UAE’s problem, UK-US relations, US China most alike, Trump assassination attempt again, Magna Carta

Added: 2026-04-29

[00:00:00]Um today I want to cover three things main things. One is uh UAE left OPEC uh or planning to and the second thing is the U US and UK relations. I I find it's interesting you know right now uh and then the third thing we can talk a little bit about the Trump's assassination. You know Trump's Trump is always lots of drama you know whatever he he always have a lot of drama. Okay.

[00:00:23]All right. Let's start with the UAE. So UAE they announced they're going to leave OPEC on May 1st. I'm sure it's not a single reason. So what do you think are the main reasons?

[00:00:34]>> Right. Well, there there are certain things that have been visible on the surface for some time. One is that the UAE and Saudi Arabia have over the last two years started to see a big deterioration in their relations. Now the leader of the UAE who is the crown prince of Abu Dhabi. He's not the formal leader of the UAE but he is the actual leader of the UAE. He is the same man who was recently in China. Yeah. And met with met Cining. Anyway, he and MBS, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, who is the actual leader of Saudi Arabia, h were used to be very close friends >> and now they've increasingly become enemies. I mean, they really don't like each other. And I think a lot of it's just vanity. I think there are other things at play as well. Um the there are reports that Saudi Arabia has been using its position as head of OPEC, de facto head of OPEC to limit the UAE's oil production.

[00:01:46]The UAE, it is said, was not very happy by Saudi Arabia's ramo with Iran, the one that China broken. Um the reason is that the UAE has some territorial disputes with Iran over certain islands.

[00:02:05]>> Um the UAE was very unhappy about the fact that Saudi Arabia was more restrained in its response to um Iran, the attacks by Iran over the course of this last period of conflict. So there's all this that's been going on in the background. But here is what I believe and I am unique in thinking this. But I've been here thinking this for some time before the reports before the report yesterday that the UAE is quitting OPEC.

[00:02:44]>> I think it is because the UAE is short of money.

[00:02:48]>> And I'll tell you why I think this.

[00:02:49]There's a number of reasons why. I mean that is not the official view. The official view is that UA is very rich and it's got huge amounts of money uh um piled up.

[00:03:00]>> But a number of things have happened.

[00:03:03]First the UAE refused to roll over a loan of $3.5 billion dollars. Yeah.

[00:03:09]>> That was owed to the UAE by Pakistan.

[00:03:12]Yeah.

[00:03:12]>> Now again all sorts of people came up with all sorts of explanations as to why this was so which all had to do with politics. I didn't find any of these explanations in the end very convincing.

[00:03:24]I mean, yes, no doubt there are tensions, but I would have thought that the UAE would want to remain on good terms with Pakistan, especially at a time like this.

[00:03:36]Secondly, and it's something that has gone completely unreported, is that the US Treasury Secretary Scott >> Bessent >> Mhm.

[00:03:45]>> released the information a few days ago that the UAE and the United States have agreed between their central banks a currency swap arrangement. Mhm.

[00:03:59]>> So that if the UAE suddenly needs dollars, the Federal Reserve Board will provide them quickly in return for deams, UAE currency, >> okay, >> at the current rate of exchange.

[00:04:15]>> Now, why would the UAE want to do that when it is full of dollars? It's supposed to be very, very rich. Mhm.

[00:04:26]>> It seems to me on the contrary that the indications are that it's running short of dollars, >> that the amount of its reserves that it's publishing are not consistent with the reality. And then the the other thing that I was thinking about was what you told me about two weeks ago >> that there's been this enormous transfer of funds from the Gulf to Hong Kong.

[00:05:00]>> Mhm.

[00:05:01]>> Now, where will that money be coming from? Mhm.

[00:05:06]>> Logically, it must be coming from the major financial center >> of the Persian Gulf, >> which is of course the UAE. It's the banks in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Yeah.

[00:05:24]>> That act as the big international banks in this area.

[00:05:28]>> So, I think that the UAE is in financial trouble. Mhm.

