The Huntsman: "Scotland is palpably a drag on the rest of our economy and costs Englishmen dear"

What is a drag for people in Britain is the UK's centralized system. How come there is more economic activity in London than in Cornwall? Is it because Londoners, and especially the third world immigrants, are so much more intelligent than Cornish people? A more likely explanation for the economic development of London is the way the UK is organized. Centralization has a way of reinforcing itself and pumping human resources from the whole country. And Cornwall cannot take countermeasures because it is not an independent country.

If Mr Huntsman thinks Scotland is a drag on the English, he should also complain that much of England is a drag on London. He should compare the amount of public money spent to the amount of public money raised by the government in London. He may find (I don't know!) that London subsidizes the rest of England. But the truth is that the UK system sucks the resources from the whole of England in order to expand the third world population in London. The UK is organized in such a way that big firms will develop a large part of their activities in London, and a large part of government taxes will be raised in London. Essential human resources are sucked from Cornwall, Scotland and all over England and sent to London. Then we will be told by the likes of the Huntsman that London subsidizes the rest of the country. It is really a big joke !

The problem is even worse in france. According to french journalists (who are mostly employed in Paris), most of france is a drag on Paris.

Why would I want to swap one colonial power for another? :) Maybe in a confederacy with the Netherlands or something :)
Wait, we could start our own 'European Union' based on a confederacy, NATO-like defense alliance and Free Trade... .

I don't see the point in swapping one overbearing socialist government for another

It's perhaps interesting to know how the Belgian politico-muppets are perceived abroad:

http://www.smh.com.au:80/articles/2007/09/23/1190486132057.html

No extra comments are necessary!

Huntman: I wish to throw in an eighteenth possibility to the list of...possibilities suggested which is that, instead of Flanders going it alone, it should join the United Kingdom.

Interesting idea. However, perhaps it is not necessary to retain the United Kingdom. England is the only Germanic nation in the British Isles and it only incorporated its Celtic neighbors into a union by coercive means. Given that the Irish are independent and there are substantial movements towards independence in Scotland, Wales, Cornwall and Brittany (not to mention in Flanders), it seems as though that the remaining five "Celtic nations" (incl. the Isle of Man) are heading towards sovereignty. Therefore it makes more sense to restrict the "kingdom" to England

Huntman: We may well see Scotland slope off to some sort of shadow existence as a statelet to our North. Some opine that this would be a good thing for that which is left, for Scotland is palpably a drag on the rest of our economy and costs Englishmen dear, given the enormous subventions to which handout-junkie Scotland has become so addicted as it seeks to feather-bed its citizens without having to go through the pain of actually paying for all the goodies they get.

Scotland does have substantial potential for renewable energy, particularly of the hydroelectric variety, which would, if developed, make it a massive contributor to Europe's energy demand.
 

Huntman: With a population of six million, Flanders definitely punches above its weight economically, with a GDP of some $ 232 billion in 2004 (approx. US$ 38,000 per capita) compared with Scotland’s five million who may have produced a GDP of US$ 172 billion in 2006 at US$ 33,000 per capita. Losing Scotland would be a boon, gaining Flanders a veritible shot in the arm. Their industries would make a good match for our own and there exist excellent communications with Flanders via our East Coast ports and Antwerp. They are conservative in inclination with an enthusiasm for the free market and capitalism which would not be difficult to harness as support for the Anglo-Saxon model. Much of their country resembles parts of East Anglia and as for the language thing, well, we are well used to the problem now with our Celts, so that can be accommodated and, in any event, Flemings speak English with a facility that is going to put some of our educationally-challenged citizens at a disadvantage.

Might as well throw in the Netherlands and Northwestern Germany into the bundle then, given that all have similar heritages (Celto-Germanic), relative geographic proximity and are all competitive economically.

Huntman: Their distaste for and experience of the dead hand of Socialism in Wallonia would surely put the wind up Labour who might see their ability to win a majority in the United Kingdom Of Great Britain, Flanders and Northern Ireland disappear completely.

Labour will ensure that Scotland remains part of the union and that greedy capitalist fat-cat Christian fundamentalist racist hill-billy skinhead fascist-nazis like the Flemings are out in the cold. Or is it the UK that is out in the cold?

This is an interesting idea.However,I still maintain that the future of Scotland,inside or outside the UK, is a matter for the people of the UK, and "sod all" to do with Brussels or Rennes for that matter.

As a forward  thinking Brit. I welcome Huntsmans commendable idea , Flanders does have previous links to England , so it could be seen as welcoming a lost son home . I would think that the Flemish people have more in common with us than they have with the French .