Culturally Clueless | Loopholes, Firsts & The Dead Who Said No | Episode 114

This episode brings together stories that seem unrelated on the surface but all point to the same truth: the rules were written by those who benefit from them most — and the rest of us are just living in the gaps.

Nes covers Jonas Lauwiner — a 31-year-old Swiss-Moroccan man who discovered a provision in Swiss law allowing anyone to claim land with no registered owner, simply by writing to the local council. He has since accumulated around 150 ownerless plots across Switzerland, including the land on which his self-declared palace sits. [France 24](https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20260510-how-switzerland-self-proclaimed-king-built-a-land-empire-that-riling-local-authorities) His haul includes 83 stretches of road, giving him significant leverage over local communities and prompting several Swiss cantons to rush to close the loophole. [MSN](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/fury-as-self-declared-swiss-king-builds-empire-of-117-000-sq-metres-by-claiming-ownerless-land/ar-AA224O0n) Nes unpacks how one person reading the fine print can shake an entire legal system.

She also covers a historic moment in American politics: Dr. Adam Hamawy won New Jersey's Democratic primary for the 12th Congressional District, positioning himself to succeed retiring Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman. [WHYY](https://whyy.org/articles/new-jersey-election-2026-primary-12th-congressional-district-2/) If he wins the general election in November, Hamawy could become New Jersey's first Muslim member of Congress. [WHYY](https://whyy.org/articles/new-jersey-primary-elections-adam-hamawy-12th-district-congress/) Nes marks the significance of the milestone.

On Iran, Israel, and the US, Nes dissects the latest round of strikes, threats, and contradictions — with Pete Hegseth publicly announcing military action and Trump simultaneously floating the idea of a great deal while the war grinds on. She also holds Netanyahu's message to the Lebanese people under a magnifying glass — a leader offering visions of opportunity while overseeing the destruction of the very infrastructure and homes those people depend on. The contradiction, Nes argues, is not accidental.

She also revisits a story she covered in a previous episode: universities donating bodies for IDF training purposes. The follow-up this week involves a couple who, upon learning how their bodies might be used after death, formally revoked their consent — a quiet but powerful act of resistance that raises urgent questions about transparency, institutional accountability, and who gets to decide what happens to the dead.

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