Dawn

Dawn

Thursday, April 02, 2015

Kings and things; Rajoy's wretched record; Political debates; Viking art; BritArt; Phishing; & April Fool.

Yesterday, the 1st of April, was not only my mother's birthday but the anniversary of General Franco's declaration of victory for the Nationalists over the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War. Which reminds me . . . When, do you think, the divine right of kings make its last appearance? The 17th century, perhaps. Well, possibly not. In his victory parade address in 1939, Franco announced, with the support of assembled Catholic prelates, that he'd been chosen by God. If so, he's presumably now in Heaven, despite his murderous record. Especially if he made a last minute Act of Confession. Hate the sin, love the sinner, as they say.

There have been 2 very hard-hitting critiques of President Rajoy's administration this week, one in English and one in Spanish. Read them here and here, respectively.

Tonight on the UK TV a debate will take place between the leaders of 7 political parties. Suffice to say, this would be inconceivable in Spain, where such an event would be verbal mayhem. Indeed, it would be if there were only 2 participants, each of them shouting "You're worse than us!" ad nauseam. Simultaneously.

My friend and fellow-blogger, Anthea, says the Vikings who invaded Sicily left artistic evidence of their presence and asks about those who settled in The Wirral. Well, as I understand it, the Vikings who invaded Sicily were Normans, civilised descendants of the Vikings who originally invaded the north of France, or Normandy. Where they had art schools. In contrast, The Wirral Vikings were real men from Norway, where they had more serious things to think about. That said, here's a relevant reference: Stone sculptures found in Bromborough, Neston, Hilbre Island and West Kirby all show Viking-inspired artwork. No churches, though.

Talking about art . . . The good news is that Tracey Emin's seminal installation work, My Bed, has been returned by its current owner to public display. This truly amazing work displays a range of things, including soiled underwear and used condoms. To me, it lacks a certain something. I suspect it's vomit.

A few days ago, I received a package of walking boots I'd ordered on the net. Yesterday I received an email from "armando.stevens@ecoprotech.com" advising "COLIN, We could not deliver your parcel, #0000824776". An eerie coincidence? One wonders. Incidentally, Eco Protech operates in the field of air pollution treatment systems, not as a courier service.

Finally . . . Here's a compilation of the best April Fool jokes in the UK yesterday. 

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