Italy and Greece have already flirted with post-democracy, now it is Spain’s turn to do the same. It’s informative to see how the various governments facing secession movements appear to take them considerably more seriously than those who can’t see past the status quo, so seriously that they’re even willing to throw democracy and self-determination overboard if need be:
The Spanish government has launched a legal challenge against Catalonia’s recent “declaration of sovereignty”, in the latest move by Madrid to halt the region’s march towards independence.
The government said it would ask Spain’s constitutional court to nullify the Catalan parliament’s January declaration, which stated that the “people of Catalonia have, for reasons of democratic legitimacy, the nature of a sovereign political and legal subject”.
The resolution is intended to pave the way for a regional referendum on independence, and reflects the recent surge in separatist sentiment in Spain’s most important economic region.
It’s a little amusing to see journalists raise the indebted state of the regions seeking secession and sovereignty as if it is an anti-secessionary pressure. The reality is that debt is an excellent reason to secede, as a sovereign can borrow more easily and default at will.