To my Readers, Thoughts After Brexit was written straight from my heart, very shortly after the divorce UK-EU. I felt as if I were mourning a close relative embodied in an idea which had become an Ideal, which also had dreamlike possibilities. Dream on. The problem is a little like a child whose parents are divorcing, I see both points of view. It is a coming of age sort of piece which I temper as i always do with humor. Yours, D
Thoughts After the Brexit;
Born of a noble idea, the European Union presently resembles Alice’s tea party. No bread, certainly no butter, little jam, and, of course no tea, but an overflow of … giddiness and name calling. But, what exactly has the UK left? Nothing much. Has Great Britain abandoned a foreign policy generating and maintaining institution? Look back 2 years at the Ukrainian crisis and Crimea. Daniel Cohn-Bendit said it best a few nights ago on France 2: The happiest person in the world after Brexit is Vladimir Poutine. The EU has been laughed out of the Mideast by the Israelis, but also some of the Arab states. Its participation in the fight against ISIS has been a flea bite and bravo for Hollande acting alone. It has left Libya in a mess, has done nothing against Assad and nothing for the democratic Iranian opposition. Ah yes! Juicy contracts. Well, sort of. And I could go on. Well, how about something as clunky as a concerted agricultural policy? The big cereal and corn growers just love the EU and those wonderful subsidies, but not the small farmer who will do what small farmers proverbially do, die when the debts are paid off. Or will the farm be cheaply sold after his leaving the planet Earth? Even the fishing industry or what used to be the fishing industry… Verboten to fish in territorial waters that had been fished in for centuries, so drop dead small fishing industries. Or pay a fine. However those wonderful fish farms… Financial and Monetary policy? Greece – The crisis that won’t go away, but like the mad uncle in the attic, shows its face from time to time, gets a helping of porridge and goes back to the attic. The last scoop of “porridge” cost the EU 7 billion. Face reality, Europe is just buying time. Other countries are tottering on the brink. Nothing substantial has been solved, but there are the amusing side shows of the financial scandals and everyone knows about the bloated and under taxed salaries that the really cool MEPs draw for just showing their faces. And how about the grand-daddy of them all, immigration? Same kick the can down the road. The Turks are doing the baby-sitting, badly it seems and at a very steep price. And the boatloads are still arriving welcomed by Merkel acting alone, before she reversed herself and closed the doors. There has been a lot of scrounging around, but no voted on and concerted policy towards immigration and aid for the countries that are the most affected – Greece and Italy and to a lesser extent Spain. Yes, the EU has been culturally significant. Erasmus and other inter-cultural programs are wonderful achievements but they don’t put food on people’s table nor create a sentiment of unity. Therefore, calling 17 million Brits “racists,” “xenophobic” “bigots” etc. is giving into facile invective and a refusal to grapple with a very challenging reality. Before blaming the Brexiters ask the basic question “How has the EU failed?”
Thoughts After Brexit;
Born of a noble idea, the European Union presently resembles Alice’s tea party. No bread, certainly no butter, little jam, and, of course no tea, but an overflow of … giddiness and name calling. But, what exactly has the UK left? Nothing much. Has Great Britain abandoned a foreign policy generating and maintaining institution? Look back 2 years at the Ukrainian crisis and Crimea. Daniel Cohn-Bendit said it best a few nights ago on France 2: The happiest person in the world after Brexit is Vladimir Poutine. The EU has been laughed out of the Mideast by the Israelis, but also some of the Arab states. Its participation in the fight against ISIS has been a flea bite and bravo for Hollande acting alone. It has left Libya in a mess, has done nothing against Assad and nothing for the democratic Iranian opposition. Ah yes! Juicy contracts. Well, sort of. And I could go on. Well, how about something as clunky as a concerted agricultural policy? The big cereal and corn growers just love the EU and those wonderful subsidies, but not the small farmer who will do what small farmers proverbially do, die when the debts are paid off. Or will the farm be cheaply sold after his leaving the planet Earth? Even the fishing industry or what used to be the fishing industry… Verboten to fish in territorial waters that had been fished in for centuries, so drop dead small fishing industries. Or pay a fine. However those wonderful fish farms… Financial and Monetary policy? Greece – The crisis that won’t go away, but like the mad uncle in the attic, shows its face from time to time, gets a helping of porridge and goes back to the attic. The last scoop of “porridge” cost the EU 7 billion. Face reality, Europe is just buying time. Other countries are tottering on the brink. Nothing substantial has been solved, but there are the amusing side shows of the financial scandals and everyone knows about the bloated and under taxed salaries that the really cool MEPs draw for just showing their faces. And how about the grand-daddy of them all, immigration? Same kick the can down the road. The Turks are doing the baby-sitting, badly it seems and at a very steep price. And the boatloads are still arriving welcomed by Merkel acting alone, before she reversed herself and closed the doors. There has been a lot of scrounging around, but no voted on and concerted policy towards immigration and aid for the countries that are the most affected – Greece and Italy and to a lesser extent Spain. Yes, the EU has been culturally significant. Erasmus and other inter-cultural programs are wonderful achievements but they don’t put food on people’s table nor create a sentiment of unity. Therefore, calling 17 million Brits “racists,” “xenophobic” “bigots” etc. is giving into facile invective and a refusal to grapple with a very challenging reality. Before blaming the Brexiters ask the basic question “How has the EU failed?”