The Little Englanders are getting just what they thought they wanted. But they didn't understand what it really was.
2
Every time I come here I wonder how quickly I will see the phrase 'little England/Britain' or anything about the sun setting on the British Empire. Yours was the first post I read.
I take great offense to that statement sir. The people who voted leave had valid reasons to want that result. The north was struggling even while we were part of the EU and they felt forgotten (same as the rust belt folks). I went to university in one of those towns and let me tell you, finding work, really hard.
And I know it's not the EU at fault
And I know it's not the EU at fault
It seems that rather than shifting right, or left, the country has rotated, clockwise.
3
Who would think that the same person that hires Boris Johnson can run a convenience store, much less a country?
5
It seems dreamy to think of a soft exit is even possible; the bottom line is going to be the big money and not the savings of repatriating some EU
funds back to Britain;not that I know ,but a divorce usually involves piles of money going somewhere.
funds back to Britain;not that I know ,but a divorce usually involves piles of money going somewhere.
3
Britain, to have access to EU market and financial institution will finally have to sign with EU agreement in which will accept all EU conditions which actually where reasons why they voted for Brexit. So, Britain will be actually member of EU without voting rights and without participating in political decision of EU.
It seems that British Brexit may be also United Kingdom Brexit and that Queen Elisabet II will lose Scotland crown to. Even, North Ireland case might be now in question to? So, Balkanisation of England might be in process as result of Brexit.
Britain ruling class is hesitant and reluctant to leave EU, but Brexir must be consumed, so 28 EU member will not be Britain, but only Scotland and North Ireland and possibly Gibraltar. So Brexit will be actually dual Brexit - Britain EU Brexit and United Kingdom Brexit in which present part will separate from Britain and remain part of EU. So, from Imperial Great Britain "where Sun never sets" will be left only rump Kingdom of England with German aristocratic family Windsor as kings and queens as a symbol of the unity and glory of the United Kingdom with a relatively modest political power. Clear example of destruction stupidity of the common people my do and warning to as in USA not to follows it.
It seems that British Brexit may be also United Kingdom Brexit and that Queen Elisabet II will lose Scotland crown to. Even, North Ireland case might be now in question to? So, Balkanisation of England might be in process as result of Brexit.
Britain ruling class is hesitant and reluctant to leave EU, but Brexir must be consumed, so 28 EU member will not be Britain, but only Scotland and North Ireland and possibly Gibraltar. So Brexit will be actually dual Brexit - Britain EU Brexit and United Kingdom Brexit in which present part will separate from Britain and remain part of EU. So, from Imperial Great Britain "where Sun never sets" will be left only rump Kingdom of England with German aristocratic family Windsor as kings and queens as a symbol of the unity and glory of the United Kingdom with a relatively modest political power. Clear example of destruction stupidity of the common people my do and warning to as in USA not to follows it.
3
I'm am beyond exhausted with elections/Brexit/austerity. Brexit was the most horrible divisive thing l have ever known. I still know of families who don't speak because of it. It tore the Uk apart in a way l have ever known. Young against old, educated against non educated, White against black. The rise in hate crime and racist incidents in the Uk now is shocking. Both sides are still so angry....and for nothing. Just one stupid prime minister in a ridiculous attempt to safeguard her myself in his party, has torn the nation apart.
I'm sick I'm of elections. I think we've voted for something 3 times in the last 3 years.
I just want stability instead of the chaos we are living with. I wish the whole Brexit thing had never happened. It was such a close vote, yet the Remainers have been totally ignored. If the non voters were included in this stupid stupid vote, then actually the majority of the country voted for the status qou, but that is being ignored.
I guess l'll have to go out and vote for done that my else before the end of the year. It really feels like the lunatics have truly taken over the asylum.
I'm sick I'm of elections. I think we've voted for something 3 times in the last 3 years.
I just want stability instead of the chaos we are living with. I wish the whole Brexit thing had never happened. It was such a close vote, yet the Remainers have been totally ignored. If the non voters were included in this stupid stupid vote, then actually the majority of the country voted for the status qou, but that is being ignored.
I guess l'll have to go out and vote for done that my else before the end of the year. It really feels like the lunatics have truly taken over the asylum.
2
Educated against uneducated. MDR
Give the uneducated a dollar and a ture against you.
Talk about 'biting the hand that feed you.'
Give the uneducated a dollar and a ture against you.
Talk about 'biting the hand that feed you.'
1
Of course the "non voters" are being ignored. They should have voted.
Over the past 6 years the Tories have shredded the police and security services, the National Health Service and public education, and then presided over two catastrophic votes in less than one year. They have destroyed the UK.
I continue to be utterly baffled at how they are able to find people to vote for them, just as the Republicans do in the United States. Is there a cure for this derangement???
I continue to be utterly baffled at how they are able to find people to vote for them, just as the Republicans do in the United States. Is there a cure for this derangement???
7
I am afraid Mrs May doesn't really mean Brexit, she means EU a la carte. Keep what she likes give up what she doesn't. No wonder all the other countries are united against her.
8
A big surprise to me. I love it. The problem is that the conservatives still are the politically most powerful party in Britain. Brexit was a fiasco. May has not a clue on how to negotiate it. But the conservatives are going to wing it anyway. The whole Brexit mind set seemed like a ticket to political and economic decline for Britain. It makes perfect sense to me the British youth saw Brexit as a mindless jump into decline by older voters in which the young were going to pay the price with lessened future economic prospects for the country. All this talk of how Brexit and Donald Trump were the wave of the future seems wrong. Nationalist rage against white decline has peaked. But the future still is blighted by Trump's continued presence in the presidency and that the conservatives are going to push Brexit and austerity despite the election debacle.
6
Why do British Prime Ministers suddenly have these disastrous compulsions to hold unnecessary elections that ultimately lead to their demise?
4
The only type of exit open to the U.K. now is a soft one. The country is too divided to present a hard front to the EU. Expect a Norwegian type solution with an EEA type agreement, perhaps even EFTA membership. It's either an agreement like that or no British exit at all.
2
There is a logic to capitalist development - it's "grow or die." Each large corporation sees itself in a struggle to the death with competitors who will stop at nothing to eliminate or absorb rivals, and if we don't do it the Chinese will. Under those circumstances, they will do whatever it takes, including pouring massive amounts of money into controlling the government, in order to have a free hand to do whatever it takes. Government regulation can slow down and limit this process of capitalist global expansion, but the trend - even with an enlightened president like Obama - could not be stopped, and Trump won't even try. Witness the failure of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, where the alternative to the U.S. leading the process is to let the Chinese lead. The hurting workers here and (soon) elsewhere will be stirred up to attack the wrong enemy - government - which alone could wield the power to soften the blows of unrestrained capitalist expansion. And international corporations will continue their takeover of the globe.
4
Most "clubs" make it attractive for members to join and stay. Because the EU can offer only austerity pain and high fees, it must make it painful for members to leave. It sounds like a club for sadists and masochists. The British are right to leave such a punitive and coercive union. If I were May, I would remind the people that if Britain did not flinch, much less surrender, during relentless Luftwaffe bombing raids on London and other large English cities, they will certainly not bow down to Brussels bureaucrats seeking vengeance via treaties.
Britain needs a strong leader like Macron. They don't need a wimpy Corbin or a Bernie. In America Hillary won the election in spite of the fact every white man Republican and Bernie bro colluded with the Russians, and she still beat them by 3 million votes.
4
Good! Brexit should be hard because it's suicidal!
An insane project of the Austerity loons and upper-class twits of the year who had no plan, no idea of what they were doing, and no way out other than to resign and retire to their huge country estates, leaving the state alone and adrift on increasingly stormy seas.
There wasn't even the barest plurality of support, leaving the result with no legitimacy. It shouldn't just be hard, it should be impossible, which the poor weakened PM is about to find out to her chagrin.
An insane project of the Austerity loons and upper-class twits of the year who had no plan, no idea of what they were doing, and no way out other than to resign and retire to their huge country estates, leaving the state alone and adrift on increasingly stormy seas.
There wasn't even the barest plurality of support, leaving the result with no legitimacy. It shouldn't just be hard, it should be impossible, which the poor weakened PM is about to find out to her chagrin.
6
Right on!
Seems to me that Anglo-Saxon voters on both sides of the Pond bought a pig in a poke last year, with similar disastrous outcomes. And with the cozy relationship between Nigel Farange and Russia coming to light, it also looks like Putin was brokering both deals.
3
I'm no scholar in British politics. Aren't the results of this election simply due to overconfident people who didn't vote the last time? They realized that voting is an active effort, not a passive one.
Does anyone wonder what would happen if a new US election were held today? It would not be an upset if Trump lost. People would have awoken from a bad dream and go back to a semblance of normalcy.
Does anyone wonder what would happen if a new US election were held today? It would not be an upset if Trump lost. People would have awoken from a bad dream and go back to a semblance of normalcy.
2
It's called parliamentary politics, a little more representative than the American system
2
Maybe British voters just cannot stomach the Conservative austerity policies which are tearing up the country, just as they are in the US. The majority in both countries strongly oppose these measures, but the politicians pass them anyway because that's what the rich plutocrats want and they actually pull all the strings.
4
Theresa May shot herself in the foot with the proposals for a 'Dementia Tax' which alienated a lot of older voters who are more sympathetic towards the Conservatives and Brexit. In truth Brexit disappeared in the final couple of weeks because of the proposed tax and the terrorist attacks which diverted attention towards policing and security. For some reason. totally incompressible to older people like me, the young think Jeremy Corbyn is a panacea for all ills. In reality he did run a good campaign centred around his own ideology but it is all theory with no substance. All in all not a good turn of events for anyone. Brexit will remain a problem. The Conservatives are in difficulties and Labour is left with a far left Marxist leader who is even more deeply entrenched in power and the more moderate Labour team once more left out in the cold.
2
Labour deserves to lead the formation of a government. The Tories introduced the Leave referendum and proceeded to lose the Remain campaign, thereby destroying the United Kingdom. And triggering Article 50 BEFORE calling for a general election is simply political malpractice. Resign, Theresa. You and your party have done enough damage already.
1
Britons are waking up just as Americans are to the wrongheaded notions that nationalistic populism is the way to go. Just as the Mother Country could be wrong in voting Conservative, so were the Americans who voted for Trump and the Freedom Caucus Republicans who believe the only way to govern is give the Wealthy a bigger percentage of the economic pie while cutting life-sustaining benefits for the working poor and those direly in need of social services. Just as the young in the UK have awaken, so shall the young in the US. It is just a matter of time when the old road of the conservatives fades from view, and a new road of sharing this nation's vast wealth takes hold. The time for reckoning is long overdue. Come 2018, let US begin to make it happen.
DD
Manhattan
DD
Manhattan
7
I don't hear that freedom caucus offering free education, to capture the young vote… Whether possible or not
2
Dear NM aka G:
Free education, or what in reality is publicly funded education, is indeed possible. It is all dependent on the citizens of the United States to demand such things. It is we the people who must re-assume the position of the dog and not the tail. It is we who must tell, demand, of "our" representatives to do as we want. When the politicos finally get the news, that we are not the docile and compliant sheep we often appear to be, and that we are ready to remove them from their lofty positions unless they meet our demands then and only then will this country return to the days when we the 99% shared a larger piece of the economic pie that we used before Voodoo Reaganomics took hold. Trump has done one good thing. He has churned up and reinvigorated us Lumpen Proles. We are both angry and ready to resist any more attempts by a dictatorial president and the Republicans to enrich the rich and left the rest of US scrambling for the crumbs.
DD
Manhattan
Free education, or what in reality is publicly funded education, is indeed possible. It is all dependent on the citizens of the United States to demand such things. It is we the people who must re-assume the position of the dog and not the tail. It is we who must tell, demand, of "our" representatives to do as we want. When the politicos finally get the news, that we are not the docile and compliant sheep we often appear to be, and that we are ready to remove them from their lofty positions unless they meet our demands then and only then will this country return to the days when we the 99% shared a larger piece of the economic pie that we used before Voodoo Reaganomics took hold. Trump has done one good thing. He has churned up and reinvigorated us Lumpen Proles. We are both angry and ready to resist any more attempts by a dictatorial president and the Republicans to enrich the rich and left the rest of US scrambling for the crumbs.
DD
Manhattan
3
May needs to resign. She does not represent the way forward for Britain.
Juncker after the famous dinner said May was in la la land and this clip rather supports it. She is the person who has plunged the country into instability but seems oblivious of it.
The key to understanding all this remains the goal of first Cameron and now May of prioritizing the unity of Conservative party over the national interest. Cameron tried the referendum and it blew up in his face and May was aiming to gain more maneuvering space and that too has blown up in her face.
There only ever been two Brexit options for the UK. The so called soft option where leaving is more apparent than real (aka Norway) or the genuine break executed either in an orderly or disorderly fashion where Britain flounces out with serious consequences for the British economy. The election probably make the soft route a bit more likely since it's clear the EU are going to dictate the terms of the divorce and faced with the enormity of the consequences May could well fold although it will split the Conservative party the keeping together of which was the original goal of Cameron and May. Poetic justice?
The key to understanding all this remains the goal of first Cameron and now May of prioritizing the unity of Conservative party over the national interest. Cameron tried the referendum and it blew up in his face and May was aiming to gain more maneuvering space and that too has blown up in her face.
There only ever been two Brexit options for the UK. The so called soft option where leaving is more apparent than real (aka Norway) or the genuine break executed either in an orderly or disorderly fashion where Britain flounces out with serious consequences for the British economy. The election probably make the soft route a bit more likely since it's clear the EU are going to dictate the terms of the divorce and faced with the enormity of the consequences May could well fold although it will split the Conservative party the keeping together of which was the original goal of Cameron and May. Poetic justice?
12
Theresa May held hands with, The King of Chaos, and she got what she deserved! Not more authority queen like power but less. Trumpitis does not work Ms. May. Same, Same for Brexit, stand with Trump and stand alone.
12
Don't forget that behind the Brexit vote in the 2016 referendum that is not a democratic practice by the way, lies fascism: fascism has different faces and takes on different forms and colours and can be found everywhere: in Russia, USA, UK, Iran and elsewhere. Fortunately there are anti-fascist social and political forces: In France this was countered by massive vote for Macron and it has been opposed to some extent by the victory of Labour in the general elections in the UK.
5
Hung parliament. Hard Brexit. Soft Brexit.
Only the Brits can make something so dry sound so naughty and make Americans repeat it.
Lordy (to quote Comey), if there is one argument for not having more than two political parties in the US, it is to never having to say we have a hung Congress or a hung Senate.
Only the Brits can make something so dry sound so naughty and make Americans repeat it.
Lordy (to quote Comey), if there is one argument for not having more than two political parties in the US, it is to never having to say we have a hung Congress or a hung Senate.
1
But when we have divided government it is actually worse than a hung parliament.
2
I recently saw an article titled "Is the U.K. Being taken over by Islam?"
It is an interesting question to ponder.
The Mayor of London is Muslim, and the Muslim population has doubled in 10 years.
Muslims who have come to the U.K. have predominantly joined the Labour Party, and their increasing numbers have strengthened the Party significantly.
The religion of Islam is said to be a peaceful religion, yet it also advocates for dominance of Islam.
Radical Islamic terrorists get a lot of attention in the media, but the slow insidious immigration of Muslims continues silently into the Western world like a Trojan Horse.
There are 2.3 billion Christians, and 1.6 billion Muslims in the world.
Christians are increasingly apathetic about their religion, while Muslims still take their religion very serious.
The Pew Research Center has confirms Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. By 2035, births of Muslim babies will outnumber births of Christian babies.
The U.K. should not be surprised by the election results because as more Muslims emigrate to the U.K. and other countries in the Western World, the conservative parties in these western societies will easily be outnumbered.
This trend is a one way street because even if there was a similar trend whereby people in the U.K. emigrated to counties where is Islam is the dominant religion, they would never be allowed to vote or become leaders who primarily religious clerics.
It is an interesting question to ponder.
The Mayor of London is Muslim, and the Muslim population has doubled in 10 years.
Muslims who have come to the U.K. have predominantly joined the Labour Party, and their increasing numbers have strengthened the Party significantly.
The religion of Islam is said to be a peaceful religion, yet it also advocates for dominance of Islam.
Radical Islamic terrorists get a lot of attention in the media, but the slow insidious immigration of Muslims continues silently into the Western world like a Trojan Horse.
There are 2.3 billion Christians, and 1.6 billion Muslims in the world.
Christians are increasingly apathetic about their religion, while Muslims still take their religion very serious.
The Pew Research Center has confirms Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. By 2035, births of Muslim babies will outnumber births of Christian babies.
The U.K. should not be surprised by the election results because as more Muslims emigrate to the U.K. and other countries in the Western World, the conservative parties in these western societies will easily be outnumbered.
This trend is a one way street because even if there was a similar trend whereby people in the U.K. emigrated to counties where is Islam is the dominant religion, they would never be allowed to vote or become leaders who primarily religious clerics.
5
5% of population is a "takeover"?
4
She gambled big. She lost big. Time to resign.
5
Ok.
Best two out of three?
Best two out of three?
2
Theresa May: Claire Underwood, she is not
2
Mrs. May intended that this election be about Brexit. But Mr. Corbyn was very successful in turning the debate to Tory policy over the last six years. And Britain has major problems.
The National Health Service is in crisis with people queued for hours and hours waiting to see a hospital doctor. Patients are stacked in the corridor waiting for a hospital bed to come free. The recent terrorist attacks exposed a crisis in the security services after 20,000 police officers have been cut. Trains are so dysfunctional that Labour is demanding that they be re-nationalized.
Brexit politicians promised the people that they could leave the EU but still enjoy all the benefits of free trade with Europe. Wait until the people wake up and find out that they've been sold a dead cow. Then you'll hear them.
The National Health Service is in crisis with people queued for hours and hours waiting to see a hospital doctor. Patients are stacked in the corridor waiting for a hospital bed to come free. The recent terrorist attacks exposed a crisis in the security services after 20,000 police officers have been cut. Trains are so dysfunctional that Labour is demanding that they be re-nationalized.
Brexit politicians promised the people that they could leave the EU but still enjoy all the benefits of free trade with Europe. Wait until the people wake up and find out that they've been sold a dead cow. Then you'll hear them.
8
Actually, Corbyn's success in rolling back the May hard-line bandwagon means a more, practical approach to Brexit with less vitriolic rhetoric. The future of the British economy demands it and the public knows it.
3
@A. Brown
Windsor, UK
So you're expecting the right wing British press, Farage and the Tory Euro sceptics to moderate their tone? Doesn't seem very likely does it? The rhetoric from the British government hasn't been particularly vitriolic (more confused and platitudinous) while the EU has been ultra polite. It's still going to be a fist fight as Rogers predicted. The question really is do the British fold when the light bulb finally comes on or leave for real.
Windsor, UK
So you're expecting the right wing British press, Farage and the Tory Euro sceptics to moderate their tone? Doesn't seem very likely does it? The rhetoric from the British government hasn't been particularly vitriolic (more confused and platitudinous) while the EU has been ultra polite. It's still going to be a fist fight as Rogers predicted. The question really is do the British fold when the light bulb finally comes on or leave for real.
5
What's interesting about this election is that the right wing press (The Sun, The Daily Mail) are no longer kingmakers. And, yes the hard right Tories will continue to push for a hard Brexit but the combination of moderate Tories and the progressives of Labour & Lib Dems will call for transparency & wont rubber stamp a hard Brexit platform. The vitriol comment was about May's rhetoric about the EU, not the campaign which was stilted, wooden platitudes.
I'm rather surprised at the NYT's assertion that Corbyn has changed the political landscape in the UK.
What he has done is manage to drag Labour's popularity back up to the level it was at when Gordon Brown lost the keys to Number 10 - and the first of three consecutive elections Labour have lost.
And despite Theresa May's worst performance as a party leader in an election campaign in living memory Corbyn still only managed to come 56 seats behind the Conservatives.
Labour are no nearer the levers of power now than they were a decade ago.
Corbyn also still fails to command the support of the vast majority of his parliamentary party who were noticeably absent from most of the national campaign.
Sure the election result is going to make Brexit even more difficult but let's not lose sight of the fact that 80% of the MPs in the new parliament have already voted to leave the EU.
British voters have delivered a withering response to the Tories cack-handed election campaign but as they've shown in Scotland - which is the real story of this election - the Tories are a long way from being dead and buried.
What he has done is manage to drag Labour's popularity back up to the level it was at when Gordon Brown lost the keys to Number 10 - and the first of three consecutive elections Labour have lost.
And despite Theresa May's worst performance as a party leader in an election campaign in living memory Corbyn still only managed to come 56 seats behind the Conservatives.
Labour are no nearer the levers of power now than they were a decade ago.
Corbyn also still fails to command the support of the vast majority of his parliamentary party who were noticeably absent from most of the national campaign.
Sure the election result is going to make Brexit even more difficult but let's not lose sight of the fact that 80% of the MPs in the new parliament have already voted to leave the EU.
British voters have delivered a withering response to the Tories cack-handed election campaign but as they've shown in Scotland - which is the real story of this election - the Tories are a long way from being dead and buried.
8
Of course Labour were in power 10 years ago...
Unfortunately, Corbyn's successful loss on Thursday will only extend their current wilderness years. He has managed to change the conversation - for which he deserves some credit, but he is simply not statesman-like enough to take the centre-ground to make PM. Time and age are not on his side, meanwhile it will likely be another election plus one for Labour to have become credible once more, or for the Tories to have become sufficiently loathed.
Unfortunately, Corbyn's successful loss on Thursday will only extend their current wilderness years. He has managed to change the conversation - for which he deserves some credit, but he is simply not statesman-like enough to take the centre-ground to make PM. Time and age are not on his side, meanwhile it will likely be another election plus one for Labour to have become credible once more, or for the Tories to have become sufficiently loathed.
