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Laterally, imagine a city over the horizon somewhere that doesn't give a hoot about your existence and is increasingly made up of people not from your own count

Laterally, imagine a city over the horizon somewhere that doesn't give a hoot about your existence and is increasingly made up of people not from your own country, yet dictates ever-more fundamentally how you should live your life. Imagine that city is then in turn dictated-to by an even higher echelon of governing who you not only didn't empower to have a say in your affairs, but who don't even speak your own language or live in your country. Don't get me wrong, I live in London, and I didnt vote 'Leave' but I can fully understand the frustrations of a domestic populace whose voice in their own country is ever increasingly marginalised. Britain isn't the US - we're not (and I apologise in advance to the indigineous 'Indian' populations of North America) an 'immigrant country', despite what some people might suggest when they mention a few thousand Hugenots popping over for a few decades, hundreds of years ago. It's not in our culture so therefore who is right to say it should be?

djsumdog 10y ago
I also don't agree with this whole "It's the racist people in the country who voted cause they hate refugees" perspective either. The UK has been bad for the EU in general. Don't get me wrong, the EU has its share of supporting wars, supporting the US (and hence more wars), but the UK is a huge piece of that. It's part of the five eyes and the hegemony. The GPB has been horribly overvalued for years. It's bullshit the UK gets so much leverage in the EU, yet they refuse to adopt the currency and refuse to be part of the Schengen Area (which combined with their high GPB value ensures they make a shit-ton off long term backpackers; most countries get 120 days of tourism in the UK, but only 90 per 180 in the Schengen Area). It's a two year exit process. I'm sure the UK will make new work/visa agreements so many living abroad can still do so (and if not, well you have 2 years to see if you can get a visa), but I don't see it being reverse. It was a voter initiative. That's not something you can neg on. Scotland has talked about independence and it's often been viewed in the same light as the UK leaving the EU. But now that the later has been shown as possible, maybe it's time to finally break up this weird not-really-a-country country.

djsumdog 10y ago

I also don't agree with this whole "It's the racist people in the country who voted cause they hate refugees" perspective either. The UK has been bad for the EU in general. Don't get me wrong, the EU has its share of supporting wars, supporting the US (and hence more wars), but the UK is a huge piece of that. It's part of the five eyes and the hegemony. The GPB has been horribly overvalued for years. It's bullshit the UK gets so much leverage in the EU, yet they refuse to adopt the currency and refuse to be part of the Schengen Area (which combined with their high GPB value ensures they make a shit-ton off long term backpackers; most countries get 120 days of tourism in the UK, but only 90 per 180 in the Schengen Area). It's a two year exit process. I'm sure the UK will make new work/visa agreements so many living abroad can still do so (and if not, well you have 2 years to see if you can get a visa), but I don't see it being reverse. It was a voter initiative. That's not something you can neg on. Scotland has talked about independence and it's often been viewed in the same light as the UK leaving the EU. But now that the later has been shown as possible, maybe it's time to finally break up this weird not-really-a-country country.