Polish President Revealed That Foreign Companies Own Most Of Ukraine’s Industrial Agriculture

April 18, 2024 — bunkerville

What is left for the Ukrainian people, after the “kinetic action” ends, will merely be a carcass of a country. This after the feasting off of the country by the usual players. Poland has raised issues surrounding the Ukraine farmland and points out that a “significant share of it” has been taken over by foreign firms. Poland farmers recently blocked the imports of Ukraine’s cheap grain across their border and the mandates of the E.U.

In January, we learned we were on the track with this post.

Zelensky’s Opening Act at Davos -Courts JPMorgan, Bank of America, Bridgewater CEO’s

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met some of the biggest names in global finance on Tuesday morning on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. The Ukrainian leader spoke with JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon, Blackstone’s Steve Schwarzman and Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio among others.

Now the latest:

The Oakland Institute published a detailed report in February 2023 titled “War and Theft: The Takeover of Ukraine’s Agricultural Land”, which exposed how foreign firms have clandestinely taken control of a significant share of Ukrainian farmland by exploiting a liberal law in collusion with local oligarchs. Their findings made waves around the world at the time but eventually receded from the public’s attention over half a year later once Western outlets like the USA Today misleadingly “fact-checked” it.

Few could have expected that it would be none other than Polish President Andrzej Duda who just breathed new life into it during his interview with Lithuanian National Radio and Television. He was explaining Poland’s problem with Ukrainian agricultural imports when he dropped the following bombshell:

“I would like to draw particular attention to industrial agriculture, which is not really run by Ukrainians, it is run by big companies from Western Europe, from the USA. If we look today at the owners of most of the land, they are not Ukrainian companies. This is a paradoxical situation, and no wonder that farmers are defending themselves, because they have invested in their farms in Poland […] and cheap agricultural produce coming from Ukraine is dramatically destructive to them.”

Duda represents what’s widely considered to be one of the most pro-American and anti-Russian governments at any time in history so he can’t credibly be accused of “pushing Kremlin propaganda”.

….

Putting the pieces together, the Ukrainian leader made good on his May 2022 Davos proposal by offering companies “patronage” over Ukraine’s industrial agriculture, which was already in the process of unfolding prior to then but was greatly accelerated by last May’s meeting with BlackRock’s management. This took the tangible form of these indirectly foreign-controlled farms outcompeting Poland’s by far, thus leading to the Polish farmers’ protests across the country and the latest troubles in bilateral ties.

The sequence of events detailed thus far places into context mid-February’s report about the G7’s alleged plans to appoint an envoy to Ukraine, who’d obviously be tasked with implementing the Davos agenda if this comes to pass, particularly entrenching foreign control over Ukrainian farmland. It also suggests that Ukraine’s informal focus on ramping up agricultural exports to the EU isn’t just opportunistic, but partially driven by these foreign firms’ preference for speedy and reliable profits.

Read more

It is an excellent read and worth it considering we are about to dump more of our money in this pit.

Polish farmers blocked border crossings with Ukraine as they intensified a nationwide protest against EU environmental policies and the import of Ukrainian foods

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China and the E.U. – Why the Sudden Interest?

March 7, 2024 — bunkerville

by Mustang

In late 2023, China signaled that it had no interest in participating in the peace talks proposed by Ukraine and the West, arguing that it has only limited influence on the two antagonists.  But in late February 2024, we suddenly find a Chinese envoy engaging Ukraine, Russia, Germany, Poland, France, and Brussels in shuttle diplomacy.  China’s involvement with the European Union is at least curious, particularly because several of these nations are members of the E.U. and NATO.

The experts tell us that China’s renewed interest in brokering peace between Ukraine and Russia has more to do with China’s worsening economy than any other factor.  President Xi needs the E.U. to open its profitable markets to Chinese goods.  Consequently, the E.U. is very high on President Xi’s wish list.  None of this will come as a surprise to Russia’s president.  There is little doubt that Putin and Xi have crafted this diplomatic plan.  Still, whether China will succeed in its efforts will likely hinge on the competence of U.S. diplomats (or lack of it).

Complete denial': Europe largely blind to Chinese influence, says EU adviser – POLITICO

We do not know the future of Russo-Chinese relations, and we can only guess how the international situation will develop, but I believe that the U.S. presidential elections will be a factor.  Some are playing the “what if” game, but I won’t engage in it because there are too many variables and unknowns.  But that doesn’t inhibit some people from forming conclusions about U.S. presidential candidates — and one in particular.

Of interest to me is that E.U. officials appear quite nervous about the upcoming U.S. elections and the possibility that Donald J. Trump could be re-elected to the presidency.  Why should E.U. officials be anxious?  The answer is that Mr. Trump previously called into question the necessity of NATO and its cost.  In 2024, the NATO budget in each area of the charter is €438.1 million for civil matters and €2.03 billion for military readiness.  These numbers represent increases of 18.2% and 12%, respectively, over NATO’s 2023 budget — the largest obligation to implement this budget belongs to the United States at 22%.

As we know, China is not alone in experiencing a worsening economy; the E.U. also faces serious problems, not the least of which is deepening economic difficulties and political instability.  How does one stabilize political discontent within the E.U.?  One way to achieve that would be through the use of NATO’s military.  It would not be the first time a Western military alliance marched into Italy, Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Bulgaria. 

Suppose E.U. officials are concerned about a second Trump presidency.  In that case, it may be because Trump is likely to move forward with disentangling the United States from NATO and its grossly disproportionate share of the NATO budget.

I pause now to ask: Has there ever been a greater conspiracy against one man?

America’s talking heads tell us that while American politics has left our society badly divided, the government’s machinery continues to drone on.  The talking heads tell us that America’s isolationist temptations are tamed through its mechanism rather than political policy.  The U.S. continues to fund Ukraine, but the amount has been significantly reduced.  This is not a win-win situation for those of us who see no role for the United States in Eastern European affairs.

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the E.U. manages to address energy problems, tackle inflation, and destroy its agricultural output by significant levels.  And they also continue to manufacture ammunition in astounding quantities — no doubt for use in Ukraine paid for through coercive taxation.

