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 The Philosophy of Brex it , Trump, Religion, and Ot her G houlies and G host ies That G o Bump
in t he Night

BREXIT EUROPE OPINION

Am I Dreaming, Or Is Turkey About To Leave The EU?

Posted on April 25, 2017

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 If I talked to you about a country that just had a dubiously run referendum, the result of which was so close,
as to be invalid for such a huge constitutional change, you would probably be thinking of Turkey. If I then

told you that the leader of this country will organise elections with the sole purpose of augmenting his

personal grip on the country, claiming that he is carrying out the wish of the people, you would again be
thinking of Turkey. If I told you that opponents to this process were feeling oppressed and muted by those

who voted in favour, despite representing just under 50% of the population, you would still be thinking of

Turkey. But what if I told you that this country was an island? What would you then be thinking?

Turkey United-Kingdom

Referendum organised to enhance political power and weaken Yes Yes

opposition

Justified criticism of the way the referendum was run Yes Yes

Expat Voting Large % did not Large % could not

vote vote

Result (%) 51-49 52-48

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 Opponents to vote discouraged to express themselves Yes Yes

Elections announced to confirm and/or increase power of Yes (2019?) Yes (2017)
governing politicians

Is it so far-fetched to think that the UK and Turkey have used and abused democracy in the same way?

Why organise a referendum in the first place?

The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and the former UK conservative party leader, David Cameron,

were both involved in a personal survival battle that prompted them to organise a national

referendum. According to Erdogan, the very existence of Turkey is being threatened by the likes of Islamic
State and the separatist Kurdistan Workers party (PKK). The aborted coup last summer has given him even

more reason to want to persuade the Turkish people that another kind of democracy is needed, and that

changing the parliamentary democracy into a presidential system will be the answer to Turkeys political

and economic problems. And, if all goes according to plan, the Turks will have plenty of time to find out

since, under the new constitution, Erdogan could serve as president until 2029.

In announcing the UKs referendum on EU membership, David Cameron was trying to fend off the powerful

eurosceptics within his own party, and the continuing rise of the extreme-right-wing UKIP, led by Nigel

Farage. Eurosceptisism within the Conservative party is nothing new.

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We have not successfully rolled back the frontiers of the state in Britain, only to
see them reimposed at a European level with a European super-state exercising
a new dominance from Brussels. Margaret Thatcher, Bruges, 1988

The truth is that the conservatives have been split over Europe for

decades, ever since the Bruges speech, delivered by Margaret

Thatcher, on September 1st, 1988. The conservative Eurosceptics were

officially born that day, and have wreaked havoc in the Conservative

party ever since, aided by the faithful press. In the end, of course, it
was Europe that provoked Thatchers downfall. In 1990, former

foreign affairs minister, Sir Geoffrey Howe, delivered a speech in a

packed House of Commons, that few could have delivered. His tone

was as calm as his words were deadly. Thatcher was mortally stabbed

for not wanting European integration to advance. In his speech,

Howe concluded: The time has come for others to consider their own
response to the tragic conflict of loyalties with which I have myself wrestled for perhaps too long.

We love our politicians, dont we? Thats why we keep on voting for them time after time, in spite of the fact

that they keep on getting things horribly wrong. They remind me of that gormless denim-clad bovver boy

Gaylord, in the BBCs Dick Emery Show that was so popular back in the 70s. Only, our beloved politicians

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 aint no bovver boys, but slick looking elites. What to think of Tony Blair, former whizz kid of New Labour

as they were then called? He admitted earlier this year that he and others, including the EU, got it wrong

and took too much for granted.

