Dane-geld
"Go now. Read about the Kitegeld, and why one does not pay it."
Because Tally loves history and so does her player, here are some treasures she has extorted from the past. Aaaaaaaaaand the internet!
The Danegeld (literally "Dane's gold") was a tax originally levied on his subjects by Æthelred ("the Unready") II of England, after a grim defeat by the Danes at the Battle of Malden, in order to buy off the Viking raiders to keep them from looting and pillaging his lands. One can only imagine the delight of the Vikings who were paid massive amounts of coin to stay home. Predictably, this payment was not a one-time concession; it became a way of life. From the late 10th through mid-12th centuries, both England and France taxed their people to raise what was essentially protection money paid as a matter of national policy.
Here's a pithy poem about Dane-geld by Rudyard Kipling:
It is always a temptation to an armed and agile nation
To call upon a neighbour and to say: --
"We invaded you last night--we are quite prepared to fight,
Unless you pay us cash to go away."
And that is called asking for Dane-geld,
And the people who ask it explain
That you've only to pay 'em the Dane-geld
And then you'll get rid of the Dane!
It is always a temptation for a rich and lazy nation,
To puff and look important and to say: --
"Though we know we should defeat you, we have not the time to meet you.
We will therefore pay you cash to go away."
And that is called paying the Dane-geld;
But we've proved it again and again,
That if once you have paid him the Dane-geld
You never get rid of the Dane.
It is wrong to put temptation in the path of any nation,
For fear they should succumb and go astray;
So when you are requested to pay up or be molested,
You will find it better policy to say: --
"We never pay any-one Dane-geld,
No matter how trifling the cost;
For the end of that game is oppression and shame,
And the nation that pays it is lost!"
Over the centuries, Dane-geld has become synonymous with ineffective appeasement. Here's a lovely example of the usage from the British Parliamentary session of January 25, 2000, a debate in the House of Commons over a proposed Bill which one member argued "is purely a sop to the IRA."
Mr. Robathan: "The Government are giving away yet another card. As the hon. Member for Winchester (Mr. Oaten) pointed out, they have laid their cards on the table, but what are they getting in return? What cards do they have up their sleeve to use against IRA-Sinn Fein, who are inextricably linked and who still maintain huge arsenals of weapons?...."
Mr. Brady: "My hon. Friend has put his finger on it. I do not believe that Ministers are rejecting the amendments--they seem to be rejecting them but perhaps they are playing us along for a few hours to keep us in suspense--because they have done a deal or secured something in return for what they propose to give away. They are simply locked into a process of giving things away, of letting things go by default and of expecting nothing in return from those who, sadly, to date, have given no sign of wishing to move forward to genuine peace and disarmament."
Mr. Robathan: "Does my hon. Friend remember from his history lessons the danegeld and how one just had to keep on paying it, but received nothing in return?"
Mr. Brady: I remember it well. However, I do not intend to be diverted down that historical road, pertinent as it may be. There are many examples of appeasement in history, whether it be the danegeld or more recently, and we know that appeasement does not work.
"....[Interruption.] "A rather frightened mouse has run across the Floor, Mr. Lord, just as I was expounding the argument that I smell a rat with the legislation."
(Wow, Parliament sessions are awesome!)
And lastly, a wonderful quotation from the Seattle-based weekly newspaper The Stranger's Nicholas Wind (Jan 5, 2006), which I cheerfully lift out of context and re-use re: the Danegeld concept:
“This isn’t a slippery slope, it’s a greased cliff with a vicious downdraft and parachute made out of fucking elephants.”
Because Tally loves history and so does her player, here are some treasures she has extorted from the past. Aaaaaaaaaand the internet!
The Danegeld (literally "Dane's gold") was a tax originally levied on his subjects by Æthelred ("the Unready") II of England, after a grim defeat by the Danes at the Battle of Malden, in order to buy off the Viking raiders to keep them from looting and pillaging his lands. One can only imagine the delight of the Vikings who were paid massive amounts of coin to stay home. Predictably, this payment was not a one-time concession; it became a way of life. From the late 10th through mid-12th centuries, both England and France taxed their people to raise what was essentially protection money paid as a matter of national policy.
Here's a pithy poem about Dane-geld by Rudyard Kipling:
It is always a temptation to an armed and agile nation
To call upon a neighbour and to say: --
"We invaded you last night--we are quite prepared to fight,
Unless you pay us cash to go away."
And that is called asking for Dane-geld,
And the people who ask it explain
That you've only to pay 'em the Dane-geld
And then you'll get rid of the Dane!
It is always a temptation for a rich and lazy nation,
To puff and look important and to say: --
"Though we know we should defeat you, we have not the time to meet you.
We will therefore pay you cash to go away."
And that is called paying the Dane-geld;
But we've proved it again and again,
That if once you have paid him the Dane-geld
You never get rid of the Dane.
It is wrong to put temptation in the path of any nation,
For fear they should succumb and go astray;
So when you are requested to pay up or be molested,
You will find it better policy to say: --
"We never pay any-one Dane-geld,
No matter how trifling the cost;
For the end of that game is oppression and shame,
And the nation that pays it is lost!"
Over the centuries, Dane-geld has become synonymous with ineffective appeasement. Here's a lovely example of the usage from the British Parliamentary session of January 25, 2000, a debate in the House of Commons over a proposed Bill which one member argued "is purely a sop to the IRA."
Mr. Robathan: "The Government are giving away yet another card. As the hon. Member for Winchester (Mr. Oaten) pointed out, they have laid their cards on the table, but what are they getting in return? What cards do they have up their sleeve to use against IRA-Sinn Fein, who are inextricably linked and who still maintain huge arsenals of weapons?...."
Mr. Brady: "My hon. Friend has put his finger on it. I do not believe that Ministers are rejecting the amendments--they seem to be rejecting them but perhaps they are playing us along for a few hours to keep us in suspense--because they have done a deal or secured something in return for what they propose to give away. They are simply locked into a process of giving things away, of letting things go by default and of expecting nothing in return from those who, sadly, to date, have given no sign of wishing to move forward to genuine peace and disarmament."
Mr. Robathan: "Does my hon. Friend remember from his history lessons the danegeld and how one just had to keep on paying it, but received nothing in return?"
Mr. Brady: I remember it well. However, I do not intend to be diverted down that historical road, pertinent as it may be. There are many examples of appeasement in history, whether it be the danegeld or more recently, and we know that appeasement does not work.
"....[Interruption.] "A rather frightened mouse has run across the Floor, Mr. Lord, just as I was expounding the argument that I smell a rat with the legislation."
(Wow, Parliament sessions are awesome!)
And lastly, a wonderful quotation from the Seattle-based weekly newspaper The Stranger's Nicholas Wind (Jan 5, 2006), which I cheerfully lift out of context and re-use re: the Danegeld concept:
“This isn’t a slippery slope, it’s a greased cliff with a vicious downdraft and parachute made out of fucking elephants.”