[00:05:33]>> The crisis in the straight of Hormuz has brought this to a head. There's this huge outflow of funds from the Persian Gulf. They've had to agree this currency swap arrangement with the Americans and they're pulling out of OPEC because as soon as the straight of Hormuz is open or reopened, they want to sell as much oil as they can >> at whatever crow price it will fetch in order to stabilize their own financial position.

[00:06:06]>> So this is what I think this is all about. Now if this is true then the implications of this are extremely grave and they suggest that we are on the brink of a huge crisis in the financial system the western financial system I want to stress not China's not Russia's but the west's financial system because the Gulf states the Persian Gulf states have played a central role in keeping funds moving through the financial system in maintaining liquidity uh within it. The the the oil they export the oil, the money comes back to them. They put the money through the financial system into the banks and hedge funds and all of those things and that's what's kept the wheels of global finance or western global finance turning. So that's what I think.

[00:07:03]>> Yeah. Uh I think I also read that uh subsequently after we talk about the big huge amount funds fly uh move to Hong Kong I think UAE actually at least temporarily stopped the fund from leaving the country or something. I think I read it somewhere. So that's another sign right there.

[00:07:20]>> Well there you go.

[00:07:21]>> Yeah.

[00:07:22]>> Well well there you go. I mean further proof of it. Yeah.

[00:07:25]>> Yeah. So yeah I I I agree. I think they do have some it's to my surprise that they seems to have some money problem.

[00:07:32]Um >> you see you see you see uh Sophia this is the way banks work. It's it's it's not really a surprise I if you are a small country which the is a very small country >> if you are um if you're going to run a banking and financial system in the way I said Hong Kong does >> you either have to run it very tightly and very carefully and very prudently as basically Singapore does for example >> or you have to have a large volume of money coming in >> because because the nature of banks is that money goes in and money goes out and unless beneath you there are deep reserves such as exist in China >> then you can very very quickly find yourself in a position where you're overcommitted >> so I I am not so surprised as somebody who's more skeptical about these things and who has seen financial crisis play out many times in my lifetime.

[00:08:43]>> Yeah. Yeah. You're right. I I I also noticed that lots of times banks they don't have uh a lot of reserve as you said, right? Somehow for them if you keep a huge amount of cash for them it's like losing money. That cash has to be constantly out there somewhere to generate more money. Right. That's the idea.

[00:09:02]>> Yes. But but when you but that's based on the assumption that things will not go wrong. Okay.

[00:09:08]>> Exactly. Exactly.

[00:09:10]>> I mean not that long ago maybe one or two month ago I think Black Rockck had some issues. So I think it not much reported about that because I guess they didn't want to panic in the market or something but it was Black Rockck. You would think they have a lot of money somewhere but they were short on cash I think. So >> you see, you see, you see what people confuse is bank assets.

[00:09:33]>> Mhm. with actual funds that banks >> can draw in quickly >> to pay their liabilities because banks if they have lots of loans out, you know, they make lots of loans, those count as assets and they can look very strong on the balance sheets and they can make a bank look very strong on >> balance sheets. But if those all of those loans turn sour >> and we have situations where it's not possible any longer to call the loans in >> then as I said you could be in very bad trouble and find yourself in trouble very fast.

[00:10:13]>> Yeah. Black Rockck I mean they were saying lots of US companies and Black Rockck is investors. So they are holding on lot of you know companies but those are company stocks those are not cash.

[00:10:24]>> Exactly. And if they started selling those holdings, the price will go down.

[00:10:29]So which means their asset as a whole will go down. Right. So >> Exactly.

[00:10:32]>> It's a very >> Yeah.

[00:10:34]>> I don't know. It's a game that is a high stake and things if they go wrong can go very wrong. Right.

[00:10:41]>> Absolutely.

[00:10:42]>> Absolutely.

[00:10:43]>> Well, but but here's my thing though. So let's say uh UAE leaves um OPEC.

