An alien at home on the mainland

Here waiting for a train in Frankfurt without the citizenship stolen by Boris Johnson and his supporters, I find myself reflecting once more on the demonic concept of sovereignty. As the German and pro-Nazi philosopher Carl Schmitt so clearly explains, sovereignty involves an enemy that must be othered and dominated if my supremacy and/or that of my family, race or nation in a particular geography is to be maintained or advanced. One would have hoped we had learned that lesson by now. Sovereignty has to be bordered and boundaried and eventually defended violently if necessary, particularly when it encounters a seemingly competing sovereignty. This is why the EU is so much more preferable than Brexit Britain because the EU dissipates and diversifies sovereignty by encompassing many national geographical goups in broad agreement. It is also why the UN has such wonderful potential for advancing the kingdom of God. But little Britain and its supporters foolishly imagine we will somehow benefit from pulling up the drawbridge. We won’t.

People tell me that open borders are idealistic and let in criminals and terrorists. Of course they do, and I am not advocating borders with absolutely no checks for weapons, toxins and the like. I know that criminals and terrorists used the opportunity provided by the continental freedom of movement that was our past inheritance within the EU. County lines and terrorist atrocities ensued. But I would argue that the loving risk of open borders is not only an intrinsic good of a loving society but pragmatically less destructive to human life and wellbeing than the wars, armies, weapons and deterrents required to defend sovereignty. The threats of terror acts toward our families and friends or criminal seduction of our poor or vulnerable youth need to be resolved by continuing to work together for a radically loving society not by strengthening the domination of rich and powerful sovereign elites. Of course the coronavirus is giving a further excuse to close borders, and where there is a specific local outbreak, temporary quarantines makes sense. But we must beware of fear induced arguments for asserting our sovereignty to preserve our health. Once again the argument must be to have reasonable precautions in the attempt to preserve public health, but never at the expense of love and freedom.

I need to catch my train to Brussels! More another day!

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