Im only an anonymous European citizen who has never really bothered to look at where the EU power is
going to or coming from. Im too in love with the European ideal for that. Thanks to the remarks made by

Tony Blair, Ive finally discovered the root cause of the UKs alienation from the EU. It all boils down to the

feeling the Brexit voters have of loss of sovereignty and uncontrolled immigration. So far, nothing new

you might think, but what I realised by digging a little bit deeper into the history of the EU, is that this double

feeling at the root cause of the Brexit vote could have been avoided long ago, if only specific referendums
had been timely organised. Its a bit like if an extension was built to your house without your permission, and

now you are being asked if you want to keep on living in it. If only you were asked at the time of the

extension.

Dad, I fink I got it wrong again. Gaylord

Migration from Eastern European countries Mistake number 1

Although Tony Blair was in favour of EU enlargement with Eastern European countries, he did not take up

the option of extending transitional controls. This option was adopted by other countries including Germany,

France and Italy. The UK, Ireland and Sweden were the only countries to immediately open their borders to

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 the influx of Eastern European migrants. This being said, as Tony Blair pointed out, it is debatable whether

EU migrants from the former Eastern Block countries have any significant negative impact on the UK

economy. Even scaremonger number one, Nigel Farage, admits that it is only EU enlargement to the East

that would cause an identity crisis in the UK. According to Farage, in 1999 immigration was not only not an

issue, the word did not appear in my election literatureThen, we had free movement between countries of
comparable wealth, education and healthcare systems. (from Brexit revolt: How the UK voted to leave the EU,

Michael Moasbacher, Oliver Wiseman).

The Lisbon Treaty Mistake number 2

Tony Blair promised a referendum on the EU constitution, a treaty signed in late 2004. France and The
Netherlands did hold a referendum and both countries rejected the treaty in 2005. The French and Dutch

referendum votes effectively put an end to this treaty. However, in 2009, the treaty was updated, renamed

Lisbon Treaty, and pushed through without a referendum at all. The then British prime minister, Gordon

Brown, didnt even bother attending the summit. Not a very clever thing to do as the treaty defers power

from national parliaments to the EU. The very least Tony Blair and others could have done, is to let us vote
about it.

It is quite clear that EU policy makers have wanted to keep their decisions out of the public domain, and

have succeeded in doing so. In this respect, I tend to agree with the view that the EU is not the most

democratic institution on earth. A good example of this is the biggest enlargement the EU has ever

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 undergone, which took effect from May 1st 2004. When was the first time that you or I ever heard about it?

Im pretty sure that most of us were presented with this European expansion as a fait accompli onMay 1st

2004. The 2016 referendum came more than a decade too late and, with hindsight, probably got the result it

deserved. Listening to the flawed reasons given by Leavers on the merits of Brexit, it becomes clear that a

large proportion of UK voters did not know enough about what the EU actually stood for. They where taken

in by the lies and deceit of the Leave campaign, coupled with the half-hearted defence of the EU by

Remainers.

Scaremongering during the referendum

and now Doctor, my 37th symptom

Have you ever had that feeling that everything is against you, and you cant do anything about it? If that

happens once in a while, thats part of life. More often, you should consider changing jobs. All the time, then

you most probably resemble people suffering from hypochondria and/or paranoia.

Hypochondriacs visit the doctor, convinced that theres something wrong with them. Furthermore, theres

nothing the doctor can say that will put their minds at rest. The hypochondriac knows exactly what hes got

and who gave it to him. The big enemy of the hypochondriac ishimself, or rather, his own body. Fuelled by

the incessant search for bodily perfection in present day society, the hypochondriac feels every twitch in his
body as a foreboding of a certain death.

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I dont understand them [foreigners] I dont feel very comfortable in that
situation Nigel Farage, 2014

Paranoids, on the other hand, dont usually have a problem dealing with their own bodies. Their problem lies

with other peoples bodies. A paranoid feels constantly threatened by visible or invisible outside forces. The

mob is out to get them, even if this mob is living peacefully and legally as a next-door neighbour. In the

street, on the train, at homethe threat is everywhere. Some unfortunate patients actually suffer from both
paranoia and hypochondria. Not only are they convinced that there is something physically wrong with them,

but also believe that their many doctors are persecuting them by not wanting to treat their illness.