[00:10:50]>> Yeah. Um, but if this war continues, it cannot it still cannot get it oil out, isn't it? So, it doesn't really solve its problem in the short run.

[00:10:59]>> No, no, it doesn't solve its problems at all in the short run. I wonder whether this was part of a deal that was also done with the Americans that we need the foreign currency swap >> and the Americans said, "Okay, but you in return you must leave OPEC."

[00:11:14]>> I mean, I wouldn't be surprised, but you're quite right. does not solve in any way the UAE's problems. In fact, these problems are, I think, in danger of becoming permanent because the Americans by all reports have run out of military options. Mhm.

[00:11:35]>> Um there are now very very well sourced reports that say that the military have advised Trump that further military operations against Iran um will achieve nothing >> that Iran has basically defeated the American military. That is an extraordinary thing to say. But anyway, it seems that that is so and that the only the only card the Americans still have left to play is this sea blockade and that hasn't been very effective up to now. So if that is true and we have a peace settlement at some point then inevitably it's going to be a peace settlement which will leave Iran in some control of the straight of Hormuse.

[00:12:20]>> Mhm. which given the hostile relationship between the UAE and Iran means that the UA is going to be in very difficult position relative with its export sales um given Iranian control of the straight of Hormos. So no, it doesn't solve their problems. In fact, they're taking in their anger, they're going in the wrong direction. They should be talking instead to China.

[00:12:47]>> Mhm.

[00:12:48]>> Where I think Cin Pig tried to explain the situation wisely to them and they should be working to end this war as quickly as possible on the best terms possible rather than >> act in anger. You know, there's that expression in English. I'm sure you have an equivalent one in Chinese because it's almost an Chinese one. Decisions made in anger are repented at leisure, which is true.

[00:13:17]>> Yeah.

[00:13:18]>> Well, that's why some people even speculating that uh it's possible this is just the first step that UAE possibly might uh leave Arab League, Gulf uh the dcc and the organization of the Islamic Corporation. So just altogether leave all this. Now if that happens it will be only it's to me if that happens it's it means UAE will pretty much abandon the whole I guess Muslim world the Gulf nations. So we'll only work with the US and China possibly. So right is that yeah where that is absolutely right but I wonder whether that is really a wise idea a wise thing for the UAE to do. But you know at the moment is looking as if that is exactly what they're proposing to do.

[00:14:04]>> Yeah. Yeah. Uh with China like I mean the US of course for one thing I'm not you just said right it not necessarily will really protect UAE much you know militarily it it's not okay.

[00:14:17]>> Um so we will see what more US can do. I guess US can help UAE with money problem for now. All right. Now with China, so we we talked about that two weeks ago.

[00:14:26]The the crown prince visited China and and Sigin Ping said it very clear. I just went back to to read their readout >> and uh the readout says Sin Ping said it's important to support the Gulf States in improving their ties work to build a common comprehensive cooperative and sustainable security architecture of the Middle East and Gulf region and consolidate the foundation for peaceful coexistence. So CIP made it very clear.

[00:14:53]You need to get along with your neighbors, right? With all the Gulf countries. That's your solution, right?

[00:14:59]So very different approach from the US.

[00:15:03]>> A completely different approach from the US. But one one gets the sense that at the moment the Emiratis don't want to hear this.

[00:15:11]>> I mean this this step that they have just taken is not going to improve their relations with their neighbors. It's going to spoil their relations with their neighbors. um um a joint security architecture is absolutely what they should be working towards. They should be embracing this proposal from Cining which by the way the Russians have picked up and they're also pushing. Um but that's absolutely what the the Emiratis ought to be doing. Instead, they're they're they're sulking and are storming out of every meeting and are saying, "Well, because we're in this terrible situation, it's everybody's fault, except presumably Donald Trump's, and we're just going to walk out of every uh every um part of what we're part of and storm out >> and to hell with all of you." But how does that help the UAE?

[00:16:13]>> Yeah. Do you think it will impact uh OPEC and OPAC plus?

