I've been asked to send this on:

Just sent this to the New York Times in response to an article comparing Wales to Greece suggesting that we are living off England's largesse: Wales, or as it is more properly known, Cymru, from pre-Roman times to the end of the First World War was one of the richest countries of the world in mineral resources and productivity; the country has been robbed, raped & pillaged until there is nothing left, sucked dry except for its water, with its valleys being drowned to serve the neighbouring English conurbations of Liverpool* & Birmingham. Wales/Cymru is no Greece, it has a population of 3 million and had enough natural & industrial wealth to be very comfortable indeed. It served the empire until its back was broken under England's weight, but we still have the wind & rain if only we would be allowed to exploit them on our own terms. We have never been supported by England, on the contrary we have filled her coffers for centuries; perhaps it's time for an apology and a reimbursement..

* Liverpool has apologized for drowning the Welsh speaking village of Capel Celyn in Cwm Tryweryn 30 years after they realized it wasn't needed, they were allowed to go ahead even after 35 out of the 36 Welsh representatives sent to the British Parliament said no! http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/28/business/global/the-wales-economy-slips-but-london-cushions-the-fall.html?_r=1