In China, two factions continue to vie for influence.  Xi’s majority supports Vladimir Putin, but there is a minority (pro-Western European) group of the Chinese Communist Party.  This is why President Xi directed his foreign ministry to see what could be done to de-escalate the Russo-Ukraine conflict.  Putin stands a better chance of winning the conflict through a negotiated settlement than through brute force — which is why Putin has offered peace negotiations on six occasions.

Nevertheless, China will be the real winner in a negotiated peace between Russia and Ukraine.  China will benefit from a closer relationship with Russia (several joint projects are on the table at this very moment), and the E.U. will come to view China as a more stabilizing influence than the United States.  In any case, Europeans much prefer Chinese noodles to America’s Donald Trump.

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Will the New Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni Please Stand Up!

September 29, 2022 — bunkerville

 

Let us not let the branding of the new Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni as some far right threat to the world go unanswered.   She has taken on the E.U. For her troubles, she is and will be under constant attack. After all in an earlier post this week her policies were threatened by the one and only European Commission head Von der Leyden

Italy Tells E.U. Head Where to Go – Elects Meloni, Defies Threats

European Commission Chief Ursula von der Leyen threatened Italy last week before their national elections. Von der Leyen warned Italian voters that the European Union has ways to deal with rogue states that represent their people and ignore the globalist agenda.

We have to ask just which one of these women is a threat to the world?

Giorgia Meloni

 

She straightens out Macron who is much in the need of straightening out.

Even her rival defies the description of her as the next Mussolini. 

Former liberal Prime Minister of Italy Matteo Renzi has dismissed alarmist claims in the global media that incoming Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is a “danger to democracy”, telling CNN “the idea that now there is a risk of fascism in Italy is absolutely fake news.”

“Personally, I was against Giorgia Meloni. I’m not her best friend. We grew up together in politics, but we are, and will be, rivals, always,” said Renzi, who served as Prime Minister of Italy for nearly three years until December 2016, and is the leader of the liberal “Italia Viva” party.

Elsewhere in the interview, Renzi mentioned that he is “exactly the opposite of Giorgia Meloni, because she is a sovereigntist and I’m for Europe” [the European Union].

The international media has been quick to compare her to wartime fascist leader Mussolini, a serious allegation. Yet as Renzi’s comments demonstrate, not even Meloni’s own opposition inside Italy believes this to be true.

Indeed, there are genuine neo-fascists in Italy — like Casapound — but they get so little support at the ballot box they have now given up contesting elections as a waste of time and money.

Keep reading.

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Italy Tells E.U. Head Where to Go – Elects Meloni, Defies Threats

September 26, 2022 — bunkerville

 

One of the most dangerous women in politics, von der Leyden wants to do to Italy what she appears to have accomplished in the Netherlands. She does not get enough attention. To no avail. Italy just voted in the first woman candidate. On Sunday Italy voted in populist candidate Georgia Meloni.

European Commission Chief Ursula von der Leyen threatened Italy last week before their national elections. Von der Leyen warned Italian voters that the European Union has ways to deal with rogue states that represent their people and ignore the globalist agenda.

Georgia Meloni 

Source: Gateway Pundit

In July I posted 

European Union Fires the shot to start WWIII in the Netherlands

July 6, 2022 — bunkerville 

 

The Netherlands are about to lose many of their farms by confiscation. At least an attempt at that is in the process. How did the Netherlands get here? “Essentially, the EU has now achieved what Kaiser Wilhelm and Adolf Hitler failed to achieve between 1914 – 1945”.  The Netherland is the number two exporter of food, second only to the U.S. While we keep hearing about Ukraine as the breadbasket, it is the Dutch who lead.

To understand let’s start with the European Union and their Court of Justice. The court sounding quite similar in many ways to the United States secret FISA courts. The E.U. could not have come to where they are without the Court of Justice.

The E.U. Court of Justice

We don’t know much about the inner workings of the Court, beyond what its statute and rules of procedure tell us.2 The deliberations are secret and only ruling judges can attend. Dissenting opinions are not made public.3 The Court has been compared to ‘a black hole, from which nothing – except very brief, magisterial rulings with no hint of disagreement among the judges – can escape’ (Pollack 2017: 602). Secrecy was built into its DNA: one working language (French) was reportedly adopted to prevent that interpreters would attend the secret deliberations (Saurugger and Terpan 2017: 14).

I can attest to that having attempted to read their cases. None are in English.

How powerful is ECJ?

Not only did the ECJ confirm the Van Gend en Loos ruling, it established that European law always supersedes national law since states transferred rights to the community. This has become known as the principle of supremacy, and together with direct effect it gives constitutional status to EU law.

Keep reading

Nov 13, 2020 For those who are interested in a read that is totally in the weeds I offer the following:


Guardians of Public Value pp 135–159

The European Court of Justice: Guardian of European Integration

Here is the home page to start

Abstract

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) was founded in 1952. At that time, few observers would have predicted a future of a powerful institution, shaping Europe’s faith through its rulings. But that is exactly what happened. After a slow start, the ECJ gradually evolved into one of the most important institutions of the European Union. This chapter describes how this little court shrouded in secrecy managed to climb the institutional ladder. It analyses the role of institutional leadership, the relation between the ECJ and its authorizing environment, the near-existential crisis it faced in the 1970s, and the potential vulnerabilities that have grown over the years.

 

The best of the world’s swamp.

 

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European Union to Mandate a Reduction in Electricity Use

September 8, 2022 — bunkerville

The European Union plans to mandate the amount of electricity EU citizen members can use. Likely it is using Russia as an excuse to implement their Green mandates as much as they care about Ukraine. Biden is in lock-step and entered into an agreement with the EU this past June “in line with the Paris Accord and and our shared goal of net zero emissions no later than 2050.”

Many may be inclined to wring their hands over the positions various European leaders are taking especially energy. They have been neutered in all intents and purposes by the European Union. The EU is run by the the European Commission.

Former German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen was narrowly confirmed as the President of the European Commission, the powerful administrative arm of the European Union in July 2019. The woman who is running the show for the European Union.

You will see her in all meetings of any consequence and there is a reason. She is the woman at the helm.

Ursula von der Leyen

Again, notice not a single person will contemplate increasing supply…. because they are so ideologically wedded to their climate change religion. She states she wants to “flatten the curve.” We, in the U.S., know exactly what flattening the curve entails.

 

UPDATE: Just added:

WOAH, CLIMATE L0CKDOWNS ARE COMING?

