Jacoby wrote:
Is that what Europe wants, to have it's culture and history sent to the dust bin of history in the name of globalism?
I don't think there's any reason to fear that history will be forgotten.
Yes, I think merging all cultures would be pretty inspirational.
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Do you want to the continent to be one big Super Walmart?
The market would not allow that.
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Schengen was agreed to but that just involves the EU's internal borders doesn't it? How does the German Chancellor have the authority to declare that Europe's borders are open to 'refugees' and that all EU nations are obligated to take in a certain quota?
That didn't happen. Merkel said that Germany would take anyone who got there, as is her right. The EU as a whole has negotiated quotas between countries to stop the burden falling disproportionately on countries in the south east (as would be the case under the Dublin agreement).
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If the EU would like to be vindictive then we couldn't the UK increase it's ties with Russia which has been isolated in recent year and as well as the commonwealth?
No. The EU is close to the UK. Russia and the Commonwealth (except the bits which are in the EU or UK) are much further away, which presents an obvious trade barrier. We'd also need to negotiate new trade deals, which take time and are often controversial.
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What advantage does the EU gain by waging economic warfare against the UK?
The UK needs the EU more than the EU needs the UK, just as Texas needs the US more than the US needs Texas (I think I did the maths after the Brexit calamity and they're proportionately similar). The EU will essentially get what it wants because the UK economy would be shattered by leaving the single market. The EU holds all the cards.
Of course it's in the EU's interest to keep the UK in the single market, but it's probably not in the EU's interests to let any member state get exactly what it wants and redefine what the EU is. So the magical "remain in the single market but don't pay anything, follow EU law or have freedom of movement" solution will never come about.
24 Sep 2016, 6:11 pm
