A moron is defined in the dictionary as "a stupid person; a dolt."
Cameron recently told the Americans that Britain had been a "junior partner" in 1940. He seems to have been ignorant of the fact that the Americans only entered the Second World War on December 11th 1941. At the outbreak of war in 1939 Britain was probably one of three equal world powers along with Germany and the USA; the French, Japanese and Soviets being a strong second division (see note). Hard to believe nowadays, its even harder to believe that in 1900 Britain was the global superpower, like the USA in 2000. Far from being a helpful senior partner in the Second World War the US waited until it was attacked before it entered the fray and then did not fully commit troops in support of the British until the British had removed half a million crack German troops in North Africa and the Russians a further half million in Stalingrad. The US government probably served its people well, guaranteeing the supremacy of the US after the war but this is no consolation for the British. The British have a trading economy and the US waited until this was thoroughly wrecked so that they would be the de facto senior partner. (The US even had a "Committee for the Dismantlement of the British Empire" during the war which lobbied for the careful orchestration of US participation).
Cameron exposed himself to be even more stupid today when, speaking about Kashmir, he said that:
“I don’t want to try to insert Britain in some leading role where, as with so many of the world’s problems, we are responsible for the issue in the first place.”
What a creep, he cannot even get his tenses right. We ARE not responsible for many of the world's problems although our grandparents or great grandparents MAY HAVE BEEN involved. Had Cameron got his tenses right he would have said:
"I don’t want to try to insert the government of the UK in some leading role today where, as with so many of the world’s problems, the government of the British Empire may have been responsible for the issue a couple of generations ago."
When the tenses are right it is quite clear why Cameron should not "insert the government of the UK in some leading role today", the issue is obviously not our current responsibility. Cameron's speech is really creepy because he is allegedly being humble but is actually wrapping himself in the cloak of the imperial past and denying that foreigners could have been responsible for any of the world's history themselves. This "poor little black people" mentality of people like Cameron and so many British "do gooders" is overt racism. After 60 years the Pakistanis are responsible for their own affairs, as are the African countries after 50 years or so of self rule. Not only is Cameron a patronising racist but he cannot even get his history right. The Kashmir Conflict was a result of negotiation between the Indians and Pakistanis and is squarely their responsibility though no doubt they would like to cast off the blame elsewhere.
(Indian independence was 18 July 1947 and the accession of Kashmir to India was on 26th October 1947. As a correspondent below pointed out, the official ceremonies were 14th and 15th of August for Pakistan and India but the legislation that included Jinna and Gandhi's terms was passed on 18th July).
Note: In 1940 Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India and other associates of the British Empire were fighting all of the other major powers (Germany, Russia, Vichy France, Japan) except the USA - fortunately Russia switched sides later which balanced the fact that France had switched to the German cause (See France, the third Axis power). It is interesting that the failure of the USA to implement its role as one of the guarantors of the treaty of Versailles was the key factor that encouraged Hitler pre-war and left Britain alone in resisting German expansion. The Italians, one of the other guarantors of Versailles, actually allied with Hitler when they realised that the USA would not join the British in keeping the peace.
See also:
David Cameron: Banker boy turned Hedge Fund man
Cameron adds EU referendum to Tory manifesto
Cameron, Obama, Britain and the EU
Cameron recently told the Americans that Britain had been a "junior partner" in 1940. He seems to have been ignorant of the fact that the Americans only entered the Second World War on December 11th 1941. At the outbreak of war in 1939 Britain was probably one of three equal world powers along with Germany and the USA; the French, Japanese and Soviets being a strong second division (see note). Hard to believe nowadays, its even harder to believe that in 1900 Britain was the global superpower, like the USA in 2000. Far from being a helpful senior partner in the Second World War the US waited until it was attacked before it entered the fray and then did not fully commit troops in support of the British until the British had removed half a million crack German troops in North Africa and the Russians a further half million in Stalingrad. The US government probably served its people well, guaranteeing the supremacy of the US after the war but this is no consolation for the British. The British have a trading economy and the US waited until this was thoroughly wrecked so that they would be the de facto senior partner. (The US even had a "Committee for the Dismantlement of the British Empire" during the war which lobbied for the careful orchestration of US participation).