[00:16:18]>> Yes. Yes, it will. I mean, in the short term, it's bound to because you're going to have uh one of the world's biggest oil exporters and they will be trying to export oil at whatever price they can.

[00:16:31]And that's not going to be very uh that's not going to be a very good situ.

[00:16:35]China is going to do well for me >> because get cheaper oil. America, America, Europe eventually. Well, if they if if we ever get there, but in the end, it's not going to be good for the UAE.

[00:16:47]>> It's not going to please the Saudis at all.

[00:16:50]>> Uh the Russians won't be happy. The Iranians won't be happy. So um it's it's and of course one of the problems with creating oil price or gluts is yes prices fall but then what tends to happen is the prices go zooming up again. I mean that's that's the way in which the oil market works which is inherently destabilizing and in the end bad for everybody. very very low low oil prices by the way will also undermine the stability of America's own oil industry which operates on very very tight margins because it's based on shale >> and um I said that the Americans would be happy to see oil prices fall they won't be happy to see fall that far because uh believe it or not people underestimate the importance of oil now to the overall US economy. Um, not only is it make not only is the oil industry making a very big uh share of GDP growth in the US to the whatever extent GDP growth in the US is even real anymore.

[00:18:07]But what most most people don't know is that crude oil is today by volume and price America's biggest export. M >> I mean they go on about you know the fact that Russia is mostly a crude oil exporter. So is the US >> a fact which most people just aren't aware of.

[00:18:28]>> Okay.

[00:18:30]Um okay let's talk a little about US and UK relations which is kind of a um interesting. So King Charles is now visiting the United States. Uh it seems on the surface everything is good but there are some problems right? For one thing, it seems like the US is more neutral in terms of the with Argentina's Folkland Island >> and the Trump has very uh clearly showed he's not happy that UK is not supporting him on the Iran war. Right. So, can you sort this out for me and my audience?

[00:19:02]Yeah, I mean I think the first thing to say is that for the British this is an extremely frightening situation because ever since the second world war, ever since 1940 to be precise, Britain's entire foreign defense security policy and much of its domestic politics have been constru and its economic policy had been constructed around the alliance with the United States. Mhm.

[00:19:31]>> I I think I should explain something to Chinese people >> which many people in the west itself even in Britain don't understand. I'm sure that in China people have noticed this enormous cult there is in Britain around the person of Winston Churchill.

[00:19:48]>> Yeah. Now the the reason Wilson Churchill is so important in the British imagination and why the British returned continuously to the political and debates that used to take place in the 1930s is because this was the last period in British history when Britain was generally independent. Mhm.

[00:20:10]>> Church was the last truly independent prime minister of Britain when Britain was still a great power making its own decisions by itself.

[00:20:21]Since Churchill's day, since the 1940s, Britain has been the subordinate ally of the United States. And we have been in this situation for so very long and we become so accustomed to it that it is unthinkable for us that that can change and we have no plan if it ever ends. I mean it's just inconceivable to people that it could ever end. And now suddenly the Americans are talking as if it might end. Something they've never done up to now. So they're talking about, well, you know, ar the Falkland Islands really should go to Argentina. Well, the British have failed us in the Persian Gulf. Well, what real use is NATO to us anyway? And bear in mind, NATO is a joint enterprise started as a joint enterprise of the Americans and the British. The first secretary of general of NATO was a Britain, Lord Isizmmy, who famously said that the purpose of NATO was to keep the Russians out, the Germans down >> and the Americans in that that was its purpose. So um suddenly everything this whole structure I they they see it being questioned in the United States and no real push back from people inside the United States against it and it terrifies them. It's like suddenly be you know the the the the uh boy who's lived in his parents' house all his life can't imagine life outside it. He's been shown the door and told to leave. So I mean they they are in panic and they don't quite know what to do. So they trundled out the king and they sent him to uh Washington and he's just delivered this extraordinary speech in Congress which by the way is a shocking speech which breaks all precedence because the king is not supposed to engage directly in politics in the way that he has done. Um but um he did and what he's trying to do is to patch up this alliance with the Americans by raking up all the old stories. You know the common the common uh uh you know the fact that we share the common law that we have all this great history that we believe in the same things that we have all the same values. But notice again, he's also trying to get the Americans to come back onto the British side. So fight Ukraine to the bitter end, stay loyal to NATO, all of these things. So it at one and the same time as he's preaching unity he's also highlighting the fact that there are these existing and growing divisions.

