Articles of the ESM: Draghi reinvents the Divine Right of Kings

Off the keyboard of John Ward

Originally posted on The Slog on September 9th, 2012

Discuss this article at the Epicurean Delights Smorgasbord inside the Diner

You don’t get me I’m part of the Union

Draghi reinvents the Divine Right of Kings

Hitler’s 1933 Post-Reichstag Fire Emergency Decree had nothing on the newly drafted ESM Charter. You can read it here in full at the EU website: the mad folks are getting more brazen by the day, but they’re still leaving the nasties until the contemporary MSM journalists get bored: so the really startling stuff doesn’t appear until  Article 32. These are the extracts that matter, quoted verbatim except for the usual deliberately baffling legalese:

Article 32, para 3: The ESM, its property, funding and assets, wherever located and by whomsoever held, shall enjoy immunity from every form of judicial process. (There is one exception – entirely in the ESM’s favour)

para 4: The property, funding and assets of the ESM shall, wherever located and by whomsoever held, be immune from search, requisition, confiscation, expropriation or any other form of seizure, taking or foreclosure by executive, judicial, administrative or legislative action

para 8: To the extent necessary to carry out the activities provided for in this Treaty, all property, funding and assets of the ESM shall be free from restrictions, regulations, controls and moratoria of any nature

Article 35, para 1:  In the interest of the ESM, the Chairperson of the Board of Governors, Governors, alternate Governors, Directors, alternate Directors, as well as the Managing Director and other staff members shall be immune from legal proceedings with respect to acts performed by them in their official capacity and shall enjoy inviolability in respect of their official papers and documents.

There are other worms in this charity tin, but trust me, these two articles are the ones that ensure it really isn’t the standard contract. The Sun headline is this: the ESM can steal your granny’s favourite sherry decanter, and there’s nothing you can do about it; any media hacks investigating grand larceny, murder and mass rape can whistle Dixie; no matter who they subordinate, cheat, or screw over, they’re allowed to, so there; and if I Mario Draghi deems it in the public good to stuff 46,000 gold bars in a Gnome’s private bank, it’s none of your business.

But there is one astonishing phrase in there which I feel duty bound to lift and separate from even this stuff above:

‘The archives of the ESM and all documents belonging to the ESM or held by it, shall be inviolable. The premises of the ESM shall be inviolable.’

The International Law Society definition of ‘inviolable’ is ‘unassailable and impregnable’. Or in one word, untouchable. Or an yet another word, supreme.

Or in a final word, Sovereign.

You have been warned.

Recent Articles

Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus

Off the keyboard of John Ward Published on The Slog...

The Pleasures of Extinction

Off the keyboard of John Michael Greer Published on...

Eustace Conway: Anomalies & Loopholes

Off the keyboards of the Diners Published on the Doomstead...

Eustace Conway: Render Unto Caesar

Off the keyboard of the Diners Published on the Doomstead...

Eustace Conway

Off the keyboard of Lucid Dreams Published on Epiphany...

A Mother’s Day tribute

From the Keyboard of Surly1 Originally published on...

The Week That Was in Doom 5/12/2013

From the Keyboard of Surly1 Originally published on...

BLOG-A-THON: Save Eustace Conway & Turtle Island

Off the keyboard of RE Published on the Doomstead Diner...

Reaching Limits in a Finite World

Off the keyboard of Gail Tverberg Published on Our...

Abnormalcy Bias

Off the keyboard of Jim Quinn Published on The Burning...

Support the Diner
The Week That Was

The Week That Was in Doom 5/12/2013

From the Keyboard of Surly1 Originally published on...

The Week in Doom May 5, 2013

From the Keyboard of Surly1 Originally published on...

Looking Back at Occupy, Looking Forward

Off the Keyboard of Surly1 and Contrary Originally...

Forward on Climate, 2/17/2013

From the Keyboard of Surly1 Originally published in...

Homeless in February

Published originally on Doomstead Diner February 11,...

Losses and Liars

Published originally on Doomstead Diner February 1,...

The Fifth Horseman

   “Violence is as American as cherry pie.” –H....

How do we know what we know?

 Comment on this article in the Spirituality and mysticism...

A Year of Occupy

Off the Surly keyboard Discuss this article at the...

Archives
Off the Grid

Boston Marathon Bombing

Off the keyboard of William Hunter Duncan Discuss this...

Twilight of the Standard Model

Off the keyboard of William Hunter Duncan Published...

God and Football

Off the keyboard of William Hunter Duncan Originally...

2013 thus far, America

Well, 2013. Here we are, not yet a month in, and it...

RIP Aaron Swartz

Off the keyboard of William Hunter Duncan Originally...

Doom and the Spiritual Path

Off the keyboard of William Hunter Duncan Published...

Realities, 2013

Off the keyboard of William Hunter Duncan Originally...

Fired

Off the keyboard of William Hunter Duncan Originally...

Useful Links
Tags