Fall of the Nottingham Wall

Well after the fall of the Iron Curtain across Nottingham I am finally free. My essays are over and I can now return to daily posts for #ThingsElliottSays, have you missed it? What have I learnt whilst I have been away.

1) Always contain communism to give free people hope.

2) Japan had an burgeoning democracy and that the military and bureaucracy will try gain more power even if it ends democracy.

3) The First British Empire was built on mercantalism (essentially state capitalism), what made Britain great was internal free trade built on farming.

4) Kennedy has a lot to answer for in the Vietnam War and make sure you understand your enemy, don't just wonder in and hope for the best.

So anyway its back to the normal routine commenting on the current events of the time. I will also be going back over some of the things I felt to be important recently. But don't get too comfy for I am off to YBF so will be gone Friday to Sunday (i'll give a good low down of what happened at YBF without mentioning who said what as per Chatham House rules).

Nigel Says, Leave

So the big news today is that of Nigel Lawson saying that we should leave the EU. I've been saying this for a long time, but the fact that Lawson is so senior means that there is more weight added to the out side of the argument.

Lord Lawson has decided puts forward a strong economic argument for leaving the EU in 2017. In its simplest form he argues we're no longer in a free market but rather a protectionist monopoly. Free trade is allowed at the benefit of mostly Germany between all the countries of the Europe. But there are so few trade agreements outside Europe that there is no real exposure to the world market because of tariffs. With Europe also becoming virtually the backwater of the world economy, N.B. Greece was recently re-classified as an emerging market, we will slowly fall too with such a small area to trade with.

Nigel Lawson can no longer see any economic argument for staying in the EU.

Nigel Lawson said in his article in the Times that "Over the past decade, UK exports to the EU have risen in cash terms by some 40%. Over the same period, exports to the EU from those outside it have risen by 75%." There is no real reason to be involved then.

You can tell this from the argument of the chief Europhile, Nick Clegg. He says that we should remain in the EU because it means we have better crime protection form the international gangs in our country. Is this the primary reason to remain in a supposed trading bloc, really. Clearly he has also misunderstood something here because these 'international' gangs are actually all European gangs and with control of our borders we can stop these people coming over.

Clegg likes the EU too much. He'd love to be in a superstate within the Euro.

There is no real argument to stay in any more; the Europhiles just want political integration. I want out for trade reasons and not patriotic ones. The reality is Europe, if we stay in, it will be the slow death of our economy. Perhaps that's what Cleggers wants?