North and South Korea are at war. They have been for decades now and appear to have learnt to live with it.

Then along came Mr Trump. He is right that previous administrations in his country have failed to solve matters in the Korean peninsula. Being an ally of South Korea makes it America’s business, but does it need to be America’s business? ‘America first’ was Mr Trumps borrowed election slogan so should he feel embarrassed if he backed out of previous administrations continued allying with South Korea? Do we really fear Communist China any longer? I would hope not. Yes, they are expanding into the South China sea, but wouldn’t you?

That’s not the unspoken option. It’s about nuclear weapons. I wonder who in the world is responsible for keeping this genie in the bottle? Non-proliferation is a great idea in principle but is it practical? Is it reasonable to assume all states that wish to acquire and then do acquire nuclear weapons, will play by international rules?

If there is any policing of non-proliferation to be done then I would say it should be done by the United Nations and not an individual state. If an individual state puts it’s head above the parapet and starts telling another what to do, an argument is going to start. Surprise! That is exactly what has happened.

Being well intentioned is not enough Mr President. You have to have the skill to bring about your intentions and so far the only option you appear to have followed is ‘intervene because no one else is’ and then ‘be ready for war’.

There are many other options and here is the one I recommend. Withdraw your navy, withdraw your air force. Consider withdrawing troops from South Korea. Back right off!

That way you will completely make a fool of Mr Kim. He uses other countries by provoking them into a reaction. That reaction he then uses to justify his building of military power to his people. He wants a nuclear bomb to defend his county. More or less the same reason all the countries with nuclear weapons want them, so is that unreasonable?

Make him look a fool Mr President. Leave him standing there with his war machine around his ankles and no enemy to point his rocket at. That is how bullies are overcome in the school playground, and that’s exactly how I would deal with the Korean Kid.

If it doesn’t work what’s the worst that can happen? He commits an act of war against another country. That would justify the country to defend itself and be justified in doing so. At the moment, the worst that can happen is America starting a war with North Korea and that will take away the moral high ground from America. If Mr Trump wants to learn from previous administrations, then he could learn the lesson they have shown by getting it wrong, not to invade other countries. It only ends with a power vacuum and horrors for civilians worse than they endure already e.g. Libya, Iraq. The Chinese will have said that to him.

Another way of controlling the spread of nuclear weapons? I would suggest putting a United Nations guard around every uranium mine in the world. It’s not going to prevent  thefts completely but it’s a more peaceful step than threatening to start a nuclear war with this, and the next and the next country to acquire nuclear weapons..

 

 

If you think nothing more can be said about the Brexit Referendum read on! For it appears to me that the simplicity of the referendum question lead to a chaos of interpretations about what the question actually was.

For instance, the Scottish National Party believe Scotland was voting for whether Scotland should remain or leave the European Union.

Let us remind ourselves what the question was;

Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?

I would suggest that not only some good souls in Scotland but Wales, England and Northern Ireland also felt that how their individual countries voted was significant, although that was not in the referendum question.

There were others who thought the question contained their personal concerns. Here are some examples;

Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or have control of it’s money?

These voters were concerned at how much money the UK paid into Europe. They were less concerned about how much it received through the Common Agricultural Policy, research grants, etc. and if the UK is ‘out of pocket’.

The United Kingdom is a wealthy nation and whether it should give to the poor had not apparently occurred to them. Being wealthy is a heavy cross to bear, for an individual and a country, and perhaps Robin Hood did have a point.

Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or have control of it’s laws?

These voters cite some of the more absurd legislation from Brussels as indicative of all EU legislation. They were less concerned with the benefits of legislation such as the Human Rights Act, diversity and equality in the workplace, environment, manufacturing and food standards, working practices in the banking sector, etc.

Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or have control of it’s borders?

These voters were concerned about immigration into the UK in general and felt that Europeans already in the UK were a problem. They believed that leaving the EU was the best way to solve all immigration related problems, rather than presenting more reasoned and focused solutions. The fact that most immigrants come from outside Europe is an obvious consideration. Respecting EU citizens working in the UK and contributing to society through work, taxes, cultural sharing, was lost in the generality of the perceived ‘problem’. Defining what an immigrant is, might also be the beginning of understanding which strings to pull to create a desired change.

Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or become an independent Sovereign State?

The Victorian elite and ruling classes enjoyed the ‘good times’ and the consequences of their greed and exploitation affect our lives today. How nice it was to see the map of the world painted pink, without considering the blood sweat and tears of fellow human beings. Flag waving and Nationalism in general, contribute significantly to what you might term ’emotional politics’, the way of ‘feeling right’ that started World War II in Europe. Time to learn from history the importance of co-operation with other countries even if you have to grit your teeth!

What a huge advantage for business that English is the most widely spoken second language in Europe. What a huge advantage to the UK that it is connected to a continent by a tunnel. The same tunnel connects a continent to, well, mmm; England, Wales and Scotland. Not much of a come and visit us for Europeans, unless you like wet holidays.

In short, the referendum question was simplified so much, in the interest of being understood by everyone, that it became distorted by whatever personal perception interpreted it. A picture of a house for instance, will be understood by most as ‘a house’. A picture of a blank box could be interpreted as anything boxy shape; a money box, a bomb, treasure, grandpa’s ashes…

How many people know what the European Union and it’s various institutions is, and how the United Kingdom benefits or is disadvantaged by it’s membership? Very few, I suspect. Even political economists rarely agree, such is the complexity of running a Union as large as Europe, so how were voters ever meant to know?

There is an answer to the problem of leaving the EU that might appease both sides of the argument. That is, to join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and so be eligible to be part of the European Economic Area (EEA). The benefits would be providing for the free movement of persons, goods, services and capital while not being part of the European Union. Scared by the idea of Europeans working in the UK? Perhaps the one million illegal immigrants already in the UK might be a better place to start enforcing UK citizenship and residency laws. Follow that with policing the borders vigilantly unlike when so-called Teresa May was Home Secretary. As well as stick the UK waves a large carrot that has people living in camps over the channel. Changing new comers rights to benefits, such as health and accommodation, might stop those after a free lunch (not available in many other EU countries such as Spain) from joining the queue.

Now that the question has it’s final answer, we have to get used to the intercontinental sized car crash that is going to be Brexit. We all voted for different things because we brought our perceptions to the question. That said, progress on negotiations is painfully slow with few bridge-builders in evidence and many wall-makers.

Witness the Euro bank notes. Each features a picture of a bridge as a symbol of unity and cooperation between different nations. Unity and cooperation in a continent that started two world wars, in my view, must be continued in the twenty first century.  If it is not then future generations will be holding a referendum on whether to remain out or enter the European Union. It might read something like this;

Should the United Kingdom remain a non-member of the European Union or join the European Union?

(Do not write on both sides of the examination paper at once)