Europes soul – missing in action?

 bloggers, EU, Must read post  No Responses »
Dec 122011
 

For the benefit of what I’m sure are the scant few of you that don’t already read his Grace, may I bring your attention to his latest missive. The text of the speech given by Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks at The Pontifical Gregorian University, it’s not the shortest thing you’ll read but it’s well worth the time. The question addressed (paraphrased somewhat in my title) is that of “Has Europe Lost its Soul?”

For those of you still reading this rather than going over to His Grace to read the text already allow me to give you a slight taster:

“As the political leaders of Europe come together to try to save the euro, and with it the very project of European Union, I believe the time has come for religious leaders to do likewise, and I want to explain why.

What I hope to show in this lecture, is first, the religious roots of the market economy and of democratic capitalism. They were produced by a culture saturated in the values of the Judaeo-Christian heritage, and market economics was originally intended to advance those values.

Second, the market never reaches stable equilibrium. Instead the market itself tends to undermine the very values that gave rise to it in the first place through the process of “creative destruction.”

Third, the future health of Europe, politically, economically and culturally, has a spiritual dimension. Lose that and we will lose much else besides. To paraphrase a famous Christian text: what will it profit Europe if it gains the whole world yet loses its soul? Europe is in danger of losing its soul.“

 Posted by Giolla at 23:36  Tagged with:

One for the road

 EU, Must read post, Petition  No Responses »
Nov 122011
 

I’ve an early start tomorrow (well early for a Sunday, so before 12), so here’s an article from The Chiefio, just as the EU is about to go tis up, Latin America decide’s it’s an excellent model to follow:

“So yeah, some guy selling coconut bras (don’t snicker! I’ve SEEN ‘em!) faces a coconut import tariff for the country next door and pretty soon he’s talking to the guy there who wants to ship him a power tool (also with counter tariff) and they both end up talking to their politicos about a free trade zone. First thing you know, ‘integration’ is on everyone’s lips (as the politicos see how well the Euro-Politicos get staffed, wined, dined, partied, and generally don’t have to deal all those annoying elections and voters… )”

And don’t forget if you’ve not signed it already there’s another e-gov petiton to have an referendum on leaving the EU

 Posted by Giolla at 23:55  Tagged with:

Marching while Rome burns

 activism, economics, EU  No Responses »
Nov 092011
 

Whilst the students march under the banner of “9th Nov”, with the demands in smaller paler print, it seems that Italy is heading rapidly under water with Barclays Capital saying Italy Is Finished: “Mathematically Beyond Point Of No Return” (H/T Katabasis). The global markets aren’t doing so well, so an excellent time to be campaigning for your Government to keep spending more money than you’ve got. If of course that’s what the students are doing, as the small print says:
“Fight privatisation, defend eduction”
Given how many universities started as private enterprises one wouldn’t have thought that defending education would have to entail fighting privatisation but hey what do I know?

For anyone still confused by the economic situation Small dead animals has it explained (H/T Samizdata):

 Posted by Giolla at 13:48  Tagged with: , , ,

On the subject of symbols

 activism, Campaign, EU, extremism, Free Speach, religion, Sparticus  No Responses »
Nov 082011
 

Whilst I’m on the subject of the power of symbols a while back Captain Ranty reported that it’s now terribly naughty according to the EU to use the “Keep Calm and carry on” image that the Government created back in 1939 as:
The EU has granted an EU Community Trade Mark to ‘KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON’ meaning that only one company may use the slogan for clothing, mugs, posters and other memorabilia.

Of course it’s quite possible our own trademark officials would have been just as stupid, in which case I’d no doubt be suggesting ignoring them and protesting about their actions. In more recent news of course some excitable chaps got excited at a French magazine putting a cartoon on their cover and fire bombed the offices of said magazine to register their distaste of this image:

100 lashes if you don't die of laughter! Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/charlie-hebdo-mohammed-2011-11#ixzz1d8xQPkcA

Rather reassuringly various other publishers helped them out by giving them office space whilst their now burnt out offices were dealt with, and to show that there were no hard feelings about the incident Charlie Hebdo are now running with this cover (H/T Katabasis):
Love is stronger than hate

Which seems a terribly polite response to people that like to burn both buildings and poppies.

 Posted by Giolla at 20:09  Tagged with: , , , , ,

A tad early

 Campaign, EU, Video  2 Responses »
Nov 052011
 

A little early but start the day as you mean to go on I say:

 Posted by Giolla at 01:36  Tagged with: ,

Look out there’s a monster coming

 economics, EU, WTF  No Responses »
Nov 042011
 

Look out there's a monster comingThanks to Katabasis for this lead, it seems that having thrown loads of money at the Eurozone via the European Financial Stability Facility – the EU Zone are going to extract even more money from it’s indebted members and indenture them forever into the service of the European Stability Mechanism. London loves Business has the low down but for a quick tour of the highlights:

  • Total immunity from prosecution
  • Employee’s don’t pay tax
  • Eurozone members can never leave
  • If it asks for money members have to pay within 7 days, and it has no limit on what it can ask for

Oh and bankrupt Ireland will have to pay in 11Bn Euro’s that it doesn’t have for the privilege of giving all hint of sovereignty up to this unelected unaccountable quango.

 Posted by Giolla at 15:10  Tagged with: , ,

Yes you have no referendum

 debt, economics, EU  No Responses »
Nov 042011
 

In a shock and startling turn of events after being summoned to the G20 to explain what he was doing suggesting asking the people if the wanted to accept the austerity package or not – the Greek prime minister has decided that maybe the people don’t need to be asked after all. Having got that out of the way rumour has it that he’s off to resign – presumably to encourage anyone else that thinks referenda are a good thing. The EU’s allergy to asking the people their opinion on things really is quite impressive. it’s not after all as if the Greeks rejecting the current package would force anyone else to accept any other deal. They just get to discuss it again, of course if the Euro isn’t as sound as they’d have us believe that might cause further problems I suppose.

