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DadsDream
Dreaming of a SAINTS Super Bowl!
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The body of Spanish General Francisco Franco, the epitome of iron-fisted fascist rule for decades, has been exhumed from its place of honor and moved to a family crypt in an effort to heal the wounds from Spain's long and tortuous internal struggles.
As a young Marine on leave in Barcelona in the late 1970s, I saw a bit of this first-hand. I couldn't help but notice the Guardia Seville, with their distinctive hats with the upturned back edge, standing guard with submachineguns at the entrance to all the government buildings. We were given strict orders to stay the hell away from them!
All Spanish barrooms had signs posted by the Fascist government that said "NO FUMAR!" (No Smoking!). I sat at a bar and watched in amazement as a man calmly lit up a cigarette anyway. The bartender pointed at the sign, reached behind the bar and pulled out a jar. The man took out a coin, spit on it and dropped it in the jar.
A young lady at the bar explained to me this was a very Catalonian tradition, "There is a fine for breaking the law. Franco's law. The coins all have Franco on them. We spit on Franco's face and pay the fine and smoke anyway!"
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