 

 

Energy isn’t the only item Europe is dependent upon Russia for.

Someone made a list of what EU won’t get anymore with the Russia boycott.: “nat-gas, rare earths, inert gases, potash, sulfur, uranium, palladium, vanadium, cobalt, coke, titanium, nickel, lithium, plastics, glass, ceramics, pharmaceuticals, ships, inks, airplanes, polymers, medical and industrial gases, sealing rings & membranes, power transmission, transformer and lube oils, neon gas for microchip etching, etc., etc.”

This should work in destroying Germany including Europe as a whole.  Biden is along for the ride. 

Price Caps on prices the EU will pay for Russian gas.

The European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the move is necessary to weaken Russia’s economy further as it continues its invasion of Ukraine.  Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier warned that Moscow will stop supplying oil and gas if price caps are imposed. It is reported that Russia is selling Nat Gas to China who in turn sells it on the market.

So you’re the buyer where the seller is no longer doing business with you, then somehow you’re telling the seller, “Hey, we won’t pay you anymore than this amount” That’s some genius level stuff.

Putin stops pumping.

A refresher on Von der Leyen as we review what she has in mind and what Biden and she agreed to regarding energy.

European Union’s Ursula von der Leyen moves on property confiscation

July 1, 2022 — bunkerville

The section on Climate Change:

Climate Change

Von der Leyen called for the European Union to be “carbon neutral” by 2050. She pledged to propose a “European Green Deal” during her first 100 days in office. The deal would include the first “European Climate Law” to enshrine the 2050 climate neutrality target into law: “Carbon emissions must have a price. Every person and every sector will have to contribute.”

She also pledged to introduce a “Carbon Border Tax” that would apply to non-European companies, to ensure that European companies “can compete on a level playing field.” In addition, a “European Climate Pact” would “commit to a set of pledges to bring about a change in behavior, from the individual to the largest multinational.”

Von der Leyen’s social reengineering scheme would be paid for by European taxpayers: A “Sustainable Europe Investment Plan” would “support €1 trillion of climate investment over the next decade in every corner of the EU.” She also vowed that the EU “will lead international negotiations to increase the level of ambition of other major emitters by 2021.”

President Biden issued a joint statement in June 2022 in a meeting with von der Leyen:

Joint Statement by President Biden and President von der Leyen on European Energy Security

 
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/06/27/joint-statement-by-president-biden-and-president-von-der-leyen-on-european-energy-security/
 
Included:
The United States and the European Commission are also taking decisive action to reduce overall demand for fossil fuels in line with the Paris Agreement and our shared goal of net zero emissions no later than 2050. 
 
The Task Force has met regularly to discuss options to reduce Europe’s demand for natural gas and has also met with key stakeholders to promote the deployment of heat pumps, smart thermostats, and energy demand response solutions.  
 
We will encourage Member States and European and U.S. companies to reach an initial goal of deploying at least 1.5 million energy saving smart thermostats in European households this year.  In the coming days we will reconvene with Member States and stakeholders to discuss actionable policy recommendations to accelerate smart thermostat and heat pump deployment and production in an effort to ensure supply for key energy efficiency solutions are ramping to meet the growing demand. 
 
Mindful of the environmental impact of LNG production and consumption, the United States and the European Commission will step up their cooperation to reduce methane emissions, to ensure that EU-U.S. LNG trade is aligned with the scope of an internationally accepted measurement, reporting and verification standard for methane emissions while working to reduce venting and flaring in natural gas production, and methane leakage in the transmission and LNG supply chain.
 
We will also continue our cooperation on reduction of methane emissions globally. Most recently, the joint launch with 11 other countries of the Global Methane Pledge Energy Pathway will advance both climate progress and energy security internationally.
 
 
The Swiss are all in.

Here in the States:

European Union elects to move toward a Communist Utopia

July 24, 2019 — bunkerville – Don’t say I didn’t warn.

  • An examination of von der Leyen’s main policy proposals reveals that she is calling for a massive expansion of top-down powers of the European Commission. Her proposals would substantially increase the role of Brussels in virtually all aspects of economic and social life in Europe — all at the expense of national sovereignty.
  • Von der Leyen warned that Brussels would overrule EU member states opposed to her tax overhaul… She called for a comprehensive “European Rule of Law Mechanism” to ensure the primacy of EU law over the national laws of EU member states. She warned that there would be financial consequences for member states that refuse to comply…. She called for a change in rules so that the EU could act even without the unanimous consent of EU member states
  • “What you’ve seen from Ursula von der Leyen today is an attempt by the EU to take control of every single aspect of our lives. She wants to build a centralized, undemocratic, updated form of Communism that will render [obsolete] nation state parliaments, where the state controls everything, where nation state parliaments will cease to have any relevance at all.”

“But it is in the aspect of defense that I think people’s minds should be focused. She’s a fanatic for building a European Army, but she’s not alone. When it’s completed, NATO will cease to exist or will not have any relevance in Europe at all.”— Nigel Farage, European Parliament, July 16, 2019.

Finally, a new “Common European Asylum System” would require all EU member states to offer asylum to migrants who request it: “We all need to help each other and contribute.”

May be of further interest: 

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Europe: Are They Committing Economic Suicide?

August 25, 2022 — bunkerville

Europe’s fertilizer plants are shutting down due to the high cost of natural gas.

We know what happened in Sri Lanka when fertilizer is not used in farming. Having just witnessed the chaos in Sri Lanka, it doesn’t take an economics major to figure out what happens to the food supply when countries don’t use fertilizer.

We posted yesterday that the Production of fertilizer is shutting down across Europe. The cost of natural gas has risen beyond the cost that companies can endure.

Natural gas in the U.S. is up a staggering 525% since closing at $1.48 in June 2020. Since June 2022 it has jumped 70 percent.

Europe is in the same dire straights. It is getting too costly to produce fertilizer. “Depending on the weather, it could be a challenging winter,” said Rob Thummel, senior portfolio manager at Tortoise Capital Advisors. “But not as challenging as in Europe. They are at risk of running out of natural gas. We aren’t.”

