William F. JasperNew American
June 30, 2016
June 30, 2016
The Brexit vote on June 23 means Britain will exit the European Union, right? Isn’t that what it was all about?
Well, not really, according to a growing chorus of voices that insists “No” doesn’t mean no, “Out” doesn’t mean out, “Leave” doesn’t mean leave, “irreversible” doesn’t mean irreversible, etc.
Yes, it is true that “Remain” lost and “Leave” won. And, yes, it is true that Remain advocate Prime Minister David Cameron, just two days before the Brexit referendum vote, cranked up a last-ditch “Project Fear” blitz imploring British voters not to take the “irreversible” step of serving Brussels with divorce papers. Cameron pleaded with older voters to resist the call to “leave Europe” (as if the decades-old political EU is synonymous with the centuries-old historical, cultural, geographical Europe) and urged them to “think about the hopes and dreams of your children and grandchildren.”
“And remember,” he warned, “they can’t undo the decision we take. If we vote out, that’s it. It is irreversible. We will leave Europe — for good. And the next generation will have to live with the consequences far longer than the rest of us.”
German Chancellor Angela Merkel also echoed that “irreversible” message, after meeting with Cameron at the summit of EU leaders in Brussels, on June 28, the Tuesday after the Brexit vote. “I see no possibility to reverse this. We would do well to accept this reality,” Merkel told reporters.
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