Friday, January 31, 2020

Worlds Apart

Perth, Australia

Western Australia is, for the most part, full of bugger all. Its low-lying landscapes stretch to a dry, dusty infinity, and its overall population density is less than a 1/300 of that of the UK. However, its state capital, despite being the most isolated city on Earth, is one of the worlds most livable.

Southeast of the snakelike Swan River, which bisects the city, is the peninsular suburb of Burswood. Across the Matagarup Bridge (Figure 123.1) is the jewel in Perth’s crown. Here, two years ago, the Western Australian Cricket Association opened its new home: the Optus Stadium. With a capacity of 60,000, it hosts the Perth Scorchers T20 cricket team (Figure 123.2) as well as the citys two Australian rules football clubs. The stadium has its own, purpose-built bus and railway stations, but most spectators arrive on foot via the Matagarup (Figure 123.3). The whole environment is immaculate.


Figure 123.1: A panorama of the Matagarup, a pedestrian suspension bridge which opened in July 2018.

Copyright © 2018 Jarrah Tree


Figure 123.2: Fanfare for the cricket man

Copyright © 2020 Paul Spradbery


Figure 123.3: The Matagarup, taken from the Optus Stadium

Copyright © 2020 Paul Spradbery

On the other side of the world, the dreaded coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has reached the UK from China. To date, two cases are confirmed. Hundreds of British evacuees from the heavily-affected Chinese city of Wuhan, having been flown in to Brize Norton (a Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire), were, today, transported 187 miles (300 km) to Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral peninsula. I know the place well, having been confined there three times; and some of its staff are good friends of mine. Why such a distance? Why Arrowe Park? The reason is not, as has been claimed, because of secure units, specialist staff or spare capacity. It is because, in the event of a deadly outbreak, a peninsula would be relatively easy to isolate. In other words, the Wirral peninsula has just been designated as a potential quarantine zone. The Burswood peninsula in Western Australia is, to my current knowledge, a safer place to be.

There is another momentous event about to take place in the UK. An hour from now  2300 hrs UK, 0700 hrs Western Australia  the UK will finally set about breaking free from the clutches of the European Union. I have wished for this day for more than thirty years. In that time, I have witnessed British prime ministers behaving like wimps or traitors, gladly genuflecting before a cabal of unaccountable foreign bureaucrats. More disgusting still, I have watched fellow Brits (remainers) applaud every concession given to this hostile, debilitating entity. The main problem with remainers is this: they view the EU, erroneously, as a family of nations. It is no such thing. It is a regime, a supranational authority, or even an wildly overgrown quango. Its arrogance has laid entire nations to waste, Greece being the prime example. Its economic system is a protectionist racket. Its democratic deficit is all too plain to see. Its real aim is, and always has been, to subjugate, by stealth, proud nations into an amorphous superstate (Figure 123.4).


Figure 123.4: The bastard almost got away with it.

Copyright unknown

Brexit is a very British revolution. When the EU inevitably implodes, the disparate peoples of Europe will remember who struck the first, and ultimately fatal, blow.

Champagne for breakfast.

Copyright © 2020 Paul Spradbery


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