The imminent death of the European dis-Union

This damned 'Covid-thingie' is going to take a lot of nations to the edge of political and economic disaster!  Perhaps the biggest bloc of people at risk are those inside the European dis-Union.  This puffed-up farce of a 'Union' has never been convincing except to the idealistic dupes who dreamed it up and the blood-suckers who live off it.  It never was a true union, just a German racket and a French illusion!  Now, this pandemic, and the economic catastrophe that will accompany it, will be rather like one of those monstrous storms that hit islands in the Gulf of Mexico so regularly.  It will be doubly unfortunate that this will occur just as we British tip our hats and bid them adieu and auf wiederSehen!  They truly never believed that we Brits would leave which tells you all you need to know about their ignorance of British history.  In my 81 years of life, two events stand out for me as proud epitomes of the British character - declaring war against Hitler and leaving the EU.  Both were at the express behest of the British people, not just their leaders.

 

 

 

Comments

[AussieD]

declaring war against Hitler

Britain was the only country to enter WW2 on a principle; i.e. its commitment to Poland. Everyone else, bar the Commonwealth, entered after being attacked. The Commonwealth entered WW2 because Britain declared war on Germany so not really on principle and not because it was attacked.

As for Covid [properly named the WuFlu] the eventual result of the effect on nations of this bug is anyone's guess but it sure won't be pretty.

[Penseivat]

And still everyone is so busy blaming everyone else over how to deal with this world wide infection, that no one is blaming China for thinking it would be a great idea to continue to lie how, and when, this initial stage to take over the world began. While we are unemployed, bankrupt, and diseased, China is buying up properties and companies all over the world and will have the resources to influence governments, if they haven't already. China is taking over the South China sea by claiming the Spratley islands and building military bases on artificial reefs, which will have one aim, to strangle the economic and military capabilities of Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia. The Chinese GDP has increased and millionaires have become billionaires, as long as they accept Pooh Bear as their guide.
To show cynical they are, they conned governments to buy equipment from them to protect people against a disease started by them, knowing that that equipment was not fit for purpose. No wonder they take us for fools.

[Whitewall]

China knows the West has grown rich and soft. We are consumed with "safetyism" and less on resilience and toughness.

[terrapod]

Putting aside all things "China" for the moment, can someone elucidate this Yankee on why this Nicola Sturgeon (a fish in these parts)is so much in the UK news of late? Is her existence of any import?

[Whitewall]

AussieD, about those "war crimes":
https://www.patreon.com/posts/44567174

[David Duff]

Terrapod, the importance, or not, of 'Mrs. McWhinge' will depend 'yuuuuuugely' on the Jocks themselves. Will enough of them swallow her nationalistic garbage? I 'dinna ken'!

[Bob]

I must humbly point out that my country was one of the main idealistic dupes who dreamed up the EU, and that Americans have paid plenty to support it, contrary to our own isolationist impulses. You Brits were in the catbird seat enjoying trade benefits without buying into the common currency, but just enough of you were still in a huff to leave because you didn't get to dictate all the rules.

Well good luck, chaps. It doesn't matter who's president. The US-EU relationship formally goes back to 1953 and isn't likely to change much. You just might be reminded isolationism has a checkered past.

Covid has been solved by science, and is now just a matter of manufacturing and logistics. Congratulations for beating us to an approved vaccine.

[Richard]

Bob,
You are actually out by a full 180 degrees. We left because we didn't like having all the rules dictated by them to us without a democratic mandate. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't this is all part and parcel of the concept of "inalienable rights?" You know the sort of thing. "No taxation without representation." "Give me liberty or give me death."

Or perchance, is it that these truly wonderful slogans were only ever supposed to apply to Americans?

[Loz]

Bob,

The UK left the EU because the pols were tired of Maggie Thatcher's strait-jacket: the single market, four freedoms, and state aid rules, keeping them honest and their hands off the operation of the country. What we are seeing now is the release of 30 years of pent up incompetence, criminal negligence, and abuse. All unleashed on the Brit peeps, who took their eye off the ball and have bitterly regretted unfettering the "Westmonster" since Theresa May was elected, as evidenced by every poll but one since the Maybot being FOR REMAIN.

Richard,

You talk of freedom and Liberty as though they operate at the state level, which is not freedom or Liberty at all. Most tyrannies, dictatorships, despots are all thoroughly independent.

Using the words "freedom" and "Liberty" at the state level is the con trick of Left and Right authoritarians to bully and coerce a gullible people.

