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• n  a small military force that serves as a first line of defense; if they become engaged in hostilities it will trigger the intervention of stronger military forces
• n  a wire stretched close to the ground that activates something (a trap or camera or weapon) when tripped over

News & Articles

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• Bad debt drop signals Spanish banks' slow march back to normality
  Bad debts at Spanish banks are falling compared with overall lending for the first time since the financial crisis, signalling the start of a slow return to normality for a sector once viewed as a trip wire for the Spanish economy and wider euro zone. Spain's banks were forced by the central bank and the government to set aside billions of euros in provisions in 2012 and 2013 for soured property ...
  April 30, 2014 - Reuters via Yahoo! Finance