2
I get it. Buyers' regret.
On the other hand how often, when you experience buyers' regret and your transaction is completed, has that regret really been justified?
On the other hand how often, when you experience buyers' regret and your transaction is completed, has that regret really been justified?
1
2 observations after reading the comments
1. more than a few commenters fantasized for a snap election in the US! According to a recent poll, Americas would vote the same way now as they did last Nov, so a fantasy snap election in the US, for which, needless to say, is not a provision in the US system, would produce the same result anyway!!!
2. more than a few commenters also blamed May's less than stellar performance on Trump, that UK voters surely looked over the pond at the US and voted against Trump. It think it would be reasonable to say that people voted on the issues facing the UK, and that it was not a referendum on Trump! Sorry, but the world does not revolve completely around Trump, for better or worse.
1. more than a few commenters fantasized for a snap election in the US! According to a recent poll, Americas would vote the same way now as they did last Nov, so a fantasy snap election in the US, for which, needless to say, is not a provision in the US system, would produce the same result anyway!!!
2. more than a few commenters also blamed May's less than stellar performance on Trump, that UK voters surely looked over the pond at the US and voted against Trump. It think it would be reasonable to say that people voted on the issues facing the UK, and that it was not a referendum on Trump! Sorry, but the world does not revolve completely around Trump, for better or worse.
3
The DUP, though pro-BREXIT, are very likely to want a soft border between Northern Ireland and Ireland; the benefits of trade between the two is vital enough that they will benefit.
However, they are also likely to want to end equal marriage and criminalize homosexuality, abortion, the Irish language, and Catholicism
However, they are also likely to want to end equal marriage and criminalize homosexuality, abortion, the Irish language, and Catholicism
4
Political compulsions to preserve coalition will result in a government where a tail wags the dog.
1
My fear is that the UK will take the EU hostage with their idiotic Brexit.
Europeans have much more important things to do than deal with the self inflicted pain of the english upper class.
In an age of Trump and Putin, sane european countries need to focus on keeping the continent safe for democracy and decency, not on negotiating endlessly on the divorce settlement with a country that represents 10% of the EU population and not much more of its GDP.
Brexit is the UK's problem, we should not let it become Europe ´s.
Europeans have much more important things to do than deal with the self inflicted pain of the english upper class.
In an age of Trump and Putin, sane european countries need to focus on keeping the continent safe for democracy and decency, not on negotiating endlessly on the divorce settlement with a country that represents 10% of the EU population and not much more of its GDP.
Brexit is the UK's problem, we should not let it become Europe ´s.
4
Whatever the problems with growing wealth inequality, stagnating wages, crumbling infrastructure and social services, forgotten provinces with high unemployment and lack of opportunities for youth, uncontrolled immigration and islamic extremist cells - NONE of these problems were caused by membership in the EU!
Every single one of these issues can be traced back to the failed policies of all UK governments in the past 25 years, which chose not to enforce any of the available EU laws regarding immigration, and handed over control of the country to the capitalist oligarchy of London investment banks and big capital, ignoring every other sector of the economy and ignoring the needs and rights of 99% of the population.
Unlike older people in the UK who tend to have a warped nostalgic view of a vague past imperial glory, most young people know the truth. The future belongs to them, and the sooner they kick the old reactionary fogeys into irrelevance, the better. Power to the young!
Every single one of these issues can be traced back to the failed policies of all UK governments in the past 25 years, which chose not to enforce any of the available EU laws regarding immigration, and handed over control of the country to the capitalist oligarchy of London investment banks and big capital, ignoring every other sector of the economy and ignoring the needs and rights of 99% of the population.
Unlike older people in the UK who tend to have a warped nostalgic view of a vague past imperial glory, most young people know the truth. The future belongs to them, and the sooner they kick the old reactionary fogeys into irrelevance, the better. Power to the young!
3
Perhaps a pendulum is starting to swing back. Now, can you British folks please get your government to withdraw that invitation to Trump for a state visit, please?
1
We sure have tried to prevent a state visit from President Trump.
I wrote to my MP, the Brexit Minister David Davis, telling him that May's rush to greet the new President was ill-judged, reminding him that he once resigned his seat on a civil liberties issue, and suggesting that we shouldn't be so quick to invite Trump before seeing how the Administration pans out.
But of course it changed nothing.
I wrote to my MP, the Brexit Minister David Davis, telling him that May's rush to greet the new President was ill-judged, reminding him that he once resigned his seat on a civil liberties issue, and suggesting that we shouldn't be so quick to invite Trump before seeing how the Administration pans out.
But of course it changed nothing.
1
Trump may withdraw himself. Can't imagine he will want to associate with the 'loser', Theresa May.
Train wreck, with closest friends and neighbours - as in Ireland and Scotland - completely disregarded. There's a wonderful irony here, though - since our home-grown lunatics, Sinn Fein, do not take their seats in Westminster, the Republic's hopes for a 'soft' border may well depend on the DUP.
3
There is a line connecting almost all the political upheaval in the world. The line is globalization and the winners and losers are assembling on either side. The confusion stems from the fact that the leaders of each side don't always look like, or even acknowledge, their followers. (In fact, Trump, May, Wilders, Duterte, LePen, ISIS, Putin and Saudi Arabia are all on one side.) Ideally, we would have an angry, overweight person with a failing heart, no pension and no idea what happens outside his county arguing against a trim, slick, besuited finance-type who regularly flies around the world and loves Uber. Let them fight it out to the death and leave the world to the rest of us.
2
People whose minds are made up by slogans and propoganda suffer as U.S. citizens who voted for Trump ard beginning to learn. Brecit was always a stupid appeal to prenudice, fueled by right-wing propoganda, and its adoption by the British parliament will hurt all classes badly, but especially the working class blokes who voted for it.
2
Brexit was brought about because Cameron expected a hung parliament and an alliance with the Lib Dems who would prevent it happening. The current hung parliament provides an ideal situation for getting rid of it. Sinn Fein are not going to sit back and allow the DUP to control the peace settlement . Also the DUP is so reactionary that any relationship is both unstable and threatening.
1
Can they have a way to revote Brexit?
This is Bregret
2
If May's predecessor Cameron had gambled on the Brexit referendum to actually avoid such outcome, he really failed in that. Similarly, if Theresa May gambled on the snap polls to consolidate her power and ensure the hard Brexit outcome, she actually got the opposite- weakening her position, hung parliament, more disarray and confusion in the country. This is indicative of a huge disconnect between the political leaders and the people.
3
Conservatives by nature restrict progress, change and innovation. England, as well as the US need to clean house and install liberal, progressive, and innovative governments to restore order to their economies and social fabric.
6
Britain has been suffering from a familiar syndrome of increasing income inequality, slow growth, fractured public services, privatization of former public activities and a government committed to Austerity all common enough since the financial crisis that shook western societies in 2008. London prosperous but despair spreading elsewhere. Brexit was the first surprising reaction this election the second and in all likelihood more to come.
The pollsters and the pundits surprised; sound familiar? Corbyn represents an earlier model of government and on the rise; feared by the elite but not by the young who are discontent and un-programmed. Interesting times.
The pollsters and the pundits surprised; sound familiar? Corbyn represents an earlier model of government and on the rise; feared by the elite but not by the young who are discontent and un-programmed. Interesting times.
4
Labour 1 Tories 0
May (og)
May (og)
7
Theresa May cannot lead her party into another election, unless she wants to destroy it, so her desperate attempt to cling to power now is pure hubris and handicaps her party in the long run.
Good. I hope Corbyn fillets her, and exposes the charade that is the Conservative Party of Britain.
Good. I hope Corbyn fillets her, and exposes the charade that is the Conservative Party of Britain.
6
This is another example of what happens when you place too much faith in the pollsters and their ilk.
5
The British election was not simply about Brexit. It was about inequality and the futility of austerity. Wake up. And Brexit can be fixed. There is plenty of time. Deadlines can be renegotiated. Start looking at the real consequences of the election. May is finished. Jeremy Corbyn will, in all likelihood, become the Prime Minister within the next six months to a year at the latest. And this is good news. This election also indicates a return to better policies and a vindication of Bernie Sanders "revolution."
4
The United Kingdom is really a vision of what the USA will be in 50-100 years. The British are a third rate power acting like they are the people's republic of china. Brexit is turning out to be a huge mistake. It has already had the unintended consequences of saner politicians being elected on the continent. If Macron and Merkel can help Matteo Renzi in next years Italian election, the EU will be an even in a better position to exact tough concessions from the Tories in England because they won't have to contend with the Star Five party backed by Putin in Italy. What is treacherous for PM May already could therefore get much worse, particularly as the continent looks out for the Republic of Ireland. A more unified EU could force May out. Corbyn is no shining star but after many years in darkness Labour could see some light. The clock on merry old England is ticking.
4
I think you are trying to say too many things here, mixing them together with a number of slights and references to some rather irrelevant points of detail (ie Italy). The key issue is this. The revival in Labour's fortunes and the rejection of neo-liberalism as the project starts here.
The USA can learn from this too. It boils down to this: focus on young people, keep that focus and then focus some more.
The USA can learn from this too. It boils down to this: focus on young people, keep that focus and then focus some more.
1
We are the 6th biggest economy in the world and forever resilient. I voted remain and would rather stay but that is very unlikely. We will waste time and resources with leaving the EU but try not to write us off. History is full of failed leaders who thought we were third rate.
2
Brexit was about the invasion of foreigners who entered Britain via the EU. In WW2 it took the Allies six years to destroy Germany. Angela W. Merkel accomplished the same thing in six months.
Britain wisely doesn't want to go that way. Manchester. London Bridge. 7/7 London Bombing.
Britain wisely doesn't want to go that way. Manchester. London Bridge. 7/7 London Bombing.
4
Almost all of these terrorists were home grown, from former British colonies, or from Libyan militias given shelter by the Tory government to overthrow Gaddafi. Germany is safer than either the US or the U.K. Try another argument.
11
Overplaying the terrorist issue, which is Europe wide and World Wide. In fact the story - as occurred in USA - was the number of immigrants, and in particular the number for the rest of Europe (although they are NOT migrants but merely other EU citizens). The right pushed this mercilessly, although in fact majority of migrants from outside the EU and on May's watch (as Home Secretary).
No, brexit was about mostly old people not understanding that Britain is no longer a globally dominant power but rather a middling European nation who's interests are far better served inside the European bloc than sat tragically alone desperately sidling up to a USA that has had little interest in them as anything other than a conduit to Europe (and since the rise of trump has not even cared about that).
What three terrorist attacks spread across fifteen years who's combined victim count is not even a day's gun deaths in the USA I have no idea.
What three terrorist attacks spread across fifteen years who's combined victim count is not even a day's gun deaths in the USA I have no idea.
She held hands with Trump; she invited him for a state visit much sooner than any other US president; she refused to critisize him for attacking London mayor; she refused to co-sign on a declaration for climate change. A veritable sycophant equally delusional as Trump in her own way. We hope soon Trump will follow her destiny and suffer such defeat.
17
These two have a lot in common, and both are Kremlin's darlings.
3
The NYT's anti-progressive agenda has long been clear and was transparent in the coverage of Bernie Sanders' campaign and their cheer-leading for the only person capable of losing to Trump. Now this publication is trying desperately to spin Corbyn's impressive turnaround as a losing long-term strategy.
This article glosses over the most important part of the election results--namely, Labour's historic comeback from near impossible odds. Then, facing the inevitable, after around a full day, the NYT came out with a lukewarm article on Corbyn's campaign (See NYT's "Jeremy Corbyn Lost U.K. Election, but Is Still Its Biggest Winner") that still managed to vilify him as some kind of terrorist sympathizer. The truly amazing thing about that latter article is this characteristically snide, tendentious, and evidence-free claim: "With his core vote for now still far to the left of Middle England, Mr. Corbyn seems unlikely ever to run Britain."
If you read other publications (which I hope all NYT readers do), you will learn that Labour was only was only 2227 votes from winning:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/election-uk-2017-live-upda...
Labour also won a much larger share of the vote than Blair did in 2005. Yet somehow it is acceptable editorial policy to make dogmatic assertions that Corbyn will never be PM in an article that was not an editorial piece and on which readers cannot comment.
This article glosses over the most important part of the election results--namely, Labour's historic comeback from near impossible odds. Then, facing the inevitable, after around a full day, the NYT came out with a lukewarm article on Corbyn's campaign (See NYT's "Jeremy Corbyn Lost U.K. Election, but Is Still Its Biggest Winner") that still managed to vilify him as some kind of terrorist sympathizer. The truly amazing thing about that latter article is this characteristically snide, tendentious, and evidence-free claim: "With his core vote for now still far to the left of Middle England, Mr. Corbyn seems unlikely ever to run Britain."
If you read other publications (which I hope all NYT readers do), you will learn that Labour was only was only 2227 votes from winning:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/election-uk-2017-live-upda...
Labour also won a much larger share of the vote than Blair did in 2005. Yet somehow it is acceptable editorial policy to make dogmatic assertions that Corbyn will never be PM in an article that was not an editorial piece and on which readers cannot comment.
25
How does the NYT select which articles will be open to comments and which ones not? I have always been curious how political this option is. Here we have articles on Brexit and May open to comment, but the important piece on Corbyn's rise in Labour and the election is not open to comment. There are very interesting parallels here to the situation in the US, particularly within the Democratic Party. But the NYT seems, as always, reticent to open that discussion up. Without more discussion about that issue as early on as possible we will run again into trouble in the next elections with splits in that political space. Here Trump and the Russian is hammered into the public every single day in many articles, and little on what is going on in other parts of the political spectrum on the center left. No coverage on Sanders, on Warren, on an interesting report that just came out that shows that the minimum wage in this country--even with projected raises-- does not begin to cover housing costs, California plans on moving to a universal healthcare, nothing on the Catalonian secessionist movement. Only Trump and Trump and some Brexit. I have to turn to European papers to get a scoop on what is going on the center left here! The NYT is in Jupiter. No wonder the upset of November elections.
40
@tdb
The Times is establishment, if you can find it look at the short period of ‘soul searching’ after the general election when IT questioned why is had missed so widely in its forecast. Since them there has been a little creeping around the edges as articles have appeared that better represent the state of America today. But the pundit crowd is almost solid conventional wisdom, still working on why HRC lost and such. Corbyn like Sanders is a threat.
The Times is establishment, if you can find it look at the short period of ‘soul searching’ after the general election when IT questioned why is had missed so widely in its forecast. Since them there has been a little creeping around the edges as articles have appeared that better represent the state of America today. But the pundit crowd is almost solid conventional wisdom, still working on why HRC lost and such. Corbyn like Sanders is a threat.
1
This whole thing looks like a 'deja vue'.
Hillary was cock sure she would win, staying many points ahead of Trump on polls, and called the opposition a basket of deplorables. She lost
The 'wooden May was cock sure she would beat Corbyn with 20 points, and failed to reach out to the public. She lost...
Hillary was cock sure she would win, staying many points ahead of Trump on polls, and called the opposition a basket of deplorables. She lost
The 'wooden May was cock sure she would beat Corbyn with 20 points, and failed to reach out to the public. She lost...
6
May deserves this. Only European leader who has debased herself to win Trump's favor. And she said will violate human rights to protect UK from terrorism, whatever that means.
15
‘He who exercises no forethought but makes light of his opponents is sure to be captured by them.’ - from The Art of War. May made the classic mistake of underestimating her opponent. Now she is paying for it.
4
Get real, United Kingdom. Leaving the European Union is like the USA dissing Canada, Mexico, South America, NATO, you, Israel, the Paris Climate Accords, the Pacific Trade Agreement Accords, did I forget anything? Probably - it will no doubt keep on coming. I believe the voters are having second thoughts - serious second thoughts - about BREXIT, and you should explore postponing withdrawal or you know what, here's an even better idea for your economic survival, drop BREXIT altogether. You can negotiate regarding immigration, or you can die on the vine.
7
Just for the record Naples, the Economist is a fairly centrist magazine and
good reading and balance for the extreme Left in the US and the UK.
However, they couldn't stop Theresa from her dingbat racist self and her self-righteous attitude. They also couldn't stop Brexit.
Also, there are some big differences between Trump in the US and May in the UK, and a similarity to me. The similarity is both Trump and May are narcissists. Trump is a further along to the end stage of malignant narcissism and May is somewhere in the middle of this pathology.The differences are myriad. Similar monkeys different circuses.
To draw a parallel between the circuses, you would have to imagine Texas
wanting to secede from the US and trying to dictate the terms of the deal.
Also the resistance in the United States to some of the islamophobia of Trump has been met with successful strategies both by citizens and the deep state.
May continues with weakened but still tracking effort because of wimpy resistance. Where are the young people in the UK.
Because the US has a deep productivity cushion (which Trump is not remotely trying to undo-(environmental issues withstanding,) the US will survive the Trump presidency.
The UK is in a far, far deeper hole and still digging. Witness May reaching for straws across the Irish Sea to Northern Island to try and build a government.
good reading and balance for the extreme Left in the US and the UK.
However, they couldn't stop Theresa from her dingbat racist self and her self-righteous attitude. They also couldn't stop Brexit.
Also, there are some big differences between Trump in the US and May in the UK, and a similarity to me. The similarity is both Trump and May are narcissists. Trump is a further along to the end stage of malignant narcissism and May is somewhere in the middle of this pathology.The differences are myriad. Similar monkeys different circuses.
To draw a parallel between the circuses, you would have to imagine Texas
wanting to secede from the US and trying to dictate the terms of the deal.
Also the resistance in the United States to some of the islamophobia of Trump has been met with successful strategies both by citizens and the deep state.
May continues with weakened but still tracking effort because of wimpy resistance. Where are the young people in the UK.
Because the US has a deep productivity cushion (which Trump is not remotely trying to undo-(environmental issues withstanding,) the US will survive the Trump presidency.
The UK is in a far, far deeper hole and still digging. Witness May reaching for straws across the Irish Sea to Northern Island to try and build a government.
4
George Osbourne's questions are on-point. 1. Leaving the largest trade bloc, then 50% of your imports come from it, 2. expecting London--and what, 200,000 employees, including extraneous jobs--to maintain one of the world's two most important financial centers, and3. let's also not forget the Inflation that the weaker pound has brought.
And now, Britain is even farther from the Brexit starting line, but the clock has continued ticking all along. Do they still have the option to withdraw the Article 50 Brexit Affirmation?
https://thetruthoncommonsense.com
And now, Britain is even farther from the Brexit starting line, but the clock has continued ticking all along. Do they still have the option to withdraw the Article 50 Brexit Affirmation?
https://thetruthoncommonsense.com
4
Yeah it can be withdrawn at any time up to the 2 year anniversary.
Well, now the rest of the UK will have a taste of how it feels to be under the control of the Irish Unionists. A steep learning curve is ahead! On the positive side, it will now be impossible for the Tories to ignore the European Commission and the Irish Government in their insistence on keeping the Irish border open and also to allow Irish citizens to remain in residence within the UK. A minority government is going to have great difficulty getting much done. Another election before the Brexit deal is even worked out is likely.
8
What would make sense here would be to start from scratch:
1: Have another vote about Brexit; It's quite clear why this should be a re-do, this election screams for it...a mistake was made, it needs to be corrected..
2: After you straighten out Brexit, then do a general election, hopefully get rid of the Conservatives, who seem to be at the root of all this stupid hubbub in the first place, OR...
3. Combine the whole ball of wax in one shot the general election AND Brexit in one fell swoop...
What Corbyn and May and all the Political Upper Class do NOT understand is that they totally misread the British Public, and that this misread may go back as far as the involvement in the Iraq War. This is old, deep seated, and needs to be addressed, till then no matter what is voted on, negotiated on, of fought about, it will end the same way, the classic British muddle...
1: Have another vote about Brexit; It's quite clear why this should be a re-do, this election screams for it...a mistake was made, it needs to be corrected..
2: After you straighten out Brexit, then do a general election, hopefully get rid of the Conservatives, who seem to be at the root of all this stupid hubbub in the first place, OR...
3. Combine the whole ball of wax in one shot the general election AND Brexit in one fell swoop...
What Corbyn and May and all the Political Upper Class do NOT understand is that they totally misread the British Public, and that this misread may go back as far as the involvement in the Iraq War. This is old, deep seated, and needs to be addressed, till then no matter what is voted on, negotiated on, of fought about, it will end the same way, the classic British muddle...
3
Brexit and May were heralded by the media as a part of the forces that drove the tRump movement. But they are oddly silent as to how the rejection of May could be heralding the about-face rejection of that idea. tRump's amateurish idiocy and jingoism will scare other countries away from heading down that path.
5
May be not.
1
"There is also resentment that, once again, the British have complicated things out of political hubris and partisan self-interest."
Does this sound familiar here on the other side of the pond? Of course. We have a president who has achieved that lofty goal all by himself.
Does this sound familiar here on the other side of the pond? Of course. We have a president who has achieved that lofty goal all by himself.
4
The probability of BREXIT just went down, but not by much. With Britain in flux, negotiations will probably be delayed. The longer the better. The British people really need politicians to tell them in detail what BREXIT will actually mean. There is a greater chance of that now occurring. Previously there was a rush by the Tories to do a deal and no opposition party to point out what Brexit would really mean to the country. There still isn't really an opposition party holding the Conservative government's feet to the fire and actually explaining what are the costs and benefits. Until now, it has only been vague "Brexit will be great" assurances.
7
I was surprised last night, in watching the election-returns coverage, that terrorism was
not mentioned at all on the BBC as a factor in the results. It must
have been on people's minds, so soon after recent attacks, and perhaps undermined Theresa May's ability to project strength and confidence.
not mentioned at all on the BBC as a factor in the results. It must
have been on people's minds, so soon after recent attacks, and perhaps undermined Theresa May's ability to project strength and confidence.
