Home And Away In The UK

In the northern extremes of Africa, in the Middle East, nations are in turmoil as the general populace, so long held in subservience by fear of those in power, take heart at the response of the Western nations - some of them - to the rule of Qaddafi in Libya.

France, Britain, the United States, Italy stand united in their condemnation of a despot over his people. This, of course, has happened before. But then it was suspected - sometimes proven - that such aroused sympathy was a ploy to gain power, or at least significant influence, in return for assistance.

This time, the support has been practical, in the form of fighter bombers in the air, avoiding civilian causalities, even to the extent of last-minute aborting of strike missions when civilians were observed on the ground in the target area, sometimes due to unforeseen circumstances, sometimes by the callously deliberate deployment of civilians by Qaddafi as 'human shields'.

In addition, the motives of those nations assisting the so-called rebels in Libya were demonstrating free from any desire to gain control on the ground. They defined their own parameters, avoiding the use of ground forces, concentrating solely on their role as back-up for the anti-government majorities striving to free themselves of oppressive dictatorships.

As a result of this obvious earnest of good intentions, oppressed majorities in other nations have grasped the opportunity to plead their own cause, hoping for similar support. Suddenly the mechanics of political power have assumed a complexity very different from the past. No-one can envisage where this trend will lead, and the strain of this uncertainty is beginning to tell.

As if this was not enough to disturb the equanimity of the world as a whole, natural disasters appear to be occurring on a scale and frequency never experienced before, world-wide.

Against this backdrop, the effects of which extend in the collective subconscious of mankind all over the globe, Britain today provided a pinpoint of relief. On the 29th April 2011, Prince William Windsor married a commoner, Katherine Middleton, evidently to the huge approval not only of the general populace of the United Kingdom, but the world in general.

Here in England, the event was celebrated with an energy and enthusiasm nothing short of astonishing. All over the country Union Jacks of all sizes flutter.

A Short History of the Union Jack
The Royal Wedding
Complete Guide To Libya USA kindle ebook