Europe drowning in plastic waste

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Now that China has closed its doors, from January 1, 2018, to (plastic) waste for recycling from Europe (and elsewhere) the countries of Europe are beginning to drown in (plastic) waste and many are now looking for other developing countries, such as Vietnam, to take this waste for recycling, Britain among them.

Instead of actually reducing waste, especially, though not restricted to, plastic waste, and secondly building our own facilities for recycling the countries are, yet again, looking for places with lower environmental standards to where to dump the waste rather than doing the other.

Obviously, considering the high environmental legislations in the home countries it would be too expensive for the capitalists to do it at home and hence other countries, with lower and fewer environmental laws and legilations have to be found where our waste can poison the unsuspecting workers. Couldn't possibly have those recycling plants properly operated in our own countries now, could we. But that is exactly what we should be doing.

Before even thinking about recycling we should, properly, work on reducing the amount of waste, plastic and otherwise, that we generate and that is where all, but for starters industry and legislators, come in.

Now that China declines to take any more of our garbage we should be doing our own recycling, after reducing as much as we can, of our waste and by doing so lead the way and we would also create jobs.

When, however, we talk about recycling then recycling it really should be rather than, as in the case of most glass recyclables, downcyling said glass into a road aggregate akin to sand. That is not recycling.

As far as single-use plastic is concerned this needs to be eliminated once and for all as it cannot, properly, be recycled, at least not into decent objects and while there is nothing, per se, wrong with good solid, for lack of a better word, plastic that will and can be in use for a long time, we should phase out plastic more and more over time till we are almost, once again, free of the stuff.

As far as other waste, including and especially E-waste is concerned, industry has to come into play and design to once again – yes, we were there once already – to make products that actually last not just for a year or three but for decades and more. Oh, yes, sorry, I forgot that that does not give huge profits to the capitalist shareholders.

Instead of solving the problem at home our respective governments are looking for other developing – we used to call those Third World – countries which we can contaminate, and their unsuspecting residents, with our waste, by having them recycle the stuff that we don't want to recycle at home, in bad conditions. The new colonialism.

We should be doing the recycling – after looking at all the other options of reuse and so on prior to recycling – at home, in good conditions for the workers and the environment, as dictated by law. This would also create jobs, from collecting, to sorting, to the actual recycling. But, alas, that cannot be as that would be expensive.

© 2018

European countries fall to Nazism

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

One European country after the other, especially EU member states, fall back towards fascism and Nazism. A worrying, but to some extent understandable, trend. Understandable because of the forced migration and the forced acceptance of migrants.

A while back more or less far left parties entered parliament in Poland and right-wing parties have been in power for a number of years already in Hungary. The two countries that make up the former Czechoslovakia also have far-right parties in parliament or in control.

In Germany in the 2017 election the AfD (Alternative für Deutschland), a right-wing party has entered parliament and is, to some extent, “responsible” for the problems, still in December 2017, of a government proper being formed. The funny thing – though not of the hilarious kind – is that most who voted for the AfD were working class who, apparently, did not read the party's manifesto.

Now, in December 2017, in Austria we have seen a far-right party actually becoming the coalition partner of another conservative right-wing party, taking, in fact the three major posts in government, including the interior ministry.

In countries that were once part of the so-called Warsaw Pact the worrying trend is that those more or less openly fascist parties are singing from a 1930s hymn sheet, including the song about putting Gypsies into labor camps or, as in Bulgaria, talking openly, at least some politicians do, about euthanazing Gypsies.

In Poland at the end of November 2017 thousands of “nationalists” called openly for Jews to leave the country, a fact that was reported in some of the western media. What they may have suggested that they might like to do to the Gypsies in Poland was not mentioned and I dare not even ask nor think about it. I am sure than we can all imagine what it is they would want to do.

© 2018

Macron wants EU Army and German Interior Ministers want European FBI

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

While the French President has called for a European Army and a European defense budget, amongst other things, Interior Ministers of several German federal states are calling for the establishment of a EU-wide version of the FBI.

Those who could foresee all those things coming already years ago, because they have been muted for years among EU circles, have been called conspiracy theorists and worse.

It was as clear as spring-water already from the very beginning when both EUROFOR and EUROPOL were founded what the end outcome and aim was meant to be for both. The former to become a European Army and the latter a European Federal Police. Anyone who believed the story that EUROPOL was supposed to be a European version of INTERPOL also, I assume, believe that the Easter-bunny lays eggs.

At present those are both, some would say, suggestions by, in one instance the French president of the day, and in the other by a number of interior ministers of German federal states, the latter who also would like this European FBI to be run by German “experts” and under German control. Surprise, not.

When EU-officials, whether directly EU people or politicians of the member states, talk of things like this publicly, as “suggestions”, we can, almost, bet our bottom Dollar that they are ready to put those things into operation in the not too distant future.

Macron also wants a “European attorney general” and a “European asylum department”, as well as a “European civil defense authority”, in other words an EU FEMA. Anyone still doubting and wondering as to where this all is headed?

Where this is leading to is to a full-fledged neoliberal fascist European superstate, primarily led by Germany and France. Something that many have foreseen years ago, including and especially myself, and have warned against. But, hey, we were all conspiracy theorists.

When it all started, as the European Economic Community (EEC), it all looked very good on paper but even then the writing was on the wall to where this might be headed, at least for those capable to read between the lines.

When the EEC was turned into the European Union the warning bells should have gone off everywhere but they did not and everyone wanted us to believe that it was all a really great and wonderful thing. Now, slowly but surely, the covers are coming off and the true face of this monster is beginning to show.

Again those that warned against what was happening and could see what was might happen – and which appear to be happening now – were being laughed at, called stupid and worse, and were regarded as conspiracy theorists.

We see more and more cases such as this now where, it appears, those that were foul-mouthed as conspiracy theorists were right all along. Maybe it is time that we listened a little more to people who seem to be able to see the writing on the wall even if we, ourselves, do not wish this writing to be true.

© 2017