[00:23:43]Um what exactly um why it is so important for the for UK to rely heavily on the US is it entirely because of they are Anglo-Saxon because you you see the hostel towards both the Russia and the Germany doesn't make any sense to me they are much closer country to UK and you made it very clear I you know you're enemy of those two that country but you are alliance with somebody who's so far away >> is it entirely because they are the same race or something.

[00:24:14]>> Absolutely. I mean there is this conception which goes back by the way to the late 19th century um as the British Empire declined.

[00:24:23]They they start the British started to say to themselves, we we're not as powerful as we used to be.

[00:24:29]>> So how are we going to perpetuate our dominance? We're going to get the Americans to come in to help us because the Americans share our language. They share our they political system is similar to ours. Actually, it's not. It superficially appears similar, but actually it's very different. The the Americans share our values. Actually, they don't really again America's far more different from Britain than the British than the British indeed realize.

[00:24:58]So, um, the the British, bring the Americans in, get them to become our allies so that we can ride American strength and continue to project power around the world basically on the back of American power.

[00:25:20]>> And you got all of these extraordinary statements. So Winston Churchill who I just spoke about wrote a long history about the history of the English speakaking peoples and he actually floated the idea of Britain's and Americans sharing the same citizenship even though they would remain British different countries. Harold McMillan who was our prime minister in the 1950s said that the British would be the Greeks to the Americans Romans. So the Romans, you know, very strong, but the Greeks were the clever, enlightened, intelligent people. Margaret Thatcher again trying to play in a similar kind of role, you know, that she was going to be the person who would have the greatest influence over uh over Reagan, uh Tony Blair, George Bush, all of this. Um and again, it's it's largely because the the British like to believe that the Americans are very like them. They in fact they're the same. But we're the same. I mean, you know, we have some some differences. They like hamburgers more than we do and that kind of thing.

[00:26:29]But basically, they're the same. We We talk the same language. We think the same way. We have the same type of law.

[00:26:35]It doesn't matter if they're a bit stronger than us.

[00:26:38]>> The British never admit how much stronger than the British are. The Americans actually are. It doesn't matter. They're a bit stronger. It's a joint enterprise. We must keep it going because this is how we can be strong.

[00:26:52]And of course, we can't ever think in that way about the Germans >> or the French and certainly not the Russians. And as for the Chinese, why?

[00:27:04]They were the people we once sought to colonize and rule. How can we ever ever cooperate in that kind of way with them?

[00:27:13]>> So this is very much the British mindset.

[00:27:17]It's kind of interesting. My own observation, you know, I lived in uh Sweden and China and US, I actually find the biggest uh when you see the United States and and China probably more similar than any other countries simply because of the size. I think size matters >> that when you are occupy that big territory right with the different ethnicities and all that you have very similar concerns and issues and also you know how to deal with the neighbors and your international standing all these kind of thing I find United States is way more similar to China than is to Britain in my view but >> I'm sure I'm sure you're absolutely right just I I I found the same between Americans and Russians by the way >> a and at a personal level and again I'm sure it's the same reason. These are big countries.

[00:28:05]>> Yeah.

[00:28:06]>> Uh and and that that inevitably shapes the perspective in in fundamental ways.

[00:28:14]>> Yeah. Because once you're a step lower, it's a smaller country, the first concern is those big players, right?

[00:28:20]Whatever you do, what are those big players going to react? That's your first concern, which the the big players never have that, >> right?

