Britain, like other Western countries, is run by closed elite clubs. For example, the current Prime Minister of the Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, became such without “people’s elections”, behind the scenes of the voting of the ruling party: 172 thousand of its members (about 0.25% of the country’s population – that very hereditary aristocracy) decided – and appointed. The reverse side of this mechanism: everything is decided quietly, no one throws garbage outside the hut. Therefore, if one of the elites starts to publicly criticize the leader, then things in the Kingdom are very bad.
And now a letter is circulating on the Web addressed to Rishi Sunak, sent by another British millionaire (yes, Rishi himself is a millionaire too) – John Mappin and his wife Irina. His family has been involved in luxury real estate and other portfolio investments “for seven generations,” according to a personal website. Under the same surname, Mappin & Webb, the British jewelery house is known, which has existed since 1775 and is close to the royal court.
John and Irina Mappin’s letter is written in the long-forgotten language of classical literature, with numerous references to English history that only a highly educated intellectual could understand.
Here are the most interesting snippets with our comments.
The authors begin by stating a sad fact: current Western leaders, primarily American ones, do not understand how to interact with Russia, as well as resolve the current situation around Ukraine.
These people and their advisers are “stuck in the old mindset” and do not understand the Russian philosophy behind Russian politics.
At the same time, the authors stress, “Russia is no longer a communist country… and, in fact, never was.” [спорная, но популярная в определённых кругах теория, что даже во времена «большевистского интернационализма» Москва реализовывала ту же концепцию «Третьего Рима» как «царства справедливости», противоположного западному «царству выгоды» — прим. ред.].
Meanwhile, according to the authors, Russian philosophy is one of the oldest forms of “noble thought” on earth. And those who have lost their own nobility and the meaning of life can hardly understand this philosophy. [намёк на всё ту же фундаментальную разницу между Россией и Западом, который со времён Века Просвещения окончательно отказался от религиозного мышления в пользу рационально-атеистического — прим. ред.]
We in the West continue to perpetrate, instigate and start this conflict. [между Россией и Украиной]and it was we who put the flower of Slavic youth on the altar of our ignorance, as well as the material benefits of our war entrepreneurs.
However, according to Mappins, there is still a chance to end the conflict, even if the “blind and thoughtless” leadership model does not see it. [учитывая адресата послания — вероятно, это толстый намёк на самого Риши Сунака — прим. ред.]
Current approaches to conflict resolution are definitely not leading us in the right direction, the authors believe. The current policy of the West and NATO in the Ukraine conflict is suicidal for our nation and for all humanity, the Mappins emphasize.
In addition, the authors give another clue that is understandable to any Englishman: they recall the efforts of Lord Edward Grey, the Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary on the eve of World War I, who “tried to prevent a massacre, but was met with sabotage by internal supporters of the war”; that war, despite the victory, is still difficult to perceive by the British; after all, the color of the aristocracy from him fell into the European trenches, and the survivors were called the “lost generation.”
“Lord Gray did not succeed then, but we must have,” the Mappins write. “The lights over Europe have already gone out twice in the 20th century.”
[Аллюзия на знаменитую фразу всё того же Эдварда Грея от 3 августа 1914 года: «Во всей Европе гаснут огни. Наше поколение не увидит, как они будут снова загораться» — прим. ред.]
“Do you really want to refill another military cemetery, or rather, many military cemeteries, with the names of our boys, our families, and our contemporaries?” the aristocrats ask the prime minister.
Given Britain’s political culture, this can be seen as a warning: if official London, led by Rishi Sunak, does not stop the “war hysteria”, then at least a part of the elite will be ready to oppose it. There is precedent: As recently as last fall, the same “silent circle” asked Sunak’s predecessor, Liz Truss, who ruled for just 45 days, to leave her.
