Posted on 03/27/2014 11:49:09 AM PDT by Rusty0604
In a Tuesday ruling, Spanish judges found Catalonia’s planned independence referendum to be unconstitutional, but secessionists in the Spanish autonomous region (called a “community” in Spain) have vowed to proceed regardless.
Although stifled under the yoke of the Franco dictatorship, Catalonia has long felt cultural and linguistic disctinction from the rest of Spain. In recent years, it developed into a powerhouse of the nation’s economy. However, amid the country’s financial crisis, Madrid has been urging national unity.
(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...
I hope Texas is watching!
Any Russians on Catalonia?
Haha, agreed. The fact is that if a people decide to call something done, they can and will. Would a nation force a people not wanting unity to return knowing that those people would revolt and refuse to comply? Interesting times indeed.
Witness the end result of the Welfare State. The national transfer payment system becomes so unsustainable that the more wealthy regions try to break away and leave the mess behind. The moocher parts of the nation will fight tooth and nail to keep their cash cow. Prepare for actual civil war.
With a well-timed bomb planted on a train in Madrid in 2004, Al Qaeda was able to force a political crisis in Spain, the downfall of the existing government, and the victory of the party that gave Al Qaeda the results it was seeking.
It is only one episode of many that give me little respect for the Spaniards to maintain their country as is. In spite of the EU super-bureacracy, the trend in Europe seems to be towards fragmentation and decline. Spain is a prime example.
Yes, and a Catalonian referndum may well be the incident that causes the final implosion of the euro - and with that the EU.
I may be a tad optimistic, but Spain without Catalonia is even more of an economic basket case than presently. Add to that that Spain will be able to veto a Catalonian accession to the EU - one of the few areas where the nations still have the right to veto Council decisions.
It looks like our present day polticians are competing on whether to create a new 1930s or a new 1914. The Spanish situation is getting similar to 1936.
The left has been behind this for years - they say they want an "Albania-like" state - and many of my friends there are very scared by this but they're even more afraid to speak out.
Think of Dems on steroids. That's what these leftist nationalist parties are like. Actually, Spain will probably be better off without them. Every intelligent Catalan I know is moving to Madrid even as we speak. And once it's down to a few leftist nationalists and foolish liberals, I think "la gran nacion de Catalunya" is going to find life a little rough going.
But in 2008 Obama put forth Spain as an example to us in creating jobs and a vibrant economy with green energy. He did stop talking about it when it all blew up.
Interesting.
Zapatero’s “green energy” programs destroyed employment in Spain, particularly Northern Spain.
The subsequent conservative government hasn’t been very successful, partly because the devastation was profound, partly because of press hostility, and partly because of timidity on the part of the conservative party.
If conservatives or even the regular old GOP get back in power here, they’ve got to be thinking about their program and how to enact it. The PP (conservative party) in Spain has made some improvements, but the party is too cowardly to enunciate a new vision - even though that’s why people voted for them.
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