[00:28:27]>> Exactly. So uh anyway uh one of the things that Charles uh speech was interesting he talked about this Magna Carta uh I I I think like you said his purpose is to show the remind the Americans that we're very similar we have similar value you know even system etc. But but I'm a little bit curious since I have you here can you explain a little bit this whole idea this Magna Carta is that the UK constitution is it?

[00:28:56]M no in a simple Magna Carta is a practically mythological document. I say that because there is the real actual Magna Carta that that is a document that did that was created in 1215 in England >> and there is another uh Magna Carta that exists mostly in the English imagination um and is an invention of English legal thinkers of the 16th century. So briefly, Magna Carta, there was a rebellion against the king >> at the time was a man called King John.

[00:29:34]A very clever, very ruthless, very cynical, but rather brilliant man in some ways. He's been made in history to be very evil, but he wasn't no more evil than other English kings. Anyway, there was a compromise reached and the king and the rebels who it is essential to understand were the aristocracy, the very grandest, richest, most powerful people in England at that time. We're talking about 1215. They came to they came together in a place called Ranimade which is not far from London by the way.

[00:30:12]It's within about now uh it's about 2 hours drive from where I live and they met and there was a conference there and they came to an agreement which they all signed and the agreement which is in very strange Latin and very difficult to understand today but anyway it it basically sets out a set of points of agreement between the two >> and at the end it has this extremely important sentence which is that the king will not punish anybody except through operation of law and only after proper trial by the suspect's peers. In other words, by his equals.

[00:31:01]>> So this is the system that creates law that creates the idea of supremacy. This this sentence was then taken in the 16th century to mean that the king was accepting the supremacy of law above himself >> and um was accepting the idea of trial by jury.

[00:31:22]>> Now I would be astonished if anybody in 1215 thought that. I mean you bear in mind you know we're talking about people who mostly couldn't read. So I mean you know this is all scribbled out by scribes.

[00:31:36]>> U this is I mean you you must understand that England in 1215 >> was not like China in 1215. China in 1215, everybody everybody who held any kind of senior position would have been literate from the emperor the hang all the way down in England at that time the proportion of the population that was literate would have been in the low one the low >> percents very small so I mean they weren't thinking that it was just a sort of compromise between them and but in the 16th century Certain English lawyers who were at that time pushing back against royal authority >> use this sentence, this one single sentence in what is actually quite a long document to say that the king at that time accepted the supremacy of law. and the most famous judge of that time um whose name I've just forgotten by the way but anyway he he famously said to one of the king's ministers however high you stand the law is above you >> so it is important but it is important not because of what happened in the middle ages but because of what happened in the 16th century what relevance does that have to the United States? I would say none actually because if you think about it, the point about Magna Carta, even as it's been reinterpreted in the 16th century, is that it's a contract between a king >> and his people.

[00:33:25]>> Yeah.

[00:33:25]>> The United States doesn't have a king.

[00:33:28]It's supposed to be a republic >> with its own constitution. So the relevance of Magna Carta is zero. But of course the English have played this card of Magna Carta for all it's worth and they've told the Americans look this is where you get the idea of your liberties from and the protection of law and they pushed it and they pushed it relentlessly and at the time of the bicesentennial in 1976 as I very well remember because I was already around then they gave to the Americans a copy of Magna Carta made him solid gold and now we have King Charles talking about it all over again. But it's it's it's it's it's a fantasy. It has no connection to uh modern America. Uh modern American judicial thinking and constitutional principles are based certainly on the English common law, but mostly on the Constitution of the United States.

[00:34:28]>> I would say probably a little bit of French influence as well because Right.

[00:34:33]So it's a combination. I'm I'm sure you know when they set up their uh when the US funding fathers they look everywhere I assume you know all the European countries and of course Britain but I think they also have some influence from France as well >> profoundly so they >> they were they were very educated men many of them could speak French absolutely they did >> and they were you know this is the time of the French intellectuals this is where the the French came up with the idea of the uh division of powers for example obviously that so I mean Yeah, absolutely. The French are there too.