Cameron exposed himself to be even more stupid today when, speaking about Kashmir, he said that:
“I don’t want to try to insert Britain in some leading role where, as with so many of the world’s problems, we are responsible for the issue in the first place.”
What a creep, he cannot even get his tenses right. We ARE not responsible for many of the world's problems although our grandparents or great grandparents MAY HAVE BEEN involved. Had Cameron got his tenses right he would have said:
"I don’t want to try to insert the government of the UK in some leading role today where, as with so many of the world’s problems, the government of the British Empire may have been responsible for the issue a couple of generations ago."
When the tenses are right it is quite clear why Cameron should not "insert the government of the UK in some leading role today", the issue is obviously not our current responsibility. Cameron's speech is really creepy because he is allegedly being humble but is actually wrapping himself in the cloak of the imperial past and denying that foreigners could have been responsible for any of the world's history themselves. This "poor little black people" mentality of people like Cameron and so many British "do gooders" is overt racism. After 60 years the Pakistanis are responsible for their own affairs, as are the African countries after 50 years or so of self rule. Not only is Cameron a patronising racist but he cannot even get his history right. The Kashmir Conflict was a result of negotiation between the Indians and Pakistanis and is squarely their responsibility though no doubt they would like to cast off the blame elsewhere.
(Indian independence was 18 July 1947 and the accession of Kashmir to India was on 26th October 1947. As a correspondent below pointed out, the official ceremonies were 14th and 15th of August for Pakistan and India but the legislation that included Jinna and Gandhi's terms was passed on 18th July).
Note: In 1940 Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India and other associates of the British Empire were fighting all of the other major powers (Germany, Russia, Vichy France, Japan) except the USA - fortunately Russia switched sides later which balanced the fact that France had switched to the German cause (See France, the third Axis power). It is interesting that the failure of the USA to implement its role as one of the guarantors of the treaty of Versailles was the key factor that encouraged Hitler pre-war and left Britain alone in resisting German expansion. The Italians, one of the other guarantors of Versailles, actually allied with Hitler when they realised that the USA would not join the British in keeping the peace.
See also:
David Cameron: Banker boy turned Hedge Fund man
Cameron adds EU referendum to Tory manifesto
Cameron, Obama, Britain and the EU
Comments
Gandhi and Jinnah had agreed the partition between themselves as early as 1944 (see http://www.gmu.edu/departments/icar/op_10_gandhi.pdf)
Apropos John's remarks I may mention that when the question of Indian independence was mooted in return for support of people of India to the war efforts of Britain in the second world war British authorities insisted that question of Indian independence could be taken up only after the difference between Indian National Congress and Muslim League led by Jinnah were sorted out.It was not Gandhi, but Jinnah who was demanding a separate Muslim State.Since the British authorities had been insisting on the resolution of these issues,the 1944 negotiation between Gandhi and Jinnah on partition was a direct cosequence of British policy on the question of Indian independence.It would be oversimplification of a very complex history to state that Gandhi negotiated partition of India with Jinnah in 1944, or for that matter, Kashmir problem is direct result of negotiation between Indians and Pakistanis.It would be childish to claim that British authorities merely remained seated in the chair while Indians and Pakistanis were negotiating Partition of India between themselves.Nothing came out of the 1944 negotiation as the proposal was rejected by Jinnah outright. What however came out finally was undeniably the brain-child of a decaying Empire; a festering wound which stinks even today.
Well, it came out of the Mogul Empire, the French, Portuguese and Dutch involvement, the European wars that led to Britain acquiring an Empire by default, the intractable Hindu-Moslem differences that led to an inevitable partition...this was the burden of history. Cameron was historically incorrect accepting that Kashmir was Britain's responsibility. It was directly the responsibility of India and Pakistan who could not resolve the burden of history.
Every country has its historical burden. Countries deal with it now and do not get lost in blaming the past. India cannot blame the existing population of Britain for its problems, most of us were not alive when these problems arose - its nothing to do with us and Cameron should not say that it is!