In a recent trawl of the Nationalist websites and forums I kept a note of the main reasons that were stated for wanting an English Parliament by those people who frequent such places; and here are just ten of the reasons, and I point out that these are direct quotes:-
i Scotland is sucking the life blood of England
ii The Scots are anti-English wankers and we want rid of them
iii England is being ruled by the Scots
iv The English are a violently suppressed minority
v There are too many immigrants and asylum seekers claiming the benefit that only the Engish are entitled to
vi Scotland has one so we should have one too
vii The English are superior and should have a say in what happens to them
viii We want our country back
ix We are fed up with paying for Scotland
x We want out of Europe
I have not bothered to rank these reasons at all, so they are simply presented as they got selected. For a moment there I thought that I had regressed some fifty years and was back in the playground once more with some kid screaming “I’m not playing any more, and I’m taking my bat and ball as well”, such is the degree of petulance displayed. I really could not believe that it is grown people who are saying such things; I refrain from saying thinking people, because I don’t think that they think at all, they just follow the lead of people like Sue Reid, who writes such vitriolic crap as this, in the Daily Mail, who promulgate such hypocrisy, bigotry and racism every day in the gutter press.
I am not a fan of Nationalism in any form, and have stated that plainly elswhere in this blog. However, and here I will head off the Nationalists by saying that I have no problem with an English Parliament; but it has to be thought through very carefully, and take into account all nationalities living in England along with ensuring some autonomy for the regions. The one thing that I do have a problem with is that the English Nationalist movement has become the home of choice for so many of the vitriolic, racist, bigoted and hypocritical hotheads who spout such rubbish as we find above; the people who provide the fodder upon which all kinds of fanatics can feed.
December 4, 2007 at 7:33 pm
Progress! Just kidding
Well, yes. A few brakes on Parliamentary power would be a good thing, don’t you think? After all, we’ve seen already what an overbearing and untrammelled executive can do in the UK; we would hardly want the same for ours, would we?
You mean English people? Unless you’re conflating race, which is irrelevant, to nationality.
Why? And shouldn’t that be a question for the Parliament itself?
December 4, 2007 at 8:01 pm
I have never had a problem with an English Parliament per se, just in the form that some of the loonier nationalists seem to be wanting it.
Yes it has to be thought through very carefully, as what works for others with smaller populations will not work for England.
No I do not mean only “English people”, I mean what I said “nationalities” meaning those who temporaily reside here for a few years and return home; but yes the ethnic minorities who are permanent residents also have to be taken into consideration.
“Why?” Because if the regions are not taken into consideration then any English Parliament would be in grave danger of becoming South East centric, thus creating disaffected voices in the regions particularly the South west, North East and the North West to mention three. No I don’t think that this is a question for the Parliament itself; this is a question that has to be addressed beforehand to allow the regions input into the formation of any such future Parliament.
December 4, 2007 at 10:21 pm
I should clarify; when I say English people, I mean people born and bred here, or those who make it their permanent home, regardless of racial origin. What’s your line of thought behind the idea that temporary residents be given binding input on a permanent national institution?
That’s fair enough, I suppose; my chief concern with that is that it will allow the discredited “Regions” plan to go ahead by stealth, which will effectively spell an end to England itself as a meaningful entity.
December 5, 2007 at 11:38 am
I thought that you meant people born here as being “English people”, that’s fair enough. I don’t think that tempoprary residents should be given a “binding input ” into an English parliament, however if they pay taxes here then I think that it is only fair that we take their concerns into consideration.
The whole point of my argument about the regions is to ensure that they are not discredted, or disaffected, that way they will have no reason to break away.
I am not the ogre that I have been painted, I just hate the racism, bigotry and hypocrisy that some of the blogs and forums attract. As I say I have no problems with an English Parliament, but I do think that as it is such a complex issue that has to be very carefully thought through and discussed at all levels to ensure that there are no groups who might have cause for complaint. Unfortunately those racist hypocritical bigots mentioned above would not see the sense in this, whereas those, like yourself, who are imbued with common sense can, and will, engage in a reasoned debate without the use of insults etc..
December 5, 2007 at 7:46 pm
Sure; but secondary to those whose political future is invested in it.
Of course, although IMO some ways to ensure that would be to a) to situate the Parliament somewhere in the North or the West Country, perhaps Manchester or Birmingham and b) to ensure adequate and sufficient representation from those regions to the Parliament; the South might be the richest, but a balance of political power across the nation according to population should ameliorate that somewhat.
And here was I thinking I’d met Shrek at last. Alas! Another dream unfulfilled!
Agreed, and sometimes it makes me rather annoyed to think I might have common cause with such people, but that also points to the fact that it is truly a non-partisan issue.
Ditto previous. As Mae West once said, Common sense ain’t so common.
December 6, 2007 at 9:32 am
Yes, I totally agree with you that any such consideration of those who merely reside here must me a secondary consideration to that of the nationals who are born and bred here; if I gave another impression that was simply ineptitude on my part.
Two good points there, but how about Leeds or Sheffield (only kidding). Yes locating any such parliament outside of the South East would be a good idea, and “a balance of political power across the nation according to population” is definitely needed, maybe the best way of achieving this would be by use a PR system which is slightly weighted to unsure that the less populated areas get a fair deal; Just a thought and probably a quite stuid one at that.
Me, I’m just a little old puddy tat really, just watch for the claws though as they tend to appear when my toes are trodden on…
I know what you mean, I am sometimes horrified to think that I was even born in the same country as some of these loonies; what was it Groucho Marx said “I wouldn’t belong to any club that would have me as a member”. I agree it is a completely non-partisan issue, although the loonies try to make it such a partisan issue, and I find that quite abhorrent.
December 7, 2007 at 5:16 pm
Heh. Good old Groucho.
If you’re interested - http://mek1980.wordpress.com/2007/12/07/rough-draught-parliament/
December 7, 2007 at 5:39 pm
Agreed!
I took a look at you blog and was impressed to add you to the blogroll. I had a read of the post and thought it well thought out and pretty interesting…
December 8, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Thanks! I’m about to add you to mine, too.
I’d also be interested to see if you thought there were any glaring areas for improvement or massive flaws, too; after all, it’s all about what would be workable, right?