BRITAIN RIDING ON A WAVE OF NEO-THATCHERISM: A REVERSAL OF MYTHICAL ROLES? The tableau picture that belongs to this article can be found at:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/7141213@N04/14220871256/ Is it the EU omnipotent Bull that abducts Europe or will it's destination and role be reversed in this creation myth of Europe by British voters riding on a wave of neo-Thatcherism as staged by the Anti-European Union party of Nigel Farage, who prides himself to be represented in that body with 9 of the 73 British seats, only to act against the EU with his one issue party: the UKIP (UK Independence Party). A party that is said to "steal" part of its slogans from the even more overt right wing group the British National Party (BNP) with its anthem "We want our country back"? (1) Is the holy EU Bull ripe to be Butchered? Is it because EU Citizens are Enslaved and Bullied by it? Are the Brits - instead of being abducted by the EU-Bull - trying to steer it to their advantage only? Or are they missing out on what was and will remain a great love affair as described already millennia ago by the Roman poet Ovid in his Metamorphosis about the abduction of the enchanting woman, Εὐρώπη, Eurṓpē, Europa, by the god Zeus (Jupiter for the Romans) who transformed himself into a white bull, so attractive that she mounts it and then she is carried off - from the beach through the waves - to an island where she is 'seduced', an act that in classical times was indistinguishable from being 'ravished': And gradually she lost her fear, and he Offered his breast for her virgin caresses, His horns for her to wind with chains of flowers Until the princess dared to mount his back Her pet bull's back, unwitting whom she rode. Then—slowly, slowly down the broad, dry beach— First in the shallow waves the great god set His spurious hooves, then sauntered further out 'til in the open sea he bore his prize Fear filled her heart as, gazing back, she saw The fast receding sands. Her right hand grasped A horn, the other lent upon his back Her fluttering tunic floated in the breeze. "And gradually she lost her fear, and he offered his breast..." wrote Ovid and perhaps over time even the soul of Margaret Thatcher will free itself from it's Europhobia and categorical dystopian view of the EU. In the long run, a neo-nationalist split up Britain divided into Scotland, Wales, England and Northern Ireland, may start to feel a need to undo this 'Balkanisation'. A need to break out of these self-imposed border lines delimiting fictional regional and racial identities and 'unite' with other fragments of imploded empires on the European 'mainland'. To thus re-unite in less symbolic ways than the bygone days of the United Kingdom, only held together by the pomp of a royal family. To recreate itself and find new affinities and affiliations beyond its isolated insular parts and past. To wait for its turn to be one of the riders of a metamorphosed and pacified EU-Bull while singing the old song with only one word changed: "RULE, EU-RO-PA ! EU - RO - PA RULE THE WAVES... EU-RO-PEANS NE - VER WILL BE SLAVES" (2) ---------- Now back to daily realities with the following supporting documented topical quotations: - 22/5/2014 London Evening Standard: "A young Margaret Thatcher would join Ukip, says Nigel Farage" (...) Mr Farage described Ukip as "the true inheritors of Thatcher" on European policy, and said many of her supporters were dismayed the Conservatives were now led by the "social democrat" Cameron. http://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/a-young-margaret-thatcher-would-join-ukip-says-nigel-farage-8585063.html - 18/5/2014 Breitbart News: "THE RISE OF UK TEA PARTY: EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH THATCHER AIDE" (...) Would Thatcher today be a supporter of UKIP? - Dr. Gardiner: Margaret Thatcher was a Conservative leader, and her loyalty was to the Conservative Party, and of course the British people. She would always have stayed with her party, but she would never have criticised UKIP supporters. Her instinct was always to embrace fellow conservatives rather than make derogatory remarks about them, as PM David Cameron has about UKIP. Margaret Thatcher was always of the view that nothing good could come from condemning fellow conservatives. http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-London/2014/05/17/The-Rise-of-UK-Tea-Party-Exclusive-Interview-with-Thatcher-Aid - 30/4/2014 Ed Miliband in the 'Mirror': A vote for UKIP would be a vote for the very worst of Thatcherism http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/ed-miliband-vote-ukip-vote-3476030 - 22/3/2014: "Baroness Thatcher would be 'secretly cheering on' Nigel Farage and Ukip if she were alive - Ukip ideas on immigration and Europe closely aligned with Lady Thatcher's own, Jonathan Aitken, the former Prime Minister's unofficial biographer, said" http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/margaret-thatcher/10717336/Baroness-Thatcher-would-be-secretly-cheering-on-Nigel-Farage-and-Ukip-if-she-were-alive.html"; rel="nofollow ======= (1) :From "Create an earthquake, UKIP Manifesto 2014" With your help, we’ll succeed. In the meantime, your UKIP MEPs will continue to go to Brussels and Strasbourg with a mission unlike that of any other party. We don’t go there to make the EU better, more powerful, and help it pass more laws. We go there to ind out what it’s up to, and let you know. Some of us spend a good deal of time there, unfortunately, making sure we know what they’re cooking up, creating an ‘Opposition’ and voting against the EU’s encroachment on our democracy. Others spend more time back here, spreading the word and campaigning to get us out. All UKIP MEPs, though, have one over-riding goal: to make ourselves redundant, by getting Britain out, and returning to the UK the power to govern ourselves. We want our country back. Don’t you? http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/themes/5308a93901925b5b09000002/attachments/original/1398167812/EuroManifestoMarch.pdf?1398167812 - 30/9/2011 web site British National Party: "We Want Our Country Back leaflets well received in Ballyclare" Northern Ireland British National Party activists were out in force in the market town of Ballyclare, County Antrim, on a beautiful sunny Saturday morning last weekend. As usual, they were well received by local people increasingly fed up with the failures and betrayals of the establishment parties both in Northern Ireland and Westminster. The new We Want Our Country Back leaflets tailored specially for Northern Ireland were given their first outing on the streets by the dedicated team of patriots. Northern Ireland Regional Organiser Steven Moore said: ‘We are really pleased with the new leaflet and the response to it from the public. It's straightforward and easy to read, which is what a political leaflet should be. ‘An added bonus is that the slogan, along with the British National Party logo, is particularly eye-catching.’ Northern Ireland British National Party plan to produce thousands of the leaflets for use in various future activities in the Province in the very near future. http://www.bnp.org.uk/news/regional/we-want-our-country-back-leaflets-well-received-ballyclare If you want a better understanding of this movement on the basis of the BNP propaganda materials hereby (as I did for the UKIP) a link to the original leaflet quoted above, with this core paragraph: We will also withdraw from the EU, which currently makes 85% of our laws. WE WANT OUR COUNTRY BACK! Withdrawal from the EU will allow us to close the door on immigration! http://www.bnp.org.uk/sites/default/files/we_want_our_country_back_0.pdf (2) In this mythical way finally a European anthem came into being through this metamorphosis, an anthem for Europe, on the agenda for many decades, but which which could neither be found or decided upon because with so many member states a singular song could not expres the complex histories of all the parts of the union. Tjebbe van Tijen Imaginary Museum Projects dramatising historical information http://imaginarymuseum.org web-blog: The Limping Messenger http://limpingmessenger.wordpress.com/ Flickr: Swift News Tableaus by Tjebbe van Tijen http://www.flickr.com/photos/7141213@N04/ # distributed via <nettime>: no commercial use without permission # <nettime> is a moderated mailing list for net criticism, # collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets # more info: http://mx.kein.org/mailman/listinfo/nettime-l # archive: http://www.nettime.org contact: [email protected]
