So that happened.

[schneefink]

I'm so angry about the result of the UK's EU referendum. Also a bit scared, but mostly angry at how easy it apparently is to make a majority of voters vote based on nationalist propaganda and nebulous promises and racist anti-immigrant agitation. Austria's presidential election: probably more luck than anything else (and we still haven't found out if it'll have to be repeated because of fricking formalities.) I'm angry that British young people, most of who voted to remain, now have to live in a country whose fate was decided by the fear of old people, who won't experience many of the negative consequences for e.g. the job market and - this sounds shallow, but many of them will die soon. Of course old people have as much of a right to vote as anyone, but it just seems so incredibly selfish. Of course not all old people are like that, blah blah, but I'm still angry. And I'm just waiting for a more detailed voter breakdown to have more groups to be angry at. (White people probably. I'm curious about the gender breakdown.)
Eh, better angry than worried for now.

Hey, silver lining, I could probably take a very cheap vacation in the UK this summer...

Comments

[schneefink]

I hope that the negative consequences for the UK, especially the economic ones, will discourage other countries from doing the same, but of course right now all right-wing nationalist leaders in European countries are calling for referendums.

[ratcreature]

Yeah, but since it is in everybody's interest to minimize the economic impact, because a bad British economy is bad for everybody else as well, that can't really be the way. It can't work by deterrent or punishment. Ideally it might give the EU the kick and a scare to work better to actually start to visibly help solve problems and communicate that, and in parallel might at least moderate politicians stop the convenient EU bashing whenever something doesn't work. So that people see that it is better to cooperate.

[schneefink]

I'm not wishing negative economic consequences on the UK to serve as punishment or deterrent, but I think they're unavoidable. I hope it'll lead to necessary EU reforms, but not sure how optimistic I actually am...