Buddy, can you spare a...

...about 24 billion euros.

Once I built a tower, up to the sun, brick, and rivet, and lime;

Once I built a tower, now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?

Say, don't you remember, I'm your pal? Buddy, can you spare a dime?

This was the cash machine where I withdrew my very first euro notes when they came into circulation at the beginning of January 2002.

A decade later and Caja Madrid has been merged with three other troubled Cajas (savings banks, come retirement homes for local politicians). Thus was created one big problem bank called Bankia where previously there were four smaller ones. Finally after a change at the top it has come clean, been suspended from trading on the stock market, and revealed that it needs a sub, equivalent to about 500 euros for each person in Spain, to have adequate capital. This will soak up a big proportion of the savings from cuts in Spain's health and education services.

Next up, the President of the region of Catalonia announces that they are going to have difficulty servicing their collossal debt, almost double that of the next most indebted autonomous region Valencia, and that a central government whip-round wouldn't go amiss.

Banks and politicians, don't you love 'em. Someone certainly does because you don't see anyone held to account.