4
Terrorism? You mean people driving cars into pedestrians and stabbing them? That's supposed to change the results of an election?
We live in America, where 100 people/day are shot to death by friends, family and strangers, and we elected Donald Trump president.
The news, though mostly not fake, is not real life.
We live in America, where 100 people/day are shot to death by friends, family and strangers, and we elected Donald Trump president.
The news, though mostly not fake, is not real life.
4
Heaven forfend! What will the Times' reporters, who were describing Corbyn's program of free college tuition and re-nationalization of Blair's privatization follies as a "proto-Marxist", say now?
The world is coming to an end, because 40% of the British public voted for sensible social policy?
The world is coming to an end, because 40% of the British public voted for sensible social policy?
8
Mrs. May has talked incessentaly about getting the best deal without defining the deal. Sounds familiar, President Trump!
9
Regretzit!
6
DUP: a life-sustaining IV of nasty for the Cons.
6
Would that we could call another election to repudiate the awful choice of last November. I honestly think that if people had thought that Trump could win, he wouldn't have.
Meanwhile, Johnson and Farage -- the cause of much of the UK's problems-- are sitting pretty.
6
May and the Tories got what they deserved. The younger generation finally stood up and said no more. I can hardly wait until the Millenials do that here in the States.
9
Not to impose wisdom from the outside but it seems like the whole Brexit affair was a cock up of historical proportions. A non binding referendum passed by a razor thin margin and without an act of Parliament becomes binding largely through the connivance of the Tories. What inexplicable reason did May think that when the voters got a second bite of the apple, that revisiting the Brexit debacle would translate into a solid political advantage for her and her Party.
5
Er, it is my understanding that without the blessing of Parliament the referendum couldn't have taken place. It is also my understanding that Parliament stated publicly that it would "respect the outcome".
The fact is, no one thought LEAVE had a snowball's chance in hell. So Parliament gave the referendum its blessing. And that razor thin margin wasn't all that thin. The difference was 1.4 million votes. That's not, as we say here, chopped liver. It was, in fact, the same margin by which the far-right FPO party in Austria was defeated for the presidency last December. i didn't notice anyone calling it "razor thin" then.
Having told UK voters that this was "the most important vote you will ever cast", spent millions on a three-month, national campaign, with television debates, etc., are you seriously suggesting that having found itself hoist with its own petard, the UK government should shred what is left of the veneer of democracy in the country and tell those 17.4 million voters, "Thank you for your input, but we've changed our minds, and we'll take your point of under consideration."?!
The damage done to the credibility of Parliament's word, the confirmation that the citizens of London are more important than the citizens Sunderland-have the consequences occurred?
If you want to hang someone for this, hang Cameron. But the vote must be honored.
May is an uninspiring clod. But Corbyn is a Marxist ideologue. Both promised to honour the outcome of the referendum.
The fact is, no one thought LEAVE had a snowball's chance in hell. So Parliament gave the referendum its blessing. And that razor thin margin wasn't all that thin. The difference was 1.4 million votes. That's not, as we say here, chopped liver. It was, in fact, the same margin by which the far-right FPO party in Austria was defeated for the presidency last December. i didn't notice anyone calling it "razor thin" then.
Having told UK voters that this was "the most important vote you will ever cast", spent millions on a three-month, national campaign, with television debates, etc., are you seriously suggesting that having found itself hoist with its own petard, the UK government should shred what is left of the veneer of democracy in the country and tell those 17.4 million voters, "Thank you for your input, but we've changed our minds, and we'll take your point of under consideration."?!
The damage done to the credibility of Parliament's word, the confirmation that the citizens of London are more important than the citizens Sunderland-have the consequences occurred?
If you want to hang someone for this, hang Cameron. But the vote must be honored.
May is an uninspiring clod. But Corbyn is a Marxist ideologue. Both promised to honour the outcome of the referendum.
4
There was no "blessing of Parliament". If you can cite me a specific Parliamentary motion that gave the Brexit vote a binding status prior to the vote- I will stand corrected.
2
You're right, I think. The referendum was, constitutionally, only advisory. It was a populist move by the Conservatives to consider it to be binding.
1
British politicians should consider jettisoning BOTH Mrs. May and Mr. Corbyn, then calling another election. Quite clearly, one is too damaged by unexpected defeat while insufficiently inspiring to overcome it in the challenging days that will come, while the other is too extreme in his views to unite Labour sentiment across the nation.
Both great parties deserve a real chance at winning the right to lead Great Britain. Yet the whole world that votes honestly seems to be suffering from a pronounced dearth of inspiring leaders with clear visions salable to a majority of a nation's citizens. It's not just Brexit in Britain: it's insipid and, in more than a few cases, extremist leadership.
The people are looking for a vision that offers tectonic change in their circumstances -- everywhere. But that change needs to be sustainable, enactable and not destructive of traditions that have proven effective at maintaining civilization. Nobody, anywhere, appears to have a clue about how to do this.
But we need to keep trying, and hung parliaments aren't the answer.
Both great parties deserve a real chance at winning the right to lead Great Britain. Yet the whole world that votes honestly seems to be suffering from a pronounced dearth of inspiring leaders with clear visions salable to a majority of a nation's citizens. It's not just Brexit in Britain: it's insipid and, in more than a few cases, extremist leadership.
The people are looking for a vision that offers tectonic change in their circumstances -- everywhere. But that change needs to be sustainable, enactable and not destructive of traditions that have proven effective at maintaining civilization. Nobody, anywhere, appears to have a clue about how to do this.
But we need to keep trying, and hung parliaments aren't the answer.
2
Richard--Those fed up with insipid and extremist leaders can always seek out a buffoonish and narcissistic alternative. A major political experiment demonstrates that quickly renews democratic fervor.
The UK has lost much of its sovereignty with the EU ending up with massive problems with huge numbers in influx of refugees and migrants within EU and outside EU (from the Middle-East and Africa) which has deeply burdened its welfare system leading to its breaking point. The NHS is barely holding up and the only way UK can survive is getting out of the EU deal in order to have a future.
The socialists/communists who run the EU have pretty much ruined Western Europe as we know it. With Brexit, the UK gets a second chance to renegotiate its trade deals with the rest of the world and no longer be decided by Brussels or Frau Merkel !
The socialists/communists who run the EU have pretty much ruined Western Europe as we know it. With Brexit, the UK gets a second chance to renegotiate its trade deals with the rest of the world and no longer be decided by Brussels or Frau Merkel !
3
This is what the US system should be like. Trump should call for new elections!
9
Minus having referendums like Brexit that are not self-enforceable..
1
That would only happen if someone could convince him that there is money to be made by doing so.
2
May she could be forgiven for looking at Labour's polls and thinking she was safe. But as the Brits say, snaps have "form" there: several past ones called by PMs who thought they were in good position to do so-and lost. The UK electorate are unpredictable: they seem to like surprising pundits and pollsters. A month ago, Labour were creamed in regional elections, losing dozens of seats. A month later, they regained quite a few.
But May's biggest blunder was putting out a manifesto that seemed to target the elderly, one of the Conservatives' core constituencies, whilst Corbyn fed warmed over "we'll tax the rich and the rest of you will get free everything" promises to inexperienced youth and still-disgruntled working-class voters tired of austerity. Essentially discredited socialist policies from the 1970s that might work in a small country like Denmark but not in the UK with its 4 nations and 65 million very divided population.
May's second demerit came with the 2 ghastly terror attacks in Manchester and London; she was Home Secretary for 6 years before stepping into Cameron's shoes, and those austerity police cuts came back to bite her when it came out that the perps had been on security's radar for some time.
The best comment of the evening I thought came from Alastair Campbell, who said that he thought what the numbers really showed was that voters really didn't want either of these two. The party that develops policies that take that to heart has a real future.
But May's biggest blunder was putting out a manifesto that seemed to target the elderly, one of the Conservatives' core constituencies, whilst Corbyn fed warmed over "we'll tax the rich and the rest of you will get free everything" promises to inexperienced youth and still-disgruntled working-class voters tired of austerity. Essentially discredited socialist policies from the 1970s that might work in a small country like Denmark but not in the UK with its 4 nations and 65 million very divided population.
May's second demerit came with the 2 ghastly terror attacks in Manchester and London; she was Home Secretary for 6 years before stepping into Cameron's shoes, and those austerity police cuts came back to bite her when it came out that the perps had been on security's radar for some time.
The best comment of the evening I thought came from Alastair Campbell, who said that he thought what the numbers really showed was that voters really didn't want either of these two. The party that develops policies that take that to heart has a real future.
7
The richest constituency in the UK; Kensington in London has just voted for Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party. The 1%ers leading the way.
3
By 20 votes.
2
But for the terror attacks, she would have lost even worse.
2
Now General DeGaulle must be saying from beyond the grave: I told you so! Les Anglo Saxons on the retreat from Europe. Faced with a resurgent Russia, it is up to EUROPE to forge her own destiny ! ( his reasoning to keep the UK out in 1963 )
4
Looks like it'll be 1974 all over again - a hung parliament in the spring, and back to the polls in October.
The conservatives did not suffer losses because of Theresa May's decision to call for an early election, but because after calling for the election she had absolutely nothing in the way of policy proposals to offer the electorate beyond cheap, made for TV slogans and followed by long periods of awkward silences. As a result, the British rewarded Labour for at least trying to have an adult conversation about the future of the British people.
Hopefully in 2018 and 2020, the American voter will treat the GOP the same, and punish them for spending 8 years criticizing every Obama policy proposal, only to discover they DID NOT have any ready to pass alternatives beyond their boilerplate punish the poor reward the wealthy job creators rubbish they have been pushing since 2008.
Hopefully in 2018 and 2020, the American voter will treat the GOP the same, and punish them for spending 8 years criticizing every Obama policy proposal, only to discover they DID NOT have any ready to pass alternatives beyond their boilerplate punish the poor reward the wealthy job creators rubbish they have been pushing since 2008.
13
Excellent post. She was arrogant, recklessly over-confident and treated the Election campaign as a preparation for coronation. Her tightly controlled speeches in front of a hand-picked faithful; her dreadful, endless, snappy sound bites that turned into national jokes; her refusal to participate in a Leaders debate; her personally cult (campaign bus read "Theresa May for Britain!", smallprint underneath 'Conservatives'); her floundering and the so-blatantly evasive 'answers' to critical questions; even her first unfortunate trait of looking absolutely murderous when asked unpalatable questions; her calling a snap election on an electorally worn out country after repeatedly saying she wouldn't. And, above all, her muddled, uncosted, manifesto that seemed comprised more like of vague sentiments as opposed to policy ideas and the crippling u-turns that followed nearly every announcement.
A common British trait is the (somewhat) cruel joy we take on watching someone who is so puffed up and cocky have to swallow their own hubris...
A common British trait is the (somewhat) cruel joy we take on watching someone who is so puffed up and cocky have to swallow their own hubris...
The Trump Effect. And NOT in the way she'd hoped.
8
Jesus - May is not Trump. The Tories are a garden variety centre-right European political party. They actually won yesterday's election, taking nearly 60 more seats than Labour, who by the way got absolutely hammered in regional elections just one month earlier. May is not a great politician and I doubt that her coalition with the DUP will extend her political life for more than another six months, after which the Brits face a very good chance of another bloody election if she dissolves Parliament, but Corbyn would have been a worse outcome: a leftover Marxist ideologue from the 1960s whose economic manifesto was only slightly less workable than May's. But it did sound quite a bit more appealing - until you did the math, looked at the IFS analysis of it, and wondered what would happen when wealthy businesses started to leave for other countries, the rich turned to their accountants to shelter their money, and middle-sized business owners simply passed on the higher taxes to consumers through raised prices . . .
2
The bottom line is, what would the EU want from the Brits? Jobs in the UK. However, that's exactly what the Brits don't want to offer. Then there is nothing to trade with the EU for their market. So a hard divorce. The UK would just be like another random non-member country. End of story. Should've thought about this before they filed the papers.
7
Actually, Brits will be happy to give jobs to people from the EU. What they want is the ability to choose those workers, set caps on the numbers allowed in, rather than being forced to have 360,000 annually flood in to take low-skilled jobs from local workers at much lower wages. British industry has gotten addicted to cheap migrant labour - the result for the local working-class's former salary structures has been dismal, and that isn't factoring the huge pressure on schools, health services, housing, etc.
The British simply don't see why welcoming foreign workers must entail welcoming any and all foreign workers. The free movement of peoples policy just doesn't allow for what happens when there are more of them than the host country wants.
The British simply don't see why welcoming foreign workers must entail welcoming any and all foreign workers. The free movement of peoples policy just doesn't allow for what happens when there are more of them than the host country wants.
4
There are many Conservative MPs who greatly believe in welcoming migrant workers. They know they are the bedrock of the economy and Conservatives do so love putting the economy above the people.
Even vague Government statements post-Brexit have alluded to the fact there will be migration post-Brexit - albeit controlled. They keep it muted, for fear of angering the John Bull types, but it's definitely there.
Even vague Government statements post-Brexit have alluded to the fact there will be migration post-Brexit - albeit controlled. They keep it muted, for fear of angering the John Bull types, but it's definitely there.
All my friends and family voted for Labour because of the following reasons:
1) We are Remainers but were initially resigned to Brexit, yet it was becoming abundantly clear that May was going to do a terrible job at the negotiating table and would be pandering to the small group of extreme right-wing tories resulting in a hard Brexit, to the multi- generational economic harm of the UK.
2) The economic realities of Brexit are already apparent, we've gone from leading the EU in economic growth last year to dead last in projected growth in the EU, we're not even tied with Italy now we are behind.
3) May's domestic manifesto was just bizarrely awful (a part of me suspects she was trying to lose this thing!) Deeply unpopular and policies including bringing back fox hunting, claiming hundreds of thousands of pounds from senior's home values to pay for their care and of course continued cuts and austerity.
4) Trump. Being out of the EU necessitates a future where the UK has to cosy up to Trump's USA. Need I say how horrifying that picture is?
5) Chicken's came home to roost and May needed to be held accountable for her harmful cuts to the security forces and police over the years that were apparent in how much harder it has been to prevent and respond to the recent terrorist attacks.
The Lib Dems were unlikely to get a majority vote so we voted strategically for Labour, none of us voted because we thought Corbyn is the future. We are mainly just trying to avoid a hard Brexit.
1) We are Remainers but were initially resigned to Brexit, yet it was becoming abundantly clear that May was going to do a terrible job at the negotiating table and would be pandering to the small group of extreme right-wing tories resulting in a hard Brexit, to the multi- generational economic harm of the UK.
2) The economic realities of Brexit are already apparent, we've gone from leading the EU in economic growth last year to dead last in projected growth in the EU, we're not even tied with Italy now we are behind.
3) May's domestic manifesto was just bizarrely awful (a part of me suspects she was trying to lose this thing!) Deeply unpopular and policies including bringing back fox hunting, claiming hundreds of thousands of pounds from senior's home values to pay for their care and of course continued cuts and austerity.
4) Trump. Being out of the EU necessitates a future where the UK has to cosy up to Trump's USA. Need I say how horrifying that picture is?
5) Chicken's came home to roost and May needed to be held accountable for her harmful cuts to the security forces and police over the years that were apparent in how much harder it has been to prevent and respond to the recent terrorist attacks.
The Lib Dems were unlikely to get a majority vote so we voted strategically for Labour, none of us voted because we thought Corbyn is the future. We are mainly just trying to avoid a hard Brexit.
17
Should have read, "as his years of being their elected Mayor show. . . ."
May day! Theresa is toast! bring on Boris!
5
I'm sure BoJo was grinning in the wings. But the fact is, although he is highly intelligent, fluent in four languages, charismatic, and occasionally brilliant, he is also arrogant, narcissistic, more than a bit debauched, and has trouble keeping his tongue behind his teeth when it is wise to do so. In short, he's a loose cannon. He does well in London, as his years of being elected Mayor their show. But campaigning up and down the industrial northeast, talking to people in Sunderland, the Tyne area, Rochdale . . .an old Bullingdon Club boy? I think Johnson is better suited as leader of a Tory opposition - but as the party in power? Good lord - it will be Trump all over again, only with real wit.
Not enough is not enough.
The reason why Conservatives fared poorly is that Theresa May is a moderate. Had they nominated a radical or an extremist, they would have won.
Just look at Labor --- people hunger for clarity and for sharp stances. Everyone knows what's up with Corbyn and what he'll do if elected. Theresa May is seen as just another lukewarm, compromising career politician, who never chanced anything or took a controversial stance.
Just look at Labor --- people hunger for clarity and for sharp stances. Everyone knows what's up with Corbyn and what he'll do if elected. Theresa May is seen as just another lukewarm, compromising career politician, who never chanced anything or took a controversial stance.
2
Wait...what?
Never took a controversial stance? Have you heard her words in the last days before the vote, and soon after? How she wanted to take away human rights? How she now wants to join a coalition with the anti-gay, anti-abortion, pro-terrorist DUP?
Never chanced anything? Besides the very viability of the Tory party? Besides the survival of the ever-endangered, ever-Tory-pillaged NHS? Her job and party are secure now, yes, but at what cost to her remaining credibility, and at what price to the very core of British laws and freedoms?
"Had they nominated a radical or an extremist, they would have won."
They did, and they—just barely—won.
Never took a controversial stance? Have you heard her words in the last days before the vote, and soon after? How she wanted to take away human rights? How she now wants to join a coalition with the anti-gay, anti-abortion, pro-terrorist DUP?
Never chanced anything? Besides the very viability of the Tory party? Besides the survival of the ever-endangered, ever-Tory-pillaged NHS? Her job and party are secure now, yes, but at what cost to her remaining credibility, and at what price to the very core of British laws and freedoms?
"Had they nominated a radical or an extremist, they would have won."
They did, and they—just barely—won.
6
British politics don't work the way Americans do. But one thing they have in common is, neither PMs nor Presidents get to make laws. Parliament passes laws, and unless Corbyn won a whopping majority, he would never get most of those policies through. His steely Marxism certainly does come across more sharply than May's pudding-ish platitudes. But for that very reason, he is far more dangerous. Boris Johnson in his imitable fashion once said this about Corbyn:
"Most people don't realise what a threat he is. They listen to his meandering and nonsensical questions and feel a deep twinge of human compassion. And they say to themselves: he may be a mutton-headed old mugwump, but he is probably harmless."
But Johnson did apologise to mugwumps everywhere after the statement.
"Most people don't realise what a threat he is. They listen to his meandering and nonsensical questions and feel a deep twinge of human compassion. And they say to themselves: he may be a mutton-headed old mugwump, but he is probably harmless."
But Johnson did apologise to mugwumps everywhere after the statement.
4
No no no - May may well have been a moderate once, but she made it her mission to finalise Brexit and in doing so fell captive to the real extremists in the Tory Party. The Redwoods, Bones, IDSs, Foxes and Goves. She steered the country into a Brexit that not even many Brexit voters want.
Much as I would have loved to have seen Labour pull the upset, the fact is that they were still trounced by the Tories. May is still going to get a chance to form the government, and seems likely to succeed in partnering with the extreme-right DUP. The hope that her own party will rebel against this seems naive.
In 2018, a similar outcome in the House races - that is the Democrats "outperforming expectations" against the bias of rampant gerrymandering in red states - will leave Paul Ryan as Speaker and an extreme alt-right wing fringe claiming further mandates to shred Social Security and Medicare.
The time for purity tests should be through; "losing well" is not enough. Our democracy is counting on liberals and moderates of all persuasions to make the commitment to winning.
In 2018, a similar outcome in the House races - that is the Democrats "outperforming expectations" against the bias of rampant gerrymandering in red states - will leave Paul Ryan as Speaker and an extreme alt-right wing fringe claiming further mandates to shred Social Security and Medicare.
The time for purity tests should be through; "losing well" is not enough. Our democracy is counting on liberals and moderates of all persuasions to make the commitment to winning.
4
The newspapers and some TV media in the UK is an utter disgrace. For years it was anti-EU, in the months leading up to the referendum on the EU they were worse, leading lights of the leave campaign were given vastly disproportionate air time, their despicable form of xenophobia lead to spikes in hate crime and the public bought it.
A year or so on and the media did the same to support May and her party. Front page headlines screamed abuse at Labour (main opposition) and its leader Corbyn. Every vile tweet about the Mayor of London and the people of Britain was elevated to be seen as insight worthy of Job. This time their patronage faltered along with May and the county's appetite for further austerity and financial uncertainty Brexit will bring. The ordinary people have started to see through flimflam and voted against Miss Flip Flop.
A year or so on and the media did the same to support May and her party. Front page headlines screamed abuse at Labour (main opposition) and its leader Corbyn. Every vile tweet about the Mayor of London and the people of Britain was elevated to be seen as insight worthy of Job. This time their patronage faltered along with May and the county's appetite for further austerity and financial uncertainty Brexit will bring. The ordinary people have started to see through flimflam and voted against Miss Flip Flop.
4
I have to comment that I don't understand British politics at all, but I'm loving the idea of a snap election. Can we do that here??
12
Be warned, they can cause trouble and upset applecarts.
He says, laughing gleefully.
He says, laughing gleefully.
Putin hacked the election. Or it was gender discrimination. Or Theresa May should have campaigned in Wisconsin. I'm pretty sure it was one of those.
4
So the IRA supporting Corbyn will be thwarted by the DUP? Poetic justice.
2
My friends in the UK tell me the joke there is that Sein Fein might actually take their seats for once, just to annoy the Tories.
6
Two great countries circling the drain at the hands of an ignorant electorate to stupid to understand what they don't understand.
Dare to educate yourselves please.
Dare to educate yourselves please.
