Category Archives: Patriots Corner

No Special Case

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Like most English people, I’m sick to the hind teeth of hearing about and listening to the seemingly endless talk about Scotland, so I’ll make this brief.

When our elected politicians at Westminster address the question of further powers for Scotland they need to remember one thing and one thing above all else. Scotland is not special.

Scotland is the same as the rest of the UK and should be treated no differently. The rights of the Scots are the same as those of the Northern Irish, the Welsh and the English. Nobody is better than anybody else and nobody should be accorded special privileges. We are a democracy and as such we are all equal. Simple.

Not even the Scottish Nationalists could disagree with that. Oh,……………………actually!

A Wake Up Call For England

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Scotland has voted to remain in the United Kingdom, for now and for now is all it is because as sure as night follows day the independence question will inevitably rear its ugly head yet again. It is simply a matter of time. It doesn’t matter what further concessions are granted to the Scots because the Nationalists will still complain and demand more. Things have changed for ever within the UK and that is not hyperbole, it is fact. Our politicians and leaders need to take a long hard look at our country and need to plan the future rather than wait for events to overtake them – and us.

In time we may well thank Alex Salmond for giving us, the English majority, a wake-up call and for stirring us from our apathetic stupor. For too long now, we English have been bovine-like, silent and accepting of all that has been served on us. Is it fair that the UK, and the prosperity and welfare of all its inhabitants, could have been destroyed by less than 2 million Scottish militants without the rest of us even being consulted? The population of the UK is approximately 64 million with roughly 54 million English and under 6 million Scots, although you would be forgiven for thinking it was the other way round with all the whining and whingeing constantly emanating from north of the border.

Calls are now being made for an English parliament and it must happen if only for the sake of democracy and fairness. Many of us feel almost disenfranchised as we watch our country ruled by a London elite who seem incapable of relating to the rest of the country. Many people in the north of England, for example, feel just as disenchanted as the Scots but, showing a typical English trait, they have just grumbled a bit, accepted their fate and carried on as before.

If the UK has a future (and as a British citizen, I sincerely hope it does) then that can only be by a more equal and equitable distribution of power and money. England needs her own parliament to rank alongside the existing chambers of the Scots, the Welsh and the Northern Irish. It should be established in a central part of England, somewhere like Birmingham or Manchester but certainly well away from London.
All of those parliaments should have greater control over matters of regional economics and taxation but should ultimately be accountable to the UK parliament in London. Maybe we should look closely at the American model particularly since Americans don’t appear to have any problem with nationality whilst still being proud to be Texans, New Yorkers, Tennesseans or whatever.

We have to do something though because without action the eventual destruction of the United Kingdom is assured.

An Unlikely Endorsement

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Great news for those in favour of keeping Scotland in the United Kingdom! Kim Jong-un, the fruitcake leader of North Korea with the wacky haircut, has come out of the woodwork (or wherever he resides) and expressed his support for Scottish independence.

The Scottish Nationalist leader, Alex Salmond, must have inwardly groaned when the announcement was made, ahead of Thursday’s referendum. How can anybody of sound mind now take seriously his plans for an independent Scotland?

With a bit of luck those undecided voters will now realise what complete idealistic nonsense the idea of Scottish independence truly is and how crazy it would be to break away from a 300 year old alliance that has proved so beneficial not only to their country but to the whole of the UK.

Thanks Kim, you may well have helped save the Union.

What do the English think?

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The Scottish referendum is only a few weeks off and in the midst of the usual reporting from the “Yes” and “No” camps came a report last week on English views on the future of the United Kingdom, the possibility of Scottish withdrawal and the position of England within the Union.

It appears that although the majority wish to preserve the Union many of those questioned by pollsters want the English to be more vocal on their wishes instead of perpetually remaining the silent majority. We have, of course, heard much of Scottish independence, even though the Scots already have their own Parliament, and some talk about further Welsh independence even though they too have separate representation in the form of their own Assembly.

By contrast, the English have no separate representation with neither their own parliament nor assembly despite the fact that they are by far and away the single largest entity within the Union and therefore the largest financial contributors. Instead, English MPs sit at the UK’s Parliament in Westminster alongside Scottish MPs who are all able to vote on English matters while the English cannot vote on theirs. This seems to be both unfair and anti-democratic.

