly instructions for their invasion of the Soviet Union.
Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory
Or join The TimeGhost Army directly at: https://timeghost.tvFollow WW2 day by day on Instagram @World_war_two_realtime https://www.instagram.com/world_war_t…
Between 2 Wars: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list…
Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesHosted by: Spartacus Olsson
Written by: Joram Appel and Spartacus Olsson
Director: Astrid Deinhard
Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson, Bodo Rittenauer
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Joram Appel
Edited by: Mikołaj Cackowski
Sound design: Marek Kamiński
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)Colorizations by:
Norman Stewart – https://oldtimesincolor.blogspot.com/
Adrien Fillon – https://www.instagram.com/adrien.colo…
Carlos Ortega Pereira – BlauColorizations, https://www.instagram.com/blaucoloriz…
Cassowary Colorizations – https://www.flickr.com/people/cassowa…Sources:
Bundesarchiv
Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe
IWM D 5984, D 1091
USHMMBibliography:
Barton, Brian, “A Belfast Blitz Memorial?”. In: History Ireland 24:2 (March/April 2016) 8-9.
Biondich, Mark, “Religion and Nation in Wartime Croatia: Reflections on the Ustaša Policy of Forced Religious Conversions, 1941-1942″. In: The Slavonic and East European Review 83:1 (Jan 2005) 71-116.
Clapson, Mark, “Air Raids in Britain, 1940-45”. In: The Blitz companion: Aerial Warfare, Civilians and the City since 1911 (2019) 37-76.
Gotovich, Aron, Dictionnaire de La Seconde Guerre Mondiale En Belgique (2008).
MacDonald, David B., “From Jasenovac to Srebrenica; Subaltern Genocide and the Serbs”. In: Nicholas Robins, Adam Jones (ed.), Genocides by the Oppressed: Subaltern Genocide in Theory and Practice (2009) 103-121, 106.
Tanner, Marcus, “The Ustashe”. In: Croatia: A Nation Forged in War; Third Edition (2010) 141-167.
Williamson, Murray, and Allan Millett, “Barbarossa 1941”. In: A War To Be Won (2000) 110-142.Primary Sources:
Barbarossa Decree, 13 May 1941. http://users.clas.ufl.edu/ggiles/barb….
Commissar Order, 6 June 1941. http://users.clas.ufl.edu/ggiles/barb….
William Sansom: Westminster in War, 1947.Soundtracks from the Epidemic Sound:
Cobby Costa – “From the Past”
Reynard Seidel – “Deflection”
Johan Hynynen – “Dark Beginning”
Gunnar Johnsen – “Not Safe Yet”
Farell Wooten – “Blunt Object”
Peter Sandberg – “Document This 1”
Andreas Jamsheree – “Guilty Shadows 4”
Cobby Costa – “Flight Path”Archive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
From the comments:
World War Two
2 hours ago
For many living in newly occupied territories in South-Eastern Europe, May 1941 marked the start of a hellish life under fascist occupation. For many more, May 1941 will be the month in which their fate is sealed. Many hundreds of thousands more will suffer by the decisions made this months. From this episode, and the next ones, it will become very clear that there is no such thing as a “clean Wehrmacht“, and that this is very much a myth. Some parts of the internet still seem to hold on tight to this, but we will counter it time and again, wether it is about occupying forces, Operation Barbarossa or Erwin Rommel.Cheers,
Joram
May 17, 2020
Nazi Nuts Trading Places & Victory for the Commonwealth – WW2 – 090 – May 16, 1941
World War Two
Published 16 May 2020In the week that Rudolf Hess makes his flight to Britain, the Luftwaffe prepares for theirs to Crete. The British utilise their code-breaking methods and prepare for defence.
Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory
Or join The TimeGhost Army directly at: https://timeghost.tvFollow WW2 day by day on Instagram @World_war_two_realtime https://www.instagram.com/world_war_t…
Between 2 Wars: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list…
Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesWritten and Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Director: Astrid Deinhard
Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson, Bodo Rittenauer
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Edited by: Iryna Dulka
Sound design: Marek Kamiński
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)Colorizations by:
– Norman Stewart – https://oldtimesincolor.blogspot.com/
– Olga Shirnina, a.k.a. Klimbim – https://klimbim2014.wordpress.com/
– Daniel Weiss
– Carlos Ortega Pereira, BlauColorizations – https://www.instagram.com/blaucoloriz…
– Dememorabilia – https://www.instagram.com/dememorabilia/Sources:
– Imperial War Museum: E2623, E 3222, E 3237, E 3233, E 3238, E 3228,
– Bundesarchiv, CC-BY-SA 3.0: Bild 183-R14128A, B 145 Bild-F016230-00007, Bild 141-0864, Bild 183-L19017
– National Portrait Gallery
– Artillery by Creative Mania from the Noun Project
– Oil barrel by Musmellow from the Noun Project
– Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe
– Photo from Bletchley Park, Sourse: Bletchley Park Trust
– Photo of Battista Volpini courtesy La StampaArchive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
August 10, 2019
Enter Yugoslavia Part 2 | BETWEEN 2 WARS I 1929 Part 3 of 3
TimeGhost History
Published on 9 Aug 2019As 1929 approaches, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes spirals closer and closer to collapse. When the parliament descends into murderous chaos, it is up to King Alexander to decide what to do…
Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory
Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Written by: Francis van Berkel and Spartacus Olsson
Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Francis van Berkel
Edited by: Daniel Weiss
Sound design: Make KaminskiArchive by: Reuters/Screenocean http://www.screenocean.com
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
From the comments:
TimeGhost History
1 hour ago
We don’t delete or ban any opinions which disagree with other opinions. We delete comments that contain historical fallacies and political propaganda by antidemocratic organisations, irrespective of political leaning. This means that we do not tolerate any lies or propaganda that forward the agenda of, for instance, Nazis, Fascists, Stalinists, Leninists, other ultra-Marxists or Anarchists. That is within our responsibility according to the laws in our territory which forbids the dissemination of false flag information, propaganda, and symbols connected to organizations that have been found to be unconstitutional and an immediate danger to a democratic, free society by the German courts, in accordance with §86 and §86a of the German Penal Code. The law specifically mentions NDSDAP in §86 and the KPD in §86a (NSDAP is the Nazi Party and KPD the Communist party). Moreover we do not tolerate hate speech, racism, xenophobia, and the denial of proven crimes against humanity. This is in perfect agreement with the opinion forwarded by The US Supreme Court on society’s responsibility to fight against that kind of speech and it is in agreement with numerous EU and EU member state laws against same said speech.