6
Dear Donald and clone of Donald:
Thank you for your recent tweets, in which you attack the Mayor of London. It helped concentrate our minds, as to what Mr. Farage and Ms May actually stand for, and who stands with them, resulting in a vast swing to Labour. If there is a followup election I shall have my staff inform you of it.
-Signed in spirit, Mayor of London
Thank you for your recent tweets, in which you attack the Mayor of London. It helped concentrate our minds, as to what Mr. Farage and Ms May actually stand for, and who stands with them, resulting in a vast swing to Labour. If there is a followup election I shall have my staff inform you of it.
-Signed in spirit, Mayor of London
7
So much for nationalism, fascism and the Bannon World Order.
6
Corbyn's success should come as no surprise. The crisis of neoliberalism
which affects the middle classes is bound to trigger the polarization
LePen and Trump on the right and Bernie, Corbyn and Melanchon on the
Left are music of the future.
It is significant how out of touch the Tories are . They twice misread
the current trends. The GOP suffer the same illness. They stand for tax cuts and no regulations they are blind to all current and future challenges.
which affects the middle classes is bound to trigger the polarization
LePen and Trump on the right and Bernie, Corbyn and Melanchon on the
Left are music of the future.
It is significant how out of touch the Tories are . They twice misread
the current trends. The GOP suffer the same illness. They stand for tax cuts and no regulations they are blind to all current and future challenges.
2
And yet the Tories won. And the GOP won.
Meanwhile, the left continues to engage in self-mutilation, and loses.
The latter has to end before the former can change. Leaving personalities aside, "progressives" and "moderates" have ~90% of ideology completely in sync. We should not lose the House in 2018 over the ~10% difference.
Meanwhile, the left continues to engage in self-mutilation, and loses.
The latter has to end before the former can change. Leaving personalities aside, "progressives" and "moderates" have ~90% of ideology completely in sync. We should not lose the House in 2018 over the ~10% difference.
This should be greeted with jubilation by anyone with awareness of how the global capitalist oligarchy, i.e. the 1%, controls global politics.
6
May now being worried about instability is rich. Most of the instability is the result of her party's reckless electoral gambles. Who here would gamble their house on a coin flip? May's decision was cynical and opportunistic but it pales in comparison to the nearly irreversible fall out from the Brexit plebiscite.
At least Cameron had the humility to resign.
At least Cameron had the humility to resign.
14
Can we please take a moment to bloody talk about that fact that the Tories went from 1 seat in Scotland to 12 seats! I was banking on Scotland saving us from more years of Tory!
12
Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Tories, is a different kettle of fish. She's gay and engaged and wants to get married in a church. That puts her at odds with the DUP. However, I understand there have been tweets about that this aft...(concessions). However Tories + DUP an unholy and unhealthy alliance....Essentially 10 Irish MPs have more say than the 3rd party the SNP. But yes, a surprise...those 12 seats.
2
That and their INCREASED vote share, if less an increase than for Labour,* are why I don't consider this a Tory defeat in any respect, unfortunately.
Scotland need independence now more than ever to save them from the maximum crazy of the new-and-improved Brexit-DUPed Conservatives, and the rest of the UK needs Labour now more than ever to hold the line against them.
Overall, third parties (DUP aside) are getting tossed in favor of US-style two-party attrition, and that's bad news for its own reasons.
* http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election/2017/results
Scotland need independence now more than ever to save them from the maximum crazy of the new-and-improved Brexit-DUPed Conservatives, and the rest of the UK needs Labour now more than ever to hold the line against them.
Overall, third parties (DUP aside) are getting tossed in favor of US-style two-party attrition, and that's bad news for its own reasons.
* http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election/2017/results
3
What an embarrassment. She should just go home.
2
If the Republicans weren't quaking pre-2018, they should be.
2
The US-Britain parallels could not be more striking: The U.S. elected Donald, now his promises are unkept, his base is crumbling with regret, he is the object of vitriol, and his ship of state is half sunk. Britain voted to leave the EU: its PM's base is crumbling, she is the object of vitriol, and her ship of state is also on its way down. Both have alienated European allies, and stalled their economies. And both are on their ways out of office.
8
With Britain and France now appearing to be one their way down from the top, does that now make France the West's top dog? That should make women happy, especially older ones.
2
Britain and U.S. have similar problems, interference by Russia into Parliamentary Politics and political decisions, including Russia's campaign to break up the NATO alliance. Britain obviously needs a leader who is NOT influenced by Russian backed meddling, influence, coversion; and a leader who is for all of Britain, not just the elite or conservative 'business first', 'citizens last' political motivations. Also the public AND media oversight should be protected from political view 'advertising' that is disingenuous and 'fact checked' to fully understand the actual facts.
Those Brits have a great idea in these so called 'Snap Elections'
Perhaps we can have one of those also.
How about next month?
Perhaps we can have one of those also.
How about next month?
9
May be it is something to do with "enough is enough" statement. Does she think Islamic terrorists are like mischevious school kids? Does she think the terrorists would stop playing pranks with the people? These are the questions that would have been in the minds of the British people. And the answer is what we are seeing in the results. Despite the rant against Corbyn just like how the so-called "liberal media" castigated Bernie, Corbyn has proved to be a strong and charismatic leader. His future sounds bright, while the establishment rats here are just confused and ranting what is happening to their bubble. I don't think May's government, presumably she can form some coalition, will last long. In the next election, I am not sure the conservatives will have the same votes next time. Go Corbyn go!
5
The poltical landscape is being shifted by the young, those whose reality is video games and in business being disrupters. Be careful when you get what you wish for. Sadly the adults are out of touch, full of misplaced hubris and misguided politics.
The world is rapidly getting to be between a rock and a hard place.
The world is rapidly getting to be between a rock and a hard place.
3
Theresa May reminds one pointedly of Edina Monsoon's Mum in the BBC sitcom "AbFab." Myopic, dowdy and unintentionally hilarious at times...
4
Yes!!! I thought it was just me.
2
Is the article hyperventilating a bit on being 8 seats away from majority? The facts remain, Brexit is happening, Mays team has a valid coalition and Germany is going to look to be petty and punish GB for leaving.
I love the dot connecting on open border connecting in the article...really, is that all the opposing team has on that subject, other then calling every one supporting Brexit a racist..yawn
I love the dot connecting on open border connecting in the article...really, is that all the opposing team has on that subject, other then calling every one supporting Brexit a racist..yawn
2
Pre-election the Conservatives have ignored the views of their Scottish equivalent and the DUP. Both the latter, owing to the economic specifics of the countries they represent, want friendly relations with Europe that includes the Single Market and the Common Travel Area.
In short, while they may grudgingly go along with Brexit out of their commitment to the union, they want a hugely different Brexit than the one that was on the cards.
And now it is the Scottish Conservatives and DUP who wield a huge amount of power in Parliament, as a Tory premiership is utterly dependent on it. The Conservatives did not win the votes to dominate Parliament - every bit of legislation they lay on the table can be demolished by the Opposition unless they have those Europhile parties on their side as well as the many Europhile (English) Conservatives - of which there are many.
Brexit will still happen yes (Labour promised to fulfil it too), but now 'compromise' is the name of the game whereas before May was happy to just exclude the opinions of the 48% of the country who voted to Remain, not to mention those Leave voters who voted for legal sovereignty and not destroying the Single Market (again, of which there were many).
In short, while they may grudgingly go along with Brexit out of their commitment to the union, they want a hugely different Brexit than the one that was on the cards.
And now it is the Scottish Conservatives and DUP who wield a huge amount of power in Parliament, as a Tory premiership is utterly dependent on it. The Conservatives did not win the votes to dominate Parliament - every bit of legislation they lay on the table can be demolished by the Opposition unless they have those Europhile parties on their side as well as the many Europhile (English) Conservatives - of which there are many.
Brexit will still happen yes (Labour promised to fulfil it too), but now 'compromise' is the name of the game whereas before May was happy to just exclude the opinions of the 48% of the country who voted to Remain, not to mention those Leave voters who voted for legal sovereignty and not destroying the Single Market (again, of which there were many).
The Tories constant repetition, especially early in the campaign, of her "strong and stable " leadership became played out. After all, this was the woman who repeatedly said she would not call an early election, and did exactly that. This showed her indecision. That's not strong nor stable.
The Tory Manifesto in relation to elderly care was a disaster. The author of that Manifesto lost his seat in the Commons.
May never took part in debates. Showing lack of confidence.
Surrounded herself with Tory party supporters. Never met "real" people.
In contrast the Labour leader got out into the cities, towns, and countryside with his optimistic message. He didn't win, but he put his party in the right direction with many gains.
Theresa May believed the opinion polls which, when she called the election, would have given her a majority of over 100.
Big, big, mistake.
I'm happy.
The Tory Manifesto in relation to elderly care was a disaster. The author of that Manifesto lost his seat in the Commons.
May never took part in debates. Showing lack of confidence.
Surrounded herself with Tory party supporters. Never met "real" people.
In contrast the Labour leader got out into the cities, towns, and countryside with his optimistic message. He didn't win, but he put his party in the right direction with many gains.
Theresa May believed the opinion polls which, when she called the election, would have given her a majority of over 100.
Big, big, mistake.
I'm happy.
4
From time to time you may find that your Parliament has become, well.. hung.
1
Realizing this comment is hardly Timesensque OOOPS. In her attempt to solidify her position she has just complicated matters to an inordinate degree. forming a government with minor parties full of parochial and narrow agendas is full of hazards. More to the point, could it be that there should/may be a rethink of Brexit?
An unveiled warning to all
"Be careful what you ask for. You might just get it."
An unveiled warning to all
"Be careful what you ask for. You might just get it."
1
Is this a surprising outcome? I feel if the presidential election here had a reset button we would have an entirely different government tomorrow. The Birtish seemed shocked and dismayed at the passage of Brexit and the conservative takeover, and May gave them a reset button.
I couldn't really understand why she did that in the first place but put it down to my lack of knowlege about how another country's election process worked...but now that this has happened I think "that's what I THOUGHT would probably happen" so I am somewhat bewildered as to why the process got started at all.
I couldn't really understand why she did that in the first place but put it down to my lack of knowlege about how another country's election process worked...but now that this has happened I think "that's what I THOUGHT would probably happen" so I am somewhat bewildered as to why the process got started at all.
3
“The D.U.P. will always take the hardest of hard lines when it comes to Brexit or any slight compromise towards the republicans,” he said. “It’s all bad now. I don’t know what they will demand from the Tories for their support, other than a hard line on Brexit. The chances of a return to power sharing in the North are now lessened further. A lot of the D.U.P. were never happy with power sharing with Sinn Fein anyway.”
Hopefully this will not lead back to the bad old days of The Troubles in Northern Ireland. The bloodshed seems so long ago now, a return seems inconceivable. But then again, history is full of chains of unforeseen consequences leading to disaster. "That'll never happen" are words that have been proven wrong time and again.
Hopefully this will not lead back to the bad old days of The Troubles in Northern Ireland. The bloodshed seems so long ago now, a return seems inconceivable. But then again, history is full of chains of unforeseen consequences leading to disaster. "That'll never happen" are words that have been proven wrong time and again.
3
She may well be as illegitimate as Trump
6
There is profound irony that the previous British Prime Minister David Cameron gambled away his legitimacy in an attempt to quiet the supposedly fringe elements of the Conservative party campaigning for a sovereign Britain.
Now it seems in a strikingly similar bargain Prime Minister May has attempted to coalesce her own ruling authority only to find that the winds of dissatisfaction have blown back in the opposite direction in reaction to the immensely tumultuous aftermath of the Brexit vote. It seems as though the British people are experiencing a bit of buyer's remorse, that although Prime Minister May has been attempting to deftly negotiate in the direction of final status, she failed to properly estimate the electoral translation of.
The hubris in both cases is near bewildering, but it seems that whatever forces govern the whims of the political universe may be, they are not without a sense of humor.
Now it seems in a strikingly similar bargain Prime Minister May has attempted to coalesce her own ruling authority only to find that the winds of dissatisfaction have blown back in the opposite direction in reaction to the immensely tumultuous aftermath of the Brexit vote. It seems as though the British people are experiencing a bit of buyer's remorse, that although Prime Minister May has been attempting to deftly negotiate in the direction of final status, she failed to properly estimate the electoral translation of.
The hubris in both cases is near bewildering, but it seems that whatever forces govern the whims of the political universe may be, they are not without a sense of humor.
5
This was a win for the youth of the UK who witnessed the older generations cut them off at the knees with Brexit. They came out in larger numbers and the results speak for themselves; take heed American youth.
13
Donald Trump has repeatedly indicated that he wants this country to go alone. It appears the rest of the world has reached that conclusion and is moving forward. However the shrill charges that NATO isn't paying its way, the US is increasingly isolated. I suspect we will find out sooner rather than later that alliances are more than just dollar obligations; the EU represents a pretty idea of the ultimate goal of alliances: to draw together communities in a rational and humane approach to shifting and often difficult reality. Elections across Europe suggest that the rest of our former alliance have moved past the real destroyers - hatred, xenophobia, etc. This country, on the other hand, is left to find common ground with despots and dictators.
5
This is disastrous on several levels - and considerably arrogant too.
This is the second risky gamble that Conservatives have tried in less than a year. Both were spectacular backfires! First a reckless Brexit vote, then this attempt to consolidate power after even the best data showed Brexit to be an economic train wreck. Brexit originally was an attempt to soothe Populist anxieties, but it has no hope in Reality of making the UK stronger, or more relevant. This latest vote tried to railroad through a consensus to mask the difficulties - and also unexpectedly derailed.
In what weird universe can Conservatives claim a mandate to Lead, or even to continue with Brexit? They are now frantically trying to cobble together a coalition with one of the most regressive, extreme Parties in the U.K. - a Northern Ireland Party that just slammed the Leader of Labour for his IRA Sympathies, even as they ignore their own paramilitary origins. Ireland is already deeply distrustful of Brexit, and both sides of the Irish border are worried about the many difficulties of making a "border" again in an area where Peace is recently hard won. Is Brexit and Conservative convenience going to come at Ireland's expense?
Austerity and economic isolation drove Brexit Populism in the first place. Yesterday's vote didn't boost Brexit in any way! What it really indicates is that People want change, attention, and a place at the Equality and Economic Table.
This Coalition - and Brexit - can't provide it.
This is the second risky gamble that Conservatives have tried in less than a year. Both were spectacular backfires! First a reckless Brexit vote, then this attempt to consolidate power after even the best data showed Brexit to be an economic train wreck. Brexit originally was an attempt to soothe Populist anxieties, but it has no hope in Reality of making the UK stronger, or more relevant. This latest vote tried to railroad through a consensus to mask the difficulties - and also unexpectedly derailed.
In what weird universe can Conservatives claim a mandate to Lead, or even to continue with Brexit? They are now frantically trying to cobble together a coalition with one of the most regressive, extreme Parties in the U.K. - a Northern Ireland Party that just slammed the Leader of Labour for his IRA Sympathies, even as they ignore their own paramilitary origins. Ireland is already deeply distrustful of Brexit, and both sides of the Irish border are worried about the many difficulties of making a "border" again in an area where Peace is recently hard won. Is Brexit and Conservative convenience going to come at Ireland's expense?
Austerity and economic isolation drove Brexit Populism in the first place. Yesterday's vote didn't boost Brexit in any way! What it really indicates is that People want change, attention, and a place at the Equality and Economic Table.
This Coalition - and Brexit - can't provide it.
10
This was a closely-fought election that reflects wide differences of opinion in the UK, on a number of issues. The outcome is not a "disaster" in any way, although it does complicate matters. What I noticed most about the UK election was that the competitors fought hard for their points of view, but never once descended into the kinds of awful attack ads I saw in the run-up to last November. Nobody said to lock anyone up. Nobody got into anybody's private life. With a very few small lapses, the debates were about policy. And when there was an attack on London, all parties suspended campaigning and Mrs May defended the London mayor even though he is not of her party. I call that adult behavior. Bravo, UK, whatever you decide, and wishing you the very best in everything.
10
The LOSER of the election is forming a new government.......
An election, she, herself called for........
Hmmmmm
Good luck brits, your gonna need it.
An election, she, herself called for........
Hmmmmm
Good luck brits, your gonna need it.
6
Too many in Britain felt like this-----“World leaders call for unity. Trump tweets the complete opposite,” Sir Christopher Meyer, former Ambassador to Washington, tweeted on Sunday. “Let me be diplomatic. Trump makes me puke.”
The British are certainly hilarious. And, similar to Donald Trump, the press is barking feverishly at Theresa May's heels. She didn't heed the call to not mess with peoples' healthcare. They were mad about it.
U.S. Senate Republicans take heed: The populist movement wants its healthcare undisturbed.
The British are certainly hilarious. And, similar to Donald Trump, the press is barking feverishly at Theresa May's heels. She didn't heed the call to not mess with peoples' healthcare. They were mad about it.
U.S. Senate Republicans take heed: The populist movement wants its healthcare undisturbed.
9
Another no good power hungry neoliberal that does not care how damage will be done to her country as long as her rich buddies can profit and do well at the expense of the poor. I congratulate the British youth to have sent a clear signal to the world what the future holds. Bernie, Melanchon and Corbyn have a lot in common !
13
Several senior members of DUP are creationists. Need I say more...
13
So that's cleared things up, then. We're evidently a nation of fox-hunting, anti-globalist, pro-higher taxation, inherited-property-favouring, inward-looking, pro-European, xenophobic Marxists.
It's great that these elections keep presenting such a coherent picture of ourselves to the world.
It's great that these elections keep presenting such a coherent picture of ourselves to the world.
11
Do we have a pattern here? Is this buyer's remorse after the Brexit referendum? The populist nationalist fad seems to be fizzlling out first in France now in Britain. And here in the US we are already exhausted. From winning. Thank you President Trump for showing to the world what it really means.
9
A coalition with the most backwards special-interest party in the UK? What could possibly go wrong?
10
Genuine progressives will always need to defeat their political opponents allied to rich donors, and elements of their own parties, supported by the corporate media. It's too big a challenge, both here in 2016, and over there in 2017.
Especially when the massed ranks of bought and paid for pundits and column writers are busy distorting, trivializing and/or discounting honest attempts to frame campaign narratives around inequality, rigged economic systems, welfare for the rich, climate change, disastrous military adventurism and unchecked greed and corporate crime. The establisment powerbrokers prefer we be distracted and at war with ourselves along partisan lines, to prevent honest debate breaking out over issues that unite the many against the few.
Especially when the massed ranks of bought and paid for pundits and column writers are busy distorting, trivializing and/or discounting honest attempts to frame campaign narratives around inequality, rigged economic systems, welfare for the rich, climate change, disastrous military adventurism and unchecked greed and corporate crime. The establisment powerbrokers prefer we be distracted and at war with ourselves along partisan lines, to prevent honest debate breaking out over issues that unite the many against the few.
5
Theresa May will still be the PM for another 5 years. And how exactly is this a 'victory' for Labour and Corbyn? Losing is still losing. They are going to be out of power for another 5 years. This is similar to the media spin after narrower than expected GOP victories in recent special elections.
3
Let's face it - in hindsight the Conservatives have bungled this all along.
PM David Cameron should have called a snap election preceding any Brexit referendum with the matter of staying in or out of the EU as the main party plank.
Barring that, instead of resigning, Cameron should have called a snap election immediately following the Brexit referendum to gauge whether it was the true sentiment of the people.
Instead, the UK has a complete hash of how they'll be proceeding. And it all falls on the Conservatives, since, as yesterday's results show, Labour still is in the wilderness as to being fully trusted by the British people to guide not only Brexit, but the country in general.
.
PM David Cameron should have called a snap election preceding any Brexit referendum with the matter of staying in or out of the EU as the main party plank.
Barring that, instead of resigning, Cameron should have called a snap election immediately following the Brexit referendum to gauge whether it was the true sentiment of the people.
Instead, the UK has a complete hash of how they'll be proceeding. And it all falls on the Conservatives, since, as yesterday's results show, Labour still is in the wilderness as to being fully trusted by the British people to guide not only Brexit, but the country in general.
.
4
Maybe in my next life I can have the misfortune of understanding how the British system works. For the time being I'll just concentrate on trying to block out the folly of how our own is supposed to work.
6
We in the U.S. can only hope the pendulum swings back quickly here. Trump was a compensation reaction to eight years of progress, and after yesterday, it's hard to see how he can complete a term - the arrow of his actions point in the direction of need for resignation or impeachment. If that does not happen, then Republicans are facing midterms in which they could be painted with the same brush used on the President whose moral failings they refuse to challenge.
8
There was progress on paper and some real gains for groups that have suffered oppression in this country. But the day-to-day lives of most people did not move forward and there are many foreign policy issues that are not beneficial to Americans or to people around the world. People may not have detailed information about this but they know what they and their neighbors' lives are like. The 1% is in control and until that changes, real gains will be more cosmetic than substantial for the average American.
I'm not optimistic that a coalition with the DUP will work well. Above all, 328 out of 650 is a very slim margin. Any group of 4 MPs or more can conspire to hold the coalition in hostage. I worry too often things just devolve into a game of chicken.
The DUP is also a regional party. Entangling the politics of Northern Ireland with Brexit can have unintended consequences. Scotland, with its own regional interests, may resent the attention that Northern Ireland enjoys. The DUP may also garner more attention for Northern Ireland at the expense of Southeast England, the economic engine of the UK.
The DUP is also a regional party. Entangling the politics of Northern Ireland with Brexit can have unintended consequences. Scotland, with its own regional interests, may resent the attention that Northern Ireland enjoys. The DUP may also garner more attention for Northern Ireland at the expense of Southeast England, the economic engine of the UK.
9
Concise and interesting William. I appreciate you sharing your insight as to the domestic politics and entanglements of certain interest groups in England.