[00:35:06]>> So, so I would say it's a combination of any many influence among others probably the British one. Yeah. So, >> now um does Britain has a constitution?

[00:35:16]I got mixed answers. Some people say yes, some people say no. Does you have it?

[00:35:22]>> No, it does not in the sense that pe constitutions exist in other countries.

[00:35:27]We have no written constitution. There's no single document that is a constitution. Magna Carta obviously isn't a constitution. By the way, that that one sentence I read to you is the only part of Magna Carta today which is operative law.

[00:35:43]>> All of the rest >> is not okay.

[00:35:46]>> It's not and that is still in theory operative law. None of the rest is so um Magna Cart is not constitution. We have no constitutional single constitutional document. Um what England is and this is the thing that people just do not understand is that in legal terms it is a monarchy.

[00:36:14]An absolute monarchy.

[00:36:17]>> The king as king rules and owns Britain. All land for example in Britain belongs to him. So when we own land when we buy land we buy it as his tenants. I that's that's the English principle.

[00:36:40]>> Okay.

[00:36:41]>> So the king is absolute. Now the king has his council which he seeks advice from and that council is made up of the aristocrats and they are the house of lords.

[00:36:59]>> Okay. And the king in the in the 13th century decided that when he taxed when he imposed taxes, >> he would seek advice from the larger English nation.

[00:37:19]>> Mhm. And so he called what he called a parliament which met and whose only purpose was to imp to approve the king's request for taxes and and that was all all the the sole the sole maker of law >> in England again is the king.

[00:37:50]H again people don't understand that but all laws in England originate from the king.

[00:37:57]>> Mhm. Now again through habit through convention it came about that the king from about the 16th 17th century mostly the 17th century before he pronounced a law would seek the advice of his council the house of lords and the approval of the house of commons. Mhm.

[00:38:25]>> But the final decision as to whether a law comes into effect or not is the kings.

[00:38:33]>> No law in England comes into force or is legal until the king signs it.

[00:38:42]>> And the preamble of every English law that parliament passes makes this completely clear. by the king's most excellent majesty upon the advice of his lords and commons here assembled.

[00:39:06]It is hereby ordered as follows.

[00:39:11]>> So we are a monarchy.

[00:39:14]>> We are not a constitutional state in the way that other countries are. There are various conventions and principles that underpin this system but that is the reality of it.

[00:39:28]>> Seems to me this Magna Carta is is a way to distribute power between the king and the nobles.

[00:39:36]>> That's exactly that's all it was. That is exactly what it was. You see the king in middle medieval England. Remember again medieval England is completely different from China at this time. In China, you have the hang, you have the civil service that is that is recruited from people who pass the literary examinations.

[00:39:59]>> Yeah.

[00:39:59]>> You have there's nothing like that in England. So, how does the king administer the country? He does that through the aristocracy.

[00:40:08]>> So, he has to have the cooperation of the aristocrats >> to administer the country. And so there is a constant process of negotiation between the king and his nobles, his aristocrats as to how to govern England.

[00:40:23]>> Yeah.

[00:40:25]>> All right. Uh about the Trump, so the assassination um now surrounding his first assassination, you know, in Butler, Pennsylvania, and then this time there's always conspiracies saying, you know, this is faked one and etc. Um now he doesn't help the matter when he shortly after the assassination attempt and he talk about the barum the necessity to build the barum just make it even worse I think um so far I mean I don't have all the evidence so I can't say this is a faked one or or not a fake one either way okay for me the only thing is it really reflects the fact that people don't trust Trump don't trust the US government isn't it >> this is exactly right but I think you've hit the nail on the head I I I I was I was talking this morning with my wife on this very question and we both she made exactly the same point as you at the end of the day we can't say whether this was real or whether it was not whether it was fake or whether it was actual whether it's a piece of theater which I have to say it was very theatrical or whether in fact it was real but the point is that the American people no longer trust their government they no longer believe what they are shown They assume that behind every story there is something which is untrue. And that tells you everything. That tells you everything you need to know about the state of the United States. Because in a democracy, a genuine democracy, that question of trust, if you think about it, should not exist.

