The principles

It has always been said that the world moves on the basis and maintenance of a series of principles that are absolutely necessary for the proper functioning of people and institutions.

The word Principles is a masculine noun, which has two main meanings: the first moment of the existence of a thing or also, the point from which a thing starts, is born or arises. Definitions that, although they may seem similar or identical, are not.

If we look at various developments on the word, we could come to the conclusion that, in reality, principles are those rules or norms that guide the action of human beings and that define or modify the rational spiritual or moral faculties of society, both individually and collectively. 
 

In short, they are a series of rules or precepts of a general or universal nature that mark and define the set of values, beliefs and norms that serve to guide and regulate the life of an organisation, the attitude of man in particular and, to a large extent, that of the universe in general, in social, moral, political, economic, ethical and relational aspects. 

An incomparable, well-known and incisive humorist, when referring to people's principles, in one of his most famous skits, said 'these are my principles, and if you don't like them, I have others'. 

Such a stark phrase, with which he made it very clear that, despite the assumption that principles should be quasi-permanent and, therefore, practically immovable, except for or with slight nuances, the reality is far from that.
 

Unfortunately, and this is what the actor apparently wanted to satirise, there are organisations and people for whom their principles, even the fundamental ones or true commitments, have no value or permanence over time; they are fickle and changeable depending on circumstances and, above all, on personal convenience.  

This is the case, for years, of the so-called International Community (IC) and its dependent Organisations, which, since the end of World War II and for a long time, have been acting under the influence of framed, fixed, appropriate and consensual ethical, social, economic and moral principles in a consistent manner without departing one centimetre from the path that these principles set them on fire, in black on white.

But it turns out that, lately, in the face of an unperturbed and unresponsive society, we see successive and alarming changes appearing on the scene, and even the abandonment of many of those principles that marked the individual and collective behaviour of nations or of such organisations. 

Changes of course, which lead to the renunciation of their principles or foundations and which, normally, cannot find any rational explanation other than the possible existence of a series of powerful external or internal influences, strong dissuasions, hidden agendas, lack of leadership, egocentrism, convenience and even unfounded or contagious fears, which, moreover, neither individually nor collectively, have the minimum and necessary reasoning to justify them.

In a short space of time, and as a result of the various crises that have recently and successively overwhelmed and devastated the world, we have gone from defending, at all costs, the values of democracy, the rights of human beings and the freedom of peoples, to seeing, without the slightest flinch, the invasion and massacre of various free peoples, even, in most cases, without any prior declaration of war or apparent motive. 

In many cases, the IC merely contemplates and, at most, issues a useless and ineffective condemnation that is blown away by the wind, even if it is formally issued in writing. 

In this regard, in the case of Ukraine, it has gone further in the futile and almost shameful measures taken; such as: 'condemning' the act while those who condemned such vileness, closed the doors of their protection and direct military support to the oppressed; taking hesitant and even belated economic and trade measures against the aggressor and as the only moderately assessable measure, providing a few weapons to the suffering attacked, although to get there, 'some very democratic countries all', have needed to be forced by circumstances or at the behest of third parties. 

Measures and ointments clearly aimed at silencing the individual and collective consciences of the IC, which point to the fact that, as a final result of these, it must inevitably be those who fight alone against the tyrant; while, incidentally, their heroic and courageous attitude defends us or, at least, diverts the aggressor's attention or ambition away from us.  
 

We have seen that all the principles and measures to contain public and private spending in the world, aimed at avoiding runaway and illogical debt and inflation, have been falling to the ground in order to overcome the various crises ravaging the world. Crises, more or less provoked, unseen and, of course, badly fought by those responsible for them.

Agreements, treaties and conventions that regulate, punish and prevent the research, possession, development, use or threat of use of weapons of mass destruction or weapons that do not belong to the former category, but have devastating effects on people and things, are being systematically and alarmingly flouted. 

Everything that was adopted after years of discussion, research, brainstorming and marathon negotiations - albeit half-heartedly - to reduce or delay the effects of climate change, simply because of the threat of a possible cut-off of Russian gas supplies to Europe, has become a dead letter. 

What was pernicious before is now greener than a lettuce. Nobody can agree and we are about to return, and with even more force, to the exhaustive use of nuclear and coal-fired power plants, as is already happening in countries that have just committed themselves to shutting down all their nuclear and coal-fired plants.

Immigration and refugees are almost taboo subjects in the world; in some places, they are viciously persecuted because they hinder or complicate our social systems, while in others, insurmountable barriers are put in place, in exchange for large sums of money to the countries that act as containment systems and where they are forced to live in an inhumane and frankly reprehensible way. 