A further grievance is the fact that English citizens pay the NHS £8.25 for their medical prescriptions whilst the Scots get theirs free of charge and Scottish children receive free university education whilst English children and their families pay thousands of pounds each year for theirs. All of this is despite the fact that England bears the lion’s share of the cost of running the Union. This cannot be right.

Even if Scotland decides to stay in the Union, and I hope they do, some English politicians are now talking of setting up their own Parliament just like that of their northern neighbours. And why not? After all, what’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

The Commonwealth

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The Commonwealth Games, which finished last week, turned out to be the great success that we had all hoped for. The host nation, Scotland, did an excellent job in organising and presenting the Games and it was wonderful to see so many athletes from across the world competing so hard to win medals for their countries.

As an Englishman, I was obviously delighted that England finished overall champions but that was almost by the by since the thing that impressed me most of all was the wide diversity of the competing nations.

To many, the Commonwealth is simply an anachronism representing, at is it does, the last reminders of the former British Empire. But what a reminder it is. Even a brief look at the location of member nations such as Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, Kenya, India and Australia is to take a lesson in world geography. All four corners of the globe touched by our tiny island.

It was all a long time ago of course, but not that long. History shows that all empires inevitably decline and fall and the beginning of Britain’s decline can be traced back to a date commemorated across the world earlier this week. That date was August 4th 1914, the beginning of the First World War, a war that claimed over a million British and Empire lives and sent the Empire on a downward financial spiral from which it never recovered.

The Fifty First State?

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Earlier this week it was announced that after 2020 every member of the European Union, without exception, will have to adopt the euro. Thus, unless we get our promised referendum and vote to leave the EU we have only six more years to enjoy the pound and the last vestiges of sovereignty and independence.
Since today is a very big day across the pond it occurred to me (and not for the first time either) that if the pro-Europeans are right (they are not) and we really cannot survive alone then let’s throw our lot in with a federation with whom we have something in common. Let the wheel turn full circle and instead of becoming a puppet state of Europe let’s rejoin our Atlantic cousins and become the 51st state of America. Here are 10 reasons why we should –
1.  They speak English (sort of!)
2.  No queues when flying into New York.
3.  Holidays in Hawaii complete with loud, sorry, colourful shirts.
4.  Free fireworks every 4th of July (it doesn’t matter what the celebrations are for)
5.  A decent national football (soccer) team that we can all be proud of (for a change!).
6.  Mardi Gras every February.
7.  Thanksgiving. So that’s two turkey dinners each winter instead of just the one.
8.  Micro-breweries in every city.
9.  Four proper seasons.
10.  The Clintons. Oh, actually …………………………..on second thoughts!
With or without the fireworks – Have a Very Happy 4th of July!

Lamenting the Past

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I read a newspaper article earlier this week describing the “shame” and “dark past” of certain English cities (primarily Bristol and Liverpool) for their role in the slave trade and describing how their success and wealth was built on the back of that odious trade.

I don’t doubt for a minute that every decent minded person in the country feels nothing but revulsion at what happened two hundred years ago and beyond but it seems to me that we British do have an almost unique tendency to self-flagellate.

The fact of the matter is that Great Britain, the USA, the French, Spanish, Portuguese and every other nation boasting an empire participated in the slave trade and yes, of course, it is something to be ashamed of.

However, it would be nice if those critics of our country’s history would present a more balanced argument and celebrate the fact that Great Britain, through the efforts of Englishmen such as Granville Sharp and William Wilberforce, became, in 1807, the first western nation to abolish the slave trade and then in 1833 to abolish slavery completely. Can credit not be given for the fact that Great Britain then devoted much time and effort in ensuring that nations like the USA, France and Portugal eventually followed suit?

Whatever is said about our past, the sad fact remains that slavery is alive and well and is still openly practiced in many parts of the world. Would it not be more useful if the country’s detractors, instead of lamenting the past, devoted their efforts in trying to ensure that this affront to human dignity is removed from our planet once and for all?

