presidente20

17 ms·

31.
by presidente20 9y ago
You don't actually need a trade deal with a country to trade successfully with them (hopefully I don't need to give examples of this). I think you overestimate how long it takes to sign a unilateral trade deal when the parties wan
32.
by presidente20 9y ago
The Remain camp did a bad job of arguing the case because there really aren't that many good arguments for staying in. I think you'll find it was the Brexiteers that made the 'subtle points' about trade, constitution etc
33.
by presidente20 9y ago
If you want an elected House of Lords, why would you be in favour of the EU? In the EU the elected house is a ratifying chamber only (akin to the Lords). You're glad to be ruled by the undemocratic executive EU but not the undemocratic
34.
by presidente20 9y ago
I think we do. We're a net contributor so the rebate point is null. Re. the euro, is there any point in being one of only 9 countries outside the euro (bear in mind most of those 9 are new members who intend to join). What kind of say
35.
by presidente20 9y ago
Care to point out the last war between two first world democratic countries?
36.
by presidente20 9y ago
Can you clarify what this poor trade negotiation position is? Worst case, we go to WTO tariffs. The effect of that in theory is that EU imports to the UK will reduce, as they become more expensive relative to the same goods from non-EU coun
37.
by presidente20 10y ago
Agreed and thanks for the link.
38.
by presidente20 10y ago
I just don't think many people in the UK in general (not just Parliament and the media) like the EU. I spoke to a lot of people who voiced anti-EU sentiment but voted Remain out of fear of the consequences. I remember there being just
39.
by presidente20 10y ago
I really can't see what you've got this idea about Empire and self-importance from. Seriously, it's not something anyone in the UK thinks about. Given recent history, I wonder if you are projecting your own Imperial ambitions
40.
by presidente20 10y ago
I think that is untrue. This thread is the first time I've heard anyone mention Empire in connection with Brexit. There is xenophobia but I think if you look closely you'll find that in most European countries as well. No doubt th
41.
by presidente20 10y ago
Clearly Europe has been highly intermingled throughout its history and shares some common roots but that is not what we're talking about here. We're not talking about alliances (which happen all the time without political union) o
42.
by presidente20 10y ago
I think it's unlikely that members skeptical of the institution itself would have much influence. I think the Leavers were dissatisfied from the beginning. You can directly trace the formation of UKIP from the Maastricht Rebels. https
43.
by presidente20 10y ago
Fair point but do you think it would make any difference?
44.
by presidente20 10y ago
Can you substantiate that?
45.
by presidente20 10y ago
Yes but mainly the executive parts. No doubt the UK government could be more democratic but however imperfect it is why would you want to layer something on top of it that is even less democratic?
46.
by presidente20 10y ago
I'm saying that the EU is not sufficiently democratic because its executive bodies are not elected by the people whereas in national parliaments they are. I'm not saying that national governments should give up sovereignty. I&#x
47.
by presidente20 10y ago
That's a lot compared to Juncker.
48.
by presidente20 10y ago
Leaving aside mid term leadership changes as a different can of worms, I think it's pretty clear that the UK public elected the Tories and David Cameron (and it was fairly obvious who his Cabinet would be even if they are not individua
49.
by presidente20 10y ago
If you look at your description all the methods of selection bar one are nothing like methods for publicly elected officials and as such massively subject to cronyism. This is worth a read: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki&#x
50.
by presidente20 10y ago
Ok you're right, I meant aside from the Leader of the Lords. Nevertheless, having one or two Lords in the Cabinet out of 22 hardly invalidates my original point that it's an elected (by the people) executive.
51.
by presidente20 10y ago
Ok amendments as well as veto, but I think you see the point. It is rare that a member of the Lords is in the Cabinet and it seems reasonable that the Leader of the Lords is from the Lords doesn't it? Again the main point I'm tryi
52.
by presidente20 10y ago
On the first point I mean that the policy creators (in this case the Commission) can make any policy of their choosing. The veto-ers (i.e. the European Parliament) can only block the legislation. As the former control what gets debated, the
53.
by presidente20 10y ago
Well as I say, they keep their heads down. However as you asked here's a couple off the top of my head: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/09/04/britain-can-l... https://www.theguar
54.
by presidente20 10y ago
That is exactly what I see too.
55.
by presidente20 10y ago
It depends on the timescales of the predicted problems. I believe the studies predicted choppy waters whilst the UK divorces from the EU (short to medium term) which in my view is likely. However that's not the same as saying that leav
56.
by presidente20 10y ago
The point is that powers of veto are less influential than powers of creating policy. I don't think people are saying that the EU is completely undemocratic (as pointed out above, democracy is a somewhat muddy concept in practice), mor
57.
by presidente20 10y ago
No. People see the EU as undemocratic because Parliament is neither the main policy-making body nor the main executive power. It is more of a supervisory body, akin to the role of Congress or the House of Lords. See https://en.wi
58.
by presidente20 10y ago
I think it's a little more complicated than people not being bothered to vote. The European Parliament has relatively little power (e.g. to propose new laws) compared to a typical national parliament. I think people see that and also s
59.
by presidente20 10y ago
I've been following the Money Moustache type approach for a while now myself. I highly recommend it, but the closer I get to the goal the more I realise I need something else constructive to do if/when I jack it all in.