Through many tribulations

I just finished reading the European Union’s ‘State of the Union’ address, though I’m not sure exactly who gave this address. Was it the E.U. President? and is that Donald Tusk? or is it Juncker? I get so confused trying to sort out all the different dignitaries that manage Europe from their fluffy white thrones. I also read other news and information articles online about the E.U., an institution for which I have a soft spot and wish would work, but doesn’t look like it’s going to. The Brexit campaign did open my eyes to the inner workings of the thing, and they’re not very pretty, despite the rhetoric.

The State of the Union, I take it from reading the address, is bad but not hopeless, and many pledges to defend Europe and its way of life were made, yet not one mention of the Islamic presence on the continent, only talk about refugees. I came away with a feeling after reading the long document that I had just inhaled a lot of hot air, or maybe nothing at all. No warm fuzzy feelings for sure, just minuscule heart murmurs when I read things that made me think the E.U. leaders are almost trying to be honest with themselves. You see, I wish they would be, and I live in hope, but I was glad the Brits got away.

After reading the address I wandered over to other news from the continent of our ‘old countries’ and noticed that a dignitary of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg had made a statement to the effect that the Republic of Hungary (it is a republic now, isn’t it? or is it a cloaked monarchy? who knows?) ought to be suspended from (does that mean kicked out of?) the European Union, because it treats the refugees like animals. This reminded me that even pipsqueaks like Luxembourg can harbor delusions of grandeur on an authoritative level, and that if such a thing could even be suggested, Europe’s not much of a union.

Imagine the governor, no, not even the governor, let’s say, the secretary of state, of Delaware making such a statement about another state, say, Michigan, that Michigan should be expelled from the Union because it treats the people of Detroit like animals. Or maybe not so ridiculously, that the police chief of Boise, Idaho, should make a public statement to the effect that Oregon and Washington should be expelled from the United States for legalizing marijuana. Myself, I wish the army would be sent to scatter the potheads that’ve taken over my state. They went in and ended polygamy in Utah, didn’t they?

Thankfully, in these United States, since the Civil War, we’ve come to the conclusion that staying together even under the worst circumstances is better than trying to go it alone. That is a point that was made in the European State of the Union address. It said, ‘We’re not the United States of America, we’re not that simple’ or something to that effect. I agree that they’re not the U.S.A., but very soon, if they don’t wake up and smell the (Turkish) coffee, they won’t be the E.U. either, but a run-down, violent and repressive backwater called Eurabia. If nothing else, their tourist industry will probably dry up.

This is just an evening ramble as I watch the sun go down ever sooner, now that we approach the autumn equinox. Hopefully nothing I’ve said has pricked anyone’s ears or poked anyone’s eyes out. Not just in the European Union address, but practically everywhere I look and listen, I’m seeing and hearing ‘existential crisis,’ both in writing and in things acted out. If I were a religious man, I’d say things like, ‘Thank God, Jesus is coming back soon!’ and start packing my bags for the Rapture. But I’m not religious, I’m a Christian, and I know for sure, ‘that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God’ (Acts 14:22).