The British Gazette

Above is a very old image of my Dad. It was taken a very long time before I arrived on the scene. Dad qualified as a Chartered Electrical Engineer. As a District Manager for a utility company he would regularly be “on call”. This was in the 1930s – a long time before mobile phones and pagers. As a result, Dad made himself contactable by alerting the office where he would be and at what times when he was on call. Thus if he was in the cinema the office would telephone the cinema with a message. Thus, when Dad went to that cinema he left a note with the ticket office and the cinema staff would take a note of which seat he was occupying so he could be alerted if necessary.

A note to our younger readers: Whilst it may appear to you that Dad was presuming a lot upon the good will of the ticket office, it must be remembered that this was very common and Dad was not the only one making such a request. This was the norm.

That was in the 1930s. Three decades later – in 1965 in fact – I experienced this for myself at the tender age of 10, when Dad was called out of the Odeon cinema Leeds that was on the corner of Briggate and the Headrow. The occasion was the film “The Sound of Music”. Dad was in 1965 self employed as a Consulting Engineer and the reason for the call-out was that a barrister wanted to speak to him. Dad had advised the barrister that he would be at the Odeon and he had arranged with the Odeon cinema that it might be necessary for him to take a call. Again, it is necessary to repeat for the benefit of our younger readers that this was quite a common practice and the Odeon had, like other cinemas a row of pay phones to enable it’s customers to make telephone calls. Young people just do not realise the enormous difference the almost universal possession of mobile phones – most now with internet connectivity – has made to people’s lives.

The result was that just as Julie Andrews started singing the song “Do-Re-Mi” – thus the first two lines of the song’s lyrics in the title – Dad was called out and missed a lot of the film – much to Mother’s great disappointment!

It was after the film and on the way home that Dad related how in the past this was quite a common occurrence. He then told me that when he was District Engineer in Hampshire he could in the cases of a short disruption see the whole film as in those days the films would be shown repeatedly. He went on to say that because of this and because of pressures of work he and his first wife (who died of a protracted illness shortly after WW2) would often go to the cinema when the film was half way through. They would then wait for the next showing to watch the start of the film. In the interval there was always the Pathe News news broadcast which again in the days before TV was very popular.

Sitting in the back seat of the car the ten year old me was very irritated! Not for myself you understand but for Dad! Dad missed the film because of some so and so lawyer! Also the idea of starting half was through a film and watching the first part after the second part irritated me. Intensely!

So! What has all this to do with Brexit!

This: We all so to speak enter life half way through. Events have a history and that can often pre-date our arrival on Earth.

Madame Mayhem’s current travails were brought about by large numbers of snowflakes who did not vote Remain in June 2016 and bitterly regretted it making sure that they would vote for Comrade Corbyn!

What these youngsters should read up on is just how and why the UK joined what became the EU and why so many of the political elite were (and are?) desperate to have the UK remain in the EU.

The FACT is that there are TWO dynamics that generally dictate the actions of a nation state. There is the economic dynamic and the political dynamic. The interaction between these determine the policies enacted by the government of that nation state.

In the case of the UK, France and Germany it was the political dynamic which caused the political establishments in all three to seek EU membership. Both France and the UK wish to “punch above their weight”. They seek a higher status in the world’s diplomatic rankings that the size of their economies – or military forces – would normally allow. Germany seeks a similar status but they wish to adopt a disguise and work through a third party.

In Germany’s case EC/EEC/EU membership is at the very core of Germany’s post war identity. The EU is the medium through which Germany wishes to exercise her power and influence. German power is exercised “behind the scenes” Angela Merkel and her fellow Germans want to be Europe’s back seat drivers! Occupying the driver’s seat is France. The UK is in the passenger seat, insisting that it’s hand too is on the steering wheel.

Membership of the EU gives all three countries the opportunity to walk on the world stage as they wish. Think of it as dressing differently. Imagine if you will Frau Doktor Merkel, President Macron and Madame Mayhem attending a prestigious social “Do”. Frau Merkel turns up in a modest ladies suit – jacket and skirt. President Macron turns up, sash over white tie and tails and wearing all the decorations of the French state. Madame Mayhem turns up in full length ball gown wearing a tiara (borrowed from the Duchess of Westminster perhaps?) and with a diamond necklace with brilliant colourless diamonds the size of peas!

Each of the three nation states use the power that membership of the EU gives them in differing ways. For Germany it is a method of disguising her power. For Britain and France it is a method of exaggerating their power.

Now at this point many British Gazette readers will wish to make mention of the requirements the Treaty of Lisbon imposes on EU member states to either follow or not to impede the EU’s foreign and security policy.

It is however very important to remember the following FACTS:

1. EU members used to form part of an unincorporated partnership whereby the EU collectively excised the sovereign power of it’s members.
2. After the Treaty of Lisbon, the EU excises it’s OWN sovereign power.
3. The “post Lisbon EU” is in effect akin to a limited company incorporated without shares but composed of it’s members. Members who are NOT limited by guarantee!
4. Because before and after Lisbon, the UK “had a vote” it could not be described as a dependent territory although insofar as it’s internal workings was concerned it was!

It is point #4 that is the one that has to be taken special note of!

One of the long standing complaints that EuroRealists have for long made about the EC/EEC/EU is the extent at which “Brussels” dominates the internal politics of Britain. They are thoroughly fed up at the enormous amount of EU Directives and Regulations that govern all our lives to a far greater degree than the statutes issued by HM the Queen through the Parliament!

It is in fact this aspect that goes to the very core of the Faustian Pact each EU member state has made with the EU! This is the pact’s terms: Surrender (Farron the Fool insists on using the word, “pool”) sovereignty on all/most internal aspects in order to create a super-power that is collectively controlled which gives the participating nations part control over a superstate – thus enhancing their own presence on the world stage – or in Germany’s case, acting as a veil or mask.
It is the foreign policy and diplomatic aspect that is the reason why the political elites across Europe desire EU membership.
It MUST be understood by ALL Eurorealists that in a genuine Brexit the UK would break free of that Faustian Pact which would mean that whilst we could – eventually – reclaim internal sovereignty (take back control) this will be at the cost of the UK’s international profile. British politicians could no longer strut across the world stage like peacocks on steroids as they do now.
The plain simple FACT of the matter is that the EU is not likely to simply roll over. The UK is an important part of their plans. The EU needs the UK, ideally in the Eurozone. The British Gazette suspects that they have not given up.