Not Good Enough

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So another world cup has ended prematurely for England but, never mind, it’s not as if we weren’t expecting it. Unfortunately, the finger pointing has started again and the press, as ever looking for a scapegoat, are questioning the abilities of the manager and the so-called key players. They are wasting their time since the only logical explanation for the team’s latest demise is that they were simply not good enough.

Still, at least we Englishmen and women who love football for the wonderful game that it is can now enjoy the tournament as excited neutrals free of  the  gut-wrenching  and emotional roller-coaster of watching our national team. Football at its best is unlike any other game on earth and the joy of watching the best players in the world on the highest stage in the world is more than adequate consolation for a nation disappointed once more by its own failings.

For those unable to lift their heads from the trough of despair, fear not. Rugby union’s world cup takes place next year and the big difference between rugby and football (two games, incidentally, invented by the English) is that we actually have a rugby team capable of competing with the very best. There, that feels better. Sort of!

Falklands Republic

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Last week Argentina’s football team posed for a photograph in front of a huge professionally prepared banner stating in Spanish that the Falkland Islands (or Las Malvinas as Argentina refers to them) are Argentine property.

Legally and factually this is incorrect since the islands, through the democratic decision of the occupants, remain British territory. In spite of this the fact remains that Argentina’s age old claim to the south Atlantic islands is alive and well.

In 1982 Argentina seized the Falklands by force and were then swiftly defeated and removed by a British task force. Since then the islanders have reaffirmed their desire to remain with the UK. This clearly doesn’t impress Argentina and the danger remains that some hot-headed dictator in a desperate bid to gain popularity might try to invade the islands just as General Galtieri did in 1982.

Since 1982 the UK’s military power has been dramatically reduced and it would be a lot harder to win back the islands by force as we did back then. Perhaps more significantly I doubt whether there would be the political or public will to take any action at all. So, assuming that this is true what is to be done to avert possible catastrophe?

Well, short of threatening to bomb Buenos Aires or sell the islands to Argentina (both extremely unlikely!) it seems to me that the best way forward would be to hand the problem over to the United Nations. This could be done by the Falklands declaring themselves an independent republic (whilst remaining part of the Commonwealth) and then, on the basis of a feared invasion by Argentina, request that the UN sends in a peace-keeping force to protect them. That should make the Argentines think twice!

Islamic Indoctrination

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There was outrage this week following revelations that a significant number of schools in Birmingham, run by Islamic extremists, have been teaching children what, in some cases, has been described as bigoted, misogynistic and violently anti-Christian propaganda.

In response the Prime Minister, David Cameron, and the Education Secretary, Michael Gove have, rather lamely, said that all schools should promote British values. Well, of course they should, but I wonder how they intend to ensure that this happens because so far little seems to have been done to prevent Islamic indoctrination in many of our inner city schools throughout the land.

Obviously, the Government has to tread carefully to avoid allegations of racism and prejudice, not least by our own politically correct liberals, but clearly something has to be done because the problem is certainly not going to go away. In fact, it can only get worse.

What is required is a calm, rational response by our Government based on a careful consideration of the facts and an avoidance of any rhetoric that could be deemed inflammatory. As the Prime Minister inferred, people are tired of the erosion of British values after decades of almost unlimited and uncontrolled immigration and the bending over backwards by the authorities to accommodate foreign cultures. Without doubt our tolerance has been abused by some who mistake British decency for weakness.

None of this is to say that immigrants are not welcome; far from it since clearly the majority of immigrants, Muslim or otherwise, are valuable members of society. Even a brief look at how many businesses are run by foreign born businessmen demonstrates how valuable their contribution is and has been to the United Kingdom.

The common sense approach has to be this, all legal immigrants whilst being made to feel welcome must be made aware that the United Kingdom has been built on a system of government, law and Christian principles that are enshrined in our society and as such are not negotiable.

If I were to move to Saudi Arabia I would not expect that country (irrespective of what I may think of its culture) to adapt and change to suit me.

If these principles are enforced firmly and fairly the problem may well diminish. The alternative is to do nothing and let these hate-filled Islamic extremists take advantage of our liberal culture and do whatever they want.

Ultimately, inaction will only force people who would not otherwise do so to seek redress via our own extremists on the far right. If that happens the late Enoch Powell’s prediction of “rivers of blood” back in the 1960’s could become a harsh reality.