Attempts are made to blame Putin. But Putin isn’t the one that introduced sanctions. In fact he was willing to continue the exports. He was more than happy to give Europe all the energy that they required. Europe demanded sanctions. This is where the bizarre story begins: In an earlier post:

Ukraine Demands Everyone Else Boycott Russia While Still Raking In Billions From Russian Gas

April 5, 2022 — bunkerville

“If Europe continues importing gas from Russia, why shouldn’t Ukraine benefit from it?” so goes the statement. Yet Zelensky demands constantly from all governments to stop the purchase of Russian energy.

Daniel Greenfield tells us the details at Front Page Mag:

Why is Russia paying billions to a country it’s invading that can be used to finance its defense?

Why would Russia put its economic lifeline and massive amounts of gas at risk by using a country that it’s currently bombing with all the adroit aim of a drunk in a toilet as a transit point if it could be easily replaced? Neither Europe nor Ukraine are prepared to kick their addiction to Russian gas. Putin knows it, which is why behind the scenes business is going on as usual.

Europe and Ukraine are asking Americans to make sacrifices while they keep on doing business with Putin.

Why is Naftogaz, Ukraine’s state owned gas company, continuing to transport millions of cubic meters of Russian gas to Europe each month.

One answer is that Russia continues paying billions to Ukraine to transport its gas.

Ukraine earns about $2 billion in transit fees from the Russian use of its pipelines to move gas to Europe. Russia, and Putin’s cronies in particular, obviously make even more than that.

Image

This morning Zero Hedge picked up a story entitled EU: Controlled Demolition   Authored by Raul Ilargi Meijer via The Automatic Earth, who had given thought to the very questions that are on many minds.

His salient observation:

And that’s not all. Fertilizer!! Why they do it, I don’t know. Do they WANT to kill their own economies? It makes no sense. And this will not be over soon.

Reuters of course seeks to blame Putin. But he’s not the one who introduced the sanctions. He’s offered to let the gas and oil exports continue.

I pick up his story. Well worth the full read:

The entire energy and food crisis is being sold as “inevitable”, but it is nothing of the kind. They are the result of choices being made in Brussels, Berlin, Amsterdam etc., about which nobody has asked your opinion. Something I jotted down a few days ago:

Is the west using Ukraine as an excuse to commit mass economic suicide? And, you know, fulfill some WEF-related goals? Why else would they cut off all economic ties to Moscow, at a time when it’s obvious they have no alternative sources for much of what they import from Russia? Moreover, why does a country like Holland aim to close 10,000 of its farms when it’s crystal clear that that will exacerbate the coming global food crises?

If you don’t like Putin, that’s fine, but why should your own people suffer from what you like or not? And of course you can ask whether it’s a good idea that a country the size of a postage stamp is the world’s no. 2 food exporter. But it is. And if you try to change that by doing a 180º, also on a postage stamp, it is very obvious that is not going to go well. And all the so-called leaders know this. But they still do it.

:

…..

But now it’s starting to look like this was all scripted. Because “we” could have kept communication channels with Russia open, “we” could have negotiated for peace for the past 6 months. Not doing that was a deliberate choice. A choice that you and me, another “we”- had no voice in whatsoever.

The Dutch could have negotiated with their farmers, and slowly addressed their perceived problems with nitrogen oxides, while keeping food production going. And we could have found a way to keep Russian and Ukrainian crops available on world markets too. But it doesn’t feel at all like “we” wanted that.

Someone made a list of what EU won’t get anymore with the Russia boycott.: “nat-gas, rare earths, inert gases, potash, sulfur, uranium, palladium, vanadium, cobalt, coke, titanium, nickel, lithium, plastics, glass, ceramics, pharmaceuticals, ships, inks, airplanes, polymers, medical and industrial gases, sealing rings & membranes, power transmission, transformer and lube oils, neon gas for microchip etching, etc., etc.”

….

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell wants Europeans to be obedient little critters, and take the punishment for the policies he and his ilk have carved out. Because “we” are destined to win. Mr. Borrell is planing to do just fine this winter, mind you. With the best steak your money can buy, real fine wine, to be consumed in comfortably heated homes, restaurants and offices. A picture of Marie Antoinette pops up in my brain.

‘Weary’ Europeans Must ‘Bear Consequences’ Of Ukraine War As Putin Will Eventually Blink: EU’s Borrell

EU high representative and foreign policy chief Josep Borrell gave a surprisingly blunt assessment of the Ukraine war and Europe’s precarious position in an AFP interview published Tuesday, admitting that Russian President Vladimir Putin is betting on fracturing a united EU response amid the current crisis situation of soaring prices and energy extreme uncertainty headed into a long winter. Borrell’s words seemed to come close to admitting that Putin’s tactic is working on some level, or at least will indeed chip away at European resolve in the short and long run, given he chose words like EU populations having to “endure” the deep economic pain and severe energy crunch. He cited the “weariness” of Europeans while calling on leadership as well as the common people to “bear the consequences” with continued resolve.

The author takes aim at Macron and it is spot on

Talking of Marie Antoinette. Emmanuel Macron is the little man of grand vision. He foresees the ‘End Of Abundance’, a veritable “tipping point” in history. And he’s just the man to lead you through it. I’ll give him this: he’s got good speech writers. But speech writers don’t keep the people warm and fed.

Macron Warns Of ‘End Of Abundance’

France is headed toward the “end of abundance” and “sacrifices” have to be made during what is a time of great upheaval, President Emmanuel Macron told his cabinet on Wednesday upon returning from summer break. The country has faced multiple challenges lately, ranging from the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine to the unprecedented drought that has battered the whole European continent this summer. Yet, Macron believes that the crisis is actually of a much bigger scale and that structural changes are imminent.“

Some could see our destiny as being to constantly manage crises or emergencies. I believe that we are living through a tipping point or great upheaval. Firstly, because we are living through… what could seem like the end of abundance,” he said. The country and its citizens must be ready to make “sacrifices” to meet and overcome the challenges they are facing, he continued. “Our system based on freedom in which we have become used to living, when we need to defend it sometimes that can entail making sacrifices,”Macron added

“Faced with this, we have duties, the first of which is to speak frankly and very clearly without doom-mongering,” Macron stressed. The president called upon his cabinet to show unity, be “serious” and “credible” and urged ministers to avoid “demagogy.” “It’s easy to promise anything and everything, sometimes to say anything and everything. Do not give in to these temptations, it is demagoguery,” the president said, adding that such an approach “flourishes” today “in all democracies in a complex and frightening world.”

