In recent years, the West has launched military campaigns against dictatorships, or actively encouraged citizens living under such regimes to rise up and overthrow their oppressors.
Yet amazingly, these same Western leaders actively supported the removal of Silvio Berlusconi as Italian Prime Minister, to be replaced by an unelected ‘technocrat’ Mario Monti.
Whatever Berlusconi’s faults - and he had many - he also had a democratic mandate to govern. He may have turned Italy into a laughing stock and economic basket case, but the Italian people knew who and what they were voting for when they elected him.
The new Prime Minister, Signor Monti, has announced that his new cabinet will be comprised of fellow technocrats. Not a single member will have been elected by popular vote. This is an affront to democracy and, given Italy’s not too distant history of dictatorships, a dangerous precedent.
To the unelected and unaccountable EU bureaucracats who are desperately trying to prevent the Euro from collapsing, Monti’s appointment is like manna from heaven. They cannot bear the idea that the voters of Europe, who must now pay for the reckless folly of the Euro zone, should actually have a say as to how to resolve the crisis.
Berlusconi might not be missed on the international stage, but his replacement sends out a chilling message that democracy will no longer be tolerated in Europe. Will David Cameron commit British troops to help restore democracy in Italy, or will he simply roll over like a puppy and do as he is told?
4 comments:
It just demonstrates the "markets" really rule us.
And while that is understandable for some degree, since capital moves to preserve itself, the big banks and so on are quite happy to exploit the situation further to their advantage.
The only problem is, long term, the public around the world is getting rather sick of "the markets".
It is untenable to blame countries for reckless borrowing - some of it in any case has arisen by them taking over the debt of the "markets" since the 2008 crash.
baarnett
When the economy was booming, Pa Broon was pissing taxpayers money like water, rather than putting it away for the inevitable rainy day. Some borrowing has been required to bail out the banks - a situation which would not have been necessary if there had been better regulation of the sector.
Mrs Merkel says "I made it clear that we need more powers for Europe to make sure everyone sticks to the rules. In return we're willing to give up some of our national sovereignty."
Who is this "we"? Have the German people been asked? Elected politicians do not own a nation's 'sovereignty'- they are merely temporary custodians.
Politicians should not be allowed to give up sovereignty unless expressly authorised to do so by the people who elected them.
The citizens of Europe, when asked, have said 'no'. Yet the anti-democratic EU still pushes its agenda.
http://bbc.in/tQ2twR
Looking nearer to home. Is Barnet Council run by the councillors or by officers ?
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