To me the situation you described sounds quite similar to that currently occurring in the Israeli Knesset where the conservative Likud plurality leads a minority government cobbled together of far right and religious interests yielding a one-seat majority. The situation has lead to much gridlock and little progress over the past several years as this coalition is hamstrung by the rather narrow interest of a couple relatively fringe political parties within Israel.
Will be interesting to see how these two cases play out, and if the latter is in any way a harbinger of the former.
To me the situation you described sounds quite similar to that currently occurring in the Israeli Knesset where the conservative Likud plurality leads a minority government cobbled together of far right and religious interests yielding a one-seat majority. The situation has lead to much gridlock and little progress over the past several years as this coalition is hamstrung by the rather narrow interest of a couple relatively fringe political parties within Israel.
Will be interesting to see how these two cases play out, and if the latter is in any way a harbinger of the former.
3
Congratulations to Tim Ireland (!) of the Associated Press for this outstanding photo.
The colors against the gray walls, the press, the PM, the motorcycle cops, the closed gates, the double-decker bus in the background.
It's truly a "snapshot" of England. Bravo, Mr. Ireland. Well done.
The colors against the gray walls, the press, the PM, the motorcycle cops, the closed gates, the double-decker bus in the background.
It's truly a "snapshot" of England. Bravo, Mr. Ireland. Well done.
9
And don't forget the rain slicked pavement!
1
Theresa May brought the election not only to strengthen her position within the UK with regards Brexit but to dessimate any further opposition from the Left and the Labour Party for decades, much as Thatcher tried to do in the 1980s. However the Conservative Party underestimated Jeremy Corbin the Labour leader who has been a member of Parliament since the early 1980s. One of his strong points in his youth was as an activist and he certainly brought his experience to bear in running a very effective campaign. The more he travelled around the UK speaking to people the more people people found him affable and liked his anti austerity policies.
He was able to activate and attract the votes of the young who were influenced by their peers on social media and thermessage from May.
He was able to activate and attract the votes of the young who were influenced by their peers on social media and thermessage from May.
11
I'm hoping this result points to a betterm more energized Labour Party, one that maintains the best aspects of its socialist traditions (NHS, free college education, progressive income tax, nationalized railways, etc), but also incorporates more modern policies regarding the environment as well as more clarity on defense. Jeremy Corbyn ran an impressive campaign but, ultimately, he may not be the best choice for leadership. Find a young Labour Trudeau or Macron and you might have a winner.
5
Fantastic. UK needs a period of controlled chaos to reset the national mood. May's vacuity found her out. She didn't have a Brexit strategy - she had a strategy to use Brexit to get re-elected .... and it got shot.
These hard-Brexit nutters can now be corralled. Maybe, just maybe, when the car-crash of the Brexit negotiations becomes apparent, a second referendum may seem like a good idea. We'll see. But, notwithstanding May is still clinging to power, the future will be rocky for the Brexiteers - and this dreadful Conservative party.
These hard-Brexit nutters can now be corralled. Maybe, just maybe, when the car-crash of the Brexit negotiations becomes apparent, a second referendum may seem like a good idea. We'll see. But, notwithstanding May is still clinging to power, the future will be rocky for the Brexiteers - and this dreadful Conservative party.
12
Leftists are rejoicing. Praying to somehow stop Brexit and continue the unlimited access to the UK of people , some of whom would try to kill them. And maybe destroy the current culture and replace it with whatnot really believe they don't want. Your daughters are at risk.
2
It may surprise you, and the majority of England-based Tory voters, to know that the DUP was a party founded by and aligned with death squad paramilitaries, responsible for the deaths of over 400 British citizens. The DUP are anti-gay rights, and women's rights and deny climate change.
Dont worry about enemies at the gate. They lie already within the parliament.
Dont worry about enemies at the gate. They lie already within the parliament.
28
Exactly. But at least the Tories can no longer accuse Jeremy of consorting with terrorists. All he did with Sinn Fein was talk and tried to stop the fighting. May, in contrast, is about to go into coalition with the UDA / DUP mob.
9
Yeah, that's a real logical assessment.....
3
Clinton and May both lost by small margins. There were many reasons for each loss and both had flaws as candidates. Both are women. Had they been men, they would have been seen as more suitable to lead by some voters. In a close election that made the difference.
3
No. This had nothing to do with her being a woman. It has everything to do with running a terrible campaign and during that campaign, appearing robotic every time she talked.
7
Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump in the popular vote by almost 3 million votes. That is hardly "losing" by a small margin.
Trump got into office by a margin of about 77,000 votes in 3 small states, thus taking the electoral college.
Truth is, Trump lost the election but gained the presidency.
Trump got into office by a margin of about 77,000 votes in 3 small states, thus taking the electoral college.
Truth is, Trump lost the election but gained the presidency.
2
BREXIT was one of several milestones on Putin’s fascists agenda in my view. I believe that Le Pen, Farage, May, Trump, Bannon, and the neocons and their would be Oligarch allies like the Kochs have a common interest in breaking up and destroying the post world War II alliances and democracies and the freedom of our citizens. This means (NATO, the EU, the United Nations, etc.). Their plan is unfolding according to plan with Brexit, Trump, Erdogan’s Turkey and very nearly in the election of the Holocaust denier Le Pen.
A contingent of the old, massively concentrated wealth interests and Wall Stret seek to break down free speech and democracy, as witnessed by the US Round table, lead by JP Morgan’s CEO, Jamie Dimon, that seeks to take away the rights of public corporation shareholders.
They don’t want us to be the land of the free and the home of the brave. Instead they want us to live in a state of fear and submission. When the citizens of England faced the Nazi onslaught , they never thought to surrender freedom to Hitler. They stood bravely for freedom and justice. The answer to terror is freedom, and economic justice and not fear mongering as our media and government constantly pushes. Who most contributes to invoking terror and why?
Background Articles to Google:
"With links to Donald Trump, Steve Bannon and Nigel Farage, the rightwing US computer scientist is at the heart of a multimillion-dollar propaganda network"
"Justice Democrats"
A contingent of the old, massively concentrated wealth interests and Wall Stret seek to break down free speech and democracy, as witnessed by the US Round table, lead by JP Morgan’s CEO, Jamie Dimon, that seeks to take away the rights of public corporation shareholders.
They don’t want us to be the land of the free and the home of the brave. Instead they want us to live in a state of fear and submission. When the citizens of England faced the Nazi onslaught , they never thought to surrender freedom to Hitler. They stood bravely for freedom and justice. The answer to terror is freedom, and economic justice and not fear mongering as our media and government constantly pushes. Who most contributes to invoking terror and why?
Background Articles to Google:
"With links to Donald Trump, Steve Bannon and Nigel Farage, the rightwing US computer scientist is at the heart of a multimillion-dollar propaganda network"
"Justice Democrats"
11
May is not really for Brexit, never was! Her calling of a snap election proved it. One doesn't 'win' and then risk it all to win a little more. May knew that the Brexit vote was a fluke which had been somewhat a part of the fluke of the Trump election and she wanted the nation to reconsider it. She got what she wanted. Brexit was never 'conservative' or 'liberal' it was uninformed, pie in the sky, populism and May wanted to stop it. Now she has.
1
All people in these comments seem to care about is Brexit. Brexit is good. The EU is right-wing, it seeks to give German corporations a peaceful path to dominate and control Europe. It's an imperial project.
May is a one-nation Tory, further to the left than Hillary Clinton, she's hardly a bad guy.
May is a one-nation Tory, further to the left than Hillary Clinton, she's hardly a bad guy.
1
Not bad, just ineffective.
I do not know if Brexit is good. But you are right that the EU is an undemocratic monster run by Belgium and Germany, that punishes Greece daily. It refuses to alter it's fiscal policy and monetary, and so Spain, Italy, Portuguese, Greece are all suffering. Germany could fix this, it chooses not to
1
"May shares the repulsive and ill-founded smugness of Trump."
The article mentions that May's party actually increased its share of the overall vote, compared to the last election. But Britain has a version of our Electoral College. Votes are counted district by district, not at large. The overall popular vote doesn't matter.
The article mentions that May's party actually increased its share of the overall vote, compared to the last election. But Britain has a version of our Electoral College. Votes are counted district by district, not at large. The overall popular vote doesn't matter.
1
Voting in the UK is almost the same as voting for a US Congress-person. It is first past the post - whoever gets the most votes wins. But in a multi-party system you could get one candidate with 13.5k votes, another with 13.5k votes and another with 14k votes. So clearly, the person who won only was supported by a third of the voters - the UK rejected proportional representation in 2011 for Parliamentary elections, though it seems to work just fine for the Scottish Parliament. Oh, and when I wrote "almost the same," I meant that the UK, unlike the USA, has very strict rules against gerrymandered districts.
4
May outsmarted herself as the Trump clone she is. For all her blathering there was no need to call a snap election as she already had a majority. Simple fact she did because with Corbyn she believed she could destroy the Labor Party and ram her pro business wealthy legislation through for five years. Given another week and she would not even be forming a government. After the two deadly attacks she had the nerve to state who did you want to protect you - her or Corbyn. Lets see the Lady who cut 20,000 police positions when she was Home Secretary. Also she refused to withdraw the invite to Trump after his nasty rants against the Mayor of London and never really focusing on the individuals killed but like always on himself the clown. Merkle of Germany who has backbone has put Trump in his place. May believes she will get this wonderful Free Trade deal with the US - dream on. Sadly if Sinn Fein would give up the part of their manifesto that does not allow them to sit in the House of Commons it would get really interesting. They won eight seats and could hold the balance of power. May will give the DUP what they want and watch the Troubles start all over again. What the DUP wants is to run Northern Ireland like the good old days. May has opened another can of worms and watch what happens now. The Tories like the Republicans love to make deals with evil and then can't understand the consequences. All that matters to them is power. Jim Trautman
129
I totally agree. But there is a big fly in the ointment for May. The DUP are as ante-deluvial as many Republicans when it comes to women's rights and gay rights. And the only bright spark for the Tories last night was in Scotland; the Scottish Conservative party is led by a lesbian, and it was this woman's charisma and intelligence which won those seats. She has already tweeted a link to a speech she gave in Belfast last year which was dedicated to gay rights (same sex marriage is legal in England, Scotland and Wales but not N. Ireland). There are other UK Tories in parliament who are gay. The bottom line is that these folks are at some stage going to turn around and say: "what price power if we lose our souls?" And I think that will happen sooner rather than later.
4
@ Jim Trautman, brilliantly stated! Thank you.
People need to read this comment from trautman. May would never be able to form a majority government if Sinn Fein occupied their seats in Parliment and any deal with the DUP is a deal with the devil. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Boris Johnson, the lair who led the Brits to Brexit is no where to be seen or heard. The speculation is that he's waiting for an opportunity to plunge his dagger into Mrs. May's back a la Brutus. One wonders if May is still Prime Minister on the day Brexit becomes a reality. To my British friends:"Be careful what you wish for. It might come true."
Sort of like the Electoral College:
"Paradoxically, the Conservative Party actually increased its share of the total vote from 2015 .... Under Britain’s ... system, what matters is not a party’s share of the overall vote, but simply who places first in any given constituency."
"Paradoxically, the Conservative Party actually increased its share of the total vote from 2015 .... Under Britain’s ... system, what matters is not a party’s share of the overall vote, but simply who places first in any given constituency."
2
I wonder what a Brexit vote would be today. Would a second vote produce a different result? Would Brexit supporters dare allow it?
1
Mother May, Aye? Nay!
1
The corporate media predicted "landslide victory for May!" and the voters were supposed to follow along. But when politicians work to cut off health care for citizens, ally themselves with oafish Trump, they lose! What a surprise!
7
Can we please now ditch the moronic belief in the "wisdom of crowds?"
1
The Brits may have learned a lesson from our disaster in America.
6
Let's hope that we can do the same in next year's midterm elections.
6
Referenda that reduce complicated issues to a binary yes/no vote are always a bad idea, always divisive and there has been little attempt in the UK to find a middle way through brexit. There has been no real sense of trying to unite the country through outreach and compromise. It turns out that simplistic solutions to complicated problems rarely stand up to the test of time.
We are where we are & bizarrely the only comfort to be found is in looking west to the US where the political and moral shenanigans of your president at least offer some light relief.
We are where we are & bizarrely the only comfort to be found is in looking west to the US where the political and moral shenanigans of your president at least offer some light relief.
3
All due respect , but the moral shenanigans of DT may offer some light relief to the Brits , but for us it's as serious as a heart attack , no kidding .
2
As I listened to PM May's brief message to the British public, I began to think that Trump's delusional behavior is definitely contagious. Her party was trounced and she failed to even mention it. As someone on NPR said, it was akin to having your house burn down and when you arrive home, your waiting spouse says that everything's ok.
6
Democrats, pay attention!
Theresa May ran on the " I'm not Jeremy Corbyn" ticket, and look where it got her.
"We are not Donald Trump" will not be enough in 2018!
Theresa May ran on the " I'm not Jeremy Corbyn" ticket, and look where it got her.
"We are not Donald Trump" will not be enough in 2018!
7
actually I think in the end corbyn ran on an "I'm not Teresa " card. and did quite well.
4
I think it will and it will be by plenty.
This is all reminiscent of 1974, when a minority Labour government won in February, couldn't hold on and called another election in October. Then the issues were economic discord and strikes. Now it's about economic discord and Brexit.
There's absolutely no way Theresa May's government can hang on for the long term with only 328 seats (318 Tory, 10 DUP), when 326 is required for a majority.
Within months there will have to be a new Tory leader and a new general election. Governance--and particularly Brexit negotiations--aren't viable without them.
There's absolutely no way Theresa May's government can hang on for the long term with only 328 seats (318 Tory, 10 DUP), when 326 is required for a majority.
Within months there will have to be a new Tory leader and a new general election. Governance--and particularly Brexit negotiations--aren't viable without them.
4
May is greedily clinging on to her position yet she has no mandate, no real power anymore, the British public have spoken, she has to go!
8
Theresa May and her Conservative Party had the slimmest of mandates to move ahead with Brexit and were doing so, before the election, to the detriment of the country's economic future.
Post-election one of her first statements is that Brexit talks will continue as planned. This is as clear a case of political suicide (the first attempt - this election - having maimed her but generally being unsuccessful) as I have ever seen.
Post-election one of her first statements is that Brexit talks will continue as planned. This is as clear a case of political suicide (the first attempt - this election - having maimed her but generally being unsuccessful) as I have ever seen.
2
The younger generation is showing up. Let's keep up the pressure here in the US for 2018! Well done! Cheers!
6
Could it be slowly dawning on millennials that if they don't like the world into which they have now arrived as adults, they will have to become more active and work to change it? And that voting is an essential responsibility for those of us who are fortunate enough to live in democracies -- as imperfect as they are?
If the UK millennials had voted on Brexit in June, 2016, the referendum would not have passed. I've long said -- after well-researched assessment -- that Brexit will not occur.......and think that events are starting to reverse this course of'action....
Had the US millennials voted in the last Presidential election, we would not now be facing a crisis of confidence, obstruction of justice and other misdeeds that are undermining our constitution and national security, and just keep getting worse and worse. Sometimes - often - in politics, you have to settle for the lesser of two evils, or do as my brother-in-law once did: hold your nose and vote for a candidate.
We baby boomers are leaving you millennial Brits and Anericans with countries that are much better off for more people than they were a generation ago. Now it is time for your generation to move forward, shoulder your responsibilities, get into the ring and fight for what you believe in. It's not black and white. To me, the UK election results show that the younger generation is starting to engage politically and socially. Let's hope this awakening continues to evolve in the U.S.
If the UK millennials had voted on Brexit in June, 2016, the referendum would not have passed. I've long said -- after well-researched assessment -- that Brexit will not occur.......and think that events are starting to reverse this course of'action....
Had the US millennials voted in the last Presidential election, we would not now be facing a crisis of confidence, obstruction of justice and other misdeeds that are undermining our constitution and national security, and just keep getting worse and worse. Sometimes - often - in politics, you have to settle for the lesser of two evils, or do as my brother-in-law once did: hold your nose and vote for a candidate.
We baby boomers are leaving you millennial Brits and Anericans with countries that are much better off for more people than they were a generation ago. Now it is time for your generation to move forward, shoulder your responsibilities, get into the ring and fight for what you believe in. It's not black and white. To me, the UK election results show that the younger generation is starting to engage politically and socially. Let's hope this awakening continues to evolve in the U.S.
20
Count me as someone who doesn't agree with the pessimistic assessment of the results and of May's future! While the hoped-for landslide majority didn't materialize, the results are not that bad. The Conservatives lost a mere 12 seats (out of more than 300 before the election) and they achieved a noticeably higher percentage of votes cast than in 2015 -- approximately 43% vs 37-38% in 2015. And May earned these votes herself. So although disappointing, it is at least her result, not David Cameron's. Finally, with DUP support she has a majority, so there is no instability. I don't see this as so terrible.
3
Corbyn would raise more than a few smiles on both sides of "the pond" if he trolled Trump with at least a partial "thank you". :-)
2
Odd that the authors don't mention the two terrorist attacks and the effect that they may have had on the election. The Tories' drop in the polls, and Labour's rise, started just after the May 22 massacre in Manchester: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_United_Kingdom_gen....
That may just be coincidence but maybe not.
That may just be coincidence but maybe not.
2
Must never bring up the PC obviousness of the terrorist attacks being omitted.
May shares the repulsive and ill-founded smugness of Trump. In fact at some point in the election she actually said SHE was the ONLY person who could lead Britain/handle Brexit. Now where have I heard that before? So she gets her come-uppance now. Trump's won't be far behind.
7
If May was smart- she would call for a redo of the Brexit vote. I Perhaps Brexit will fail the second time around after people have a better understanding of the down side.
Now, if we could just have a redo of the Nov 2016 election based on Russian meddling and DT mental disorders.....His poll favorable rating is down to 34%.
Now, if we could just have a redo of the Nov 2016 election based on Russian meddling and DT mental disorders.....His poll favorable rating is down to 34%.
4
Oopsie! That didn't go too well, did it?
3
Theresa May should have resigned, it was the only honorable thing to do.
3
At least Ms May will have an easier time than Mr. Trump in appointing Ministerial positions, with 10 appointments already spoken for.
Years of Tory austerity for most people while reducing taxes for the wealthy and increasing profits for banks brought push-back in the vote for Corbyn. Many young people came out to vote reacting to what the older generation had wrought through the Brexit referendum. Theresa May's hunger to hold on to her position makes Britain more unstable and weakens the Brexit process. If she left her office, her successor could call a second election in a few months for a more stable future. She has now become part of the problem.
7
Because the Electoral College generally functions on a winner take all basis, by each state, it would be very unusual for NO presidential candidate to have a majority in the electoral college. You would have to have several whole states or a one large state vote in its majority for a third-party candidate. However, if the US went to popular vote, it would be very easy to have a leading Presidential candidate with a plurality but no majority, in any year with just a modest 5-10% turnout for third parties. In fact, the switch to popular vote might encourage third parties and lead us quickly to a situation more like Britain's or other parliamentary systems.
I haven't seen a poll but probably only a quite small percent of the US population could explain how the British parliamentary election system works, even in a 20,000 foot view or a snippet description.
I haven't seen a poll but probably only a quite small percent of the US population could explain how the British parliamentary election system works, even in a 20,000 foot view or a snippet description.
1
It seems May called the election to try to knife the SNP as well as Labour. She succeeded in substantially weakening the SNP, which prevents another independence vote. In essence, she secured her flank, but she is now facing bigger problems because of Labour's unexpected showing, particularly among the young.
1
If anything, yesterday's elections have signalled that the British government has moved too far to the right. The DUP is a homophobic, misogynistic party right of the Tories (that apparently forgot to negotiate, oops). A continued hard right cabinet is not what Britain voted for and Tories should think twice before letting Theresa May save her own hide as Prime Minister, quickly propping up the lack of seats by associating with a questionable party.
14
The truth does not matter for the elected as long as the money is able to get what they want! Look at the stock markets going through the roof, they know that Congress will repeal Obamacare, cut taxes for the rich, rollback all the environmental rules! Theresa May doesn't care about how she gets there she will stay in power w/o a mandate cobbling together a coalition of the willing whatever the costs to the people. Just as Trump lies to confuse the truth even further, you would hope that we were getting close to the end of this, but I fear not..it's just the beginning..God knows what they are willing to do to stay in power!!
3
While Theresa May tries to put the most favourable spin on it, Republicans must be looking closely at these results. Whatever 'Brexit' excuse the US Republicans might want to believe, it appears Trump's coattails are long enough to cross the Atlantic, and Republicans should be very concerned about the 2018 election here. I doubt the behind-doors concern will motivate them to do anything about reining Trump's rolling cataclysm in, but the investigations, Moeller's at least, move forward, whether Republicans in Congress exercise their Constitutional duty of oversight and act as a 'check and balance' on Trump or not. And 2018 is not -that- far off.
2
True, 2018 is not far off. But all the Democrats could come up with in the presidential election was Clinton. Now we have Democratics in important races who are taking conservative positions to the point that supporting them doesn't seem like it will do much good. In the much-touted race in Georgia, the Democratic candidate has said that he will not support fellow Democrats in raising taxes on the ultra-wealthy. Positions like that do not bode well for Democrats in 2018. Voters have had it with Democrats who only focus on identity politics to appear Progressive, while selling out to corporate interests. (Yes, Hillary won the popular vote, but look how many people stayed home. There are also many of us who voted for Clinton only because Trump was worse.) We have to do better or this country is going to continue in the negative direction we are headed. One also hopes that the outcome of this election in Britain will move the country in a more positive direction also.
Chirac tried the same thing in France in 2002, and lost his parliament majority. Maybe there was a lesson to draw from that.
3
Theresa May's sneaky premature call for wider support surely backfired. We haven't seen the last straw yet, Corbyn's influence not withstanding, perhaps even this crazy idea of Brexit may have to be reconsidered. Poor England, lost in a 'cup of tea'...instead of a terrifying storm in high seas.