There is a pattern in the messages of today’s Marie Antoinettes. Borrell wants you to take it lying down, Macron wants you to do that for a long time (like the rest of your lives), and the Belgian PM makes it more concrete: you’ll be freezing for the next 10 years. After which, supposedly, renewables will have been built to keep your kids warm. Spoiler: they won’t be.

Belgian PM: “Next 5-10 Winters Will Be Difficult” As Energy Crisis Worsens

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo might have spilled the beans about the duration of Europe’s energy crisis. He told reporters Monday, “the next 5 to 10 winters will be difficult.” “The development of the situation is very difficult throughout Europe,” De Croo told Belgium broadcaster VRT. “In a number of sectors, it is really difficult to deal with those high energy prices. We are monitoring this closely, but we must be transparent: the coming months will be difficult, the coming winters will be difficult,” he said. The prime minister’s comments suggest replacing Russian natural gas imports could take years, exerting further economic doom on the region’s economy in the form of energy hyperinflation.

How long will this last, you said? Well, according to AP, “Washington expects Ukrainian forces “to fight for years to come.” “Included in the package are advanced weapons that are still in the development phase..”

‘Months Or Years’ Before US Arms Reach Ukraine – Media

Years could pass before some of the weapons in the upcoming “largest ever” package of US military assistance to Kiev actually reach Ukraine, according to Western media reports. On Tuesday, a number of mainstream media outlets cited anonymous US officials as describing the impending announcement of a $3 billion package of military aid to Ukraine. If confirmed, it would be the largest of its kind so far. Washington is by far the biggest supplier of military hardware to Ukraine as it fights against Russia. However, some of the promised equipment “will not be in the hands of Ukrainian fighters for months or years,” according to NBC News, one of the outlets that reported the upcoming package. Included in the package are advanced weapons that are still in the development phase, it explained.

The same caveat was cited by the Associated Press, which said that it may take “a year or two” for the arms to reach the battlefield, according to its sources. Washington expects Ukrainian forces “to fight for years to come,” US officials told the AP. The AeroVironment Switchblade 600 drone is an example of a weapon system that was promised to Ukraine months ago but has yet to be delivered. Defense News said this week that the Pentagon plans to sign the contract necessary for sending 10 of the so-called “kamikaze drones” within a month. Last month, Ukrainian Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov called on foreign suppliers of arms to use his country as a testing ground for new weapons. He pledged to provide detailed reports about the experiences of Ukrainian soldiers with the prototypes provided to them.

The author concludes:

And there is no logical reason for this, there is only the ideology of a few handfuls of little men with grand visions. Hate of everything Russia has kept the west going for 100 years or more. And these little men feed off of that. They can only do that by refusing to talk. Because that’s exactly what Russia does not refuse. Only, they want to talk as equals.

The United States is one step behind Europe.

The very best of the swamp today.

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European Union Fires the shot to start WWIII in the Netherlands

July 6, 2022 — bunkerville

The Netherlands are about to lose many of their farms by confiscation. At least an attempt at that is in the process. How did the Netherlands get here? “Essentially, the EU has now achieved what Kaiser Wilhelm and Adolf Hitler failed to achieve between 1914 – 1945”. Mustang’s comment made earlier. The Netherland is the number two exporter of food, second only to the U.S. While we keep hearing about Ukraine as the breadbasket, it is the Dutch who lead.

For a catch up on what this is all about.

Dutch farmers ‘desperately’ fighting back against government’s ‘green’ agenda

First to understand let’s start with the European Union and their Court of Justice. The court sounding quite similar in many ways to the United States secret FISA courts. The E.U. could not have come to where they are without the Court of Justice.

The E.U. Court of Justice

We don’t know much about the inner workings of the Court, beyond what its statute and rules of procedure tell us.2 The deliberations are secret and only ruling judges can attend. Dissenting opinions are not made public.3 The Court has been compared to ‘a black hole, from which nothing – except very brief, magisterial rulings with no hint of disagreement among the judges – can escape’ (Pollack 2017: 602). Secrecy was built into its DNA: one working language (French) was reportedly adopted to prevent that interpreters would attend the secret deliberations (Saurugger and Terpan 2017: 14).

I can attest to that having attempted to read their cases. None are in English.

How powerful is ECJ?

Not only did the ECJ confirm the Van Gend en Loos ruling, it established that European law always supersedes national law since states transferred rights to the community. This has become known as the principle of supremacy, and together with direct effect it gives constitutional status to EU law. Nov 13, 2020 For those who are interested in a read that is totally in the weeds I offer the following:


Guardians of Public Value pp 135–159

Palgrave Macmillan

The European Court of Justice: Guardian of European Integration

Download book PDF

Download book EPUB

The European Court of Justice: Guardian of European Integration

Here is the home page to start

Abstract

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) was founded in 1952. At that time, few observers would have predicted a future of a powerful institution, shaping Europe’s faith through its rulings. But that is exactly what happened. After a slow start, the ECJ gradually evolved into one of the most important institutions of the European Union. This chapter describes how this little court shrouded in secrecy managed to climb the institutional ladder. It analyses the role of institutional leadership, the relation between the ECJ and its authorizing environment, the near-existential crisis it faced in the 1970s, and the potential vulnerabilities that have grown over the years.

As an example just how far the E.U. can go I offer an earlier post as an example:

E.U. to implement a $300K fine per barbarian for non acceptance

May 4, 2016 – Bunkerville

Officials who saw the proposal in advance said the fine would act as a sanction on nations that refuse to adhere to the E.U.’s asylum system. While the exact penalty is still in flux, a diplomat said that it would amount to “hundreds of thousands of euros.”

So now we have the idea how this thing operates.

Scholars agree that the ECJ has been highly influential in advancing European integration beyond what could have been achieved via decisions of the EU’s political institutions (Schmidt 2018: 27; Stone Sweet 2010). According to Stone Sweet (2010: 2), the ‘significance of the ECJ’s impacts rivals that of the world’s most powerful courts’.

It is notoriously difficult to gauge community support for an organization of which the larger public is mostly unaware. Even those who are aware of its existence are generally not informed about the actions of the Court (Dehousse 1998: 145; Gibson and Caldeira 1995: 470).

