QUOTE OF THE MONTH

'This is a silent coup d'etat. Our national wealth is being transferred to the banking sector. It is deeply worrying'

Dr Ros Altmann, a former Downing Street adviser, speaking recently.

THE EU

The European Union has poisoned the Celtic Tiger
April 7, 2009 by sjohnson
Filed under National News


FOR THE past twenty years, the Irish Republic has been regarded by many as the Golden Boy of the European Union.

They were the ultimate “good Europeans”, joining the Euro, converting road signs into kilometres, reducing taxes on profits extracted from its people by foreign multinationals and opening its borders to cheap imported labour.

Brussels beamed benignly on the “Celtic Tiger Economy”, lavishing huge handouts, financed by British and German taxpayers, on massive road and other public works projects - motorways joining nowhere to nowhere else but adorned with huge “built with EU Regional Aid Funds” signs, etc.

Immigrants flooded in, not just from Eastern Europe but from Nigeria, Somalia and other parts of the Third World,raising ethnic minorities from under 1% to over 12% of the population. Ireland was bearing the brunt of Europhile globalisation, with soaring drug abuse, rising divorce rates and an increase in crime.

Across once tranquil and lovely coastlines, the vulgar garishly painted holiday homes of Dublin property developers, financial speculators and derivatives traders sprouted like malignant mushrooms. An ancient rich culture and way of life was swamped by Hollywood Coca-colonisation, making Ireland just like everywhere else in the Americanised West, only wetter.

But now the Euro-binge is over and Ireland is waking up to the shattering hangover.

Unemployment has risen to over 12%, the highest for generations. Household debt has reached twice the country’s Gross National Product making it the highest in the developed world. The property sector, which at its peak accounted for 25% of the national economy as opposed to only 10% even in Britain, has collapsed. House prices have fallen by a third in a year.

Foreign multinationals induced to come with tax cuts are deserting like rats leaving a sinking ship. Computer giant Dell is shutting its Raheen laptop plant, near Limerick, because the Poles have made them a better offer. Ten thousand people have been thrown on the dole and the Irish national GDP shrunk by 4% in one hit. Waterford porcelain, which bought up the once proud Potteries name of Wedgwood, has gone bust itself and Poland is now recruiting plumbers and building workers from Ireland!

The country’s third largest bank, Anglo-Irish, which lent an amount equivalent to twice the Irish National debt, has been nationalised. In desperation to halt any further run on their banks the Irish Government unconditionally guaranteed all savers’ deposits in Irish banks. Despite the fact that meeting this guarantee would take two and a half times the total annual output of Ireland!

But it is Ireland’s membership of the Eurozone which is the worst thing about the disaster now hitting Ireland. Because being in the Eurozone means the Irish Government is powerless to do anything effective as the economy collapses around it.

So thoroughly globalised is the Irish economy that it is dependent on selling abroad four-fifths of what it produces. But the strong Euro is pricing those goods out of their markets.

The answer would be to devalue the currency as Britain has done, by a third against the Euro and the dollar in six months. But they can’t, because it’s not their currency and they have no control over it. Nor can the Irish Government, unlike ours, bring down interest rates. Or even print money.

Germany and France run the Eurozone for their own good, regardless of the pain they inflict on Ireland or any of the other lesser Eurozone members.

All the Irish Government can do is make matters worse by cutting public spending and wages and raising taxes, desperately trying to plug a €20 billion hole in the public purse.

Unemployment in estates around Dublin and other larger Irish towns is soaring past 70% and shops are being reduced to selling single cigarettes and teabags.

120,000 people marched through Dublin recently demanding action and the reversing of public sector wage cuts of 10%. But in Ireland, so far the only prominent European country without a significant genuinely nationalist party, there is no-one willing to take the action needed.

Ireland needs to get out of the Euro and out of the European Union. It needs to provide Irish jobs for Irish workers in an economy run by Irish people for Irish people.

But for the moment that can’t happen. It can only stand and watch the other collapsing economies like those of Italy, Greece, Portugal, Spain and the Eastern European members, bring the Eurozone to its knees.

In the meantime, the agony of Ireland is a lesson in what befalls the victims of global free marketeering. If Britain can learn from it and help Ireland recover, then their suffering will not entirely have been in vain.

This article by Steve Johnson appears in the April issue of Freedom which will be on sale this weekend.

