The Current State Of Play

The Current State Of Play

On the 1st of February the UK had just left the EU and I got an early morning phone call from the Mairie informing me politely that I no longer had a right to vote in the forthcoming local elections. I had to receive a letter formally informing me of this apparaently and as i declined to go to the Mairie to colect it it duly arrived in the post next day. The mayor has been apologetic to the few Brits around about this necessity, recognising what we add to village life.

I’m seeing increasing numbers of postings on the Internet of people who had voted Leave and are now regretting it as the unicorns start disappearing and reality bites. It tkes coueage to admit you were duped or that you misunderstood even such complicated concepts as sovereignty. The difference between the two is important. Because if misunderstanding is the problem anyone could be to blame and any old scapegoat will do. But if people have been duped then they will, or should, become angry and that is what is necessary.

Perhaps our mayor’s stance is why my long-standing request to the Mairie to prune the trees across the road in front of my house finally bore fruit. Barriers were erected around the trees, the woodsmen arrived and I now have the prospect of a lot more sunlight on the friont of my house this summer. The problem has been that the trees threw shadow over the house which, while providing relief from the summer heat, inhibited the flower display. So I’m looking forward to every plant flowering to its fullest over the coming months.

Every year since I have been here we have had one day of snow, except this year, until today. Today we had a snow flurry for about an hour in the morning. The snow didn’t settle and that may be it for the year but there could be some more to come over the next few days. The snow was a surprise considering that we had been lunching in the sun in a temperature of 18 degrees less than a week ago.

My son, Carl, is with me at the moment and undertook to climb the Via Ferrata in Buis. The photos here are of him climbing the St Julien rock face. I’m proud of his having done that; I’m not sure I could ghave done that even had I been more physically able than I am now. Good for him.

Carl has also helped me get my back garden being in some sort of order. The arch holding the climbing roses had collapsed and that is now fixed thanks to some muscle putting in two metal stakes to reassert the arch. The next job is to sort the leaning column that supports a honeysuckle and another climbing rose. I’m now confident that that can be fixed too.

The First British Reich

Towards The First British Reich: Doninic Cummings’ Challenges

Creating what is essentially a dictatorship in a country with a long democratic tradition is no small task. Of course, an overt dictatorship would never be accepted, at least in the short to medium term. What is needed is a guarantee of continuous leadership in a single direction, achieved by democratic means. That, of couse, doesn’t count technically as a dictatorship but the difference is small.

So how can that be achieved? The first obvious requirement is a continued mass loyal vote to ensure a majority in Parliament. Manipulation of the public, particularly the «lumpenproletariat», can go a long way to achieving this. Our first past the ost system means that we don’t need that large a majority vote (or necessarily even one at all) to get a good majority of MPs in Parliament. Constituency boundaries can be adjusted if need be. But some democratic obstacles will have to be weakened or removed also. Let’s have a look at those.

Journalistic freedom could be a problem theoretically but hasn’t proved much of one in practice: Weakening it should be sufficient if we keep the main newspaper proprietors sweet. Admittedly, the first attempt at knocking uncooperative journalists didn’t go well but that was just a first attempt. Next time our friendly newspaper prorietors will have to be better briefed to send along only journalists who can be relied upon not to walk out. A threat of the sack would probably do it.

Then there is the Internet. We can’t control it (at the moment) but it can be a very useful tool as well as a bit of a problem and, with friend Trump in charge in the USA, we can feel secure that no impediments will be imposed on the main Internet players to curtail access to the data we want. That can be left alone for the moment.

Broadcast media, radio and TV, could pose problems but their need for a licence is a boon here. We can control who gets licences and, if threats aren’t enough, making an example of one or two should do the trick.

Then there’s Parliament itself. Keeping a big majority will be important of course but the National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee will have to be kept under control. That will need a bit of thought. The Office for National Statistics shouldn’t be a problem. We’ve cut their budget and a little more direction on what statistics to collect (and how) should prevent any embarassing numbers coming to light.

There is always the question of human rights but being able to draw up our own Human Rights Act will help a lot, particularly if threats of terrorism can be played up in the popular media when the Bill is made public. It should allow us to cater for any high-profile trouble-makers.