Next to add to this saga of how we got to the end game of the Dutch:

Enter:

Former German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen who has been narrowly confirmed as the next President of the European Commission, the powerful administrative arm of the European Union. (July 2019) Bunkerville

Former German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen

European Union elects to move toward a Communist Utopia

This sums it up I think:

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage may be her biggest critic. Addressing the European Parliament, he said:

“What you’ve seen from Ursula von der Leyen today is an attempt by the EU to take control of every single aspect of our lives. She wants to build a centralized, undemocratic, updated form of Communism that will render [obsolete] nation state parliaments, where the state controls everything, where nation state parliaments will cease to have any relevance at all.

“I have to say from our perspective, in some ways, I’m really rather pleased, because you’ve just made Brexit a lot more popular in the United Kingdom. Thank God we’re leaving!

“But it is in the aspect of defense that I think people’s minds should be focused. She’s a fanatic for building a European Army, but she’s not alone. When it’s completed, NATO will cease to exist or will not have any relevance in Europe at all.”

Now the screws are applied:

European Union’s Ursula von der Leyen moves on property confiscation

July 1, 2022 — bunkerville

Netherlands Shuts Down Farms to Meet Climate Change Mandates

Under the the guise of reducing “pollutants” the E.U. has found an easy target. Farmers. Considering the amount of pollutants industry produces, how the cow became the target leads one to speculate that an additional agenda may be afoot.

The government says emissions of nitrogen oxide and ammonia, which livestock produce, must be drastically reduced close to nature areas that are part of a network of protected habitats for endangered plants and wildlife stretching across the 27-nation European Union

Livestock produce ammonia in their urine and feces. The government in the past has called on farmers to use feed for their animals that contains less protein as a way of reducing ammonia emissions.

Farmers argue that they are being unfairly targeted as polluters while other industries, such as aviation, construction and transport, also are contributing to emissions and face less far-reaching rules. They also say the government is not giving them a clear picture of their futures amid the proposed reforms.

The government has been forced to take action after a series of court rulings that blocked infrastructure and construction projects because of fears they would cause emissions that breach environmental rules. It is giving provincial authorities a year to work out ways to meet the emission reduction targets.

And now it is in the hands of the Dutch. Will they succumb? Or fight?

Some tweets to let us know how things are going:

The best of the swamp in the world.

Posted in Deep State. Tags: , , , . 34 Comments »

European Union’s Ursula von der Leyen moves on property confiscation

July 1, 2022 — bunkerville

 

Former German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen was narrowly confirmed as the next President of the European Commission, the powerful administrative arm of the European Union in July 2019. Who is this woman behind the the E.U.? For the first time this week many of us discovered that she was the wizard behind the curtain pulling the strings for the organization. This time in the form of confiscating the Netherlands farms for the better good of the environment.

Thousands of farmers have gathered in the central Netherlands to protest the Dutch government’s plans to rein in emissions of nitrogen oxide and ammonia.

 

 

Yesterday’s post Headline:

Netherlands Shuts Down Farms to Meet Climate Change Mandates

The government says emissions of nitrogen oxide and ammonia, which livestock produce, must be drastically reduced close to nature areas that are part of a network of protected habitats for endangered plants and wildlife stretching across the 27-nation European Union

Ursula von der Leyen

Portion from an earlier post in 2019:

Do these policies sound familiar at all? This should give a shiver to those Brits if they still have any sense. Germany never gives up. What a war could not do, a pen will. She is adamant in her writings that she wants a E.U. military. One could surmise as opposed to NATO. One can reflect on how Putin must react to this considering Russia’s experience with Germany previously.

 

  • An examination of von der Leyen’s main policy proposals reveals that she is calling for a massive expansion of top-down powers of the European Commission. Her proposals would substantially increase the role of Brussels in virtually all aspects of economic and social life in Europe — all at the expense of national sovereignty.
  • Von der Leyen warned that Brussels would overrule EU member states opposed to her tax overhaul… She called for a comprehensive “European Rule of Law Mechanism” to ensure the primacy of EU law over the national laws of EU member states. She warned that there would be financial consequences for member states that refuse to comply…. She called for a change in rules so that the EU could act even without the unanimous consent of EU member states

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage may be her biggest critic. Addressing the European Parliament, he said:

“What you’ve seen from Ursula von der Leyen today is an attempt by the EU to take control of every single aspect of our lives. She wants to build a centralized, undemocratic, updated form of Communism that will render [obsolete] nation state parliaments, where the state controls everything, where nation state parliaments will cease to have any relevance at all.

“I have to say from our perspective, in some ways, I’m really rather pleased, because you’ve just made Brexit a lot more popular in the United Kingdom. Thank God we’re leaving!

“But it is in the aspect of defense that I think people’s minds should be focused. She’s a fanatic for building a European Army, but she’s not alone. When it’s completed, NATO will cease to exist or will not have any relevance in Europe at all.”

Finally, a new “Common European Asylum System” would require all EU member states to offer asylum to migrants who request it: “We all need to help each other and contribute.”

Following is a brief summary of von der Leyen’s main proposals for the next five years, as outlined in a 24-page document titled, “My Agenda for Europe”:

Climate Change

Von der Leyen called for the European Union to be “carbon neutral” by 2050. She pledged to propose a “European Green Deal” during her first 100 days in office. The deal would include the first “European Climate Law” to enshrine the 2050 climate neutrality target into law: “Carbon emissions must have a price. Every person and every sector will have to contribute.”

She also pledged to introduce a “Carbon Border Tax” that would apply to non-European companies, to ensure that European companies “can compete on a level playing field.” In addition, a “European Climate Pact” would “commit to a set of pledges to bring about a change in behavior, from the individual to the largest multinational.”

Von der Leyen’s social reengineering scheme would be paid for by European taxpayers: A “Sustainable Europe Investment Plan” would “support €1 trillion of climate investment over the next decade in every corner of the EU.” She also vowed that the EU “will lead international negotiations to increase the level of ambition of other major emitters by 2021.”

Rule of Law, Migration and Internal Security

Von der Leyen called for a comprehensive “European Rule of Law Mechanism” to ensure the primacy of EU law over the national laws of EU member states. She warned that there would be financial consequences for member states that refuse to comply: “I intend to focus on tighter enforcement, using recent judgements of the Court of Justice showing the impact of rule-of-law breaches on EU law as a basis. I stand by the proposal to make the rule of law an integral part of the next Multiannual Financial Framework.” She added: “The Commission will always be an independent guardian of the Treaties. Lady Justice is blind – she will defend the rule of law wherever and by whomever it is attacked.”

