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> Brexit is about a return to an imaginary past era half Victorian half 1950s all make believe. You shouldn't be so dismissive of the general possibility. Why

> Brexit is about a return to an imaginary past era half Victorian half 1950s all make believe. You shouldn't be so dismissive of the general possibility. Why not have a Renaissance? It's happened at least twice in recent European history. Consider the infatuation Britain had with the Roman Empire during the Industrial Revolution. Sometimes digging back into the past for inspiration is the right answer to tackling future problems. For politics I mean it in a quasi-mythological sense but it is clear that reaching back to reconnect to the past is partly responsible for every Golden Age. As for whether this will occur or not, I am undecided but I suspect Brexit has more to do with avoiding an anti-renaissance.

justincormack 10y ago
Mussolini and Napoleon also liked to look back at the past.
- internaut 10y ago
  I didn't say it was always a good idea. ISIS looks to the past too! I've already made the point on HN that Britain's successful attempt to recover a glorious past (Roman Empire) and Hitler's unsuccessful attempt to do the same thing should be held as comparable. Their motives were identical. I realize such a comparison may seem despicable but we've got to deal with the fact that all ideas come from somewhere, and let us face it, it is not as if Hitler was an original thinker. He saw it worked for the British and attempted to replicate. Obviously I'm not implying the British went to the lengths of the Nazis.
- internaut 10y ago
  I should also note that the Steampunk fashion or lifestyle is also derived from a similar instinct. Compare and contrast Steampunk with Environmentalism. One is about the past and is highly exuberant. The other says to schoolchildren we're going to hell unless we use CFL lightbulbs and separate our organic from inorganic waste properly. One of these views is impoverished! I too long for the return of pneumatic tubes for waste disposal. Whooosh! And gone. It always seemed like the future to me.

justincormack 10y ago

Mussolini and Napoleon also liked to look back at the past.

internaut 10y ago
I didn't say it was always a good idea. ISIS looks to the past too! I've already made the point on HN that Britain's successful attempt to recover a glorious past (Roman Empire) and Hitler's unsuccessful attempt to do the same thing should be held as comparable. Their motives were identical. I realize such a comparison may seem despicable but we've got to deal with the fact that all ideas come from somewhere, and let us face it, it is not as if Hitler was an original thinker. He saw it worked for the British and attempted to replicate. Obviously I'm not implying the British went to the lengths of the Nazis.
internaut 10y ago
I should also note that the Steampunk fashion or lifestyle is also derived from a similar instinct. Compare and contrast Steampunk with Environmentalism. One is about the past and is highly exuberant. The other says to schoolchildren we're going to hell unless we use CFL lightbulbs and separate our organic from inorganic waste properly. One of these views is impoverished! I too long for the return of pneumatic tubes for waste disposal. Whooosh! And gone. It always seemed like the future to me.