34
My, how far the once great British Empire has fallen.
Every conservative leader has punched another hole into her sinking ship.
It's really sad to see the internal collapse of a once extraordinary nation. We here in America are experiencing the same thing.
Every conservative leader has punched another hole into her sinking ship.
It's really sad to see the internal collapse of a once extraordinary nation. We here in America are experiencing the same thing.
6
There is virtually nothing on the Terror attack that took place in Iran
two days ago, so I am posting here. The relevance is that the young
in England came out to vote, and the read. The pattern that is emerging
is clear.
Tory, and Trump want to sell wapons to Saudi and could not care what
happens to them. But people are begining to see the outcome...
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jun/08/tehran-attack-isis...
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/mar/12/sweden-stopped-sel...
We should also stop selling weapons to the Saudi..
two days ago, so I am posting here. The relevance is that the young
in England came out to vote, and the read. The pattern that is emerging
is clear.
Tory, and Trump want to sell wapons to Saudi and could not care what
happens to them. But people are begining to see the outcome...
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jun/08/tehran-attack-isis...
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/mar/12/sweden-stopped-sel...
We should also stop selling weapons to the Saudi..
14
So it appears that, for the umpteenth time in British history, the Irish seen as a trading chip, even collateral damage. I only pray that, this time, only metaphoric blood will be spilled, but it's a reminder of the continued cost of a divided Ireland.
10
In true Trump grade shamelessness, the Prime Minister craves power more than doing what is better for the nation and respecting the people's voice.
5
Days of Austerity are over--Please expand your subways--ridiculously crowded
5
Buyers' remorse. No May bes about it.
3
Since I as a patriotic American pay absolutely no attention to foreign policy and world affairs - I get everything I need to know from the President's tweets and statements from the WH - I was at first stunned to hear what turned out to be fake news and media reports that the President's preferred candidate has lost the last 4 elections. I'm hearing that he's going to be issuing Executive Orders sometime in the near future to overturn the results, necessitated by what clearly was election/voting fraud.
15
How quickly the NYT goes over what this outcome means for Labour and more importantly for Corbyn's program in the Labour Party. That was what the big gamble within Labour and the big story here too confirming the appeal of Corbyn's progressive program for the Labour Party. It won votes! Jeremy Corbyn is the counterpart of Bernie Sanders in the Democratic Party here and Labour has seen the same kind splits within the Party that the Democratic Party has here in the USA. The story of the significance of Corbyn's win is all over The Guardian newspaper--why the circumspection in the NYT? Wake up Democratic Party!
9
"total vote from 2015 — when it won a commanding majority in Parliament "
The Tories did NOT win a "commanding" majority in 2015. They had a narrow majority of only 12, which meant some of her domestic policies might not get through if more then 12 Tories opposed. That is the real reason she called this snap election, so she could have a mandate and a solid majority for her domestic policies (as well as the hard Brexit she was pursuing), some of which proved to be unpopular in the extreme.
The Tories did NOT win a "commanding" majority in 2015. They had a narrow majority of only 12, which meant some of her domestic policies might not get through if more then 12 Tories opposed. That is the real reason she called this snap election, so she could have a mandate and a solid majority for her domestic policies (as well as the hard Brexit she was pursuing), some of which proved to be unpopular in the extreme.
6
The Trump effect seems to be that people are rejecting all of his favorite candidates and causes (Brexit in the UK, Marine LePen in France, Geert Wilders in the Netherlands.)
17
I don't think Donald Trump had anything to do with those elections. The far right candidates in France and the Netherlands were far right of Donald Trump. He never gave them any support. And though the British election has important implications for Brexit, voters seemed focused on other things.
In short, there is no Trump effect.
In short, there is no Trump effect.
4
Never gave them any support? Trump hosted Geert Wilders at the Republican convention last July, and praised Marine Le Pen in interviews this April. In both cases, the affection turned on hostility to Muslims and immigrants.
1
May gave an empty speech after the recent attack on London via the Muslim criminals. I later discovered that she has cut the budget for security between 15-20%. Why on earth would she do this? I also discovered that many of the Coppers don't have guns. Earlier she advocated selling guns to dictators in the Middle East, which causes the enemy to flee to places like London and then destroy it. Does May want to give London over to the barbarians? This is truly bizarre and disturbing.
12
It was a "success" for Jeremy Corbyn, but not a victory. Would a more moderate Labour leader have done better, perhaps even putting the party back in charge? Do these results represent Mr. Corbyn's electoral upper limit? Also, what happened in Scotland? Is Scottish nationalism on the decline? Is the contradiction of the Scottish National Party holding seats in the UK Parliament being exposed? Let's see some follow-up, please!
5
Two things:
First, I can't stop wondering at the hubris of British politicians to induce self-inflicted wounds. Cameron never had to call for a referendum on Brexit and did so as a political gamble to get himself re-elected. In the end, he resigned over the results. Now May has made a similar gamble, again believing the results would fall predictably in her favor. As it's turned out, not so much.
Second, political strategists in the U.S. are no doubt noticing these latest results in Britain. Might they be a harbinger for our mid-term elections in 2018? Our political landscape isn't identical, but similarities exist. Both Brexit and Trump have a tenuous hold on their respective constituencies.
First, I can't stop wondering at the hubris of British politicians to induce self-inflicted wounds. Cameron never had to call for a referendum on Brexit and did so as a political gamble to get himself re-elected. In the end, he resigned over the results. Now May has made a similar gamble, again believing the results would fall predictably in her favor. As it's turned out, not so much.
Second, political strategists in the U.S. are no doubt noticing these latest results in Britain. Might they be a harbinger for our mid-term elections in 2018? Our political landscape isn't identical, but similarities exist. Both Brexit and Trump have a tenuous hold on their respective constituencies.
136
No our neocon Democratic leaders are to beholden to their wealthy donor class and don't even care about winning for the people as long as they get paid to play the game of our so called Democracy..
3
Mrs. May is doing everything Donald Trump does - backwards and in heels!
19
Oh, dear. Poor Ginger Rogers. But this had me laughing & snorting my coffee all over my keyboard. How apt.
4
Labour picked up 31 seats? Guess Jeremy Corbin is good for them! Go, Jeremy!
16
Maintaining 'close' ties to Toxic Trump could be the reason the election turned out this way. Good Luck Mrs. May - be careful - your statement regarding the country needs certainty more than ever, rings similar to "Make America Great Again".
9
Perhaps the tide is turning back... to reason and human kindness... I hope this is a world wide movement.
22
The Scots have done themselves in again: They took 11 seats away from the Scottish National Party and gave them to the Conservatives, making the slim Conservative majority possible.
If May is forced out, there's a very good chance she will be replaced as PM by Boris Johnson, which would be a singular catastrophe for the entire UK.
I'm guessing the Scots were feeling jealous of the US having Donald Trump as their leader. It's the only explanation...
If May is forced out, there's a very good chance she will be replaced as PM by Boris Johnson, which would be a singular catastrophe for the entire UK.
I'm guessing the Scots were feeling jealous of the US having Donald Trump as their leader. It's the only explanation...
13
Ms. May doesn't seem to care that her decision may tear Northern Ireland apart again. We can't expect much from Trump as his ignorance is revealed everyday but May appears knowledgeable and intelligent which makes her decision to ignore history and forget how many lives were destroyed during "The Troubles" even worse.
16
Having voted for a withdrawal from a community of nations that was critically important for its economic stability, the U.K. is now floundering in incoherence. The Brits asked for this, now they've got it. And no, I'm not unaware that the same thing can be said about us Americans in regard to Trump. We asked for him, now we've got him.
14
Actually, since Hillary got about 3 million votes more than Trump, we didn't ask for him.
4
I'm one of those who voted for Mrs. Clinton, and I understand what you're saying. But the United States of America elected Trump under its current electoral system. So in that way, we asked for him.
2
Please note that popular vote is not what determines the selection of the British Prime Minister any more than it does here -- except the "infrastructure" is different. The Brits have a Prime Minister. Instead of winning states, Beitish politicians win Districts; each winner gets a seat in Parkiament and becomes a member of Parkiament (MP) representing his/her District. The leader of the Party with the most members of Parliament (i.e., the most Districts won) becomes the Prime Minister if s/he has enough seats/members to form a majority. If there is no clear majority - as now - the leader of the Party with the highest number of seats (elected members) is given the first-round go-ahead to form a government by cobbling together a coalition with members of other Parties, usually small ones. This is what Ms May is trying to do. if she can't, then the keader of the Party with the next highest number of seats (elected members) is given the opportunity to try and assemble a coalition government. This is called Parliamentary democracy. Popular vote does not matter. It is possible and does happen that a British political party becomes the governing body and its leader becomes the Prime Minister wirhout a win of the popular vote.
Hope this clarifies the issue for you. Our political system is not the only one in which this happens.
Hope this clarifies the issue for you. Our political system is not the only one in which this happens.
1
The British people have never liked being told what to do. That characteristic has been quite useful in a crisis historically, but is fairly bewildering to most observers.
The "funny" thing (in the British sense) about this election result? It's unlikely to make a jot of difference to the opening position for the UK's BREXIT negotiations or its subsequent conduct.
The predominant exemplar for all British political activity is the late-night "essay crisis" of Oxbridge tradition. From which brilliance can emerge or disaster befall.
The "funny" thing (in the British sense) about this election result? It's unlikely to make a jot of difference to the opening position for the UK's BREXIT negotiations or its subsequent conduct.
The predominant exemplar for all British political activity is the late-night "essay crisis" of Oxbridge tradition. From which brilliance can emerge or disaster befall.
3
Here, here, we'll just keep an upper lip, and fend off those wannabes!
Who cares how Great Britain is doing, as long as we're in power!
Who cares how Great Britain is doing, as long as we're in power!
4
Like the US, people vote for the government they deserve.
Let's start with Scotland. The Scottish National party, and its leader took a beating. He is not returning to Westminster. The SNP lost a number of seats which went to Labour. But, a few seats went to the Tories. Why is this important? Well, Scotland, voted against Brexit in big numbers. This election pretty much put an end to Scottish statehood and its chance to stay in the EU; maybe.
Nor Wales. fro Brexit, it voted with England to leave in larger numbers. But, yesterday, I guess second thoughts; it went almost all fro Labour. This at the expense of the Tories.
Northern Ireland, Sein Finn decided it did not wants seats in Westminster. Losing for of the Torie bloc and less seats the Tories can count on.
And En gland, well, in general what was Labour pretty much stayed that way, pretty much similar for teh Tories.
This leave the Tories 8 seats short. A possible hung Parliament, because no one will form a coalition ion with them. Then again, no one will do so with Labour.
So, guess what? the UK has a very weak Prime Minister, who will not be able to push her agenda; namely Brexit. She rolled the dice fro early elections and lost. And what we now have in the UK is a "hung Parliament".
Expect new elections while MPs beat themselves over the head trying to get anything done.
Yes, indeed, you get the government you deserve.
Oh yeah, markets are up, because Brexit is on life support.
Let's start with Scotland. The Scottish National party, and its leader took a beating. He is not returning to Westminster. The SNP lost a number of seats which went to Labour. But, a few seats went to the Tories. Why is this important? Well, Scotland, voted against Brexit in big numbers. This election pretty much put an end to Scottish statehood and its chance to stay in the EU; maybe.
Nor Wales. fro Brexit, it voted with England to leave in larger numbers. But, yesterday, I guess second thoughts; it went almost all fro Labour. This at the expense of the Tories.
Northern Ireland, Sein Finn decided it did not wants seats in Westminster. Losing for of the Torie bloc and less seats the Tories can count on.
And En gland, well, in general what was Labour pretty much stayed that way, pretty much similar for teh Tories.
This leave the Tories 8 seats short. A possible hung Parliament, because no one will form a coalition ion with them. Then again, no one will do so with Labour.
So, guess what? the UK has a very weak Prime Minister, who will not be able to push her agenda; namely Brexit. She rolled the dice fro early elections and lost. And what we now have in the UK is a "hung Parliament".
Expect new elections while MPs beat themselves over the head trying to get anything done.
Yes, indeed, you get the government you deserve.
Oh yeah, markets are up, because Brexit is on life support.
2
Minority governments in multi-party parliamentary democracies are notoriously unstable and rarely last more than two years. Theresa May has greatly added to the instability by not only invoking Article 50, but by bearing 100% responsibility for the hubris of this election. Minorities can regain majority if the leader has a proven record and has the strategic savvy to not only maintain power, but also destabilize the opposition. This is very very tricky, and most certainly impossible when May has lost the confidence of the electorate, and most likely the majority of her own party membership and caucus.
4
Article 50 was invoked by the British voters in a vote. By law, she is stuck with it, though she supported it, though she didn't lead the movement, Prime Minister David Cameron and Chancellor George Osborne did, who pushed a referendum through the UK Parliament. She is stuck with it. Her choices were just how and when.
1
Apparently British voters are vastly superior in intelligence to their American counterparts.
21
The Tories are like the GOP, good at slogans but bad at governing. Those that promoted Brexit with false promised had no plan on how to implement it. It is like the GOP with a Health Plan. If the Tories think they can negotiate with the EU to have all the benefits of EU membership without any of the responsibilities of EU membership they are sadly mistaken.
15
Nobody had left before so who would have a plan? Also any plan has to be agreed too with the rest of the EU, as to continuing trade etc, you just can't walk out. The guy who did push leaving the EU finished way back. The people did vote to leave, so who ever governs is stuck with that. England will not be the first. Many EU members do not like they are being punished because of government mismanagement like in Greece and probably soon close to default Italy. Taxes are getting to be an issue in issue as are open borders in many EU countries. french and German taxpayers don't like being taxed to support Greece and soon Italy and Greece. Greece is due to pay a 7 billion payment to creditors in July which is all interest and doesn't decrease what they owe, which the EU has to cover when Greece can't. .
1
It is interesting to watch how events are unfolding in both countries, the US and England. The similarities between the two over the last few years is remarkable, both reflecting the unrest of their citizens. Starting with the UK, there was Brexit, which was drastic and not predictable. Then there was our presidential election of 2016, again, a drastic departure from our history as well as not predicted. Although Theresa May seems to be a professional woman of integrity unlike Mr. Trump, citizens of both countries, in one form or another, seem to be second guessing their decisions. In Ms May's case, it may be more the system rather than the character. However, re Mr. Trump, it is indeed the character which is raising our alarm level. I believe England will work out its problems far better than we. And, again, it goes back to the character and integrity of our leaders. One knows how to govern and listen to her people. The other is unraveling and self-destructing before our eyes, with little or no attention to our welfare. These four years can not end soon enough for me.
8
More people should be talking about the implosion of the Scottish National Party (SNP), likely driven by their push for a second independence referendum. The SNP lost 19 seats, several of which went to the Conservatives in their few wins of the night. This wasn't just a rebuke of a hard Brexit, but was likely a rebuke of independence by the Scots as well.
6
As an outsider, I wonder when the UK will finally address the elephant in the room? Was Brexit a good idea and given the notable fraud involved in making its case, should it (or can it) be reversed? Or at least revisited?
The biggest problem is that an older generation is dooming a younger generation to its outdated ideas about the UK's place in Europe and the world. I have seen no compelling evidence that the UK will be better off with Brexit and the younger people who will have to deal with the fallout long after this older generation is dead and buried.
I would also point out that the UK has the best deal in Europe based on its original EU negotiations. If they change their mind in the future deciding to rejoin, they will not get that deal again. Instead, they will need to give up their own currency for the Euro and lose the "special" immigration and other provisions they negotiated.
The biggest problem is that an older generation is dooming a younger generation to its outdated ideas about the UK's place in Europe and the world. I have seen no compelling evidence that the UK will be better off with Brexit and the younger people who will have to deal with the fallout long after this older generation is dead and buried.
I would also point out that the UK has the best deal in Europe based on its original EU negotiations. If they change their mind in the future deciding to rejoin, they will not get that deal again. Instead, they will need to give up their own currency for the Euro and lose the "special" immigration and other provisions they negotiated.
196
In reply to Pragmatist, who thinks the UK needs to discuss whether Brexit was a good idea and whether it should be reversed:
I'm no expert in international treaty law, but most experts I have read think that Brexit became practically irrevocable when Article 50 was formally exercised in March. Furthermore, there is a two-year deadline for exit negotiations and that clock started in March as well. I'm sure that this could be "extended" with some sort of wink-wink-nod-nod agreement, but if my job, residency, or degree program were dependent on it then I would still worry.
Any negotiations not complete by March 2019 will be based on shifting sands. If I were on the Titanic and it had already struck an iceberg, I would try to arrange a seat on a lifeboat rather than join a therapy group about whether the pilot should have swerved left instead of right.
I'm no expert in international treaty law, but most experts I have read think that Brexit became practically irrevocable when Article 50 was formally exercised in March. Furthermore, there is a two-year deadline for exit negotiations and that clock started in March as well. I'm sure that this could be "extended" with some sort of wink-wink-nod-nod agreement, but if my job, residency, or degree program were dependent on it then I would still worry.
Any negotiations not complete by March 2019 will be based on shifting sands. If I were on the Titanic and it had already struck an iceberg, I would try to arrange a seat on a lifeboat rather than join a therapy group about whether the pilot should have swerved left instead of right.
You must remember we had a referendum in 1975 about remaining within the EEC - a completely different animal, whilst other countries had referenda subsequent to that, including about the creation of the EU. Our politicians didn't permit that and Gordon Brown, knowing the Lisbon Treaty would be unpopular ensured that he signed it after the majority of photographers, etc. had gone to try and prevent any attention being given to it. But that is by the by. If you really want to know what is going on in the EU you should pick up Yanis Varoufakis's books - "And the Weak Must Suffer" and Adults in the Room". Then ask yourself about the terms 'democratic deficit' and hegemony.
We did have a good deal going. But the EU is evolving and I fear that we may end up in a worse position - subject to each and every law extant and passed in the future, and paying a huge subscription but with no influence at all. All because our politicians were afraid of asking us whether we were happy with the situation at various stages on the route.
We did have a good deal going. But the EU is evolving and I fear that we may end up in a worse position - subject to each and every law extant and passed in the future, and paying a huge subscription but with no influence at all. All because our politicians were afraid of asking us whether we were happy with the situation at various stages on the route.
3
If the UK does exit the EU and then decides that it wants to rejoin then the EU shouldn't allow it without requiring the UK to pay ALL of the costs which the EU incurred because of Brexit. The reward for stupidity is accountability.
1
London has never liked Brexit, but it's odd that all the politicians, pundits, and reporters sitting in London (including these Times reporters?) keep talking about this election in terms of Europe and nothing else. The lesson from this election is not about regretting the Brexit referendum, it is not chiefly about negotiations with Brussels, and it is not about distrusting Mrs. May and her "hard Brexit" rhetoric. The lesson is that domestic issues are primary and any party needs a positive vision for their own country.
Like Hillary Clinton, Mrs. May campaigned primarily on the idea that the opposition was much, much less fit for leadership. The only Tory domestic policy that made any sort of a splash involved cutting benefits for elderly Britons - and May was forced to backtrack on that.
Corbyn campaigned on a domestically-driven platform that offered a lot to Britons. Americans - and Londoners - might be surprised to read that many of the English folks I've talked to *outside* of London loved Corbyn's promise to renationalise the railways. They also liked that Labour talked about the National Health Service and social care benefits. I know people in favor of Brexit AND people against Brexit who voted Labour in this election. It wasn't about Brexit.
American parties should learn this lesson, too. It's not enough to bash the opposition (even with reason). You have to think about your people and how to improve their lives.
Like Hillary Clinton, Mrs. May campaigned primarily on the idea that the opposition was much, much less fit for leadership. The only Tory domestic policy that made any sort of a splash involved cutting benefits for elderly Britons - and May was forced to backtrack on that.
Corbyn campaigned on a domestically-driven platform that offered a lot to Britons. Americans - and Londoners - might be surprised to read that many of the English folks I've talked to *outside* of London loved Corbyn's promise to renationalise the railways. They also liked that Labour talked about the National Health Service and social care benefits. I know people in favor of Brexit AND people against Brexit who voted Labour in this election. It wasn't about Brexit.
American parties should learn this lesson, too. It's not enough to bash the opposition (even with reason). You have to think about your people and how to improve their lives.
10
May talks about bringing stability to Britain right after calling a snap election resulting in loss of a majority in Parliament and insisting in proceeding on the destructive Brexit negotiations. She could not read the British public mood, and she cannot read the European negotiators on Brexit who will demand the most and not give Britain access to the EU Market. Britain will lose many jobs in the financial industry, and the City of London will shrink. And May calls this stability. She is as funny and perceptive as Donald Dumbkopf.
5
The instability of the current political moment is really stunning. In a time when more information is available, and easily accessible, than ever before, and when more people are college-educated than ever before, people nevertheless seem not to know what to think. In the UK, you have a public that votes against the EU, then turns around and diminishes the leader who would carry through on that vote. In the US, we had eight years of remarkable growth and stability by any objective standard, and somehow people decided they were tired of it. Does any of this make sense? Nope. It's been said often that democracy is messy, but this is more than just a mess--it's incoherent. It's a sign that we don't know how to assess the reality that's right before our eyes, which is exactly what Putin and others like him have identified and are trying to take advantage of. I can only hope we get our intellectual bearings before too much damage is done.
