{"id":101,"date":"2014-08-16T23:00:44","date_gmt":"2014-08-16T23:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lordre\/?p=101"},"modified":"2014-08-20T14:51:51","modified_gmt":"2014-08-20T14:51:51","slug":"the-union-is-archaic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lordre\/2014\/08\/the-union-is-archaic.html","title":{"rendered":"The Union is archaic"},"content":{"rendered":"

On doit des egards aux vivants; on ne doit aux morts que la verite.<\/i>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

We should be considerate to the living; to the dead we owe only the truth.<\/p>\n

Voltaire<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

Just over a month from now, on\u00a018 September<\/a>, Scotland will decide whether or not it wants to remain part of the United Kingdom. I favor the outcome of Scottish independence from the UK, for the simple reason that I believe poor governance by the UK’s Conservatives is to blame and that independence would be a powerful act of defiance against such an incompetent government.<\/p>\n

\"\"
“Westminster abbey night”<\/a>. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Union is archaic, and should be abolished completely. The monarchy is also archaic, and should likewise be abolished completely. These are vestiges, and just do not have any place in the future. Of course, expecting all to be abolished at once is unrealistic, and steadily transitioning towards the end by such things as giving Scotland independence is therefore the best way.<\/p>\n

At a time when the world is increasingly threatened by superstition and barbarism, as we see in Iraq and Syria, and crazed nationalism, as we see in Ukraine (and is glorified by the BBC on a daily basis with every bit of emotion and zeal it can muster) the last\u00a0thing we need to do is\u00a0cling to old flags and crowns.<\/p>\n

Hopefully, these steps towards the\u00a0breakup of the Union will convince Brits that they are no “nation”, but their land is a\u00a0crossroads of many individuals\u00a0from all over the world, and we will be on track to making the whole world stateless and egalitarian in that fashion.<\/p>\n

\n

By Harry J. Bentham<\/a><\/p>\n

\"HJB<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On doit des egards aux vivants; on ne doit aux morts que la verite. We should be considerate to the living; to the dead we owe only the truth. Voltaire Just over a month from now, on\u00a018 September, Scotland will decide whether or not it wants to remain part of the United Kingdom. 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