Happy Hump Day!

I write to you from a continent -  literally and figuratively - of poor choices.

Europe can ignore the laws of economics, but the laws of economics won’t ignore Europe.

If I were to list the idiotic policy choices Europe made in 2022, the column would rival War and Peace in length.

To be clear, by “Europe,” I mean the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland.

The evidence continues to pile up.

Day after day, haphazard decision-making and reactive policymaking demonstrate the European “elites” aren’t fit for purpose.

Unfortunately, the citizenry is getting taken for a ride.

Wear an extra layer of clothing!

Don’t take hot showers!

Do your part for the most corrupt country in Europe Ukraine!

Things are coming to a head, and we’re not even out of August yet.

Just wait until the weather really starts to cool down here.

No matter how much The Watermelons (Eco green on the outside, Commie red on the inside) yelp about global warming, no one will care about that once Nonna starts shivering.

Why should Americans care about this?

I won’t appeal to your moral conscience.

But how about this: Europe is still your largest trading partner.

And if it goes down, Americans will not only see their fortunes dramatically reduced.

America may see Europe itself switch sides.

In this edition of the Rude, I’ll show you some of the things Europe is currently tripping over.

Germany and Nuclear Power

It was with a wry smile that I read Germany was keeping open three of its nuclear plants.

From The Wall Street Journal:

BERLIN—Germany plans to postpone the closure of the country’s last three nuclear power plants as it braces for a possible shortage of energy this winter after Russia throttled gas supplies to the country, said German government officials.

While temporary, the move would mark the first departure from a policy initiated in the early 2000s to phase out nuclear energy in Germany and which had over time become enshrined in political consensus.

To be clear, I’m enthusiastically pro-nuclear power.

Those who think power plant technology hasn’t advanced since Three Mile Island are delusional.  (And the Three Mile Island “disaster” wasn’t that bad anyway.)

Nuclear is among the safest forms of energy in the world - especially in countries where earthquakes are few and far between.

It’s the one thing France has gotten right in its modern history.

But Germany has egg on its face - its usual make-up, nowadays - because of its foolish energy policies.

• No Russian oil.
• No Russian gas.
• No nuclear.

If there’s one piece of evidence that sums up how nervous the German people are right now, it’s this:

Credit: @MacroAlf

The people of the most technologically advanced country on the European continent are searching for… firewood.

Inflation.  Firewood.  Better check those art school applicants…

The UK Thinks It’s America, Part I

After living in London for nearly a decade, I’m well versed in Britain’s bipolar relationship with America.

They love the power, waiters’ subservience, and land mass of America.

They hate the spelling, sports, and spoiledness of Americans.

Fair enough.

A few weeks ago, I had a conversation with a great old friend of mine.  I hadn’t spoken to him in ages.

What struck me when we spoke about the Russia/Ukraine kerfuffle was how he referred to Russia as a “little” country.

It was in that same tone that Michael Gough’s Lord Delamere referred to Karen Blixen’s Denmark in Out of Africa.

“Ah, the little country…”

Credit: https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3575849.html

It’s typical BBChé brainwashing.

I’m not just talking about landmass.  (Russia is 70x larger than the UK.  Times, not percent.)

I’m not just talking about population. (Russia: 144.7 million; UK: 67.4 million.)

But how about their economies?

Comparing their GDPs on a PPP (purchasing power parity) basis:

Credit: Wikipedia

Notice anything there?

Yes, Russia’s economy is bigger than the UK’s.

“Russia is just a gas station!” you say?

How about “The UK is a giant laundromat!” in return?

Russia has stuff.  The UK launders money and has castles.

The Brits are far too sure of themselves, methinks.

To wit, the Brits still think Russia will tolerate flying spy planes over its territory.

You can almost hear the Oxbridge-educated virgin asking his Ruskie counterpart for permission:

“Sorry, old chap…. May we… Would you mind… Can we possibly… fly a teeny-tiny spy plane over your territory?”

As for the Russian response, via the AP:

Russia’s Defense Ministry warned Britain Tuesday against a planned spy plane flight over Russian territory, saying the country’s air force has been given orders to prevent an intrusion.

The tough statement comes amid tensions between Russia and the West over Moscow’s action in Ukraine.

The ministry said that Britain has sent a notice informing about a planned flight of an RC-135 reconnaissance plane along a route that partly passes over Russian territory.

“We regard this action as a deliberate provocation,” the ministry said, adding that the Russian air force has been “given the task to prevent the violation of the Russian border.”

They'd be in major trouble if America weren’t at the UK’s back.

For now, I think the UK will cancel the next mission.

The UK Thinks It’s America, Part II

But while we’re in the UK, how’s that inflation going?

In a bid to be just like its colonial cousins, the UK inflation rate hit double digits.

And if you think that CPI print stinks to high heaven, just wait until you see the PPI:

What on earth are they doing?

Oh, that’s simple.

The Bank of England forgot that the empire is long gone, and the pound is no longer the world’s reserve currency.

The UK economy is a mess: their “elites” need to turn inward to fix the problem.  Provoking Russia is the last thing the UK should be doing.

Putin’s Address to the 10th Moscow Conference on International Security

Interestingly, a LinkedIn connection posted Putin’s address at the Moscow conference.

I’m pretty sure he’s not backing down.

The United States and its vassals grossly interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign states by staging provocations, organizing coups, or inciting civil wars. By threats, blackmail, and pressure, they are trying to force independent states to submit to their will and follow rules that are alien to them. This is being done with just one aim in view, which is to preserve their domination, the centuries-old model that enables them to sponge on everything in the world. But a model of this sort can only be retained by force.

This is why the collective West – the so-called collective West – is deliberately undermining the European security system and knocking together ever new military alliances. NATO is crawling east and building up its military infrastructure. Among other things, it is deploying missile defense systems and enhancing the strike capabilities of its offensive forces. This is hypocritically attributed to the need to strengthen security in Europe, but in fact, quite the opposite is taking place. Moreover, the proposals on mutual security measures, which Russia put forward last December, were once again disregarded.

This conflict isn’t ending anytime soon.

Wrap Up

When will Europe cry, “UNCLE!”?

Soon.

And it’s going to be from a position of weakness.

I expect the Russians to pounce on the situation with joy.

It’s time to start thinking about the collapse of the Western liberal order.

And it may come sooner than you think.