EU can not be serious!

So what was the point, eh? Greece rejects the terms of the bailout only to be given harsher ones. Germany, the Wonga of the EU, carves up the family jewels and sells them to its mates and then Juncker, in a fit of pique over the inevitable Nazi jibes, tears up the supposed ‘agreement’ that David Cameron thought he had secured, for a UK opt-out of assisting further Euro-zone bailouts. The pattern is clear and increasingly familiar; whatever you do, you can’t leave the mob once you marry-in. If there ever was a case for allowing a default and run, Greece was it.

But no, even if it bankrupts the lot of us, they WILL remain under the yoke. The EU is actually punishing the Greeks and their children and their grandchildren for the sins of their profligate ruling class and the bandits they did business with; making them an offer they can never refuse. I thought the purpose of the EU was to prevent strife? (Actually, I never did. And in my recollection that was never a stated aim in the early days, rather one confected and trotted out to quell more recent dissent whenever we ingrates got uppity. He who controls the past…)

It’s not because they care, is it? The Greek referendum, they say, is not a binding tool of government. They have a representative democracy, they say, so they can always elect another bunch of representatives. The referendum was no more than an exercise in consultation, they say, seeking the mandate of the masses, which was swiftly ignored. Meanwhile Tsipras, hanging upside down in the meat store, had it explained to him exactly what was going to happen, like or not.

Greece going on a national strike is hardly likely to change a thing; populations are powerless as the EU’s naked ambition is starkly revealed. Ever closer union appears to be code for ever more distant separation between rulers and the ruled. If the Greek experience is anything to go by, national governments are mere administrators for a central unelected class of Eurocrats who wield the real power. Remember, just as Nick Clegg insisted they were not? Just as David Cameron insisted they were not. Just as Blair and Mandelson and every politician since Maggie was ordered to say they were not.

The fall of Athens

Strikes will do nothing more than hurt the very people who are staging them. But how long before we smell the burning brands of mass violence and feel the sharp tines of pitchforks raised in anger? From our comfy position in front of the telly we watch and wait for the outcome. The Greeks may be on their streets in protest today, but how long before the troops are sent in and the beatings begin? Too far-fetched? The rule of despots is only ever overturned by force and that process is always begun by the despots themselves. If we are not seeing the start of the overthrow of the EU then I pity us all. 

Got your number

Well, well, well, who could have predicted Greece’s response to the bail out referendum? Actually plenty secretly did but were jinxed by the previously indefatigable persistence of the EU commissars, pushing their message of ruin outside the tender choke-hold of ever closer union. I was willing it all along, as may have been apparent, but still pessimistic as to whether or not the ordinary Greek people, most of whom never had much informed say in the whole EU debacle, would detach themselves from the EU teat.

Today, Greece’s economic troubles begin anew; nothing has changed. Nothing except for one little thing – they dared to say no. Now everybody is watching to see if they hold their nerve; to see how and when the EU make their move to terrorise the population into backing down. Even the most hard-euro-hearted must hope they do because this is really about so much more than money, trade or international reputation; it’s about national pride and personal dignity. Like his politics or not – and I’m naturally averse to left-wing experiments – Alex Tsipras has gained a mandate to stand up for the people who elected him. It was a big, bold, maybe reckless move but one that seems, at least for now, to have paid off.

During the day I got into a lengthy discussion about fairness and advantage and the usual guff about how if we were all so much nicer to each other we could live in a happy world; if only rich people stopped ‘exploiting’ poor people and healthy people looked after sick people and governments redistributed wealth so that we were all so much closer to income parity. Yeah, right, like what we need, is a great big melting pot… the only problem with all that is that we neither have such a pot nor the means to stir it. What we’ve got, all we’ve got is the simple reality of human nature.

We are clever and cooperative, but also opportunistic and competitive. Wealth is relative after all and one of the fundamental ways in which humans measure achievement. Oh but, what about those selfless individuals who volunteer for charity work, you say, to which I reply, “Camila Batmanghelidjh”. You see power corrupts and even the intentionally benign stewardship of freely given charitable donations can become a thing of ugly venality without restraint and proper controls.

Of course we have to look after the sick and genuinely disadvantaged and yes, we do have to do that on a national, even sometimes an international scale, but when you hear the cry “Gas, gas, gas!” you must immediately pull on your own respirator first. When the overhead compartments open and the oxygen masks descend, the in-flight safety presentation you didn’t bother to watch instructed you to don your own mask before assisting others. You are no use to anybody if you need help yourself. And if more of us were capable and inclined to look after our own needs the truly helpless could be granted an easier passage through life’s travails.

Greek Pride March

Looking after number one is simple, it’s honest and if we all did a bit more of it, rather than expecting somebody else to come to our imagined aid, we’d all be better off. Because it’s only when you let those who can create the wealth do so that there is any surplus to go around. In Greece those who had the wealth have already expatriated it; there is no point in going after them. Greece has voted to start over, possibly from scratch. I hope they all pull their weight and gain some self-reliance; it’s dog eat dog until the new alphas emerge and start to take on slaves again. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some plates to smash.