19
As a lawyer, I was baffled by May's approach to EU negotiations. Before settlement talks, lawyers usually try to tone down a client's expectations, to establish wiggle-room to reach a deal. We emphasize that settlement means compromise; we won't get everything we want. We try to avoid a situation where either side acts against their best interests to save face. And the negotiators themselves try to build a rapport. May did the opposite. She promised impossible results to her client, the country: open market, closed borders, all the benefits of the EU, none of the costs. By doing so, she limited her negotiating position; anything less would have been seen as a failure of negotiation and put her at political risk. She actively insulted the EU, injected emotion and nationalism, and fomented a personally hostile relationship with Junker and others. EU negotiators increasingly were boxed into a hard approach against the UK, even if it damaged Europe economically, in part to save face domestically. She limited her opponents' ability to make graceful concessions. In sum, I think she created a bad negotiating environment for her client.
Ironically, the UK might be in a better negotiating position now. If May is replaced, it's a chance to reset the negotiating environment May created. Clearly, the country is not behind a hard Brexit. But this isn't a total repudiation of Brexit, either. So there's much more flexibility now for compromise.
Ironically, the UK might be in a better negotiating position now. If May is replaced, it's a chance to reset the negotiating environment May created. Clearly, the country is not behind a hard Brexit. But this isn't a total repudiation of Brexit, either. So there's much more flexibility now for compromise.
9
Is this a sign that isolationism is not the wave of the future as the Mays and Trumps of the world would like? That nationalism is an old, tired, selfish and self-destructive ideal? Let's hope so. GOP take note.
3
The Leave people in the UK have come to dreadfully realize that the only global event that's happened to back up Brexit was Trump's election, which is akin to having Stevie Wonder guide you across a busy street. Le Pen's loss, Geert Wilders loss- Europe is running in the very OPPOSITE direction of cheap populism like Trump's. Brexit will forever be a colossal mistake.
5
I'd put my faith in Stevie Wonder's sense of direction any day before I'd trust the likes of Bannon, Miller, Conway, LLC, or their Anglo counterparts, B. Johnson, N. Farage & T. May.
Do Johnson and Trump have the same hair stylists? they both look as if they're wearing the same burnt orange toilet bowl cover. As one of my students might say, "Is that a 'thing'?
Do Johnson and Trump have the same hair stylists? they both look as if they're wearing the same burnt orange toilet bowl cover. As one of my students might say, "Is that a 'thing'?
5
Confused as to why Sinn Fein MPs don't take their seats in Parliament. If their goal is towards that of Irish independence or a closer relationship with the Republic of Ireland, why abdicate their voices and representation?
3
They would have to swear allegiance to the Queen, who represents the State. A State they wish to be separated from.
2
Jeremy Corbyn is a communist and almost not even hiding it. He also believes that people fighting in Iraq/Syria should be brought "home" and welcomed in the society.
The fact that my generation are voting for him anyway makes me think that whatever I wanted to do and wherever I wanted to go should be done now. Apparently, much worse times are coming.
The fact that my generation are voting for him anyway makes me think that whatever I wanted to do and wherever I wanted to go should be done now. Apparently, much worse times are coming.
2
Are you really from Toronto? Jeremy Corbyn is many things, but a communist is not one of them. The fact that millennials voted for him is reassuring as the deep cuts into the UK's social programs will have profound effects on the shape of the future. The austerity programs promulgated by the Washington Consensus are clearly not working. People like Corbyn and those who voted for him are right to stand up against them.
2
Most people in USA and in Europe do not like politicians at far right and far left. Most people are in the middle. I like Labour Party but Corbyn is far left politician and under his leadership , the party can not win majority. Theresa May is a weak leader . Now she supports Brexit , which very bad for Britain. Very soon the people will feel hardship for exiting EEU. Brexit is stupid.
3
What seems to be the problem with the Conservative 'Majority'? They have the support of 11 members of the Democratic Unionist Party of N. Ireland to give them the necessary 'working majority!
1
A coalition of chaos, you might say: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Unionist_Party#Policies
3
Two Tory leaders in the UK in succession have made huge miscalculations, which will do large and lasting damage to the UK.
First, David Cameron gambled that he could bluff concessions out of the EU by holding Brexit over their heads. When that did not work, he was forced to call the Brexit referendum, which will isolate Britain from Europe and turn Great Britain into Little England.
Now Theresa May gambled on a big electoral win, egged on by polling data showing her party with a large lead (which may or may not have been accurate - polling has taken some big hits lately - and then there are always the unexpected events, in this case the attacks in Manchester and London), Now, instead of having a large parliamentary lead to ensure a "smooth" Brexit (whatever that means), she is going to to be constrained by a minority.
There are some parallels to us in the US. Campaigns focused on lies and misrepresentations (both Trump and Brexit) and incompetence of political leadeship (in UK it was Cameron, in the US its Donald Duck). Another parallel is that May, iike Donald Duck, surrounded herself with a cast of fools in government - Boris Johnson being the most obvious in the UK.
First, David Cameron gambled that he could bluff concessions out of the EU by holding Brexit over their heads. When that did not work, he was forced to call the Brexit referendum, which will isolate Britain from Europe and turn Great Britain into Little England.
Now Theresa May gambled on a big electoral win, egged on by polling data showing her party with a large lead (which may or may not have been accurate - polling has taken some big hits lately - and then there are always the unexpected events, in this case the attacks in Manchester and London), Now, instead of having a large parliamentary lead to ensure a "smooth" Brexit (whatever that means), she is going to to be constrained by a minority.
There are some parallels to us in the US. Campaigns focused on lies and misrepresentations (both Trump and Brexit) and incompetence of political leadeship (in UK it was Cameron, in the US its Donald Duck). Another parallel is that May, iike Donald Duck, surrounded herself with a cast of fools in government - Boris Johnson being the most obvious in the UK.
15
Perhaps Great Britain will turn into Little England, but probably not, especially since the Scottish will not get a second attempt at 'IndyRef' any time soon.
At least the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland will not be part of the European Corruption Corp.
At least the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland will not be part of the European Corruption Corp.
Well, good luck with that!
2
There is one huge difference. Should the Tory party wish to rid itself of May's leadership, all it takes is a vote to remove (non-confidence vote) Ms. May by a majority of party MP's and she is gone. (Margaret Thatcher was remove thusly). The British PM is a first among equals the Prime (first) Minister. Other, lesser if you will, Ministers are positions such as Home Secretary, Defense Minister, Finance Minister etc. that are chosen by the PM usually from the elected MP's Occasionally. the PM can dip into the House of Lords to appoint someone. All appointments and legislation must be approved by the Queen, officially the head of state.
In other countries of the commonwealth similar rules apply, the leader is chosen by party members, but can be ousted by the MP's, the Governor-General (appointed by the Queen as her representative) must accede to legislation, appointments and resignations).
The electorate votes for the party as represented by the Member of Parliament, not the leader (who also must be an MP).
At the start of every session of Parliament, the government's legislative agenda is spelled out in the "Speech From The Throne". It is read in the UK by the Queen, or in Canada by the Governor General.
It is a very workable arrangement which evolved in the UK over centuries. However, like all forms of democracy, the bottom line is that it is predicated on good people doing the right thing. If not, all bets are off, no matter what the system.
In other countries of the commonwealth similar rules apply, the leader is chosen by party members, but can be ousted by the MP's, the Governor-General (appointed by the Queen as her representative) must accede to legislation, appointments and resignations).
The electorate votes for the party as represented by the Member of Parliament, not the leader (who also must be an MP).
At the start of every session of Parliament, the government's legislative agenda is spelled out in the "Speech From The Throne". It is read in the UK by the Queen, or in Canada by the Governor General.
It is a very workable arrangement which evolved in the UK over centuries. However, like all forms of democracy, the bottom line is that it is predicated on good people doing the right thing. If not, all bets are off, no matter what the system.
3
It is gratifying to note that Jim Messina, former Obama advisor and co-chair of Hillary Clinton SuperPac Priorities USA Action, was a senior advisor to Theresa May. US liberals never cease to amaze me!
1
And Nigel Farage, the former leader of the racist and isolationist UKIP, is a confidant to renowned liar and total incompetent President Donald J. Trump.
Your point?
Your point?
12
Those types go where the money and the perceived power is...regardless of party. Democrats and Republicans alike. And you know it. I own a couple of sections of farmland in Nebraska...from my family...Nebraska has enough to do to sweep its own back porch, Harry.
4
It's gratifying to note that Theresa May is basically running on Donald Trump's dumber-is-better platform, and lost badly (just as Trump is now doing). And it's amazing that you didn't comment on that, and instead cherry-picked one thing about "US liberals". Alternate reality much? US conservatives never cease to disgust us!
12
The main story in all of this is a return of Labour to the grass roots liberalism from which the West began to drift away during the last quarter of 20th Century. Hidden underneath the UKIP and SNP rise in previous elections/referendum, and confirmed by their shift to Labour in this one, wasn't ideology and racial prejudice as much as was the resentment of a world of inequality and injustice and the corporate establishments that no longer have the interest of ordinary people in mind. Jeremy Corbyn was mocked from the beginning by almost all the Westminster elites, including members of his own party - for being silly and clueless, ignorant and etc. But the working class and ordinary voters saw in him a man who honestly cares about some basic principles of a Government that invests in its people, and continues to fight for those principles no matter what the economic tide suggests. They've backed him and voted him the leader of the party, again and again. I really hope this is a beginning of something great for the Western world and return to the mid 20th century FDR and New Deal principles that once built the greatest middle class ever seen.
Corporate Elites of UK, either run to the Tories or change your philosophy of neo-liberalism. This is Jeremy Corbyn and the ordinary workers' party now. Reject them at your own peril.
Corporate Elites of UK, either run to the Tories or change your philosophy of neo-liberalism. This is Jeremy Corbyn and the ordinary workers' party now. Reject them at your own peril.
22
Hopefully neo-Liberalism is on the wane and the Washington Consensus will soon be consigned to the waste bin of history. The Midlands and the North of the UK have suffered greatly as a result of deindustrialization and the recalibration of the economy away from extraction and manufacturing. It isn't only globalization but technology that is the cause of this misery and increasingly people are seeing it as government's job to intervene and to fight the corner of the people against MNCs and global capital when necessary, and for unions to protect workers' rights. The clock can't be turned back on technology and no one would want to be sent down the mines nowadays, but economies can't be built on trading bits of paper and zero hours contracts. Young women having to prostitute themselves to find a bed to sleep in at night because rents are so high, and young men living in tent cities or sofa surfing is positively Dickensian. People have to be afforded dignity. We should be better than this. We are better than this.
8
Right-wing politicians are the same around the world: arrogant and ignorant, think they know everything and can do anything they want. Sadly, they get elected far too often by a gullible, ill-informed or propagandized public.
Cameron didn't need to call the election that resulted in Brexit and May needn't have called this election now, either. What awful judgment.
Like our very own arrogant, ignorant conservative leaders, May probably will never admit her mistake and will try to carry on with a Balkanized coalition to paralyze Britain completely. What a shame. What a fiasco.
A small bright spot is that Labour might be resuscitated some day. And maybe the USA will come to its senses and purge itself of Trump and the current GOP stooges in Congress. And pigs will levitate.
Cameron didn't need to call the election that resulted in Brexit and May needn't have called this election now, either. What awful judgment.
Like our very own arrogant, ignorant conservative leaders, May probably will never admit her mistake and will try to carry on with a Balkanized coalition to paralyze Britain completely. What a shame. What a fiasco.
A small bright spot is that Labour might be resuscitated some day. And maybe the USA will come to its senses and purge itself of Trump and the current GOP stooges in Congress. And pigs will levitate.
301
Agreed. What is it about conservative/right wing politicians that they claim "victory", "overwhelming mandate" and "legitimacy" when they barely hang on? They seem to be fundamentally unable to see what anyone with a grain of sense already knows - the voters are repudiating what they are doing. It may not be quite enough this round to completely throw them out of office, but it is coming & these right wingers can't/won't acknowledge it. Once such individuals have barely managed to hang on, they start spouting the terms above when everyone can see that there is no such "mandate"/"victory".
I'm polishing up my binoculars so I can get a closer look at flying porcines.
I'm polishing up my binoculars so I can get a closer look at flying porcines.
5
George: really are you really so naive as to not understand that all politicians, not just the right wing ones you hate, are arrogant and ignorant?
May should call for a unity government to get them through Brexit. Brits need to work together on that blunder.
1
Brexit will prove to be as disastrous as trump.
7
Uh, that would literally be impossible.
1
May got the job because in the aftermath of the Brexit referendum she had stayed far enough from the action to be acceptable to the brexiteers. Also, she was seen as a safe pair of hands who was a competent manager.
The trouble is, this campaign has exposed the fact that competent manager is all she is. There's no leadership there, no vision of the future that could remotely inspire people. And her ice-maiden style, which was supposed to convey strength and resolution, was exposed as merely a brittle veneer that failed to cover an uncomfortable inability to engage in any sort of spontaneous exchange or to engage, unscripted, with real voters. Still worse, she is said to be just as awkward in private. Colleagues don't warm to her because she doesn't engage with them in any informal way.
She's toast. Only her party's reluctance to enter into a leadership fight immediately before the brexit negotiations has saved her. I give it a few months at most.
The trouble is, this campaign has exposed the fact that competent manager is all she is. There's no leadership there, no vision of the future that could remotely inspire people. And her ice-maiden style, which was supposed to convey strength and resolution, was exposed as merely a brittle veneer that failed to cover an uncomfortable inability to engage in any sort of spontaneous exchange or to engage, unscripted, with real voters. Still worse, she is said to be just as awkward in private. Colleagues don't warm to her because she doesn't engage with them in any informal way.
She's toast. Only her party's reluctance to enter into a leadership fight immediately before the brexit negotiations has saved her. I give it a few months at most.
17
Just as Cameron took gambled his future and lost when he called the Brexit referendum, May gambled hers on increasing the tories' grip on power an d failed. Looks like there's something habit-forming for conservative prime ministers.
Meanwhile, Corbyn got written off because he's too far to the left, only to far exceed expectations. He was rewarded for helping the Labour party rediscover its values. Social democracy is on its way back - pundits and Democrats on this side of the pond please note.
Meanwhile, Corbyn got written off because he's too far to the left, only to far exceed expectations. He was rewarded for helping the Labour party rediscover its values. Social democracy is on its way back - pundits and Democrats on this side of the pond please note.
49
If there was any image that stuck with me watching the election results, it was this: seeing Ms. May trying to keep composure while more or less admitting that she was facing a hung parliament. He voice was uncertain as she kept going on about how British needed a "stable" government.
Clearly, the Tories have provided anything but stability. Cameron blew up his own premiership by pandering to the isolationists in his own party, and then May blew up her own majority government to seek a mandate she already had.
Corbyn I think impressed the country by showing he can run the Labour Party and running a successful campaign. Even the Blairites were sounding very loyal to him.
Now she is running a government whose declared intention is to execute Brexit while relying on a party that comes from a region that voted strongly to remain in the EU.
She will not last.
Clearly, the Tories have provided anything but stability. Cameron blew up his own premiership by pandering to the isolationists in his own party, and then May blew up her own majority government to seek a mandate she already had.
Corbyn I think impressed the country by showing he can run the Labour Party and running a successful campaign. Even the Blairites were sounding very loyal to him.
Now she is running a government whose declared intention is to execute Brexit while relying on a party that comes from a region that voted strongly to remain in the EU.
She will not last.
236
I don't envy Mrs May this morning. Such hubris to take the British vote for granted (and stupidity for not learning from Cameron's mistake). If Labour had a more electable leader (sorry JC - I like you but don't see you as a leader), they probably would have won the majority. Oh, such tricky times ahead.
7
Theresa May used the GOP/Trump playbook of promising her voters vague, bigly beautiful, "repeal and replace," gonna be great Brexit, while skimping on any details. UK voters smelled a rat: she has no plan, no negotiating leverage with the EU, and she won't be able to deliver anything close to the pain-free paradise she promised. Conservatives everywhere could be learning that reality has a way of exposing lies. Voters could be learning that it's actually in their interests to hear the truth, even when the truth hurts.
62
It seems that Ms. May's decision to call a snap election was a blunder, and that she would have done well to heed a familiar piece of advice: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
86
But it IS broke, and she and her party of elites are not the ones to fix it.
5
Agreed, but I was referring specifically to her majority in Parliament, not the larger problems in Britain and its politics.
1
The system is broken for most, but I believe the point was that it wasn't broken for her. She had power and a workable majority. She was heading to Brussels this month to negotiate a Brexit that was barely mandated and so far run solely by Tory extremists, and she threw it away.
1
Isn't it interesting that any foreign populist or far-right politician that has any alliance or afinity with Trump has gone down in defeat (Theresa May, Marine Le Pen, Geert Wilders, Norbert Hofer). Doesn't that tell you something?
84
Love it = the power of the vote, the only power we have, gotta use it.
9
I'm sure the recent terrorist attacks and her comment on shredding human rights laws had nothing to do with the election results last night.
2
Hello to all friends across the pond,
One thing, whatever happens there, we've got worse!
One thing, whatever happens there, we've got worse!
71
You betcha. The Donald has a sort of cult following in Europe thanks to ineptitude and little interest in working as a genuine president. Now there's a Fake President if I ever saw one.
3
Bigly.
4
Hello back, friends!
We noticed!
We noticed!
1
Voters thought this would appease the terrorists.
Same thing in France.
Same in Spain after the train bombings.
Same thing in France.
Same in Spain after the train bombings.
1
On the contrary, it's the Conservatives who give the terrorists exactly what they want. A nation ruled by corrupt, militaristic, and xenophobic plutocrats (like May) is exactly the enemy against which theocratic terrorists like Isis would like to fight. Jihadi recruiting efforts would be much hindered by a tolerant, liberal, and socially just Britain.
10
This is a strangely myopic piece. Yes, May will form a government with support from the DUP. But will that really mean Europe can dictate terms? The Democratic Unionists in Northern Ireland want, more than anything, to maintain an open border with the Republic of Ireland (a different nation, but sharing a border that Irish people of whatever nationality cross daily). They will therefore push for closer ties to the European common market, and for more open borders. This is true.
But everything written here is predicated on the idea that May will keep the Premiership. That has emerged as exceedingly unlikely in even the medium-term. So who will take the lead in negotiating Brexit? Smart money is on the buffoonish Boris Johnson, currently foreign secretary. He's more conniving and capable than he appears. I expect that he would dominate conversation at the European bargaining table, and that Britain would emerge with much more in its favor than the EU wants or imagines.
The article also fails to mention the DUP's other interests. Their main platform piece is always maintaining Northern Ireland as an equal part of Great Britain. But they also firmly oppose gay marriage and abortion (unlike the Tories), and their experience of IRA separatist violence means they are very tough on terrorism (something the English might like after recent difficult weeks). Brexit is not the only thing they might hold hostage in return for their votes in Parliament.
But everything written here is predicated on the idea that May will keep the Premiership. That has emerged as exceedingly unlikely in even the medium-term. So who will take the lead in negotiating Brexit? Smart money is on the buffoonish Boris Johnson, currently foreign secretary. He's more conniving and capable than he appears. I expect that he would dominate conversation at the European bargaining table, and that Britain would emerge with much more in its favor than the EU wants or imagines.
The article also fails to mention the DUP's other interests. Their main platform piece is always maintaining Northern Ireland as an equal part of Great Britain. But they also firmly oppose gay marriage and abortion (unlike the Tories), and their experience of IRA separatist violence means they are very tough on terrorism (something the English might like after recent difficult weeks). Brexit is not the only thing they might hold hostage in return for their votes in Parliament.
3
The DUP are tough on terrorism?
They used to be terrorists. The hypocrisy May and the Conservatives are demonstrating here is absurd.
They used to be terrorists. The hypocrisy May and the Conservatives are demonstrating here is absurd.
7
A hopeful sign for 2018.
5
Yes. Democrats will need to campaign heavily in crucial Stoke-on-Trent.
2
What is really lost in this whole "setback" narrative is the fact that this is only the second time that a woman has actually been elected Prime Minister in the U.K. Don't forget, she may have been Prime Minister, but she was not actually elected by the public. Most ordinary UK citizens will undoubtedly think she has more legitimacy now.
14
You're completely wrong about that. If anything, most people didn't want yet another election and saw through the fact that she called it purely out of cynical "party before country" self-interest. That probably contributed to her failure.
6
I am not sure I follow this reasoning: More legitimacy now AFTER she lost her majority?
2
The public does not elect the PM, it elects members of Parliament. The PM is chosen by the party.
TM is the leader of the Tory party but the Tories did not win a majority, so she now has to try to form a minority government with the support of the DUP.
Her "legitimacy", in other words, her mandate and authority, has been damaged catastrophically. If this government falls there will be another leadership contest and she will not win it (assuming she even runs).
TM is the leader of the Tory party but the Tories did not win a majority, so she now has to try to form a minority government with the support of the DUP.
Her "legitimacy", in other words, her mandate and authority, has been damaged catastrophically. If this government falls there will be another leadership contest and she will not win it (assuming she even runs).
1
I have to wonder if our US Trump fiasco influenced UK voters just as it did the French. Seeing what could happen when one votes for the likes of Trump has to be sobering and inspiring to get out the vote, at least in other countries.
5
You may have hit on perhaps the only benefit of electing Trump: serving as an extremely bad example to everyone, everywhere.
4
I guess the British have had enough of pseudo-experts like Nigel Farange, Boris Johnson and Theresa May.
6
But, But... didn't May think she was the Thatcher to Trump's Reagan???
The voters clearly don't think so.
And, why do some leaders want to take the people back in time and not forward?? I suspect it's a mix of lack of vision and demagoguery...
The voters clearly don't think so.
And, why do some leaders want to take the people back in time and not forward?? I suspect it's a mix of lack of vision and demagoguery...
6
May overplayed her hand based upon a single poll. Her failure to appear at the debates showed a dismissive overconfidence. She also believed that the Brexit vote was a mandate, which it was not. I think she is out of touch with much of the country. I think her days as a caretaker Prime Minister are coming to an end. Never could get a handle on her.
