The Big Idea

The doomsters have been saying that Britain is 'exhausted' for over a century; and much earlier Sir William Gilbert had castigated people who favour "all centuries but this one and all countries but their own". A whole cottage industry sprung up during the Second World War and burgeoned after Victory, asserting that the clapped-out country could be satisfied with its gargantuan effort against the Nazis and sink through obsolescence into terminal decline softened by the smug self-satisfaction of films that extolled wartime successes while industry and commerce could slide away into foreign hands.

The United States, asserted to be Britain's greatest ally, has always been the most determined enemy of the British Empire: wartime aid was given in accordance with the 'Atlantic Charter' by which Churchill agreed that the empire would be abandoned as soon as possible. India was dumped in 1947: the Labour government was so keen to slough-off that 'problem' that they authorised their Viceroy to enforce the partition of Pakistan from India, despite the certainty that hundreds of thousands of deaths would occur immediately and decades of armed confrontation would ensue. Where the strategic interests of the USA required Britain to stand firm against communist subversion of colonial territories - as in Malaysia and Greece - the British stood fast: otherwise the abandonment of territories in which the US saw business opportunity was encouraged. An incompetently-devised and poorly managed project to produce vegetable oil in East Africa was taken as a sign that the colonies would always be loss-leaders that the could not be afforded, and the process of withdrawal was accelerated.

Britain is now left with direct responsibility only for a few scattered island dependencies, mostly in the Atlantic but with outposts in the Indian Ocean, Antarctica and the Pacific. These are seen as burdens. The Falkland Islands have become newly controversial as oil reserves are explored, and no government dares to speak of negotiations on sovereignty with Argentina while the snivelling minions of the Treasury wring their hands at the current and potential cost of maintaining sovereignty. There have been plans to build an airport on St Helena for well over half a century, but the current highly viable plan may yet fall victim of spending cuts. Because they are useful to the Americans, Ascension and Diego Garcia both serve as major mid-ocean airfields: while other tiny settlements are regarded as inescapable burdens.

This whole picture is desperately inappropriate. Adding together the coastal waters of the UK and all its dependencies, Britain has the biggest marine frontiers in the world. Within those borders - which can now be delineated exactly by satellite plotting - the boldest venture of the planet is begging to be empowered. While other nations look to monumentally expensive space exploration or the capture of asteroids, Britain has the geographical, geomorphological, biological, oceanographic and practical skills to develop its own oceanic resources sustainably and for the long term. It is so obviously a viable prospect that politicians can not be expected to recognise it until it is hammered into their heads, past the nonsense of 'The Big Society' and the petty arguments about membership of the eurozone. The world's investors would line up with open wallets, hoping to capture the cream by again allowing the British state to create and flog-off assets: and unless they are stopped the politicians would again waste the assets that the people can create. This is the last great opportunity that Britain has been given by the adventurism of our ancestors: it must be captured. If that is to be done, we can move within a decade into the comfort created by being in conformity with the Laws of Politicial Economy.

Classic Cocking Up

Greece
Now a turn-up for the books! No serious commentator thought that Greece would ever be able to squeeze living standards cruelly at the behest of the EU - and of Germany, in particular [as displayed in the viciously silly 'Nazi' propaganda]. Nobody could say exactly how the impossibility would be articulated. Now we know!

In a brilliant piece of intuitive populism, the Greek government has opted for a referendum. This will enable the vast majority of the population to refuse to give effect to the EU requirements. The country will have to default on its public debt, and drop out of the Eurozone. Within the zone, all hands will turn to preventing contagion from running to Italy: 'the markets' will not focus on Spain or Portugal, but go for the big scalp. The EU and the Eurozone should be able to defeat the markets if they really summon up the will and exercise the relative power of governments. More of that in the coming days.

As far as the Greeks are concerned, they will be on their own: presumably within the EU on a similar footing to Romania [unless they opt out, which is unlikely]. They will be subject to the Laws of Political Economy, which few [if any] of their Economists understand. The experience will be painful.If any reader wants to get ahead of the game, and learn the Laws, link to Personal Political Economy via this site.

Saint Paul's Cathedral
has now endured all the reputational risk that is available in the present incident: so the only sensible course is to achieve the removal of the 'protesters' and the attendant mob within a few days. The incident will then be a single event in the popular memory, over and done with [ideally] in three weeks.

Then the toil will begin.

The Bishop has taken charge of the cathedral, and has indicated that his priority will be to restore the church's role as the leading commentator and preacher on Ethics in business and public life: as Dean Inge was in Saint Paul's pulpit in the interwar years, when he became a nationally known irritant to the powerful and complacent. His books of sermons and his essays sold hundreds of thousands of copies.

This prophetic reality will not be achieved quickly: it will take the cathedral years to recover from its concentration on magnificent services and raising tens of millions of pounds for a magical restoration. The Bishop has a formidable intellect and a great presence: but even his abilities [as well as his time] will be stretched, and he must stay the course in his new leadership role.