THE EU

You cannot get much dopier than this:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1166136/I-read-EU-constitution-admits-Europe-Minister-Caroline-Flint.html#

'I have never read the EU constitution', admits Europe Minister Caroline Flint

By Ian Drury
Last updated at 4:24 PM on 31st March 2009

Caroline Flint: Not read the EU treaty

The Government minister responsible for the revived EU constitution made an astonishing gaffe by admitting she had never read it.

Europe Minister Caroline Flint admitted she had only been 'briefed' on parts of a document that surrenders a raft of British powers to Brussels.

Labour has refused to give British voters a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty on the grounds that it is 'substantially' different to the dumped constitution.

But during a Commons debate, Ms Flint confessed she had not read all of the despised charter.

Critics said it was an 'extraordinary admission' to make.

Mark Francois, the Tory Europe spokesman, said: ''It is not every day that someone will admit they haven’t read the most important document for their job.

'Her astonishing admission does leave some questions. How does she know if the Treaty is good for Britain if she hasn’t read it?

'If she had taken the time to read the whole Treaty, as I have, she might then know it means a major transfer of power from Britain to the EU.

'The right thing to do would be to let the British people have the chance to read it and decide for themselves.'

Lorraine Mullally, director of the anti-EU think-tank Open Europe, said: 'This is an unbelievable admission. It is extremely worrying that the minister responsible for promoting the treaty in this country has no idea what it actually says.

'Perhaps this explains why she is against giving the British people the vote on it they were promised – she simply has no idea how important it is.'

She branded Ms Flint a 'hypocrite' for telling Irish voters who threw out the treaty that they had 'misunderstood' it, despite never reading it herself.

Asked by MPs if she had read the elements of the treaty that related to defence, Ms Flint replied: 'I have read some of it but not all of it.'

After an astonished response from politicians, she added: 'I have been briefed on some of it.'

The Government has refused to honour an election pledge to hold a ballot by claiming the treaty - the biggest transfer of sovereign powers to Brussels - was different to the constitution, rejected by French and Dutch voters in 2005.

Ministers said they had protected their crucial 'red lines' covering policing and courts, human and social rights, foreign policy and taxes.

Gordon Brown smiles as he signs the Lisbon Treaty

Long read: Gordon Brown smiles as he signs the Lisbon Treaty last year

But their claims were blown out of the water by the Labour-dominated European Scrutiny Select Committee, which carried out a line-by-line study of the documents.

Only four countries have not yet fully ratified the Lisbon Treaty: the Czech Republic, Ireland, Germany and Poland.

Britain rubber-stamped the power-grab by a vote in Parliament, despite more than 90 per cent of people questioned wanting a referendum.

Ireland is holding a second referendum in October after a 'no' vote last year.

The future of the controversial constitution was thrown into further doubt following the collapse of the pro-Brussels Czech government.

It is almost certain to delay Czech ratification of the revived Lisbon Treaty, which can come into force only after it has been approved by all 27 European Union member states.

The Lisbon Treaty treaty comprises of nearly 300 pages, but it is written in complex legal language.

THE LOONY LEFT

Of 44 Church of England bishops, only 5 thought that the church bells should be rung to celebrate St George’s Day.

The bishops had been written to by Libby Alexander who believed that church attendances were falling due to ‘the lack of assertiveness or confidence emanating from the top’ and the ‘strangulations of political correctness’. Less than half the bishops replied and those who did were either unenthusiastic or hostile. Some claimed that there could be a backlash from other religious groups.

Mrs Alexander wrote:

‘What an uplifting, wondrous sound it would be if bells rang out to remind the country that Christianity exists and that churches are there to welcome.’

The Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, the Rt Rev John Packer, said: ‘I am not sure assertiveness is a Christian value’. The Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Rev Dr Peter Foster, said: ‘There would be dangers in putting on “public displays” of confidence.’

Assertiveness is definitely not a Church of England value.

THE EU

For those who have not actually seen the YouTube sensation of Dan Hannan telling Gordon Brown the facts of life in the EU parliament, the link is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc9TVlzdEsc

THE LOONY LEFT

Despite the economic crisis and the unemployment caused by Labour’s economic policy, Labour remain determined to continue promoting political correctness and the deculturalisation of England regardless.