214
We saw how the same attitude brought down Hillary Clinton, and that is what got us Trump. When will politicians learn that overconfidence and entitlement equals election lost?
May, Harper (Canada), Turnball (Australia) and Clinton all ignored the mood of the voters, and paid the price.
Clinton - Not elected.
Harper - Lost to Trudeau.
Turnball - Has 1 one seat majority in Parliament. When he started, he had about 30.
May - At best a minority government; at worse a hung Parliament.
There is a growing voter backlash against conservatism. The US is behind the curve, and that backlash could be seen as soon as next year. especially when the "haves" continue to gain at the expense of the "have nots".
May, Harper (Canada), Turnball (Australia) and Clinton all ignored the mood of the voters, and paid the price.
Clinton - Not elected.
Harper - Lost to Trudeau.
Turnball - Has 1 one seat majority in Parliament. When he started, he had about 30.
May - At best a minority government; at worse a hung Parliament.
There is a growing voter backlash against conservatism. The US is behind the curve, and that backlash could be seen as soon as next year. especially when the "haves" continue to gain at the expense of the "have nots".
5
Theresa May must be really looking forward to Donald Trump's state visit to Britain. I bet Queen Elizabeth II is too.
4
Exactly right - in fact May treated the non-binding Brexit vote as her Enabling Act; for the last half of 2016 she acted like a medieval monarch and as long as she said she was fulfilling the 'will of the people' she felt she didn't have to consult anyone, including Parliament. Thank goodness she has been humiliated, perhaps now she will drop the arrogance and treat the public with a little more respect.
3
Number of seats for UKIP: 0. Britons are waking up to the disaster that is conservative government. Too bad we can't call snap elections in the US.
6
I am delighted to see Labour do so well. I congratulate @jeremycorbyn for running a very effective campaign.
-- Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) 9 juin 2017
Widely reported by the EU press, left out by the NYT
http://www.lefigaro.fr/international/2017/06/09/01003-20170609LIVWWW0000...
-- Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) 9 juin 2017
Widely reported by the EU press, left out by the NYT
http://www.lefigaro.fr/international/2017/06/09/01003-20170609LIVWWW0000...
10
So let's summarize what just happened to the first foreign leader to meet Donald in person after his Jan. 20 inauguration (should have been Putin, but it was May instead). Theresa May suffered the ultimate humiliation in parliamentary politics--as prime minister she called a snap election, i.e. an early one that did not need to be held, and her party lost its majority in the House of Commons.
And I can't imagine that May's proposed forming of a coalition government with the Democratic Unionist Party, a group supported by a bunch of hardcore Protestants across the sea in Northern Ireland, is going to sit well with leaders and citizens in the Republic of Ireland.
And I can't imagine that May's proposed forming of a coalition government with the Democratic Unionist Party, a group supported by a bunch of hardcore Protestants across the sea in Northern Ireland, is going to sit well with leaders and citizens in the Republic of Ireland.
27
I really wish the Sinn Fein Party would agree to take the eight seats that they won in order to offset the DUP but that is wishful thinking.
1
Mr. Rudd is talking through his hat. Ms. May had previously told us she would respect the results of the Brexit vote. Europe expects the UK not to change its withdrawal and bargaining for the sake of Ulster or for any other reason. Ulster's politicians, if they truly want closer economic ties with Ireland must realize that the bogey of Catholicism in the republic is fast fading for their supporters and that eventually Ireland will be united.
1
"Theresa May said her party would stay in power by forming a minority government with the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland", also known as ethnoreligious (white) Ulster Protestants.
Oh Theresa, we tried that here in the United States, with Trumpty Dumpty's fake conservative party forming a minority government with ethnoreligious Whites R Us Protestants.
The results have been catastrophic in America.
Good luck with minority religious rule.
Oh Theresa, we tried that here in the United States, with Trumpty Dumpty's fake conservative party forming a minority government with ethnoreligious Whites R Us Protestants.
The results have been catastrophic in America.
Good luck with minority religious rule.
221
No comparison, because in the UK (excluding NI) there is NO religious influence in day to day governance compared to the USA. It's not possible to break wind in the US without someone claiming it's blasphemous.
4
Exactly. On top of the religious fervor, not only are they rabid anti- Brexit, they opppose abortion under any circumstance, gay rights and don't believe in man made climate change. I guess they took their cues from across the Atlantic. Just when you thought the Labor surge brought a nice new change from the hypocritical Conservative corporatist driven austerity, turns out tge new bedfellows in their governement are even worse than the previous status quo.
Sorry, meant to say they're rabidly pro Brexit.
It is beginning to look like the Brits are beginning to realize what a disaster leaving the EU would be.
93
What, where did you get that idea ?
1
This is a chance for the new PM to call for another referendum on Brexit. It seems to me that the people of the UK may have "buyers' remorse" about the original vote and that before the UK takes this step it both examines the pros and cons and let the people decided.
14
Amazing, isn't it, how much damage Tony Blair did to the Labour Party by aligning himself with our foolish warpresident. It has taken 14 years for Labour to emerge from the stigma of the Iraqi Freedom Fiasco! What is even more amazing is the fact that the American people would elect an even more ignorant and more malicious con-man like Donald Trump after suffering through the two-war/two-recession "catastrophic success" of Bush. What we are seeing now is the complete breakdown of Democratic government facilitated by the diabolical psy-ops of former KGB officer Vladimir Putin.
198
The Propaganda Organs have the American Republican base convinced that the Financial Crisis is all Barney Frank's fault. And our 'unsustainable' entitlement programs. Never mind how many of them need those programs to survive.
They learned from America's big mistake this past year. Good for them. Hope America wises up.
59
It seems the ship is getting harder to steer everywhere. More ocean only means more room for wrong turns. Unfortunate but not necessarily good or bad.
5
Party before country. Sounds awfully familiar.
14
Theresa May is no Queen Boudica nor Queen Elizabeth I nor Queen Victoria nor Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
And May's best political American boyfriend Donald Trump is no Franklin D. Roosevelt through Barack H. Obama.
And May's best political American boyfriend Donald Trump is no Franklin D. Roosevelt through Barack H. Obama.
10
DUP = 250000 votes = 10 seats.
Older folks will remember foundly the very saint Reverend Paisley, founder of the DUP.
Is is quite extraordinary that May would try to govern a important country on a back deal with people like that.
Older folks will remember foundly the very saint Reverend Paisley, founder of the DUP.
Is is quite extraordinary that May would try to govern a important country on a back deal with people like that.
6
Brexit and Trump seem part of the same phenomenon in the West—a harbinger of wealth inequality the world has not seen since the East India Tea Company and United Fruit. According to OXFAM, eight people have managed to hoard as much wealth as over three and a half billion. The word "Trade" has come to mean, to me, exploitation of the poorest masses. Long hours, exposure to toxic chemicals—trade means environmental destruction. Global trade means stockpiling of wealth in the hands of a few. The masses do not really know why they can hardly have a house any more, go to the doctor, use the courts, or care for their elderly. They are reacting, but as yet have not understood globalism and predatory capitalism.
What does this harbinger say? What is Cassandra screaming these days?
Multinationals, and all manufacturers need cradle-to-grave legislation.
Every manufacturer needs to study the biodegradability and disposal of whatever it is they make.
Trade ministers and cabinet members need to act jointly with human rights leaders and environmentalists. Profit before people ends only in death.
Insanely hoarded wealth must be fairly distributed.
The Jeremy Corbyns and Bernie Sanderses of this planet bear a message.
That. Was what I was thinking on this outlying island this morning, while I measured out my life with coffee spoons, and the sun rose over the ocean, and the BBC reporter was calling The Economist "a pragmatic organ."
What does this harbinger say? What is Cassandra screaming these days?
Multinationals, and all manufacturers need cradle-to-grave legislation.
Every manufacturer needs to study the biodegradability and disposal of whatever it is they make.
Trade ministers and cabinet members need to act jointly with human rights leaders and environmentalists. Profit before people ends only in death.
Insanely hoarded wealth must be fairly distributed.
The Jeremy Corbyns and Bernie Sanderses of this planet bear a message.
That. Was what I was thinking on this outlying island this morning, while I measured out my life with coffee spoons, and the sun rose over the ocean, and the BBC reporter was calling The Economist "a pragmatic organ."
404
So well-said.
4
The Sun took far longer to rise and set on the British Empire than it has risen on the American Empire. And you are looking at the wrong Sun and the wrong countries.
China has been the Central Middle Kingdom socioeconomic political educational technological scientific superpower ruling with the Mandate of Heaven for most of the past 2200+ years. Chinese President Xi Jinping rules and reigns over a one party term limited collective leadership that has designated him a 'core leader'. About 20% of the human race is ethnic Han Chinese. There are more Chinese living outside of China than there are Americans. Americans are 5% of humanity.
The sun set on the Russian Empire in the early 1990's. While Russia has a mere 143 million people in an aging and shrinking nation that annually spends 9x less America on it's military with a nominal GDP that is 15x less than America's, Russia interfered in the last American Presidential election by lobbying, finance, propaganda and espionage. Vladimir Putin is the man controlling Trump.
The sun rose and set on the Japanese Empire that has an aging and shrinking population of 127 million in a nation that has militarily clashed with Russia, China and America. Shinzo Abe is left out.
Britain is all mostly all pomp and circumstance and 'Masterpiece Theater' meaningless distraction. Angela Merkel is the leader of Europe.
China has been the Central Middle Kingdom socioeconomic political educational technological scientific superpower ruling with the Mandate of Heaven for most of the past 2200+ years. Chinese President Xi Jinping rules and reigns over a one party term limited collective leadership that has designated him a 'core leader'. About 20% of the human race is ethnic Han Chinese. There are more Chinese living outside of China than there are Americans. Americans are 5% of humanity.
The sun set on the Russian Empire in the early 1990's. While Russia has a mere 143 million people in an aging and shrinking nation that annually spends 9x less America on it's military with a nominal GDP that is 15x less than America's, Russia interfered in the last American Presidential election by lobbying, finance, propaganda and espionage. Vladimir Putin is the man controlling Trump.
The sun rose and set on the Japanese Empire that has an aging and shrinking population of 127 million in a nation that has militarily clashed with Russia, China and America. Shinzo Abe is left out.
Britain is all mostly all pomp and circumstance and 'Masterpiece Theater' meaningless distraction. Angela Merkel is the leader of Europe.
6
May is not really for Brexit, never was! Her calling of a snap election proved it. One doesn't 'win' and then risk it all to win a little more. May knew that the Brexit vote was a fluke which had been somewhat a part of the fluke of the Trump election and she wanted the nation to reconsider it. She got what she wanted. Brexit was never 'conservative' or 'liberal' it was uninformed, pie in the sky, populism and May wanted to stop it. Now she has.
2
Here's the latest theory: May held this election in a deliberate effort to help fellow conservative Trump and create a distraction from the Comey hearings.
3
That doesn't hold up; the election has been planned for months.
3
Trump sided with terrorists and blamed the mayor of London after the most recent terrorist attack in London. That might have been a boost to the Labour party.
Trump is even now less welcome to London than before. I hope the invitation would be withdrawn. The pro-torture, anti-muslim, president who praises Kim, Duterte, Putin, Netanyahu, and the Wahabis over US allies in Europe, is an embarrassment for American people.
Trump is even now less welcome to London than before. I hope the invitation would be withdrawn. The pro-torture, anti-muslim, president who praises Kim, Duterte, Putin, Netanyahu, and the Wahabis over US allies in Europe, is an embarrassment for American people.
167
Once again, the "experts" are "stunned" by the outcome, because they somehow still fail to recognize the inflection point in history that we are currently living through. We need a whole new set of experts and op-ed writers to look at the world with fresh eyes.
The developed world is imploding.
We're in the "destruction" phase of "creative destruction" applied at the national level to economic and political systems that have been failing miserably for decades. The root cause is the fundamentally flawed implementation of globalization over the past twenty-five years, which is now destabilizing societies across the developed world.
As a result, we're witnessing the emergence of a global middle class revolution, starting in developed countries, but soon to be joined by a couple of billion citizens of developing countries who expect to reach the middle class in the coming decades based on the promises of economic prosperity made to them by their leaders. Those promises are about to be broken due to automation and its massive elimination of jobs.
We need a new economic paradigm that, somewhat counter-intuitively, uses the power of technology to create more economic opportunity, not less; and we need more globalization, not less. But both the diffusion of technology and the implementation of globalization must be reimagined to be more human-centric with the benefits more equitably shared.
If we don't pivot we will soon face unprecedented social unrest on a global scale.
The developed world is imploding.
We're in the "destruction" phase of "creative destruction" applied at the national level to economic and political systems that have been failing miserably for decades. The root cause is the fundamentally flawed implementation of globalization over the past twenty-five years, which is now destabilizing societies across the developed world.
As a result, we're witnessing the emergence of a global middle class revolution, starting in developed countries, but soon to be joined by a couple of billion citizens of developing countries who expect to reach the middle class in the coming decades based on the promises of economic prosperity made to them by their leaders. Those promises are about to be broken due to automation and its massive elimination of jobs.
We need a new economic paradigm that, somewhat counter-intuitively, uses the power of technology to create more economic opportunity, not less; and we need more globalization, not less. But both the diffusion of technology and the implementation of globalization must be reimagined to be more human-centric with the benefits more equitably shared.
If we don't pivot we will soon face unprecedented social unrest on a global scale.
24
I would like to humbly submit that one of the reasons she lost is that she was showing deference to and trying to work with Trump, a relationship that proved toxic to British voters. Like other European nations (Austria and France most notably), the voters have seen enough of Trump to know they don't want anyone who shares his populist views leading their nations. He has wakened the rest of the world to the danger of populism. While we are stuck with him for the time being, at least Europe has taken a turn away from leaders who espouse his views.
75
"Paradoxically, the Conservative Party actually increased its share of the total vote from 2015 — when it won a commanding majority in Parliament — but not by enough in key constituencies. Under Britain’s first-past-the-post system, what matters is not a party’s share of the overall vote, but simply who places first in any given constituency."
Yes, what a paradoxical system! Thank goodness no other major democracies have such an odd arrangement.
Yes, what a paradoxical system! Thank goodness no other major democracies have such an odd arrangement.
7
She really doesn't have a mandate, not personally, not for her party. Most people don't even know who the DUP is never mind what it stands for.
2
Democratic Unionist Pary (Center Right, like the UK Conservatives), only they are Norther Irish. You have a lot in PQ, maybe more than in Belfast.
1
Stealing everything they can steal until this generation inevitably puts progressives in office and demands governing with the average citizen in mind again.
4
Ms. May and DT both declare Victory and throw their country's into further chaos. So that's what the handholding was all about, going down together.
3
Amazing upset.
Let's all hope that cool heads prevail.
This is a delicate time for the United Kingdom, which has broad geopolitical implications.
Let's all hope that cool heads prevail.
This is a delicate time for the United Kingdom, which has broad geopolitical implications.
3
Maybe the world is becoming a little more sane. Now if we can only bring down Trump and the GOP in this country, will that be confirmed.
1
Where do I begin ?
A minority government being formed with a minority faction from a completely different country. Loyalists be damned .
The hubris shown is on the same level of the one leading the yanks.
A minority government being formed with a minority faction from a completely different country. Loyalists be damned .
The hubris shown is on the same level of the one leading the yanks.
5
Minority - NOT (yet). 318 seats and counting, out of 650 total. They need 6 more seats to become a majority government, and the DUP has 10. DUP=Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland, and actually NOT in another country, simpy a region of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The DUP is likely to be agreeable due to their own issues in Northern Ireland, which the Conservatives would assist with, if the DUP join the 'party'.
2
Umm...318 and just 1 more left. The count got over long ago.
That's well short of majority for a party which had 330 going in and expected to touch 380.
That's well short of majority for a party which had 330 going in and expected to touch 380.
1
European leaders are learning that Trump is the third rail -- touch him and you die!
5
This is not workable. Not with Brexit negotiations.
Britain should either reconsider their Brexit decision and ask the EU to tear up their letter, or have another round of elections. Either way, it is a disaster for the image of the country.
Britain should either reconsider their Brexit decision and ask the EU to tear up their letter, or have another round of elections. Either way, it is a disaster for the image of the country.
44
Due to concentration of voters, DUP got 10 seats on 292,000 votes, compared to 12 for Liberal Democrats on almost 2.5 million votes. Winning the popular vote, yet loosing the election seems to be standard these days.
We/ they have been DUP-ed.
We/ they have been DUP-ed.
2
Again the Times writes an article about election results and leaves the results out. I can see that the Tories got 318 votes and we are told that Labor got 40% of the vote but the number of seats they won is nowhere in the article. We are told the Liberal Democrats got modest gains but no number of seats won are given.
Lots of words and speculation but little in the way of reporting results
Lots of words and speculation but little in the way of reporting results
3
Labour won 261 seats, LibDems won 12, Conservatives won 318, with one more anticipated. Total seats in the UK Parliament is 650, so an outright majority would require 326 seats. That means 318, or 319, plus Northern Irelands Democratic Unionists tally of 10 would enable a majority government.
3
The Conservative Party would be too generous to keep May as PM after such a fiasco.
4
Same as Macron, backlash from Trump effect
3
Britain appears to be coming to its senses. They are taking the correct path of flipping their country to "blue" (or the blue equivalent), and will ultimately prevail toward a more human-centered government, hopefully that also respects the environment.
US - please follow this example.
US - please follow this example.
6
"human-centered" government as opposed to what "monkey-centred", "machine-centered"? Tories, if you are old and poor and sick or unemployed and homeless aren't "humane" if that's what you mean.
Sorry- by blue you mean "democrats" - yes, Tory is blue in Britian, Labour "red". My comment redundant!
Jeremy Corbyn's colour is red, deepest red.
The big headline is that younger voters prevented her from having a majority. The same thing will happen to Trump in 2020 and to the Republican congressional majorities in 2018. Young people will not vote for Trump because they perceive him as dishonest. If the Republicans do not impeach him, they won't vote for them in 2018.
2
LePen leaned on Trump, and the French chose Macron. May leaned on Trump, and she lost her majority. Lady Liberty (sort of) leaned on Trump, and look at the mess in the US. Really, Comrade Trumpov is toxic for women who trust him.
13
All the news articles quote 326 seats as necessary to obtain a majority vote (out of 650) but in reality Sinn Féin (7 seats) always do not take their seat in Westminster (because they refuse to take an oath of loyalty to the queen). So the number required to obtain a majority is really 322.
2
Now if only Trump could call for an election. He too, I'm sure, overestimates his popularity.
117
Quinnipiac poll out yesterday has DT favorable rating down to 34%.
I assume DT will call all his rotten poll numbers fake news and take his own poll which will show a favorable rating of 99%.
I assume DT will call all his rotten poll numbers fake news and take his own poll which will show a favorable rating of 99%.
3
And another one bites the dust...... Once again a female political leader loses an election she was suppose to win easily. Add Maria Penn (who was not expected to win) and the ladies are 0-3. Is there a lesson to be learned from this? Not really. Only that Margaret Thatcher remains the greatest elected female political leader of all time.
I would call that a lesson in humility.
Bravado à la Grifter will come back to bite you.
How far will she push her conservative mantra?
Another election?
I dare you! This time, retirement will be a done deal.
Bravado à la Grifter will come back to bite you.
How far will she push her conservative mantra?
Another election?
I dare you! This time, retirement will be a done deal.
3
To quote Rick Perry, OOPS.
15
If Mrs. May is feeling weakened this morning vis a vis the UK political opposition, just wait until she sits down across the table from the EU negotiators. No doubt they will try to keep straight faces, but it will be difficult.
114
Voters did not elect a Labour majority but destroyed the UKIP. Perhaps they still want Brexit but hope it will be a "soft" Brexit? That would be rather like electing Trump to improve healthcare and drain the swamp.
Such hubris on May's part. She didn't learn a lesson from Cameron's idiocy in setting in motion the referendum on Brexit. At least she can console herself that she isn't under investigation for obstructing justice.
I guess it's in the nature of political beings to be willing to take inordinate risk. That is the danger for the rest of us.
I guess it's in the nature of political beings to be willing to take inordinate risk. That is the danger for the rest of us.
5
If only we could hold a snap election.
349
Yes, please!
That would, of course, mean a Parliamentary system, which to me offers many pluses over our current presidential system: possibility of more parties; possibility of a vote of no confidence (imagine that!); much easier to pass legislation if a party and its Prime Minister hold a large majority; and best of all, the Prime Minister (or party leader) is selected from sitting members of that party - so vetting, experience, a track record, a need to run in a small district, meet with constituents, at every election.
Again: Yes, please!
That would, of course, mean a Parliamentary system, which to me offers many pluses over our current presidential system: possibility of more parties; possibility of a vote of no confidence (imagine that!); much easier to pass legislation if a party and its Prime Minister hold a large majority; and best of all, the Prime Minister (or party leader) is selected from sitting members of that party - so vetting, experience, a track record, a need to run in a small district, meet with constituents, at every election.
Again: Yes, please!
4
Didn't the whole Brexit issue come about because Cameron called just such an election? Seems to me that snap decision elections are more about the temperature of the moment, not well thought out decisions. Perhaps the next PM will put a pause button on holding this kind of election...and let Britain chill out a little bit.
37
David Cameron did not call a snap election. The general election in 2015 happened because it had been 5 years since the last in 2010.
3
Cameron called for a national referendum on Brexit.
2
Regret-xit?
114
Well, if it's any consolation, it's nice to know we're not the only ones with facing a major leadership crisis. It's as though None of the Above is becoming the favored choice among voters everywhere.
35
Torries Disease: The compulsion to call elections or referenda with low probability of any tangible benefit, and high risk of chaotic backfiring.
9
And now, as can be seen in this present article, the EU wants to dictate terms to Britain about their exit. LOL! Is it not plain to see what the problem was in the first place?