Be that as it may, in general, our interest in and degree of acceptance of these outcasts, and even the disproportionate, fickle and generally short-lived reactions of reception of them, which also occur, depend on various factors, such as their place of origin, the type of conflict that has made them homeless, their race, religion and now even the refugees' gender and age.
 

At this point, in the early stages of any crisis, we tend to build up a real pool of diverse sources that facilitate the dark manoeuvres of trafficking in white and defenceless human beings, such as children. Moreover, knowing this, without any immediate reaction on our part, we calm our consciences by simply looking the other way or thinking that there will be someone good enough to take care of them and protect them.   

Jihadism has become a scourge that strikes the entire world except, with some nuances, the American continent. It is creating a pressure bomb at times in Africa, as a continuation or transfer of its origin in the Middle East, where they were fought viciously.

Today, we do not want to hear about the outrages that these religious fanatics, thugs and evildoers are carrying out or are capable of carrying out, or about the dangers that their desire for expansionism and occupation of territories to the north of where they are mainly located today represents for Europe in particular. 

In this respect, we must not fail to denounce our passivity when, on a daily basis, we see - like those who watch the rain fall behind thick glass in a solid, warm and well-insulated house - the cruel and almost total massacre of entire ethnic groups or peoples because of their race, political ideas or religion.

In Spain, as we do not deprive ourselves of anything, especially lately, we have everything as in an apothecary's shop, mainly due to the erratic policy pursued by a minority government in the hands of communists, separatists and pro-terrorists, who constantly blackmail a weak, fickle president of the government, focused solely on staying seated in the presidential chair at any cost.

A president who thinks he is smarter than anyone else, who bases his government policy on seeking, at all costs, his personal survival, boosting his narcissistic ego and who tends to operate in major decisions, almost always taken unilaterally, regardless of constitutional principles or precepts, as the Constitutional Court or the Court of Auditors itself has ruled on several occasions. 

He acts without taking into account the role and importance of Parliament, blaming others for everything and ignoring the opposition or any group that he does not dominate by means of deceit or spurious subsidies distributed among cronies, relatives and all kinds of close or corrupt subordinates.

A presidentialist government which, despite being in coalition with the communists on the left, keeps them on the sidelines of important decisions and keeps them happy by keeping them treading on the carpet and subsidising without decency or decorum the ministries created specifically for them - which, by the way, have no international comparison - to undoubtedly, as is already well known, harbour centres of all kinds of corruption and patronage.

Someone who systematically and conveniently changes his criteria and programmatic principles of government, whether internally or externally, and who does not regret anything he manages or decides, whether good or bad. 

It shows that it is not affected by who, whom or what is taken ahead of it in important decisions that, moreover, were publicly and notoriously denied in the previous days or hours. 

A government, in short, that acts verging on democratic lawlessness, imposing its inventions and patches based on Royal Decrees and that tries not to be accountable to anyone.

The narcissism, propaganda and personalistic, almost caudillo-like self-hype exercised by the president himself and by a group of mouldable, brainless, disposable ministers are worthy of study, in the near future, in faculties of Medicine and Sociology, as well as Political Science.

It is so strange and alarming that no one with any sense of judgement can understand why, almost a quarter of the way through the 21st century, there are still leaders in countries considered democratic who act with such contempt for everyone and yet continue to maintain a high level of popular support and acceptance.

In a matter of weeks, he has changed his mind on such important issues as taxation, the right to strike, the financing of the state, the full serving of sentences on those who attack it, economic and energy orientation, defence policy in the national and NATO framework, the role of disaster relief in Ukraine, relations and strong international ties with southern neighbours and how Spain should develop its role and commitment to the UN in 1976 regarding the future of a Spanish protectorate, which for many years constituted yet another Spanish province. 

In short, a list so long that it is impossible to enumerate in this work; and which can be summed up by saying that, as his own very close ministers have acknowledged and proclaimed, what was once snow-white for this character is now, since he became president, pitch black. 

We were promised that, after the last crisis, which was partly the result of a tremendous pandemic and has cost more than 100,000 deaths, no one would be left behind and that we would all emerge better and stronger.
 
Two years after those announcements and commitments, Spain is economically bankrupt; with exorbitant unemployment, among the highest in the world; dependent for everything on European handouts; with electricity, gas and petrol more expensive than in any of the countries around us; forgotten about being invited to important decision-making forums; with the country paralysed by strikes in transport and in the countryside and on the verge of thousands of companies going on lay-offs or their employees going directly on strike.    

And all this for forgetting the principles