Why did British vote for Brexit?
I absolutely loved the impassioned speech given by Spanish MEP Estaban González. He shares my vision of Europe, and shares my derision of Brexit.
I often see the question asked by Europeans about why British people voted to leave the European Union. I've tried to answer it like this:
They want to leave because they've been told through their whole lives that the European Union is nothing but a wasteful and corrupt bureaucracy, burdening Britain with ridiculous legislation and with no discernable merit.
They want to leave because they've been fed lies, part truths and a negative version of every story by domestic politicians who are so keen to pass off their own mistakes and incompetence to an organisation which never fights its corner, never answers back.
They want to leave because the right-wing (and also sometimes the left-wing) media in Britain has for all their lifetimes sold newspapers by filling them with stories about the EU that are perverted to give a negative spin... about straight bananas, bent cucumbers, stories to whip up nationalistic resentment about banning the British sausage, banning milk deliveries and banning British chocolate; stories to say that the EU is interfering in people's lives by banning incandescent lightbulbs and banning powerful vacuum cleaners; wasting huge amounts of money on vast wine lakes and butter mountains.
They want to leave because they're too lazy to research the truth for themselves, and because the lies panders to their xenophobic prejudices, their little-England small-mindedness, their selfishness conceit and deep-rooted belief that they belong to a favoured nation to whom the world should kneel and offer gifts and sacrifices.
They want to leave because they have been sold lies by a handful of well-publicised, well funded toffs who want to further their vendettas and narrow interests in removing the UK from the EU: that it will release hundreds of millions of pounds per week to spend on an under-resourced health service, that immigrants are taking their jobs and come to Britain to sponge benefits, that the EU will give Britain all the benefits with none of the responsibilities because the EU needs the UK far more than the UK needs the EU, that all of Hungary is bound for the UK, with most of Turkey soon to follow.
They want to leave Europe because they have never been given a positive vision of Europe, of cooperation, solidarity and brotherhood. They have never been told about all the things Estaban González told in his speech, they have never been given a dream to help fulfill.
They want to leave because even the leaders who were campaigning for a Remain vote told them they disliked and were frustrated by the EU, but just it's kind of best to remain anyway to avoid the country imploding.
And lastly, they voted to leave because the vote was gerrymandered: voting open to British citizens, Commonwealth immigrants and Irish immigrants but not to immigrants from the rest of the EU (the biggest stakeholders of all). No voting for 16 and 17 year-olds who voted in teh Scottish Independence referendum, because they would disproportionately vote to Remain. And no requirement for a super-majority to compensate for the universal phenomena that many will vote to protest against things unconnected with the issue at hand (government policies of austerity, anger with bankers, fear of invasion by Islamic terrorists, etc).
I often see the question asked by Europeans about why British people voted to leave the European Union. I've tried to answer it like this:
They want to leave because they've been told through their whole lives that the European Union is nothing but a wasteful and corrupt bureaucracy, burdening Britain with ridiculous legislation and with no discernable merit.
They want to leave because they've been fed lies, part truths and a negative version of every story by domestic politicians who are so keen to pass off their own mistakes and incompetence to an organisation which never fights its corner, never answers back.
They want to leave because the right-wing (and also sometimes the left-wing) media in Britain has for all their lifetimes sold newspapers by filling them with stories about the EU that are perverted to give a negative spin... about straight bananas, bent cucumbers, stories to whip up nationalistic resentment about banning the British sausage, banning milk deliveries and banning British chocolate; stories to say that the EU is interfering in people's lives by banning incandescent lightbulbs and banning powerful vacuum cleaners; wasting huge amounts of money on vast wine lakes and butter mountains.
They want to leave because they're too lazy to research the truth for themselves, and because the lies panders to their xenophobic prejudices, their little-England small-mindedness, their selfishness conceit and deep-rooted belief that they belong to a favoured nation to whom the world should kneel and offer gifts and sacrifices.
They want to leave because they have been sold lies by a handful of well-publicised, well funded toffs who want to further their vendettas and narrow interests in removing the UK from the EU: that it will release hundreds of millions of pounds per week to spend on an under-resourced health service, that immigrants are taking their jobs and come to Britain to sponge benefits, that the EU will give Britain all the benefits with none of the responsibilities because the EU needs the UK far more than the UK needs the EU, that all of Hungary is bound for the UK, with most of Turkey soon to follow.
They want to leave Europe because they have never been given a positive vision of Europe, of cooperation, solidarity and brotherhood. They have never been told about all the things Estaban González told in his speech, they have never been given a dream to help fulfill.
They want to leave because even the leaders who were campaigning for a Remain vote told them they disliked and were frustrated by the EU, but just it's kind of best to remain anyway to avoid the country imploding.
And lastly, they voted to leave because the vote was gerrymandered: voting open to British citizens, Commonwealth immigrants and Irish immigrants but not to immigrants from the rest of the EU (the biggest stakeholders of all). No voting for 16 and 17 year-olds who voted in teh Scottish Independence referendum, because they would disproportionately vote to Remain. And no requirement for a super-majority to compensate for the universal phenomena that many will vote to protest against things unconnected with the issue at hand (government policies of austerity, anger with bankers, fear of invasion by Islamic terrorists, etc).
posted by Tsuchan at 11:20 pm
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