Von der Leyen also called for a “New Pact on Migration and Asylum” in which a reinforced European Border and Coast Guard Agency would take over border control responsibilities from EU member states: “I want to see these [EU] border guards with the ability to act at the EU’s external borders in place by 2024.”

Meanwhile, a new “Common European Asylum System” would require all EU member states to offer asylum to migrants who request it: “We all need to help each other and contribute.” In addition, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office “should have more muscle and authority” and “be able to investigate and prosecute cross-border terrorism.”

 

Keep reading

Now we find that the Woman behind the curtain is joined by our wizards behind the curtain.

President Biden issued a joint statement this week in a meeting with von der Leyen:

 

Joint Statement by President Biden and President von der Leyen on European Energy Security

 
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/06/27/joint-statement-by-president-biden-and-president-von-der-leyen-on-european-energy-security/
 
Included:
The United States and the European Commission are also taking decisive action to reduce overall demand for fossil fuels in line with the Paris Agreement and our shared goal of net zero emissions no later than 2050. 
 
The Task Force has met regularly to discuss options to reduce Europe’s demand for natural gas and has also met with key stakeholders to promote the deployment of heat pumps, smart thermostats, and energy demand response solutions.  
 
We will encourage Member States and European and U.S. companies to reach an initial goal of deploying at least 1.5 million energy saving smart thermostats in European households this year.  In the coming days we will reconvene with Member States and stakeholders to discuss actionable policy recommendations to accelerate smart thermostat and heat pump deployment and production in an effort to ensure supply for key energy efficiency solutions are ramping to meet the growing demand. 
 
Mindful of the environmental impact of LNG production and consumption, the United States and the European Commission will step up their cooperation to reduce methane emissions, to ensure that EU-U.S. LNG trade is aligned with the scope of an internationally accepted measurement, reporting and verification standard for methane emissions while working to reduce venting and flaring in natural gas production, and methane leakage in the transmission and LNG supply chain.
 
We will also continue our cooperation on reduction of methane emissions globally. Most recently, the joint launch with 11 other countries of the Global Methane Pledge Energy Pathway will advance both climate progress and energy security internationally.
 
 
And how are the farmers doing? You will own nothing and be happy.

The best of the swamp.

Posted in Foreign Policy, Green. Tags: , , , , . 29 Comments »

Great Britain vs the European Union – The Troubles

January 29, 2019 — bunkerville

 

This continues the post on the history of this unhappy union from yesterday –

Great Britain vs the European Union … The Background

 

by Mustang   (Our man on the beat in the UK)

 

Germany was happy to partner with France, either owing to its guilt about World War II, or its ability to game Charles De Gaulle for their own purposes.  Whatever the reasons, the EEC finally did extend the hand of friendship to the UK, and in 1973 British Prime Minister Edward Heath was happy to lead his people down the road of romantic idealism.

 

But, if there were differences of opinion among EEC members, it was nothing compared to differences among British people themselves.  On the one hand, pro-European Brits championed this notion of hands across the channel —though giving no thought to the long-term costs of such an arrangement, and on the other hand, anti-union Brits feared the loss of their national sovereignty.  Their (reasonable) fear of high taxation without adequate representation (in what would become the EU Parliament) was, as history shows us, well-founded.  Thoughtful Americans might recall a similar refrain from the days of the British colonies in 1774.

Nevertheless, conservative leaders led the UK into the EEC in 1975 when membership was put to the British people in a national referendum.  At that time, EEC membership enjoyed the support of all three political parties, all of the national newspapers, and 67% of the British people.  The debate was far from over, however, because membership offered no immediate economic benefit to Great Britain.

The UK was plagued with labor strikes, which required the government to cut power from its coal-dependent energy grid, and faced rising oil prices that resulted in double-digit inflation.  Membership in the EEC (soon called simply the European Community (EC) (headquartered in Brussels), not only became a toxic issue in British politics, it also created deep divisions within the political parties themselves.

One college professor observed, “Some might argue that the fundamental conflict in post-war Britain is not so much between the left and right, as between those who believe that Britain’s future lies with Europe, and those who believe it does not.”

By 1984, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher recognized that Great Britain received much less in agricultural subsidies than did France.  She successfully negotiated a rebate on its EC contributions.

The 1980s was a period of power struggle between London and Brussels, when French socialist Jacques Delors became president of the EC.  His goal was to achieve a more federalized Europe and a single currency.  Thatcher, in rejecting the European super-state, was uncompromising —even though these positions fueled conservative inter-party warfare.

Eventually, Thatcher’s unwillingness to compromise national principles led to her political downfall.

In September 1992, Great Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, Norman Lamont, withdrew the UK from the Exchange Rate Mechanism.  To some, “Black Wednesday” became one of the lowest points in Britain’s relationship with the European Union.  Although Thatcher was unable to stop Europe’s march toward political union, her successor, John Major did sign the Maastricht Treaty.  This treaty allowed for a massive transfer of power from Britain to the European Union.

The British did achieve “opt-outs” from the single currency mandate and European Social Charter, but the treaty undermined the British tradition of an sacrosanct sovereign parliament.  The British people were not happy, and this led to a landslide victory for Tony Blair in 1997.  Among the Brits, the greatest enemy of the UK resided within both political parties.  Blair signed his country up to the social chapter, which made the communist left happy, and conservative minded citizens wary of being eventually forced to accept the Euro as their nation’s currency.

In 1998, however, the British economy was doing well; there was no reason for any thinking Brit to support adoption of the Euro.  The plan to accept the Euro was placed on hold and, in time, the British people were proved right to distrust it.  The Euro Crisis put to rest any prospect of the British adopting the single currency rule, and, what’s more, fueled a sense of Euroscepticism that permeated both the conservative party and most British citizens.

Late in 2011, EU leaders attempted to establish new budget rules.  Prime Minister David Cameron demanded exemptions, and when he did not get them, he vetoed the pact.  His critics claimed that Cameron cut his country adrift from the EU, but the Eurosceptics were delighted —and wanted more of the same.