[00:42:02]>> If the people really have power, which is what democracy means, how can they not trust their government? which is ultimately controlled by them >> by definition.

[00:42:14]>> The other thing goes along that line is also um lots of the suspicious thing is they were saying for example the security is so bad. Well the fact is this administration is very incompetent.

[00:42:28]It is actually possible that their securities aren't as bad.

[00:42:32]>> Well yes >> that's another thing right.

[00:42:35]>> Well that's absolutely true. This is completely true. I mean I I would add it isn't just this incident. I mean there continues to be both in the US and around the world >> this assumption that the American government works well and is efficient.

[00:42:52]I've seen I nothing that happens.

[00:42:55]Hurricane Katrina, um the debacle in Iraq, the debacle in Afghanistan, the mismanagement of the financial system in 2008, >> the COVID crisis and all that mess.

[00:43:10]Nothing that ever the the the failure now in Iran, nothing ever seems to change in people's belief about this.

[00:43:17]They all say it is impossible that the United States can fail. But of course, it can fail. We see that it does. So repeatedly.

[00:43:26]>> Yeah.

[00:43:27]>> Yeah. Including in China uh not that long ago there was report about aircraft carrier I think Lincoln or which one their their food are rationed. It seems like what what they were eating. This was reported in the US media and some people reported that back in China lots of people don't believe it. It's like how can that be possible? You know people on aircraft carrier don't have enough food. Are you serious? You must be making this up.

[00:43:50]>> Absolutely. Absolutely. Again it was reported here in Britain. passed practically unnoticed, by the way. But I thought exactly the same as you. Uh, sailors on half rations with dull and boring food because the United States military can't keep up supplies. This from the country which was supposed to have perfected logistics.

[00:44:15]>> Yeah.

[00:44:16]Um, okay. Last thing based on the US uh war power resolution they passed 1973.

[00:44:24]The US president cannot declare war more than 60 days. After 60 days, it has to have the approval of the Congress or the Congress will declare war of some sort, which is May 1st >> in a couple of days. I don't see anything going on. You think Trump will just totally ignore it?

[00:44:42]>> Yes, as a matter of fact, I think he will. Um, this is so strange. I mean uh America what what are the two most important things powers that Congress has? One is the ability to raise taxes and two >> Mhm.

[00:45:02]>> is the right to declare war.

[00:45:04]>> I mean those two things together are the most important things. Trump has raised taxes without Congress >> through tariffs. All right. The Supreme Court went against him, but he's still doing it.

[00:45:20]>> Yeah, >> he's still doing it.

[00:45:22]>> Yeah.

[00:45:23]>> And he's led the United States into war without getting congressional authority.

[00:45:32]>> Um, does the Congress react? Does it even care? Are the people worried? Are the protests against this? Is is the talk of impeaching Trump around it?

[00:45:47]No. When people talk about how Donald Trump is a threat to the American Constitution, he is obviously, but then so is the entire political system.

[00:45:57]>> Yeah.

[00:45:58]>> Which is not acting to restrain him.

[00:46:02]>> Mhm.

[00:46:03]>> Yeah. Um when when I was looking at the uh Tara's speech to the Congress, he he also mentioned the check and balances.

[00:46:11]You know, there's ton of comments under there saying yes, he's giving this speech to the US Congress. The US Congress has done nothing for check and balances at this point. So anyway, well then he would he probably would just ignore the whole thing and then keep on do doing. All right. Okay.

[00:46:32]>> Well, let's see what happens then. Let's talk next week.

[00:46:35]>> Let's talk next week.

[00:46:36]>> Thank you so much. I appreciate you doing this. Thank you.

[00:46:39]>> Thank you. Bye. Bye.