Every worthwhile political, economic, social, and legal step forward by Blighty was a move to curtail or constrain what you call the state's "freedom and Liberty" to bully and coerce the Brit peeps: the Common Law, Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights, Habeas Corpus, separation of powers, and also the single market, four freedoms, and state aid rules.

You've just rolled back the last three in one fell swoop, and you're witnessing the consequences: an out of control state that's going to destroy everything.

Good call 23rd June 2016.

SoD

[Bob]

Richard and SoD,

A scant majority of peeps did vote to leave even if a scant majority now see it as a mistake. As far as political issues are concerned, it seems you could just exchange "Brussels" and "British sovereignty" for "Washington" and "state's rights" to make them almost exactly mirror those in America. You can't credibly blame everything on pols. It's going to be interesting to see who the peeps blame if a hard Brexit takes hold.

[AussieD]

G'day Whitewall,

A good article. Like any allegation made the proof is in the evidence and I will wait to see what evidence there is forthcoming.

Our Special Forces people are top class and I will be most surprised if there is anything in this other than the reactions of troops in close contact with 'guerilla' style foes.

[Glesga]

Bob, you are right a majority voted to leave. That is what is necessary in democracy. Those who wanted to remain in the EU did not want to give us plebs a vote on the issue. That is why it important we leave. It is almost four years since we voted to leave and the clever people are still saying we are stupid. So Bob give us a few years out of the EU and let us see who was stupid. Remember Bob, Democracy!

[Bob]

Glesga and Richard,

GB is more democratic than the US. Our Senate and electoral college routinely defeat the popular will by design. Our political parties stand for nothing other than perpetuating themselves, like any other huge, private institutions. We have no such thing as national referenda.

The inspiring phrases you mentioned, Richard, were popularly used against the British Crown during colonial times. The land-owning class that designed the government after the Revolutionary War had a completely different attitude. Still, we struggle forward.

[Glesga]

Bob, are you suggesting that the USA ruling class let the people have a vote knowing it will make no difference to their living conditions?

[Richard]

"Every worthwhile political, economic, social, and legal step forward by Blighty was a move to curtail or constrain what you call the state's "freedom and Liberty."

Lawrence,

like Bob, you are a full 180 degrees out of wack. Every worthwhile political, economic, social and legal step forward by Blighty was a move to defend or improve the freedom and liberty of the individual against the over powerful state.

Bob,

For the record, I fully support the use of those inspiring phrases against the British Crown and contend that the fact that us Brits lost that particular war was a much needed blow against the over mighty state, as is Britain's recent refusal to continue being ruled by an overmighty European state which completely lacks the democratic mandate so to do.

Come to think of it, how about the US joining the EU? With us gone, there is now a huge vacancy that needs to be filled. I am sure that the opening of American fishing grounds to the Spanish would prove highly popular and of course it would be totally marvellous for American fishermen to be set strict quotas on the quantity of fish caught in their own waters. Ditto the European Court of Justice having the power to over-rule the US Supreme Court, the US signing up to the European Arrest Warrant (effectively getting rid of that historical anomaly Habeus Corpus) plus the US Armed Forces becoming part of a fully integrated European defence force, with command being transferred to Brussels.

Yes indeedy. Any and all Americans worth their popcorn would positively welcome the benign governance of an enlightened Brussels super-bureaucracy. I say bring it on.

[Bob]

Glesga,

... the USA ruling class let the people have a vote knowing it will make no difference to their living conditions

Really well put. The economic elite over-reach from time to time, though.

Richard,

The US won't be joining the EU soon. We have our own trading bloc that's generated its own political backlash. I understand the arguments and repeat: exchange "Washington" and "states' rights" for "Brussels" and "British sovereignty" and they're generally the same. You probably know that some states tried to leave the union and it didn't work out well for them. Not that I think the EU will start a shooting war with you.

[Richard]

Bob,
My point is that were it a member of the EU, the US would loathe the imposition of EU diktats and laws every bit as much as the UK.

[Bob]

Richard,

Then why are we involved with NAFTA (soon USMCA) and permanent normal trade relations with China? Our government doesn't have total control over either. We also have a lot of ongoing trade disputes with the EU:

https://www.politico.eu/tag/eu-us-trade-talks/

My point is that the EU is likely to encourage the breakup of the UK to isolate whatever remains of Britain. How do you think you can avoid that?