As The Fast Show would put it, The Economist is bloody brilliant! This week's edition, delivered promptly to my door this morning, contains a gripping investigation into the man who is pulling at De Beers's ever more gobsmacking grip on the diamond “market”, a fascinating survey of the rising costs of healthcare around the world, and a piece about guinea pigs full of what Harry Hutton would call “killer facts!”:

Peruvians already get through 22m guinea pigs a year. Mr Escobal and his team hope to persuade them that cuyes should not be kept for special occasions, but eaten far more regularly. To that end, they have developed some new breeds. On July 16th, they launched a new super-cuy, known as Peru, weighing up to three kilos (seven pounds).

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