Second, if this system is not backed-up by another system, in another country, running the trades, etc., in parallel and in background with the primary system everyone associated with these exchanges, down to the guy who brings the sandwiches on Thursday afternoon, are cretins.  

She believed in nothing; only her skepticism kept her from being an atheist. -- Jean-Paul Sartre

○ Interbellum Years

"You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you." -- Leo Tolstoy

In the United States' case, that inward economic turn matched their diplomatic isolationism. Woodrow Wilson's League of Nations never gained effective traction and didn't grant itself authority to intervene militarily or economically. The U.S. didn't join the League even though its president, Woodrow Wilson, founded it. American opponents of the League weren't mere reactionaries; they made a solid isolationist case that membership over-committed the U.S. to intervene all over the world in conflicts that didn't really concern Americans.

In the case of Trump today, it's more likely the realisation of the military costs [and lives of Americans] and the complexity of world affairs that forced his decision. And it was a campaign promise to do matters differently than his predecessor Barack Obama. All Alone in the White House.

More to follow in a diary about Trump's decision to withdraw US troops from Syrian territory and a big drawdown in Afghanistan after 17 years of failures.

'Sapere aude'

Brexit more than just a gold star falling off a blue flag, Bono tells London gig

The singer stood in front of a huge EU-style flag with yellow stars and hailed London as "still a great European city". One star was not yellow but instead filled in with the Union flag and circled with a heart.

During the encore, Bono said: "We've just been touring all across Europe and whatever you think about it, all we heard about from Madrid to Berlin to Paris to Amsterdam is that people love the UK.

"They love you. And no-one wants you to leave. And that's just the truth. For us it's more than just a gold star falling off a blue flag."

○ Canary Wharf: life in the shadow of the towers

Brexit will hit the homeless and the poor harder than the upper 1%. London the financial center and home of the remainders.

○ Great Britain: The North - South divergence since the Brexit referendum

'Sapere aude'

"In 2016 an overwhelming majority in Ramsgate on the UK's southeast coast voted to leave the EU. Given the ongoing chaos, how do people in Brexit-heartland feel now?"

Brexiteers in Ramsgate: 'Just get on with it' | DW |

Threatening clouds over Ramsgate harbor gradually give way to a crisp blue sky as the coastal town in eastern Kent comes to life on a chilly winter's morning. Street sellers erect their market stalls and begin their trade of wares from bric-a-brac and shoes, to flowers and fruit. Vintage shops and record stores open their doors alongside pound shops and barbers on the quintessentially British high street that snakes down to the boat-stacked water's edge, with pubs and fish-and-chip shops lining the way.

Two-and-a-half years ago people here voted overwhelmingly in support of Brexit: Thanet constituency, which includes Ramsgate, voted to leave 46,047 to 26,065 -- a 64 percent majority based on a 73 percent turnout, one of the highest in the UK.

Immigration and job fears

It doesn't take long to find those who will proudly share they voted for Brexit, or to hit upon some common reasons why, often reminiscent of the mantras of the vociferous Leave campaign of 2016: immigration, jobs and border control.

"We get too many illegal immigrants, they take over everything. Why should they get our housing and services?" retiree Les Shewery asked rhetorically. Frustration with the perceived corruption of the EU institutions and a lack of British political clout to influence EU laws often boils over. "The EU's got 44,000 different legislation over things from straight bananas to stopping us digging out our rivers to prevent floods. It's just crazy. It's corrupt. Unelected people in power telling us what to do," Paul Dolton, a 52-year-old former soldier, told DW.

In a region hit hard by economic downturn over recent decades, austerity measures have tugged at the threads of the social fabric of such communities. The port, formerly Ramsgate's thriving economic center, sees very little trade. Levels of fishing are in decline,  jobs are few, low-paid and insecure, and affordable housing is hard to come by.

[...]
Thirty-year-old Lucy Monks, a remainer who works in a Ramsgate record store with her father, believes "leaving is kind of going backwards" but recognizes not everyone in the region feels the same. "There are a lot of UKIP-ers around here, we found that out when Nigel Farage came around. They all just came out the woodwork, if you will. As my dad says, there's a generation who are old-fashioned and have their bubble here they live in and don't want that disturbed. I think it's a fear of change really."

○ Bluntness on division in annual address by the Queen

Well #Trump should be ashamed of how he behaved in front of the queen. No respect for protocol or even decent manners. She's an elderly lady and the way you behaved is arrogant and disgusting. #TrumpVisitsUK

— Sarah Jane Roots (@sarahrellyboo) July 13, 2018

Trump breaks protocol during Royal visit as he keeps Queen waiting 12 minutes and walks in front of her...causing her to shoo him out the way.

'Sapere aude'

Upholding the Belfast Agreement

The UK government is clear that in a 'no deal' scenario we must respect our unique relationship with Ireland, with whom we share a land border and are co-signatories to the Belfast Agreement.

The UK government has consistently placed upholding the Agreement and its successors at the heart of our approach.

It enshrines the consent principle on which Northern Ireland's constitutional status rests. We recognise the basis it has provided for the deep economic and social cooperation on the island of Ireland. This includes north-south cooperation between Northern Ireland and Ireland, which we're committed to protecting in line with the letter and spirit of Strand 2 of the Agreement.

The Irish Government has indicated it would need to discuss arrangements in the event of 'no deal' with the European Commission and EU member states. The UK would stand ready in this scenario to engage constructively to meet our commitments and act in the best interests of the people of Northern Ireland, recognising the very significant challenges that the lack of a UK-EU legal agreement would pose in this unique and highly sensitive context.

It remains, though, the responsibility of the UK government, as the sovereign government in Northern Ireland, to continue preparations for the full range of potential outcomes, including 'no deal'. As we do, and as decisions are made, we'll take full account of the unique circumstances of Northern Ireland.

🚨The @EU_Commission has adopted a series of "no-deal" #Brexit measures today.

Link to Communication here 👇 pic.twitter.com/zwC2uspQcV

— Daniel Ferrie (@DanielFerrie) December 19, 2018