An independent Europe will never happen if the American Empire has anything to say about it.
From Patrick Foy at lewrockwell.com:
Seeing what’s in front of your nose demands a constant struggle. —George Orwell
I’m in Munich, my favorite European city, if I throw out Venice. Is Venice actually a city? At one time it was the center of a vast Mediterranean empire. It strikes me as more of a sprawling, open-air museum frozen in time. I just left there. It was, as always, wonderful.
There is a serious problem with Munich. It is under constant construction and reorganization. The inner city was bombed to smithereens in the Second World War and had to be rebuilt from scratch. That project continues through force of habit.
Another annoyance: I invariably begin the day by digesting my two least favorite establishment media outlets—the Financial Times and the NY Times—while having breakfast. The hotel provides them free of charge. What can one do?
I owe it to myself to keep up-to-date with Washington’s Big Cons which run simultaneously and nonstop, e.g., Ukraine, China, Russia, Iran, Israel, etc. The FT print edition is available in Munich. I love print. At home, I’m stuck with the internet.
Simply put, the Big Cons are the trumpeted false narratives that:
(a) Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was unprovoked,
(b) China wants to invade Taiwan and threatens the peace of the world,
(c) Russia is an enduring enemy of the West,
(d) Iran is building an atomic bomb to nuke Israel and must be stopped,
(e) Israel is an innocent, peace-loving ally of America worthy of unlimited support.
(Vassal = a holder of land by feudal tenure on conditions of homage and allegiance)