UK to leave EU

[Thumpalumpacus]

Actually there is now a vacant space in the EU, maybe the USA would like to apply

Only if they'll go for Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles outlets.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I don't think we qualify lol

We're not enough sophistimacated.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I voted leave but I'm not all that happy about these results to be honest.

I'm really not this white English nationalist some people seem to think I am (for a start I come from a Polish/Russian family I'm not even fully English), I voted for out simply because I don't like the idea of big government power and I like the idea of a small government with more control being able to make quicker more efficient decisions.

But what I didn't take into consideration is how divided the country would be, from what I can tell most of London, nearly all of Scotland and Ireland wanted to remain.  

Now I can be stubborn sometimes, some people think I'm callous, but I don't like the idea of living in a country where 49% of the people in it are pissed off and it's actually dividing up the UK.

I'm not totally pessimistic though either, I don't think there's going to be a total collapse of anything and I think I'll still have a job, but I'm not going as far as to say I'm celebrating. I think whatever happens next it's going to be tough.

Thing is, it's not even that strongly a regional divide.

There were very few places where it was landslide either way, even in London and Scotland where there was general support for "remain", there was still a strong presence of "leave" voters. Same goes for pretty much all of the places in England and Wales that voted "leave", in a lot of cases it was borderline with only 50-60% voting "leave". Birmingham "voted to leave" apparently... something like 51% percent did, 49% voted "stay".

I just think with a decision so borderline it simply has to be re-considered. If it was a clear landslide 60%+ vote I could accept that most British people wanted it, but it's literally only just half of the country who voted "leave". It's not enough for that to just be the end of it.

But like I said earlier, the main reason I'm annoyed is because I feel like the whole thing is just a distraction anyway. We're being mislead by people throwing us this nationalistic narrative to appeal to public ignorance to hide from the government's incompetence. Meanwhile the illusion of the recession is still hanging over us, which we're paying for through the nose with all these cuts while the greedy corrupt bastards who caused it are still sitting pretty (and will continue to). "immigration" is obviously a much bigger issue though *sarcasm*.

Maybe then a possible tool to avoid such future divides is to require a supermajority for referenda?

[robvalue]

OK so I'm still hugely fucked off about this. 2% of britains population has been enough to send huge shockwaves throughout most of Europe and beyond. If this was a self defence hearing, it would be like "I shot him in the face and cut up his body because he looked at me funny".

I'm calmer now. We have to live with what has happened, getting angry about it isn't productive. It's done.

PS just saw Thump's comment. Yes, I can't believe it wasn't 2/3 required for action here. 1/2 is plain bullshit. Overconfidence by Cameron, he didn't think this through clearly.

[Thumpalumpacus]

We require a 60% majority in Congress to override a Presidential veto, and a 67% majority to amend our Constitution. Such percentages act as a tamper on hot emotions.

Conpare that to the ballot-initiative system in the state of California, which uses a 50+1 system. You end up with a bare majority rewrting the state's constitution, decided amongst voters who (there) don't have the time or inclination to inform themselves on the issue beyond talking points funded by PACs or hidden interests. Prop 8 and Prop 13 are both monumennts to that sort of folly.

[LastPoet]

Hell, here at least, to change the constitution the parliament needs 2/3. And these are the representatives, not the normal citizen.

[SofaKingHigh]

This wasn't a win for Britain, it was a win for extremist politics.

The most accurate and succinct summation I've read thus far.

I do get tired of reading rubbish like this.

I voted out and I am no fucking extremist.

[LastPoet]

Of course not dear. Those that aren't extremists are just... dumb.

[T.J.]

I was surprised the Leave campaign won, and I suppose like the EU, underestimated the amount of people who wanted to split. Though to be fair the polls were pretty cut down the middle with only a small percentage tipped in the Leave campaign's favor, and now it seem many of them are learning they voted under false pretenses as the Leave campaign lies start to be revealed.

I'm worried for what this means with my girlfriend and friends overseas. Especially with talks of Scotland and Northern Ireland leaving the UK to rejoin the EU and tear the UK even further apart while more countries with the EU wanting to call their own referendum. This sets a bad and dangerous precedent for government bodies similar to the EU.

With the division of my own country being as big as it ever was I'm heart broken to see the same thing happening to Europe.

[Thumpalumpacus]

The most accurate and succinct summation I've read thus far.

I do get tired of reading rubbish like this.

I voted out and I am no fucking extremist.

I wasn't calling the out-voters extremists. I was agreeing that the politicians who appealed to extremism judged their audiences very finely. There's a difference, and it ain't rubbish.

I'm a Texan. I see shit like this all the time ... pols who appeal to the worst in people, who don't even know they have it in themselves.