Well, the voters have spoken.
After an intense media blitz that hid unpleasant facts and distorted reality, the electorate responded to pressure from the elites and made a decision that satisfied the Powers That Be.
I’m referring, of course, to the election of Barack Hussein Obama. But it saves digital space to recycle the same prose to describe yesterday’s Irish referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon.
The people of Ireland voted once before and got it wrong, so they had to vote again. This time they listened to their betters and voted the correct way. If they change their minds again, it’s too bad — there won’t be another chance. Once a country signs up, the Lisbon Treaty has no opt-out feature.
According to The Telegraph:
Ireland votes ‘Yes’ to EU Lisbon Treaty
Ireland has given a “clear and resounding” backing to the Lisbon Treaty, Brian Cowen, the Irish prime minister, has declared 18 months after voters rejected the EU reform plan.
About two-thirds of voters are thought to have backed the treaty, removing the final obstacle to the creation of a European Union president and “foreign minister”.
Mr Cowen said the result would bring about “a stronger and fairer Ireland and Europe”…
In London, Gordon Brown, the British Prime Minister, said: “The treaty is good for the UK and good for Europe. We can now work together to focus on the issues that matter most to Europeans — a sustained economic recovery, security, tackling global poverty, and action on climate change.”
I’ll spare you the rest of the predictable boilerplate. We all know what really happened: the bosses in Brussels fine-tuned a mixture of threats and bribes designed specifically for the Irish, spent millions of euros injecting the concoction into Ireland, and their efforts succeeded.
The amazing thing is that a significant number of Irish voters understand what happened to them, and are not fooled by the propaganda:
At a polling station in the Dublin suburb of Tallaght, Kathleen Cummins said that the Irish had been “bullied and treated like children” into holding the second vote.
Liam Murphy, a Dublin cab driver and a No voter, said: “We have been fed lies and blackmailed with scaremongering about the economy. It is scaremongering by a government that just wants to hang on to its own jobs.”
Nigel Farage got it right when he said, “The way this thing has been conducted is more akin to Zimbabwe or Afghanistan. This has not been a free and fair referendum.”
The Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) is very pleased. According to The Irish Examiner:
– – – – – – – – –
Ireland’s decisive vote for the Lisbon Treaty will bring about a stronger and fairer Ireland and Europe, Taoiseach Brian Cowen said today
With the referendum result to show about two-thirds of voters supporting the EU reform plan, Mr Cowen said: “Today the Irish people have spoken with a clear and resounding voice. This is a good day for Ireland and a good day [for] Europe…”
Funny — I was under the impression that the Irish people spoke with a “clear and resounding voice” once before. The voice of the people wasn’t good enough back then, but it’s apparently good enough now.
The Taoiseach continued:
“We as a nation have taken a decisive step for a stronger, fairer and better Ireland and a stronger, fairer and better Europe.”
But what exactly is “fairer” about the Lisbon Treaty?
Will the regime in Brussels be accountable to the people it purportedly represents?
Will the citizens of the member countries Regions of the European Union have any say in what is done in their name?
Will “persons of European background” be able to decide whether they want culture-destroying mass immigration of Muslims to continue unabated?
Or will business go on as usual, with the mandarins of the EU deciding what’s good for the people?
And what, pray tell, is “fairer” about that?
So is there anything left to prevent the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty? What obstacles to the Full Monty still remain?
The anti-Lisbon forces are pinning their hopes on Poland and the Czech Republic, which have not yet ratified the treaty. Czech President Vaclav Klaus is particularly resistant to Lisbon, so the game is not quite over.
However, it’s a bit like playing a chess with just a rook and a knight against your opponent’s queen, two bishops, two knights, two rooks, and a full board of pawns. Theoretically you can still win, but what are your chances?
The political pressures on the Czechs and the Poles are already enormous, and will intensify even more in the next few months. The Powers That Be in Brussels can offer so many goodies and inflict so much punishment that even the most dedicated nationalist will find it hard to resist their blandishments. My bet is that both countries will cave within the next six weeks.
Assuming that this happens before elections in Britain, that will give cover to David Cameron — most likely the next prime minister — to forgo the referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon that he (sort of) promised the British people.
Mr. Cameron wants to be seen as standing firm on his commitment, but when you read the exact wording of his statement, you’ll notice that he has left unanswered the question of what will happen if the Czechs and the Poles ratify the treaty.
Here’s what Guido Fawkes’ Blog reports:
Cameron: We Want a Referendum
Dave is trying to push a firm line on Europe post Ireland’s likely ‘Yes’ vote. The Tories have just emailed out a message from Dave giving the line:
I want to make one thing clear: there will be no change in our policy on Europe and no new announcements at the Conference. There will be no change in Conservative policy as long as the Lisbon Treaty is still not in force. The Treaty has still not been ratified by the Czechs and the Poles. The Czech Prime Minister has said that the constitutional challenge before the Czech Constitutional Court could take 3-6 months to resolve.
I have said repeatedly that I want us to have a referendum. If the Treaty is not ratified in all Member States and not in force when the election is held, and if we are elected, then we will hold a referendum on it, we will name the date of the referendum in the election campaign, we will lead the campaign for a ‘No’ vote.
In other words: “If the Poles and the Czechs ratify it, then the Tories will hold no referendum. Thenceforward every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Brussels is the Lord of the British.”
My advice to the people of the EU is to brace yourselves: Tony Blair will soon be President of the European Monstrosity. Be prepared for all the repression and tyranny that is sure to follow.
