Ah, The British

The surname, "Richards," is supposedly about the sixth most common in Wales. My Mom was a Read; her mother was a Payne; her maternal grandmother was a Bond. On my Dad's side, his mother was a Harrison; his paternal grandmother was a Sabins (oui, c'est Francaise). Verna's maiden name was Hanson, and on her side of the family, her Mom was a Lamb; her maternal grandmother a Hardin; her paternal grandmother a Cloud. So, except for the Viking in the wood pile, we are pretty much from British ancestry. This is a matter of grave concern.

While there are things to amire about them, bubbling below the surface of most Brits, with frequent eruptions, is a wackoism second to none. On one hand, the decadence and insanity of their society is a source of entertainment; on the other hand our family, and much of America, is swimming in that gene pool. And from what I have seen, genetics do play at least some role in who we are.

This bit of review of the family tree was precipitated by reading an article on a British website, The Independent, entitled "Cleared: Jury decides that threat of global warming justifies breaking the law," which describes a crime committed by green activists that was deemed by a jury to be justified, and thereby legal (in Britain), since their action was meant to prevent greater damage, namely climate change.

Here is the "logic" of this case as explained in The Independent:

The activists put up a defense "of 'lawful excuse' under the Criminal Damage Act 1971 [which] allows damage to be caused to property to prevent even greater damage – such as breaking down the door of a burning house to tackle a fire.

During the trial the defendants said they had acted lawfully, owing to an honestly held belief that their attempt to stop emissions from Kingsnorth would prevent further damage to properties worldwide caused by global warming. Their aim, they said, was to rein back CO2 emissions and bring urgent pressure to bear on the Government and E.ON to changes policies. They insisted their action had caused the minimum amount of damage necessary to close the plant down and constituted a "proportionate response" to the increasing environmental threat."

This is so kooky and outrageous, I don't know where to begin. But that's the British - they can "muddle" through the craziness as if every thing were perfectly normal! Stiff upper lip and all that.

An Anecdote
Many years ago, Verna and I were at her Dad's house and there was a group of young British guys there. Verna's Dad, Hal, was in logistical support for a seismology company and the Brits were part of a ship's crew. After the initial introductions I found that I could barely understand anything they were saying. One of them spoke a little American English and had to act as the interpreter. As Winston Churchill said of America and England, "We are two peoples, separated by a common language."

Other Observations
The best British newspaper is the equivalent of our National Enquirer.

Any website with a .uk must not be taken seriously.

They have become an Orwellian nanny state, with cameras everywhere recording every move and used to enforce politically correct behavior.

The cameras are a good idea since they have allowed their country to be overtaken by Mulims, all in the name of globalism and muliculturalism and other "isms" don't you see old boy.

The quality and availability of their health care is a tribute to the failure of socialized medicine (God protect America from the delusional loonies who want the same for us).

Their largest city: Londonistan.

Their religion: the environment.


Retraction
Ok, I've got to admit that every British person I have ever met has been friendly and fun to be around. I'm sure that, like most societies, 98% are wonderful, down-to-earth people. I know one who is a flippin' genius. And their accent is so cute. So I hereby retract everything I said above.