I’ve been the problem all along
This is really awkward for me, what with being a country and all. I don’t usually speak, and I certainly never imagined I’d speak from a position of humility. That’s just never been my style. I’ve always been more of a see it, seize it, dominate it sort of country. Short on words, big on colonies. But ya know what? I do read the papers. There’s lots of talk about Scotland, well, about half the Scots, wanting out of this little forced arrangement that’s worked out so well for us, well, for me, sort of, for so long. But then there was this sore little reminder run by The Guardian, mapping out every one of my little imperialist failures.
I tried to ignore this, but I really just couldn’t. Somehow it hit me like a brick. After all my efforts to create a little unity, nobody has wanted to stay. All I ever wanted was to bring some culture to these far-flung places on the globe, and maybe extract a little value here and there. Sure, things got ugly now and again. I can’t help it. I get defensive when I work so hard at a relationship and nothing seems to work. I’m a yeller and screamer by nature. I like to throw things. When that doesn’t work, killing a few people has never been beneath me. It’s how I show my dedication, after all. But this series of maps from The Guardian! It’s like having every rejection in my life thrown in my face for the world to see my shame.
And I am ashamed. Because I finally get it now. Like with any string of dysfunctional relationships, what they all have in common is me. It wasn’t them. It was me all along. My neediness. My insistence that things be my way or the highway. Maybe the killing, too, but I’m not quite ready to take that step.
I guess what I’m trying to say is I know I was wrong, so this is my apology to:
The United States
Southern Ireland
Egypt
Jordan
Israel
Sudan
Ghana
South Africa
Iraq
Pakistan
India
Malaysia
Burma
Sri Lanka
Jamaica
Trinidad & Tobago
Sierra Leone
Nigeria
Zambia
Malta
Cyprus
Kuwait
Uganda
Kenya
Tanzania
Malawi
Somaliland
Samoa
Barbados
Guyana
The Gambia
Botswana
Lesotho
Yemen
Nauru
Maldives
Mauritius
Swaziland
Bahamas
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent & the Grenadines
Grenada
Dominica
Bahrain
Qatar
UAE
Seychelles
Papua New Guinea
Solomon Islands
Kiribati
Tuvalu
Fiji
Belize
Antigua and Barbuda
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Zimbabwe
Brunei
Vanuatu
Australia
New Zealand
And you, Canada, even you. Bloody hell! The nicest country ever, and even you left me.
I must really have been a shit. Clearly there’s something just awful about me, and I think I need some time to sort this out for myself. I have to be honest with myself after all these years. I’m just not cut out for this whole “united” thing. As for kingdom, that’s rich. I’ve got all this useless royalty, but kingdom? I’d laugh, but it hurts too much right now. I’m so raw.
So that’s it guys. I’m finally getting a clue, taking the hint. I want out of the “United Kingdom,” too. I’m sorry to break it to you like this, Northern Ireland and Wales, but I just can’t sit around waiting any more for Scotland to decide when it wants to kick me like a bad habit. You two have been fine, mostly, but really, I think this is for the best. And hey, who knows, maybe if I just go my own way you two and Scotland can stay united and do really well with it. You could hardly do worse than I have. I hope there’s no hard feelings. I really just want what’s best for you all.
Really, that’s all I’ve ever wanted, I just got it so wrong. I’m sorry.
P.S. I couldn’t bring myself to write this myself really, so I hope you don’t mind I had some Yank do it for me. I tried, but it just wasn’t working.
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Image credit: Rian (Ree) Saunders @ flickr.com. Licensed under Creative Commons.
Ars Skeptica 