The international/European response is not set in stone and could wildly vary based on the Spanish response.
That's absolutely wrong. And thinking that Spain will need to fire on civilians is ridiculous. Either wishful thinking or you are ridiculously misinformed.
It's very difficult to predict what will happen and there has been considerable restraint so far, but Spain also had an armed separatist group for years (ETA), and crowd management can go very wrong very quickly.
The 2011 London riots were extremely severe and lasted three days, despite not really having any political basis or leadership, and there were plenty of rightwing politicians calling for military intervention.
I have no crystal ball, but most of this people are just entitled rich kids. There are a few gangs in the movement that are used to organized violence, but most of the people shouting in the streets will not stand real mambo for five minutes. I do fear Russia involvement. Putin sent a messenger from South Osetia.
How are people supposed to take you seriously if you call us entitled rich kids. How ignorant. Care to explain what this real mambo is supposed to be? Sending the military?
You don't need to take me seriously and I couldn't care less. The "mambo" is an expression that CUP and the like have used to define violence in the streets. So if you want any further definition ask your friends.
What I think will happen? Apart from what they themselves will do, nothing. Public officers, including regional police, won't resist since their payroll depends on them obeying orders. Politicians might play some games but they know that a single death will trigger the rebellion prosecution and get them jailed for 30 years.
So it will most likely amount to some unrest, demostration, vandalism and all the noise we're used to.
Well, I never thought I'd see police in an EU member state physically attacking their fellow citizens in an attempt to prevent them from voting FFS, but that doesn't change the fact it happened. If they were willing to go that far, why not further?
We've seen police/military fire into people in many places during protests recently. The Ukranian Maidan protests, in Egypt, Turkey and of course Syria. Why would Spain be immune to events like these while the people are easily as riled up as they were in Ukraine? Spain happens to have a history of civil war too.
All it takes is for armed police/military to meet large angry crowds that won't back down. If Spain sends the military to arrest the Catalonian government, we may end up with both of the ingredients. Perhaps a new Syria is unlikely, but is something on the scale of Euromaidan really that hard to imagine?
We've seen police/military fire into people in many places during protests recently. The Ukranian Maidan protests, in Egypt, Turkey and of course Syria.
I know nothing of Maidan protests. Spain has nothing to do with Egypt, Turkey or Syria. If Spain was remotely similar, every separatist would be jailed and we wouldn't be having this conversation at all.
Why would Spain be immune to events like these while the people are easily as riled up as they were in Ukraine? Spain happens to have a history of civil war too.
This is terribly unfair. Worse. It's wrong. Not that our grandparents hadn't a civil war (they had) but the fact that this is any indication of environmental violence. Actually it's a disgusting unwarranted attack on an entire country.
All it takes is for armed police/military to meet large angry crowds that won't back down.
Police did meet angry crowds that won't back down last october 1st. There weren't shots or deads.
If Spain sends the military to arrest the Catalonian government, we may end up with both of the ingredients.
Spain would not send military to arrest someone. It would send police like any other regular country. If rogue regional police will shoot them, then we're not talking about an arrest, but about a full-blown armed rebellion. So please, stop spreading confusion.
That's absolutely wrong. And thinking that Spain will need to fire on civilians is ridiculous. Either wishful thinking or you are ridiculously misinformed.