Plaid Cymru was Distributist... and BBC Alba

The growth of devolution in the UK is looked on in horror by some, but with hope by others, and how we treat the smaller nations may well come to define the very meaning of nationalism.

Right: Nationalism is looking to its roots and to real folk nationalism in both Wales and Scotland. The modern leaderships of Plaid Cymru and the SNP can try to liberalise... but the growth of folk nationalism and opposition to coloured immigration to save the Celtic cultures will bring about a new breed of nationalism.

An interesting snippet from Wikipedia on Saunders Lewis, one of the founders of Plaid Cymru:

Lewis wished to demonstrate how Welsh heritage was linked as one of the 'founders of European civilization.^[15] Lewis, a self-described "strong monarchist," wrote "Civilization is more than an abstraction. It must have a local habitation and name. Here its name is Wales."^[16][17] Additionally, Lewis strove for the stability and well-being of Welsh-speaking communities, decried both capitalism and socialism and promoted what he called perchentyaeth; a policy of 'distributing property among the masses.^[18]"

So we can see that Lewis and Plaid Cymru were Distributist and Third Positionist before WW2.

The Kikipedia piece shows how Plaid Cymru was diverted ("Post fascist era"?) to a social democratic model - leading the way to a take-over of lefties, socialists and so on, wherein Plaid now seeks to be the "more red than thou" alternative to New Labour.

Interestingly there doesn't seem to be mention of his poem in which he decries those with their "Hebrew snouts" in ledgers, nor the influence of (the French "fascist") Charles Maurras on Lewis's thinking.

It is fascinating to realise that whilst Chesterton and Co. were promoting Distributism in the English-speaking world, Saunders Lewis was doing likewise in the Welsh-speaking world.

It could certainly be argued that without Saunders Lewis the Welsh language could well have all but died outside of North West and South West Wales (latter day "reservations" for the "natives").

So the resurgence in Welsh identity and the current strength of Welsh, one of the oldest European languages, can be traced back to a man whom many leftists decry as a "fascist."

In Scotland recently many materialists made a fuss over the money spent on the BBC Channel Alba, which transmits programmes in Scots Gaelic, just as they did in Wales many years ago over S4C (Welsh Channel 4).

But we have to ask ourselves: what price an ancient European language?

Shouldn't we pay a relative pittance (Credit Crunch, bank bail-out etc.) to help preserve these great tongues and their cultures for the Scottish/Highlander and Welsh people of tomorrow?


BBC Alba can be seen on Sky TV and Freesat (S4C should be too): great for seeing local sports too (Gaelic Football in Scotland, Welsh Rugby, Scottish Hurling etc.).


Links:
Wikipedia on Saunders Lewis
Saunders Lewish and the Welsh Language Revival
BBC Alba Gets 600,000 Viewers
BBC Alba homepage - see link for learning Gaelic