Out of Africa

Hi taoiseach (is that pronounced tea-shack?) of Scarborough and suburbs,

Woooohaaaaa…. I love you!!! Yes, what an obnoxious guy he is, isn´t he! Guy Verhofstadt is his name. And, no, I did not see his rant on Facebook. However, I feel, on his own he has been responsible for the rising star of Nigel Farage, as all of Europe automatically sided with the latter in the public squabbles between the two. Word is, even Guy´s wife and kids renegaded, 😉 He seems to be the Ronaldo of Belgium though, earning more money on the side than on his regular job. That is probably the reason why I hate him in the first place (as I am hard-pressed for money as a rule and haven´t got the foggiest how to get some without having to stoop to actual labour). He was elected 2 or 3 times PM of Belgium. Which makes me wonder – either the Dutch jokes about our Belgian neighbours are actually true-life stories or those elections were rigged to the core. He seems to have been connected to the odd big-money scandal as well, but time and again those mysteriously wound up under the rug. So, he must have some great connections to the Old Boys´ network… Oh, sorry! ´Old Boys´ network´ is of course a concept you know nothing about at your side of The Channel. No worries, mate, I´ll explain it to you sometime. 

Another concept you obviously know nothing about is ´racial profiling´. How shall I explain this? Well, the other day a young chap was holding down a violent criminal until cops arrive. When they did they shot the young chap dead, as the violent criminal was white and the young chap was not (that lucky). Or, what about the black guy the other day that was floored by the cops, then handcuffed while held at gunpoint. It happened when he left the bank after he had taken a large sum from – wait for it! – his own checking account. After the bank manager had okay-ed the transaction he had called the cops – as any responsible bank manager would do, obviously. That, my friend, is pretty much how racial profiling works. And it is self-reinforcing – that´s the beauty of it. Because people reverse cause and effect, you see. They say for instance: ´black people must have some criminal gene in their bloodline, because nine out of ten motorists stopped by police are black.´ They never stop to think the latter may have been the reason why they were halted in the first place. ´They´d better stop them all then!´ – that´s the self-reinforcing bit. Therefore, I would not at all be surprised if this were the reason why your Labour lady ended up in gaol in the first place: ´Hey, dude, saw that black chick in the posh car? Something fishy there, I tell ye! Let´s go after her. We have to stop crime, that´s what we´re here for.´

I am pleased to learn that you read my ´inalienable rights blog´. And the bottom line is: we don´t have to draw a line. Now, ain´t that wonderful!? For your hypothetical question ´what if the entire continent of Africa wanted to migrate to Europe?´ can be answered by: chances are zero. And why consider a problem that is never going to arise? For instance, there will probably always be people that are not content with circumstances in Portugal (no work or, if there is, low wages) and go looking for a better life elsewhere in Europe (France, Switzerland, Germany, and some of them will, I admit, unfortunately end up in the UK). However, the majority will always stay behind – jobless or earning low wages. They are quite content with some sun on their back (and a cool beer within arm´s reach?) watching the river roll by… to the sea, to the sea… to the open arms of the sea-ea, yea-uh-yea-eah. I know I am. And, as Portugal is considered part of Africa by most Europeans, I suspect things won´t be much different on that continent. 

All the best to you both,

love from JaM