Accordingly, Cameron promised a referendum on continued British membership in the European Union.  Personally, Cameron wanted the UK to remain in the EU and when the British people (by a small margin) demanded withdrawal … Cameron resigned.  It then fell upon the shoulders of Prime Minister Theresa May to figure out how to do it.

Pro-British factions today blame the EU for everything that is found wrong with domestic policies.  This is probably unfair.  Most of what is wrong within the Home Office results from self-serving politicians who —much like our own— are only capable of operating on two cylinders.  Also —like ourselves— the British people are quite easily led by their politicians.

In the 1970s, they followed their political pied-piper down the road to Shangri-La —the land of tariff-free, cross border, social justice happiness.  All that the British people really needed to do to achieve utopia is pay ever-increasing taxes for services enjoyed by the citizens of other countries.  In Spain, for example, extra-wide sidewalks have been divided into three lanes: one for pedestrians, one for bicyclists, and the other reserved for humans pushing baby carriages.

Did the British people understand that their tax dollars were funding such nonsense, or that under EU regulations, Europeans rather than the British would decide who is allowed to migrate to the United Kingdom?

I doubt it. 

Nor did British politicians ever admit to their constituents that a federalized Europe would make culturally incompatible demands upon the insular nature of the British people.  In this, De Gaulle was right —and it does make perfect sense that the European Union should offer legislation that suits the majority of its members, and/or that hardly any of these directly benefit the British people, even though they’re paying for them.

 

Conclusion

 

Brexit won’t be done with for many more years.  The British people were right to demand disentanglement from European politics, and I think that the United Kingdom will, in time, benefit from separation.  It won’t be an easy road, however —most divorces never are— but at least the British will have learned an important lesson: one cannot trust politicians further than you can toss them, and it doesn’t even matte what political party they belong to.  One day we Americans might learn this lesson, as well.

 

Mustang has other great reads over at his two blogs – Thoughts from Afar

with Old West Tales and Fix Bayonets

Posted in Government. Tags: , , , , . 6 Comments »

Great Britain and BREXIT – An Objective View

December 13, 2018 — bunkerville

 

UK BREXIT

An objective View

by Mustang (Our man on the beat)

I should perhaps begin by saying that I never once thought that the United Kingdom joining the European Union was a good idea.  Over the space of forty years of British membership in the EU, the people of Great Britain, increasingly fed up with the onerous taxes placed upon them by the EU Parliament, came to a similar conclusion.

Former Prime Minister David Cameron, in a political move he calculated would fail, agreed to place the question of continuing EU membership before the British people.  The result of that referendum reflected the overwhelming desire of the Brits to reclaim their national identity, and like the child he is, Cameron resigned.

Teresa May was elected to replace Cameron.  To be fair, the task in finalizing Brexit has been an onerous task.  Ms. May has not only had to contend with the animosity of the EU member states (which at times, has been damned insulting to the United Kingdom), she’s also had to fight the Labor Party as well.  I should also note that the Leader of the British Labor Party is a devout Marxist who champions the notion of a new world order on the global socialist model.  For May, it has been an uphill battle from her very first day in office.  With that said, Teresa May is no Maggie Thatcher.

EU membership is supposed to provide distinct advantages to member states, such as “free trade,” but the cost of membership has far outweighed its benefits.  EU Membership requires that nations give up their national identity and their autonomy.  According to the EU membership application process, states must comply with all standards and rules, and every decision made by the home legislature is subject to the approval or veto of all other member states.  Currently, there are 35 chapters of rules, regulations, and policies with which each member state must adhere, and these (individually and collectively) are quite substantial.

These EU regulations detail the conditions and obligations of member states in such areas as energy, environment, immigration, cross-border movement, transportation, communications, and banking/finance.  Each member state must also “pay their fair share” of membership.  Let’s just call it what it is: a tax.  To the weight of the tax (which is always passed along to the citizens) we must add the impact of EU regulations, which have the effect of stifling British commerce in a very substantial way.  So, the British people want out —and I don’t blame them one bit.

A short word about Britain’s fair share of the EU tax burden.  In 2008, the British people were forced to pony up to the tune of £2.7 billion (about $2 billion).  In 2013, the UK’s “fair share” was £11.3 billion.  The EU, as with every government, has never seen a tax that it didn’t like.  To put this tax burden into perspective, the UK’s annual gross domestic product is $2.95 trillion; the US GDP is $19.49 trillion.

So, while we generally think of the UK as a highly productive society, that productivity is but a small percentage of our own.  What this means is that the average citizen in the UK scrapes to get by.  While their per capita GDP is $44,000/annually (ours is about $60,00), their tax burden substantially reduces British purchasing power.  British citizens pay a 20% tax at the basic rate, 40% for incomes over £34,500, and 45% for incomes exceeding £150,000.  Add to this the Value Added Tax of 20%.  It may seem that the average British citizen earns a good income, the picture changes significantly after taxes.

Think of it this way: when average Americans decide to purchase a newer car, they are likely to visit a new car dealership.  There are such things in the United Kingdom, but most people “upgrade” to a new used car.  It’s all they can afford.

At this point, we should wonder what the kerfuffle is all about.  Teresa May has not done a very good job negotiating the Brexit agreement with the European Union.  The agreement that she’s settled on places her country at a substantial economic disadvantage.

I don’t have all the details, of course, but I know that under May’s proposal, the UK will continue as an “associate member” of the EU, which means that the UK will still be taxed, and the EU will continue to control (to some extent) the UK’s trading relationships with other countries.  It is also my understanding that given the agreement that May has worked out, the UK would be prohibited from negotiating a free trade agreement with other countries … the US, for example.  If this is true, even in spite of Brexit, the UK is not the master of its own destiny.

Conservatives in the British Parliament do not support such a deal with the EU.  Yesterday, there was a question about national confidence in the leadership of Teresa May; last night, the Parliament voted to decide whether to retain Teresa May as Prime Minister.  They voted to keep her in the job.  What this means, to me, is that even conservative members of Parliament aren’t convinced that Brexit is the right choice for Great Britain.

How sad is that?  It leads me to conclude that politics in the UK remains as fractious as it always was.  Political division is the history of the British political system —and this may go a long way in helping to explain our own politics.  After all, Great Britain is our mother country.  Our apples, or so it seems, have not fallen far from the tree.

Posted in Government. Tags: , , , , . 18 Comments »
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