Monday, July 04, 2016
Brexit Leaders Quit When They Realize What a Mess They Have Made
Boris Johnson and Nicholas Farage led the effort to vote Britain out of the European Union. They won.
Then the economic costs started coming in.
Boris Johnson, who was poised to become Prime Minister after driving out his own party leader, decided he didn't want to preside over the mess he created.
And Nicholas Farage, the head of the United Kingdom Independence Party which exists entirely to win the Brexit fight, has also quit.
The news is full of Brits who voted for Brexit as a protest against "elites" and "bureaucrats telling us what to do" who now regret it.
The lesson for Americans? Voting for Trump as a protest could have actual disastrous consequences. Elections are not a game. And we don't get a do-over.
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2 comments:
I agree with you in principle, which puts me in an awful quandary.
First, I must say that I am not so certain that, concerning the British exit from the European Union, the alarmists are not just yelling fire in a crowded theater in which there is no fire. Look how happy all the talking heads have been in the past two weeks. To think that one can project the long-term results of the British in exit in ten days seems to me to be yet another example of punditry run amok.
However, your cautionary note about the upcoming American elections is valid. Our political system is badly damaged. As an infantryman, I was tempted to say FUBAR, but that is probably excessive. But it IS about about to leave us with no good choices to fill the office of President. I cannot imagine myself voting for Mr. Trump, but I will not vote for Senator Clinton, wouldn't do it if you (well, not you, Prof--you probably do not have one), if someone had the apocryphal cocked and loaded pistol to my head. And a vote for anyone else is almost assuredly a vote for the Senator.
I had the same emotional struggle in 1976, and made the worst mistake of my life when I voted for a man who delayed and delayed the plans to rescue our hostages because the Joint Chiefs would not give him a written promise that no Iranians would be killed or injured in the process!
Professor Roger J. Champagne, my honors American History professor at Illinois State in 1964 was a proponent of the idea that the Civil War was a direct result of the failure of the American political system to put real leaders into office in the 12 years prior to the election of 1860. It is now 28 years since we have had such a President, and looking at what we have to select from this year, President Lincoln's reputation as the greatest President since George Washington is pretty safe. Shoot, these two duds make Jimmy Carter and Warren G. Harding look attractive.
So, I wrote 45 minutes ago, where is the American political leader with the courage to stand up and say to the American people, "We are in a mess. I want to fix the mess. Here's how we--you and me--are going to do it."
Annnnnd, at that point, I realized that I was about to hijack your site again, so if you want to know my vision--and I may surprise you--come on over to the Scuttlebutt. It will be just one man's pep talk to the American people. Feel free to offer other ideas and alternatives, so long as they aren't just "that won't work." That's what has gotten us into the mess we are in.
I don't say my way is the only way, but I think it would probably wake up and unite the American People and genuinely pull them together to (I can't believe I'm writing this) make America great again. And, I'm going put a link to GC in my post. I hope it will draw even more readers to you because--once in a while--after I read your posts, and digest them, I realize that you have ideas that aren't anywhere near as wrong as I may have first thought!!!
[Remove tongue from cheek]
[Hit "I am not a robot"]
[Hit "Publish your comment"]
Thanks for the endorsement (?) :-).
Happy Independence Day to you, Marine.
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