Keeping the lumpenproletariat happy will be a challenge but our friendly popular newspapers xhould be a big help there. We’ve already provided some «sweeties»: increasing the minimum wage and upping the lowest tax threshold were good moves and will be taken as a show of loyalty to the masses and the budgetary effect is minimal. Some other moves, like keeping excise duty on beer and cider constant while increasing that on wines and spirits, can be introduced along the way. The popular newspapers can be relied upon to play on loyalty to Queen and country. The royal family is in a bit of difficulty at the moment but fortunately Harry and Megan have removed themselves from the scene and the Queen can be relied upon as a rallying point. If times get really hard for the masses our English constitution should help.

The beauty of the English constitution is that it is incomplete, unwritten and relies in some important places on gentlemen’s agreements. I don’t think we need to worry about gentlemen getting in the way. We’ve adjusted the relationship between Parliament and the Courts so the latter can’t get in the way either. There’s always been this separation of the police and the military in England but, if things get too bad, we could always call in the military. We could claim a threat of terrorism and northern Ireland would be a precedent for that.

The threat of terrorism has mileage in it but we do need a common enemy for more routine matters as well. The EU should suffice for the next couple of years at least. It’s proved very useful that way already so people will be receptive. We can blame failure to reach agreement on it when we leave the EU without a deal and then any negative consequences afterwards on the same: their refual to negotiate on our terms. When that gives out we could turn to foreigners generally or the mslims again. We’ll think of something.

So far, we’look to be in good shape towards getting our democratic dictatorship. Forward to the first English Reich! (But of couse this couldn’t happen in Britain could it. Didn’t Britain fight a war to stop that?)

For more on this see the link below

https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/johnson-leading-revolution-and-time-its-coming-right?fbclid=IwAR2NZ-79uW5xe8oUdZdDZ6F1XL9-ZCMBmJLmzTcHZaS79y-tjMyCcZXRFZo

Chance Or A (Cunning) Plan?

Chance Or A (Cunning) Plan?

The UK is entering into a year-long period of uncertainty in which, probably, planning and chance will both play some rôle. What rôle may each play?

All we can start with is what is already known and Descartes; doubt everything. (Dubito, ergo cogito, ergo sum). Johnson has said he will be going into negotiations with the EU without compromise on what he wants. The EU won’t, cannot, compromise on the fundamentals that bind the EU countries together. What is the most likely outcome? It has to be that the UK leaves the EU without an agreement. This is the more likely in that it appeared to be the preferred arrangement of Johnson before he became PM. So let’s bring in Descartes. Johnson has falked of great opportunities, benefits and friendship to all nations although it appears that no one can give even one concrete example of either of the former. Friendship between nations must be welcomed but is meaningless without context. Descartes can have a field day; everything has to be in doubt.

So, if the UK leaves the EU without a deal will that be chance or might it be a (cunning) plan? It can’t be pure chance because there will have been chances to do a deal. So, if no deal happens, it might be a plan. What then could the plan be?

There seems at the moment an unlikely alliance between a right-wing government and the least educated and most numerous part of the population. This situation is almost without precedent in the last century except in dictatorships and the UK is not a dictatatorship. So js this a matter of pure chance? It does not look like it, given that almost all of the most read popular press, owned by proprietors with clear political objectives, has for several years been been supporting the government in anti-EU sentiment. Get the less-educated and majority readers of the popular press on your side and you have a potential election majority.

So it looks like we have a plan. So, what is the plan? The grand plan, assuming there is one, has to be a matter of conjecture but the means needed to underpin it are clear. The less educated and less well informed majority has to be kept that way and fed something to keep them happy. Any means of enlightenment must be reduced or suppressed and some «sweeties» must be offered.

Is there any evidence for this? Well, the minimum earning wage has been upgraded slightly and os has the lower threshold at which income tax has to be paid. The combined result is that a low-paid worker will be around £200 a year better off. Sweeties? It’s hardly revolutionary.

What about keeping people less informed? Johnson has threatened to take away the licence of the most independent TV news channel, Channel 4, has passed a Parliamentary Act to prevent Parliament scrutinising trade deals, has done similarly to remove the Courts’ right to pronouce on the legality of government actions and, most recently, tried to divide the press by proposing that only pro-government media will be briefed on government plans. The UK is not a dictatorship and hopefully will never become one but these are all classic moves in that direction. This is not to suggest that the Uk is in danger of becoming a dictatrship but these easures ensure that even those seeking good information will have more difficulty finding it and the less well- informed will stay that way. They increase government control of what the populace can know.

Despite supposed uncretainty, I think that at this point chance can largely be discounted. There must be a plan and, whatever it is, the government is positioning itself to deliver it with the minimum of critical scrutiny and a majority of popular suuport, even if it is against the interests of that majotity. And that, I think, is what will most probably happen.