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A deep knowledge of politics here

The sheer stupidity of holding a referendum on the future of the U.K.’s membership of the European Union is becoming more apparent by the day.

I know of no one who really believes that the UK public thought this an issue of real priority before David Cameron made it the focus of political concern.

There’s a whole fucking political party devoted to nothing but the damn subject. One that won the last euro-elections and got, what, 15%, 16% at the last GE?

Sirsly?

26 thoughts on “A deep knowledge of politics here”

  1. So Much For Subtlety

    As the late Pauline Kael once said, No one *I* know voted for Nixon.

    This is presumably a refusal to accept they may lose.

  2. And of course Ritchie and David Mitchell (in the Guardian) were consistently saying the same thing in the run up to the Scottish referendum. Except they weren’t!!!

  3. This is part of the narrative put out by Europhiles that this referendum was a bad idea solely done for party political reasons within the Tory party. It ignores the deep simmering discontent of a significant portion of the electorate. Democracy has always been an anathema to the European project.

    On the other hand, it doesnt appear to have done Cameron much good – although how he thought lying and engaging in project fear was going to play well with the fanatically mad Eurosceptics is something of a mystery to me.

  4. And Richard Dawkins doesn’t think he’s knowledgeable enough to have a vote on this. So, he thimks he’s worked out the answer to the ultimate question of life the universe and everything… but not this. Sheesh.

  5. UKIP got 12.6%.

    I love the deludedness of thinking “David Cameron made it the focus of political concern”. As opposed to avoiding a referendum for years before he was left with no alternative but to call it.

  6. The Inimitable Steve

    Referenda are only for important issues, such as whether we should change the voting system to a different system that nobody wanted.

  7. “I know of no one…”

    The”how can this happen when none of the right thinking people I associate with asked for it?” line seems to be fairly common amongst arrogant deluded wankers, see every election or referenda you can remember.

  8. “That there is a real risk of significant cost to the UK as a result of Brexit reveals foolhardiness:  every risk that he and George Osborne talk about is one that they created which the UK need not have faced.”

    Aah, the real reason we shouldn’t have a referendum: the chance of getting the wrong result. You must have been furious about that General Election thing that happened last year Richard.

  9. Ironman

    The point is that there are also potential upsides to exit – as people have rightly pointed out free trade and a bonfire of regulations could mean the UK would grow far faster. upsides which we would not face if we did not have a referendum.

    I dont actually believe that this would happen – I look at the morons in charge here and know that we would not get free trade and less regulation. And it is 100% true that Brexit would be better for the poor natives here – bad on average but better for social cohesion perhaps.

  10. Were it not for the danger of ZaNu winning UKIP would have got far more support in the last GE.

    Pig-Fuck was perceived as being less vile than Baby–boy Milli.

    A false perception as they are both equally evil albeit in a slightly different style.

  11. And like bluebottles attracted to a fresh steaming turd, two of Murphy’s most assiduous and fascistic stools inspectors descend on the comments – the odious pair of Andrew Dickie and Carol Wilcox.

  12. BraveFart

    Boh Andrew Dickie and Carol Wilcot had plenty to say about the Scottish referendum…and it most certainly.was not “complicated economic decisions like he’s shouldn’t be left to the voters”.

    What a fucking comment! What a giveaway! How clear could her contempt for the opinions, beliefs and reasoning of those little people who cast their vote be.

  13. ‘I am a left of centre libertarian pragmatist’

    If Swift were alive he would reject the man as wholly implausible even in a satirical vein – I think Hans Christian Andersen might also have rejected him as a concept

    The post is actually quite illustrating – the clearest indication that Murphy is contemptuous of democracy and popular opinion we have seen in at least 24 hours

  14. BF/Ironman

    Wilcox and Dickie are in favour of democratic regimes though. Both were well remunerated by the German Democratic Republic and are currently in receipt of largesse from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea….

  15. Ironman

    Indeed – it’s quite a telling line from the repulsive and fascistic Wilcox.

    The likes of Dickie and Wilcox will not be happy until all UK political decisions are taken by a politburo, presumably comprising mostly foreign EU nationals, given the contempt they have for the majority of decent UK politicians. The only politicians they seem to accept are the anti-Semites and terrorist appeasers, an indication of the type of society they would like to force on us all.

  16. As I recall, Greece had a referendum a iut 25 months ago on having its own economic policy. The EU threw the bloody book at it for doing so. Richard Murphy screamed blueurder about the crushing of democratic will this represented.

    So what is the difference? Oh yes, Greece had a far left government.

  17. This could be one of those great moments in politics such as the way the parties broke up over the Corn Laws, or the Liberals’s split in the 30s. Cameron and Osborne seem determined to split their party.

  18. The Murphatollah is often so atrociously wrong-headed that he is amusing; but increasingly his posts resemble the tedious ramblings of an egotistical saloon bar bore who ignores or dismisses all interruptions.

  19. When I was a LibDem activist I was banging on for years saying we should have a referendum, then we could vote ‘Remain’ and get it all over with. Now it’s here, I’m going to vote Leave.

  20. @ken:

    Good point. There is lots of talk about a bonfire of regulations if we leave the EU but so far I’ve yet to see any specific examples. Some vague muttering about “green” regulations, some stupid empty rhetoric about “turbo charging the economy” and leaving CAP but still hosing the farmers with money.

    I thought the Better Together campaign was a textbook example of how to almost lose a campaign that should be won at a canter, but the Leave campaign is giving it a run for its money.

  21. GD

    I agree. John Kay made the point that both sides seem to focus in the official booklet entirely on the impact on the NHS. It is as if neither side has a clue as to the direction we should follow. This is leadership as practised in student Trot clubs.

  22. There’s a whole fucking political party devoted to nothing but the damn subject. One that won the last euro-elections and got, what, 15%, 16% at the last GE?

    Quite so (UKIP got 12.7% of the vote according to what I just looked up). Anyone who feels strongly that the UK should leave the EU can vote UKIP.

    If support for Brexit in a referendum turns out to be four times UKIP support, that tells us that most of the people voting for Brexit are really not that bothered by the issue*. So it would be better to let professional politicians evaluate the evidence and come to a considered conclusion, rather than conduct a plebiscite to find out which side can tell its lies more convincingly.

    *Alternatively, it could be that UKIP is such a horrible shower that most people who feel strongly that its main policy is right still won’t vote for it. In which case I suggest UKIP should sort itself out.

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