No discussion on Brexit?

[Tabby]

I have to admit I haven't paid a whole lot of attention to it and I truly don't know what impact it will have on those of us across the pond but I am slightly shocked that it is actually going through. On the other hand, I have caught a slight whiff of change in attitude towards the whole globalization/world village direction we've been headed in for the last few decades or so. If nothing else, this does send a message to the powers that be that democracy still exists and has power. That being said, I don't know that this is a good thing. I don't know how I might have voted had I been living there.

[WheresMyWhite]

I was surprised as well that the UK voted to drop out. It is still only a referendum so not mandatory so it did send a message but can't force the issue.. There were many things about being a member of the EU that made sense but to be honest, I haven't paid much attention to know why the majority want to leave the EU.

I do know if I was living there I would have researched the heck out of pros and cons of the whole thing

Cameron also resigning shows where he feels on the subject. Will be interesting to see who the UK puts in his place. I had gotten the impression that overall Cameron was well regarded.

I know people vote believing they are doing the right thing but scary that a vote of one nation can throw the world financial environment into a tailspin. At this point, maybe some "globalization" can be stopped but the world economy and its dependence on so many different countries would be hard a country to back out of and still, IMO, stay solvent.

[Tabby]

From what I've read in the last few days the major issue is immigration and border control which is affecting their unemployment. Again, I haven't been following closely but I can sort of comprehend this. We in Canada were having major problems with our previous government over their Temporary Foreign Worker program which allowed companies to bring in these people, pay them less than minimum wage and be exempt from payroll taxes (Canada pension and unemployment insurance). It resulted in Canadians being laid off and replaced in virtually every industry. The companies also treated these foreign workers like slaves since their whole permit to be in the country was linked to working for the particular employer on their work visa. As you can imagine it caused a lot of bad feelings between Canadian citizens and immigrants in general. They eventually changed the program and tightened up the rules but the practice does still occur.

There will be a whole lot of economic fallout from this Brexit vote for sure but even if it doesn't come to fruition, it should stand as a wake up call to all of those who see globalization as a free-for-all, provided you are wealthy and/or a CEO of a major company. All of the free trade deals we've gotten into in the past few decades have NOT translated to better jobs/wages/living conditions for regular citizens. They have only made the rich richer.

[PaulaO]

I didn't have much feeling either way because I don't keep up on these kinds of things. It seems like voting to leave the EU is a sign that the UK wants to stand up and be on their own and kudos to them.

[texsuze]

From the little I know, and from what I can understand, it is likely to play out like many major economic scenarios, that is, time will tell what the ramifications and trickle-down effects will look like. One has to wonder if the global threat from terrorism was the initial, insidious shove on the back that actually started the ball rolling. Just pondering.

[piedmontfields]

In my work life (international science), we have a lot of concerns about the implications of the Brexit for future collaborations.

More generally, I think we will be feeling economic impacts around the world. I'm not happy with the voter's decision.

[WheresMyWhite]

It seems like voting to leave the EU is a sign that the UK wants to stand up and be on their own and kudos to them.

What I wonder is really how much the people who voted to leave really thought about the overall implications to the UK and its economy and the impact to the world economy? Scotland is again considering wanting to be free of the UK and make their own EU choice (and Scotland was primarily a Stay vote). Ireland and North Ireland may join together.

Easy to say kudos to be on their own... just wonder at the long term wisdom of that choice.

[WheresMyWhite]

And a late thought... in looking at the results. Maybe it was a "sign" but it surely wasn't, IMO, a clear sign... 48.1% = 51.9% so very close. As well, very divisive across the regions. Outlying England wanted to leave, London, Scotland, North Ireland wanted to stay.

So maybe it was a majority but not that clear sign...

[AmityBee]

And a late thought... in looking at the results. Maybe it was a "sign" but it surely wasn't, IMO, a clear sign... 48.1% = 51.9% so very close. As well, very divisive across the regions. Outlying England wanted to leave, London, Scotland, North Ireland wanted to stay.

So maybe it was a majority but not that clear sign...

Plus, there is quite the discrepancy in demographics. Basically, age groups 50 and up ****** it up for the 72% of 24 and under who voted to stay and are in fact the ones that will have to figure out and live with the implications of what the brexit will actually mean for the UK.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/yo ... st-8271517

[Chisamba]

I think wanting to new able to vote for the people deciding your future might have been part of the brexit.

My understanding is it's just a referendum, as in it is not binding, not does it have to be followed.

I do not think it was a clear decision by any means, just an opportunity to divide a nation

[WheresMyWhite]

It is a referendum and not binding but it sounds like the UK will be pressured at this point into leaving the EU.

I would agree that it is dividing a nation. Just because the Leaves won, it was not, IMO, a clear, decisive win.

What I have been musing is that I get that "the people" should have a say and the UK obviously has a process for this. But, IMO, a bit scary that the people could have some amount of input on a decision such as this with such global and local impact for the Brits including economy, the possible loss of Scotland to Great Britian, the subsequent possibility that other countries will leave the EU and that financial impact (good and bad), the possible impact on the security of Europe...

Maybe the EU wasn't the best idea (although it appears there was a referendum in 1975 with 66% in favor of staying in the European Community, the predecessor of the EU). GB did not appear to favor accepting the Euro but was, at least at one point, in favor of the EU.

Are "the people" really qualified to make the best local and global decision? If GB voters are anything like ours, they are remarkably, as a group, uninformed (IMO only). Perhaps they saw the issues that pertain to them as individuals (say, immigration) but didn't see or research to see the larger picture. Any more where economy and security is world impacting (like it or not) I am not sure that individuals are the best decision makers Of course, I don't think politicians are either and yes, then who does make the decisions?

[Tabby]

Even if the referendum is not binding, to fail to act on it would be a slap against democracy. They have to do something.

Good question regarding whether "the people" are qualified to make this decision. In my opinion, no. "The people" really aren't qualified to make any important decision. Just look in your own back yard - you are about to have an election with an unpredictable, uncivilized megalomaniac on the ballot for the most powerful position on the planet where he'll wreak havoc on the entire world and likely create problems much bigger than the economy. There is no way "qualified people" allowed this to happen. However, that's not what democracy is about.

As far as economic repercussions, I think people are losing faith as to what that means. Generally speaking, a country's economy is measured by their GDP and other all-encompassing numbers. In the past few years - maybe a decade or so - these numbers have virtually no bearing as to what is going on at the ground level. Companies may be drawing record profits, driving up the GDP, yet it's only because they off-shored production and moved headquarters to a low tax jurisdiction. The people themselves are either out of work, had wages cut or lost some benefit or another. The so-called economy could be booming but it doesn't mean things are any better at the citizen level. Telling us it is so doesn't make it so - eventually we realize that we're working even harder for these virtual slave owners and we're doing it for less. At that point, we really don't care about the global economy.

If anything, those who failed in terms of qualifications are those who pulled the strings and allowed things to get so far out of control that the average citizen felt they had no voice left as a member of the EU. Creating a free-for-all for privileged insiders at the expense of everyone else is eventually going to fail - at least in a democracy where those at the bottom do actually have a say.

[Koolkat]

http://www.newyorker.com/humor/borowitz ... are-dumber

[boots-aregard]

Heard today that the new PM got it by default, as her competitor retired from the field. Seems like NOBODY wants to manage Brexit. The gal who has the post was actually a supporter for staying in the EU, not leaving, but now she has the job of making it happen.

What's heartening is to hear the various other political persons _backing_ her. Wish we had that sort of thing in our country, rather than "Let's insure he fails."