Category: Political Observations

This is not a blog that will join the thronging crowds of experts offering Brexit for Dummies type “insight” guides. There are many, many, many of those, and many of which need an insight guide to to help you understand the insight.

And this is not an opinion of the right or wrong of Brexit, because who would ever knowingly step on that landmine.

No, this is my perspective on how you should really think of it, what is it equivalent to, or in what terms can you think of it to get a proper perspective on what “it” is.

And let us be truly honest, “it” is so complex, so multi-faceted, so broad reaching that no-one has a full grasp of it all. Certainly not media commentators, certainly not politicians, and most certainly not your mate down the pub.

But I have heard it described many times as a divorce; the not very pretty end to a broken marriage; the potentially acrimonious distribution of waggon-wheel coffee tables (side reference to When Harry Met Sally there). But ultimately someone has the pewter champagne flutes, someone has the dog, someone has the waggon-wheel coffee table; the wine decanter that was a wedding gift got broken (shame!); and no-one got the kids, because they had had enough of the bickering and went off to live somewhere else, together.

Perhaps the UK is divorcing Europe on grounds of unreasonable behaviour; or because Europe keeps offering its mates to come round and stay indefinitely, and even though they are really useful in helping keep the place tidy, they do eat funny food and they don’t understand your jokes; or because Europe keeps being adulterous with those Turks or those Australians (Australia in Eurovision !!).

Either way, once the dust settles, you’ve split the belongings, agreed visitation rights over the gold fish, and found new romantic interests, you can look forward to an agreeable grown-up relationship, still be friends, share the house in Provence, and possibly even a little drunken, for old times sake hanky-panky every so often.

But this is the wrong analogy. Brexit is not a divorce … Brexit is an amputation.

And an amputation is not something you do or agree to do through a metaphorical game of rock, paper scissors. An amputation of a limb is only ever in order to save the rest of the body, where the injury or disease is so advanced that death is the only other certainty.

And if you do lose the limb, you can never have it back in the same way, you may never recover back to how you used to be, it may always hurt and you may even never forget the loss and still “feel” it when it has gone. Then there is the spectacular level of intensive pre and post op medical care, the psychological care, the practical re-design of living that is so critical to future well-being. Of course you may be happy again, run again, love again, but it will always be missing.

You do not amputate your leg because the athlete’s foot between your toes is killing you; you do not amputate your arm because your nail varnish no longer matches your dress; and you do not amputate your head because you wish you were a brunette.

The UK is so intertwined with Europe on so many levels that it is not so much a relationship as it is that we are actually part of each other.

So next time someone tries to tell you that Brexit is potentially a messy divorce but be strong and we will get through it … think of it in different terms. Then decide whether a more diligent foot cream regime, some temporary nail wraps or even a wig might not be better in the long run.

But also remember ….

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything” – George Bernard Shaw

Thanks,

Adam

https://blondcontrarian.blogspot.co.uk/2018/05/what-is-brexit-really.html