August 3, 2019
Enter Yugoslavia Part 1 | BETWEEN 2 WARS I 1929 Part 2 of 3
TimeGhost History
Published on 1 Aug 2019Formed in the ashes of the Great War, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes is already facing some pretty difficult birth pangs.
Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory
Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Written by: Francis van Berkel and Spartacus Olsson
Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Francis van Berkel
Edited by: Wieke Kapteijns
Sound design: Marek KaminskiSources:
– Colorization by Klimbim and NormanstewardA TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
From the comments:
TimeGhost History
6 hours ago
We don’t delete or ban any opinions which disagree with other opinions. We delete comments that contain historical fallacies and political propaganda by antidemocratic organisations, irrespective of political leaning. This means that we do not tolerate any lies or propaganda that forward the agenda of, for instance, Nazis, Fascists, Stalinists, Leninists, other ultra-Marxists or Anarchists. That is within our responsibility according to the laws in our territory which forbids the dissemination of false flag information, propaganda, and symbols connected to organizations that have been found to be unconstitutional and an immediate danger to a democratic, free society by the German courts, in accordance with §86 and §86a of the German Penal Code. The law specifically mentions NDSDAP in §86 and the KPD in §86a (NSDAP is the Nazi Party and KPD the Communist party). Moreover we do not tolerate hate speech, racism, xenophobia, and the denial of proven crimes against humanity. This is in perfect agreement with the opinion forwarded by The US Supreme Court on society’s responsibility to fight against that kind of speech and it is in agreement with numerous EU and EU member state laws against same said speech.
May 30, 2017
Croatia in World War 1 I THE GREAT WAR Special
Published on 29 May 2017
Croatia was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War 1 and Croats were just one of the many ethnicities within the Habsburg Empire that went to to war in 1914. Croats served in Galicia, on the Isonzo Front or in the Navy and it was a Croat who built up the Austro-Hungarian Air Force. Still towards the end of the war, more and more Croats thought about independence.
October 10, 2015
QotD: The Balkans in the Early Roman Empire
Dalmatia, to which the name of Illyricum more properly belonged, was a long, but narrow tract, between the Save and the Adriatic. The best part of the sea-coast, which still retains its ancient appellation, is a province of the Venetian state, and the seat of the little republic of Ragusa. The inland parts have assumed the Sclavonian names of Croatia and Bosnia; the former obeys an Austrian governor, the latter a Turkish pacha; but the whole country is still infested by tribes of barbarians, whose savage independence irregularly marks the doubtful limit of the Christian and Mahometan power.
After the Danube had received the waters of the Teyss and the Save, it acquired, at least among the Greeks, the name of Ister. It formerly divided Maesia and Dacia, the latter of which, as we have already seen, was a conquest of Trajan, and the only province beyond the river. If we inquire into the present state of those countries, we shall find that, on the left hand of the Danube, Temeswar and Transylvania have been annexed, after many revolutions, to the crown of Hungary; whilst the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia acknowledge the supremacy of the Ottoman Porte. On the right hand of the Danube, Maesia, which, during the middle ages, was broken into the barbarian kingdoms of Servia and Bulgaria, is again united in Turkish slavery.
Edward Gibbon, “Chapter I: The Extent Of The Empire In The Age Of The Antonines — Part III”, History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, 1782.
June 2, 2012
The Eurovision Song Contest and the European Union
Mark Steyn on the similarities between the top TV event in Europe and the EU itself:
One recalls the 1990 Eurovision finals in Zagreb: “Yugoslavia is very much like an orchestra,” cooed the hostess, Helga Vlahović. “The string section and the wood section all sit together.” Shortly thereafter, the wood section began ethnically cleansing the dressing rooms, while the string section rampaged through the brass section pillaging their instruments and severing their genitals. Indeed, the charming Miss Vlahović herself was forced into a sudden career shift and spent the next few years as Croatian TV’s head of “war information” programming.
Fortunately, no one remembers Yugoslavia. So today Europe itself is very much like an orchestra. The Greek fiddlers and the Italian wind players all sit together, playing cards in the dressing room, waiting for the German guy to show up with their checks. Just before last week’s Eurovision finale in Azerbaijan, The Daily Mail in London reported that the Spanish entrant, Pastora Soler, had been told to throw the competition “because the cash-strapped country can’t afford to host the lavish event next year,” as the winning nation is obliged to do. In a land where the youth unemployment rate is over 50 percent, and two-thirds of the country’s airports are under threat of closure and whose neighbors (Britain) are drawing up plans for military intervention to evacuate their nationals in the event of total civic collapse, the pressing need to avoid winning the Eurovision Song Contest is still a poignant symbol of how total is Spain’s implosion. Ask not for whom “Ding-Ding-A-Dong” dings, it dings for thee.
