Why the establishment will have nobody else to blame when the EU crumbles back into the hubris from whence it came
If anyone reading this finds aggressive language offensive, or is upset by what journalists like to call ad hominem…except when they’re talking about Trump, when it becomes ‘frank and descriptive’…you should probably stop reading now.
To those who are prepared to humour me letting off some steam…thanks for that…but please know that I mean every word of it…especially the part where I call politicians rude names.
On Sunday the people of Catalonia voted in a referendum on their future – on whether they wish to remain part of Spain, or to become an independent, self-determined state. There is absolutely nothing unusual about this. Every civilisation or ‘people’ that has ever existed has expressed the desire for a government that represents what they conceive to be their best interest – to stand for them. And in a democracy the consent of the people is the foundation stone – nothing meaningful can be built without it.
People will undergo all sorts of hardship in partnership with a government that they feel belongs to them; but sooner or later they will rebel against one that does not - however benign the circumstances may be by comparison. This is an issue of authenticity and belonging and it is universal – it is no more subject to legislation or the dictates of an idiot, than my hound’s desire to play with other dogs and to chase anything that looks remotely like a squirrel or a rabbit. It really doesn’t matter what some control freak in Madrid or Brussels thinks is appropriate for a Hungarian Vizsla – Rufus doesn’t care, and what’s more – he knows better.
This drive for self-determination is why history is a long tale of rebellions and revolutions…all of which have a number of things in common, the most glaring of which is this: the folks getting their arses kicked out of the door didn’t like it, said it was illegal, and used violence in an attempt to stop it happening.
Here’s what an American fellow said about this 241 years ago, you may have come across this before…
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness”
Thomas Jefferson
It is not my purpose here to argue for this – I was sold at the first line: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident'
No - it is for the idiots in Madrid, in Brussels and in our abysmal press to argue against it if they can. Of course none of them have the balls to do so openly, they’d rather do it in small steps, and in code. Here’s what one such moron said a while back:
‘There can be no democratic choice against the European Treaties” – Jean-Claude Juncker
Doesn’t sound like ‘screw you’ to the declaration of independence does it? Well it is.
So in reply, let me say this: Well, that’ll be your little secret Johnny Boy – stand back and watch.
Here’s another intellectual colossus speaking on Sunday:
“This is a mockery of democracy…there has been no referendum of self-determination in Catalonia today” – Mariano Rajoy, Prime Minister of Spain
I think you’ll find that there was a decisive referendum held on Sunday, Rajjers me old fruit - particularly when you sent in thousands of armed thugs to demonstrate the absolute need for one. It was especially useful for any ‘undecided’ people to witness young girls been beaten up by cops in armour. As one Scottish gentleman remarked on Twitter:
‘Imagine how much of a total bastard you’d have to be to hit a woman with a club whilst dressed in full riot gear”
The Catalan police didn’t have to imagine it of course - they saw it. I hope Mr Rajoy has learned at least one thing – the next time he sends Spanish thugs to beat up Catalan girls – he’s going to have to tell them to be prepared to fight the Catalan police as well – I don’t think they’ll find themselves with split loyalties after this vote.
But let’s get back to the politics – this time from the perspective of the EU rather than Spain. I’ll be brief. Here it is in the 140 characters of a Tweet I sent out Monday morning
Bureaucrats+Power+Time=Centralisation
Centralisation+Complexity+Time=Collapse
Bureaucrats NEVER get this
EUSSR is on borrowed time
Viva Catalonia
I.E: Centralisation is anathema to large complex systems. In a nutshell: big and central is bad, small and local is good. Taleb has written extensively on this stuff, and he has a new book coming out soon called ‘Skin in the Game’. Anyone who’s invested their own time, energy and savings into building something of value knows all about this; bureaucrats not so much.
But I digress. The EU will continue to do what every large centralised power structure has done throughout history – it will ignore the feedback, double down on the things that aren’t working in an attempt to prove itself right…and then it will collapse.
The collapse may arrive in the form of a banking crisis, leading to a sovereign debt crisis, followed by a massive capital flight to the dollar and hard assets. On the other hand, as Tim Price, author of ‘Investing through the Looking Glass’, has pointed out to me - it may manifest through the currency markets. The catalyst could also be a political one. Whatever it turns out to be, it will all seem very obvious in hindsight.
Finally the utter disgrace that is our media:
The BBC talked about ‘clashes’ between the police and protestors. There were no ‘clashes’ between police and protesters. What happened was the Spanish police attacked innocent voters, stole ballet boxes and beat people with batons. Don’t take my word for it – go to @MarkGBblog and watch a video I re-Tweeted from ‘Angry Scotland’. It’s only about 30 seconds long, but it’ll tell you everything you need to know about these ‘clashes’.
The FT was its usual constipated self – “Mr Rajoy faces an extraordinarily difficult task blah blah blah”…with no analysis of what’s going on, no description of the carnage on the streets…just stiff upper lip, British establishment, award winning bullshit.
But the prize for the most insidious crock (that I saw) goes to a Tweet put out by Sky News:
‘The people of Catalonia are finding out what happens when an illegal referendum is held’
Get the message? - ‘Serves them right’
The people at Sky News, the BBC, the FT, the politicians in Madrid, the bureaucrats in Brussels…none of them know anything about serving people right
And that’s why they will continue to get their arses kicked.
Viva Catalonia.