Shiver Me Timbers

Martin Kelly writes:

"Where's the Royal Navy when you need it? Heck, in 1847 Palmerston took the United Kingdom to war over the treatment of a Gibraltarian living in Greece. You might not agree with his liberal interventionism, but after that at least nobody knew to mess with him. Where's the paper bag Miliband? Why isn't he issuing stern warnings to miscreants to leave British citizens alone or else face the consequences?

Because when you believe in 'One World', you must accept as true all that world's values - even the endangerment of those who elect you.

The resurgence of piracy is symptomatic of the collapse of international order. One awaits the sallies of the Chinese Navy into the Indian Ocean with baited breath. If they start policing the world's sealanes, then that would be irrefutable evidence that the global balance of power has shifted and that the new world order nobody really wants will be upon us."

Well, the Tories practically abolished the Royal Navy and New Labour has all but finished off the job. Pointless Tridents and unwinnable wars can't fund themselves, you know.

What happened in 1847 was not liberal interventionism, but simply the defence of a British subject. That is the lesson for today. There is also, in the background, Gibraltar, the relationship between Gibraltar and Portugal, and the relationship between Britain and Portugal (which, in the Napoleonic period, would otherwise have gone the way of Catalonia or Galicia).

And the Indians are clearly way ahead of the Chinese. Good for them.