The Department for Local Government has spent money from its Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund to donate £25,000 to the British Humanist Association [BHA], which is aggressively campaigning against religion - especially Christianity. The BHA has further received £35,000 of funding from the so-called Equality and Human Rights Commission to promote secularism. The president of the BHA is the Labour stalwart, Polly Toynbee.

The BHA has been responsible for advising Local Authorities that: ‘Religious pictures on the walls may seem inoffensive to those of the religion in question but can create a hostile or offensive environment for others.’

The BHA has been pleased that funding helped activists within the City of London Police to rename ‘prayer rooms’ as ‘quiet rooms’. So-called equality officers have been advised to promote ‘humanists and non-religious people’.

A spokesman for the Department for Local Government said that its funding of the BHA was part of a ‘broader strategy to build cohesion’.

THE BRITISH INQUISITION

Further to the item posted earlier today, it would seem that Mr Kumarasiri was wrong. Having a brown skin does not protect someone from the British Inquisition:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/nottinghamshire/7956570.stm
Page last updated at 12:53 GMT, Saturday, 21 March 2009
Foreign ban postmaster leaves job

Mr Kumarasiri said he could not serve people if he did not understand them.

A postmaster from Nottingham who refused to serve customers who could not speak English has left his job.

Sri-Lankan born Deva Kumarasiri, who worked at the sub office on Sneinton Boulevard, made the national news after announcing his policy.

He had claimed non-English speakers frustrated other customers and made it difficult to do his job properly.

But managers at the Post Office said the service was for all and they were concerned about the impact on trade.

There were also reports that Polish migrants had been boycotting the branch.


I suspect people in this country would be offended by what this man was doing
John Heppell MP

Abida Raja, whose family runs the branch, said they had to take action. He said: "It was my brother's decision because obviously he was very upset by those comments, because we're losing customers because of it.

"He had to do something about it, because obviously we don't feel that way about anyone else, we don't discriminate against any customer coming in, because obviously the customers keep the business going."

Mr Kumarasami's policy had also been criticised by the Racial Equality Council and MP for Nottingham East, John Heppell.

Mr Heppell said: "This was a little bit strange. What do you do with tourists?

"If I was abroad and if someone refused to sell me a stamp because my French or German was not good enough, I think I would have every right to be offended and I suspect people in this country would be offended by what this man was doing."

Mr Kumarasiri had told the BBC he had turned away about six customers who had wasted his time and annoyed other customers by not being able to understand English.

He had said: "I am part of a service but how can I serve them if I don't understand what they are asking for?

"When I came to England I obeyed the British way of life, I got into the British way of life.

"That is what I ask everyone else to do - respect the country where you are working and living."

http://www.inthenews.co.uk/printerfriendly.aspx?itemid=1282105
InTheNews.co.uk
Foreign language ban postmaster removed
Saturday, 21 Mar 2009 12:02

Mr Kumarasiri is now working at a different post office in the area.

A postmaster working in Nottingham who refused to serve customers who couldn't speak English has been removed by the store's owner.

Sri-Lankan born Deva Kumarasiri's decision to turn away customers from a post office in Sneinton Boulevard for their failure to integrate into British society by not speaking English made the national newspapers earlier this week.

Mr Kumarasiri stated that it was difficult to serve customers who spoke in foreign languages.

Speaking to the BBC Nottingham East MP John Heppell said the postmaster's decision would cause difficulties to tourists.

"If I was abroad and if someone refused to sell me a stamp because my French or German was not good enough, I think I would have every right to be offended and I suspect people in this country would be offended by what this man was doing," he added.

Local newspaper the Nottingham Evening Post reports that Mr Kumarasiri was now working at a different post office but was determined to maintain his stand on customers speaking English.

It reports Mr Kumarasiri as saying: "I will continue with my policy and try to do what is best for the people of Nottingham."

© 2009 www.InTheNews.co.uk .

QUOTE OF THE MONTH [bonus]

‘I had to say something, because too many people are afraid to. The person who’s born here can’t do anything or he’ll be accused of being racist. You can only complain here if you’ve got brown skin.

And the white man, what does he do? Nothing. He has to keep it under his clothes, or his hat, or whatever we say, until it builds up and up like a balloon, until one day it’ll explode and we’ll have riots and hatred and I don’t want that. I just want people to be proud to be ‘British.’

Deva Kumarasiri, a Sri-Lankan-born postmaster who is refusing to serve customers who do not speak in English.

Local Muslims are now circulating a petition demanding that Mr Kumarasiri is sacked.