Sorry we can’t be of more help. We’ve got our own hands full dealing with the Messiah.
Hat tip for Guido: Cimmerian.
We don’t need your help, Americans.
I think Klaus may not ratify it before the English elections.
What I doubt is that Cameron will do what he says if he’s elected and Klaus has not ratified the treaty.
Cameron and the Conservatives are too much tranzis to do what we know is right.
When it comes down to it Cameron has the option of having a referrenundum even if the treaty has already being ratified. He could even organise a referrendum to come out of the EU. We have seen how the EU forces votes to get yes. There is no reason why repeated votes for no cannot be organised. The only variable is political will. If Cameron does not organise a referrendum whatever the situation is then he must be opposed. If he does not allow a vote then he is a traitor to the British people.
Afonso —
Concerning our helping Europe: grab your English-Portuguese dictionary and look up the word “facetious”.
Fairer means they do it slow so every European understands what was done to them before they die. My verification word is strangely appropriate but not quote fit to be reproduced.
Gosh, having Blair one of the worst traitors in history becoming president of us all is a real nightmare just to ponder about. I guess we are now one minute to midnight. Will they come for us in the night? People just starts to vanish without a trace?
This has been a pyrrhic victory for the EU, they have lost more than they have gained.
1) The intervention of the European Commission, entailing massive expenditure of money to influence Irish opinion towards a Yes, the running of a web-site and the issuing of statements that sought to counter No-side arguments, and the adocacy of a Yes vote by Commission President Barroso and other Commissioners and their staffs during visits to Ireland. This is unlawful under European law, as the Commission has no function in relation to the ratification of new Treaties, something that is exclusively a matter for the Member States under their own constitutional procedures;
2.) The part funding of the posters and press advertising of most of Ireland’s Yes-side political parties by their sister parties in the European Parliament, even though it is illegal under Irish law to receive donations from sources outside the country in a referendum and even though, under European law, money provided by the European Parliament to cross-national political parties is supposed to be confined to informational-type material and to avoid partisan advocacy;
3) The Irish Government’s unlawful use of public funds in circulating to voters a postcard with details of the so-called “assurances” of the European Council, followed by a brochure some time later containing a tendentious summary of the provisions of the Lisbon Treaty, as well as other material – steps that were in breach of the 1995 Irish Supreme Court judgement in McKenna that it is unconstitutional of the Government to use public funds to seek to obtain a particular result in a referendum;
4) The failure of the country’s statutory Referendum Commission to carry out its function under the Referendum Act that established it of explaining to citizens how the proposed constitutional amendment and its text would affect the Irish Constitution. Instead the Commission’s Chairman, Judge Frank Clarke, turned the Commission into an arm of Government propaganda, while the judge indulged himself in various “solo-runs” on radio and in the newspapers, giving several erroneous explanations of provisions of the Lisbon Treaty, even though this was quite beyond his powers under the Act;
5) Huge expenditure of money by private companies such as Intel and Ryanair to advocate a Yes vote, without any statutory limit, in possible breach of Irish company and tax law, and undoubtedly constituting a major democratic abuse.
6) Breaches by the Irish broadcast media of their obligation under the Broadcasting Acts to be fair to all interests concerned in their coverage of issues of public controversy and debate. Newstalk 106, owned by Mr Denis O’Brien, a committed supporter of the Yes side, was quite shameless in its partisanship on its current affairs programmes.
People who break their own rules to get their way are more like criminal thugs than statesmen.
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its sad but living in an enlightened basically free society where for the most part people are equal is an anathema to history. it is the best system devised and it was devised trial and error by western civilization.
but it is slowely going the way of the dodo bird or the giant sloth…
Cameron is bluffing he knows that he must avoid a debate over Europe as this would split the Conservative Party and alienate support from pro-EU business.
Post Irish referendum all Cameron wanted to talk about was his attack on the poor, of which 2 million are long term unemployed from the last Conservative Government.
Thatcher destroyed the conservative party, just as Tony Blair destroyed the Labour Party. Looking at history Thatcher had the power to withdraw from the EU, why was that power never exercised.
Voting in the British democratic process is about as relevant as a vote cast in the European song contest an exercise in futility.
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Nice and apt EUToon here
EU voting booths
The European Song Festival it’s not futility! It is a proof of good neighbourings…
For instance, the minisculous three baltic states always vote in each other at the top. We and almost always give our vote to the Spaniards and they put us always in the top three, like they do with France and Andorra…
Democracy is quiet a beast…
At least we can vote on the idols! (American Idol, anyone?)
Welcome, my son, welcome to the machine.
Here is an article on the Lisbon result which is worth reading in full: So our 1,000 years of history ends like this by Peter Hitchens.
It really does not matter if the Lisbon treaty is ratified or not, as all its provisions will be implemented one way or other.
As far as the UK is concerned,an island nation that has developed differently, leaving the EU but maintaining trade relations is the way forward. Yet all our politicians are hell bent on the treaty. It is as if their is a devil on their tail driving them. I wonder what devils or demons driving them. It can’t be personal power, for in the UK anyway, the reverse is true.
Maybe it is real demons this time. Like the biblical kind. I’ve always have had an open mind about those things. If so then I think we’re in big trouble.
Does the EU have its own army yet? So how will they enforce their edicts? In the unlikely event that, say, the UK tells them to bugger off, is the EU going to storm the Channel in response?