When confronted by a story like this you might think the BBC would be all over it but you’d be wrong:
It is a constitutional scandal of the first order.
From the Telegraph:
EU officials plotted IMF attack to bring rebellious Italy to its knees
The revelations about EMU skulduggery are coming thick and fast. Tim Geithner recounts in his book Stress Test: Reflections on Financial Crises just how far the EU elites are willing to go to save the euro, even if it means toppling elected leaders and eviscerating Europe’s sovereign parliaments.
The former US Treasury Secretary says that EU officials approached him in the white heat of the EMU crisis in November 2011 with a plan to overthrow Silvio Berlusconi, Italy’s elected leader.
“They wanted us to refuse to back IMF loans to Italy as long as he refused to go,” he writes.
Geithner told them this was unthinkable. The US could not misuse the machinery of the IMF to settle political disputes in this way. “We can’t have his blood on our hands”.
This concurs with we knew at the time about the backroom manoeuvres, and the action in the bond markets.
It is a constitutional scandal of the first order. These officials decided for themselves that the sanctity of monetary union entitled them to overrule the parliamentary process, that means justify the end. It is the definition of a monetary dictatorship.
An unelected EU plots to bring down the government of a member country…..nothing to see here…move on.
Ironically and perhaps hilariously the BBC does report this: ‘Five rivals for the EU’s top job have argued over the economic crisis, immigration and other key issues for the 28-nation bloc in a live TV debate…….This debate – and others – is being heralded as a major step towards making Europe and its institutions more democratically accountable .’
The EU and ‘democratically accountable’…two phrases never before and never likely to be uttered together in one sentence…at least not unless as part of a comedian’s routine.
Shame about the coups plotted by the EU against national democratic institutions.
No doubt the bbc will mention it next year, as part of a history programme; ie. that was then, nothing like that happens now.
So the US is accusing the EU of doing what the US did to both Eden and Wilson – the irony is inescapable…
With regard to the latter point, the BBC fails to mention that we don’t even indirectly have a vote for the EU top job. It’s a stitched up deal behind closed doors. So much for democratic accountability and impartial journalism at the BBC!
Meanwhile, the Swiss are going to decide, sorry, I should really should have said that the people of Switzerland are going to decide, by way of a referendum, which make and model of fighter jets they are going to purchase with THEIR money.
If the people vote NO to the Swedish Griffen ( too expensive, too Yucki, not cool, whatever), the government will have to come up with alternatives, and put it to the people.
That is real democracy.
Now that is democracy.
I’m not sure that it’s particularly effective to run a country by plebiscite. It could lead to all sorts of inconsistencies in policy that might prove expensive.
Also, it would have to assume that all the information necessary to reach an educated decision is absorb-able by the majority of the voters.
Look around your high street – do you see many people to whom you would entrust you taxes?
A fair point Tony.
And referenda on every issue would be infeasible. On major issues well fair enough.
But in arriving at an informed decision can we trust the “Establishment” and the mainstream media to be impartial in presenting the facts? Would you trust the BBC?
Thinking on, over the last three weeks or more we have had a taster of how the establishment – politicians, business, media, academics, etc – react when their cosy little stitched up variety of democracy is challenged by a party like UKIP. Smears, lurid headlines, dissembling, and out right lies: “lies lies lies, a farrago of twisted facts” – as Harold Wilson once said.
Now imagine what it will be like when (if) there is a referendum on staying in the EU…..
Judging from the level of debate over the EU elections should the BBC cover this, they would describe the revelations as a racist smear.
Very fond of this ” this is being heralded by…” notion aren`t they?
“People are saying”…sometimes even “everybody is saying that…”
Oh tom command such authority-thank God the BBC ask those questions and demand answers on behalf of the little man in his cloth cap huh?
These BBC self-appointed cretins really DO forget that they`re fellow gilded millionaires on a pension promise and Oxbridge privileged too…but they don`t like Tories for being the same.
Will NOBODY take them apart as they presume to speak for the rest of us?..they are liberal pampered scum who need removing from the airwaves.
Today at 7.20am this morning had some business correspondent called Justin,…will no business leader grow a apir and tell his like that he is a here today gone tomorrow cipher who`s never actually RUN a business…or done ANYTHING except slaver round Evan Davis hush puppies?
Breathtaking hypocrites….I f***in` HATE the BBC!
‘This debate – and others – is being heralded as a major step towards making Europe and its institutions more democratically accountable .’
An admission by the BBC that as things stand the EU is not democratically accountable.
Funny, can’t ever remember hearing them report that fact.
This is a major news story, but last I looked Sky was ignoring it every bit as much as the BBC. I think it’s just not ‘sexy’. If only we had a public service broadcaster with a mission to educate and inform eh?
Exactly. Sky and other commercial broadcasters don’t cover ‘boring ‘ news because they need ratings. I know this is true, because the BBC keep telling me that this lack of a commercial driver allows the BBC to cover stories and issues that its commercial rivals just don’t do. This is why it is essential to keep the BBC funded from the public purse. The whole raison d’etre of the BBC, you know to Educate, Entertain and Inform, from a totally impartial point of view of course , would be compromised if it was forced to do anything as vulgar as chasing ratings to maintain advertising and subscription income.
Erm who was the bad guy ?