How can the U.K., a country composed of some islands in West Europe, become such a powerful country, with its language, English, as the global language today?
Let’s try to understand the U.K. from six perspectives:
- The U.K.: an overview.
- Two historical figures: Henry VIII and William Shakespeare.
- The British Empire.
- English, the global language today!
- The U.K. today.
- The U.K. tomorrow.
1. The U.K.: an overview
Read Wikipedia – United Kingdom.
2. Two historical figures: Henry VIII and William Shakespeare
Read Wikipedia Henry VIII of England and Wikipedia – William Shakespeare.
3. The British Empire
The image below is worth more than 1,000 words. For more, read Wikipedia – British Empire.
British colonialism has severe consequences. Two prominent examples:
- The American Revolution – What is the American Revolution, anyway (V2)?
- ‘The time for reconciliation is over’: South Africa votes to confiscate white-owned land without compensation.
British colonialism has a huge benefit for the U.K.: English has become the global language today!
4. English, the global language today!
The video below tells you everything about English, the language.
In contrast, Chinese remains a regional language, although it was, more than 1,000 years ago (i.e., before English was born as a language), as advanced as English today, in terms of expressiveness and poetry.
5. The U.K. today
The U.K. is deeply in trouble. Four perspectives:
- Diversity.
- Brexit.
- Democracy.
- Being a top American lapdog!
Let me briefly highlight each …
5.1 Diversity
Unlike the U.S., which is a country of immigrants after the indigenous people were mostly wiped out, the U.K. has native residents, with immigrants being “extra”, thanks to two factors:
- The British Empire allowed many citizens of its colonies to migrate to the mother country.
- The EU has resulted in an influx of Eastern European migrants to the U.K.
Like in the U.S., the white majority in the U.K. blames immigrants for their misfortune, resulting in the rise of populism. A simple analogy:
- In the U.S., Donald Trump won an overwhelming majority of the white vote in the 2016 Presidential election.
- In the U.K., Boris Johnson won a majority of the white vote in the 2019 election, after championing Brexit.
5.2 Brexit
Brexit will prove to be a huge disaster for the U.K. (Grizzly’s Canceled Delivery Is a Warning of Brexit Trouble Ahead). This video offers one prominent perspective: Sir John Major says second EU referendum may be necessary.
5.3 Democracy
The U.K., like the U.S., is paralyzed by democracy. For example, how could any government possibly let the voters decide on such a complex issue as Brexit?
In analogy, will you ask your children to vote on your divorce?
5.4 Being a top American lapdog!
Over the past few decades, the U.K. has been acting as a top American lapdog all over the world from Iraq (Desmond Tutu say Bush and Blair should face trial at International Criminal Court over Iraq) to Afghanistan (War in Afghanistan), with impunity.
However, the on-going war in Ukraine will likely force the U.K., as well as Europe, if not the world, to pay the highest price, ever! Three informative readings:
- Are Democracy and NATO a lethal combination?
- UK Prime Minister Liz Truss ends national ban on fracking amid energy crisis.
- Map shows how fallout from disaster at Ukrainian nuclear plant would spread.
6. The U.K. tomorrow
The U.K. faces an uncertain future.
Bad news: After plundering the world over the past few hundred years, the U.K. is back to almost where it was 400 years ago: a bunch of islands in West Europe, with many new and big domestic problems. Two prominent examples:
- Religion: 400 years ago, it was Catholics vs. Protestants. Today, it is Christianity vs. Islam.
- Race: 400 years ago, it was English vs. Irish (and Scottish). Today, it is white vs. non-white and the British vs. Eastern Europeans.
Good news: English has become the global language, which means the U.K. will never be as isolated as it was 400 years ago.
Below are two profound challenges for the U.K.:
- Monarchy: Most of the world has abandoned it (Toward an ideal form of government) – Why not the U.K.? For more, read The future of the British Monarchy Is More Uncertain Than Ever.
- Colonialism: As America, the last big colonial power standing, fades in the coming years (Colonial America 1776-2030?), what does that mean to the U.K., especially the Commonwealth of Nations?
For more, read History 2.0 – China’s Comeback vs. America’s Decline.
7. Closing
I wish the U.K. the best!
Now, please sit back and enjoy the long (yes, more than 4 hours) and very sophisticated video below.
