Brexit has won, and Britain has left the European Union.
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| I think we're better off in. The country disagrees. |
I’m quite unhappy about this, for several different reasons.
The inevitable dip in the economy as we struggle as a country to find a decent
place in a world increasingly reliant upon globalisation means there’s going to
be a lot less money around,[1]
which in turn means a lot less money is going to be spent on services like
music teaching – which for most people is entirely optional. Any changes to the
import of goods into the UK without a trade deal will almost certainly mean a
rise in prices, which I can ill-afford. And there is a lot of European law
designed to protect consumers and workers rights, which are not going to be
there any more until such time as it is replaced by domestic law, if ever.
I tried to keep myself aware of the facts and argue against it,
of course, making some remarks about Brexit to all sorts of people that came
across as balanced in some cases, capricious in others and outright caustic in
some situations (although usually only as a direct reply to somebody.) I could
say that the country doesn’t seem to be interested in facts and predictions
from economical experts – so frequently dismissed as “scaremongering” or
“project fear,” yet whose job literally entails knowing about these things –
but the fact is that I am but one man in a country with enough people who
wanted to leave the EU to make it happen, with, after the 2016 referendum vote,
no more convenient a pulpit to air my concerns than social media sites.
And now, after three and a half years of being called
Traitor, Appeaser, Remoaner, Snowflake, Melt, Leftard, Loony Left, Liberal
(apparently that’s supposed to be an insult,) Arrogant, Ignorant, and the many
many many times I’ve heard You Lost Get Over It or one of its variations,
Britain has left the European Union. I suppose one positive aspect of that is
that the country will no longer be represented in the EU by Nigel Farage and
his ilk, but as the country will no longer have any representation in Europe at
all, it’s a small victory that I hesitate to dignify by calling a reward.
To add insult to a substantial injury, we’re stuck with the
Tories in charge for at least the next five years – and probably the next ten.
They will capitalise on any positive outcomes of Brexit, irrespective of the
rest of the damage it and they have caused, in order to win votes. And if
Brexit does turn out to be the unfettered financial disaster many have
predicted and many more fear, then they will blame anybody except the people
directly involved in it, diminishing their responsibility. If Brexit is the
question, then ten more years of Tories is the answer.
I’ve been wondering what I was going to say about the moment
when Britain left the EU on social media, all the remarks I’d make to the
people who voted for this and the people forced to go along with it. Many
versions of this blog have suggested themselves; I’ve had a long time to think
about it! But the closer it came to the time, the more it all sounded like
bitter sarcasm at best, duplicitous snarling at worst. So, as balanced as I can
be:
To the people who voted for Brexit, I hope you get what you
want out of it, and I hope that what you get is worth the damage it is going to
cause.
To the people who didn’t vote for it, and the rest of
Europe: I’m truly sorry that it has come to this. I’m sorry I couldn’t do
better. And I’m sorry that we’re going to have to endure many more years of
this before we can do anything about it. I hope we’re fortunate enough to see a
better future – but I do not think it will be because of Brexit.
[1] A
broad way of putting it, I know. I tried to go into specifics, but it was
taking too long to get to the point I was making and wasn’t the right approach.