Of course none of this is proof of a totalitarian regime, the Greeks problems are of their own making. But that the prime minster thought he should check with the people first isn’t reneging on a deal either, last I checked most such treaties are subject to ratification.

Of course allegedly a lot of the debt isn’t real debt and could in fact be got rid of by everyone seeing what they owed each other. Pass the IOU’s round and see what’s left at the end, but then of course all those countries wouldn’t be able to point at the huge piles of money other people owe them.

Update Over at Septic Isle there’s a good round up of events from a different perspective – though the conclusions don’t seem hugely different – Greeks should have defaulted, EU(zone) doesn’t like referenda and the Euro zone is doomed roughly speaking

 Posted by Giolla at 00:33  Tagged with: , ,

Light the blue touch paper

 Cuts, debt, EU  No Responses »
Nov 012011
 

Light blue touch paper and retire So the Greeks appear to have lit the blue touch paper under the Euro project, by the crazy notion of asking the people what they think about a huge financial deal before signing up to it. Yet again the idea of a referendum seems to be throwing the euro-project into chaos and confusion, it would seem that democracy is as welcome to the eurocrats as water to the Witch of the West. There’s a lovely concise live(ish) blog of the “crisis” over at the FT (H/T Katabasis).

The choices facing the Greeks seem to be a referendum or an early election – I imagine if there’s an early election there’ll be an awful lot of things signed before then. Just in case someone gets in on a promise of a referendum or not signing up to the euro-cooked up agreement. Mind past expereince suggests that if the Greeks vote the wrong way they’ll just be given more chances to vote until they get it right – at least the ballot printing companies will do well out of it.

Interesting times, indeed – I can’t help but hope it blows up on Saturday just for the poetry of it.

 Posted by Giolla at 23:02  Tagged with: , ,

Democracy, the EU and the MPS

 activism, Betrayal, Campaign, EU, Petition, politicians  No Responses »
Oct 252011
 

Real referendumGreat minds think a like they say, and also that what’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. So after our wonderful elected representatives decided that it wasn’t safe to even discuss holding a referendum about joining the EU. It looks as though we’ll have to take a leaf out of their book, and following the Irish principle just keep asking them again and again. Spotting a passing bandwagon they jump on to be anti the government they’re in, the Limpdems have set up a petition to ask for a referendum again (see linked image), and there’s a new e-gov petition as well. With luck eventually they’ll hold a referendum just to shut us up, probably when it’s getting round to election time. Mind it would be foolish to underestimate just how good our glorious leaders are at ignoring us, and stickign their fingers in their ears and going “lah lah lah can’t hear you”, so maybe it’s time to consider that most radical ideas of paying as little tax as possible? Or if you’d like to do something a bit more visual but less useful why not burn an EU flag on the 5th (after going for a little walk).

It would seem that all our suspicions about the e-petitions may even have been optimistic, for ignoring the fact that the backbench committee has no mechanism to get them debated, they’ll still happily ignore a petition over 100,00 real signatures. If though horror or horrors an MP actually stands up and asks that they maybe debate having a debate to ask us what we thing of the EU – never fear call-me-Dave will just roll out a three line whip to make sure no one is so foolish as to represent the voice of those 100,000+ signatures. Despite all that effort this was the biggest euro-sceptic/pro-democracy rebellion in parliament since we got sucked into the EU, with an entire 17% of MPs thinking that maybe we should perhaps be asked about the EU. Those 17% may of course just have done some maths and decied that maybe they don’t want to piss off the 70% of the electorate that want a referendum – after all that’s a lot of voters.

Perhaps as LegIron suggests they’re all scared of actually governing and just want to play in the pretty building. So much easier to just go along with the undemocratic and ineffective EU

 Posted by Giolla at 23:15  Tagged with: , ,

Upcoming EU vote perhaps maybe

 activism, Campaign, EU, Petition, politicians  No Responses »
Oct 202011
 

EU burningRather late to the press with this but it would appear to be that our wonderful elected MP’s are going to ask the Government if they could perhaps maybe see fit to find sometime next year to consider asking us if we’d like to stay in the EU or not.
Or if you’d rather the actual wording (via: Douglas Carswell)
This house calls upon the government to introduce a bill in the next session of parliament to provide for the holding of a national referendum on whether the united kingdom:
A) should remain a member of the European Union on the current terms;
B) leave the european union; or
C) re-negotiate the terms of its membership in order to create a new relationship based on trade and co-operation”

The vote has been moved forward from the 27th of October to the 24th which of course makes it that bit trickier for people to get in touch with their MP’s in time. So in the meantime there is a rally in London to suggest that we might quite like a vote on the matter, and regardless of if you can make it or not do sign the peoples pledge asking for a referendum on the matter. Also as Captain Ranty suggests (and provides a template for) write to your MP. They may not get your letter in time for the vote but at least they’ll know that it’s a matter that people care about.

Of course for all the talk of cast iron guarantee’s from “call me Dave” rumour has it that the Tories will be whipped to vote against the bill. Yep the idea of a bill to ask the government to debate asking us about the EU sometime next year is so terrifying that it looks likely that Dave will call in the whips to make sure no debate happens, after all they’ve already moved the vote. So again all the more reason to let your MP know that you’ll be watching. As it’s not even as if the Government has to pay any attention to the result of the vote.

If that doesn’t get their attention you might want to consider taking part in a mass flag burning on the 5th November – which if I recall correctly the EU considers to be rather naughty.

 Posted by Giolla at 19:39  Tagged with: , ,
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