During the referendum campaign, the Leave camp, and Nigel Farage in particular, took full advantage of

existing public paranoia/hypochondria related to immigration. This was exemplified by the vivid Leave

campaign poster, showing thousands of Middle-Eastern refugees, and not EU migrants. Would the same

message have come across with a billboard showing thousands of French or Italian people, I wonder? The

problem, lets be honest, lies with EU migrants from former Eastern Block countries and non-EU migrants

from Syria and its neighbours. It lies with no-one else.

In announcing a referendum on Europe, and going through with it, David Cameron was thinking about his

own future and didnt notice that the land around him was caving in. He also seemed to ignore the fact that

warning signs were there, probably thinking that the UK electorate would choose the status quo over the

uncertainty associated with leaving. Referendums that had already taken place in the past, in Denmark,
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 France and the Netherlands, and had all resulted in a strong vote against European institutions, were

ignored. David Cameron gambled his future with the future of his country, and lost. Erdorgan, in his own

way, played on the underlying anxieties of his people, promising that all would change if he gained more

power. For now, at least, he won.

Never mind the Expats

Theresa May disenfranchised up to 700,000 EU based British expats who have been living outside the UK for

more than 15 years. This figure would be much higher, of course, if other non-EU British expats were taken
into account. I left France more than 15 years ago and have retained my rights to vote in this years

presidential elections. Even Turkish citizens living in the EU had the right to vote in the Turkish referendum.

The fact is, however, that many of them didnt bother to vote for such an important constitutional change in

their fatherland. In the Netherlands, those who did cast their votes in the ballot box, voted 70% in favour of

Erdogans reform. I find it hard to accept that Turkish passport holders living in a democratic country like the

Netherlands, cannot see what is going on in Turkey.

Theresa May made a promise to all British expats that they would

be enfranchised in time to be able to vote in the 2020 general

election. She just forgot to mention that the election would take

place in 2017. Well, I can accept that she can break a promise to
me, but not to Harry Shindler, a 95 year-old WWII veteran, who
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 is an expat living in Italy. in 2016, he fought to obtain the right to

vote in the referendum. His appeal lodged in the High Court

failed. Its people like Shindler who made it possible for us to

have all these deep quarrels about trade treaties in a free Europe.

Thanks, Harry, and take care.

It is quite ironical that, had long-term British expats all over the

world been able to vote, the result of the EU referendum would probably have gone the other way. It seems

that David Cameron was, at best ill-advised over the exclusion of expats (together with 16 and 17-year-olds)
and, at worst, careless.

We are the 48%

On several occasions, Theresa May has alluded to the fact that she wants the country to work for everyone.

How she will go about this, no-one knows. It seems an impossible task, such are the divisions between the

two camps. Optimism and naivety reign amongst Brexiteers. They have finally got their country back, but

have not, as yet, said what they intend to do with it. The Remainers have not changed their arguments,

reflecting a pessimistic view on what the future holds for the country. Although nobody can forecast what the

UKs position will be post-Brexit, it is important for the defeated camp of the referendum to be heard. Up to

now this has not been the case and, worst still, Remainers are being treated as traitors to the nation, having

no right to question the will of the people.

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After an election or a referendum, even if you lose the vote, you are entitled to
go on making the argument. When a government in this country wins an
election, the opposition does not say oh thats absolutely right Ive got nothing to
say for five years Ian Hislop (BBC Question Time, July 2016)

Too Much Democracy Can Lead To Tyranny

In Turkey, Erdogans argument in favour of his proposed reforms is to streamline decision-making and avoid

parliamentary coalitions that have, in his view, interfered with Turkeys progress. Since the president is

elected directly by the people, goes the argument,there is no need for another elected leader, namely the

prime minister, to be able to enact laws. It seems to me that the people voted to let one man change the

system, and then must vote for the man himself. Erdogan has a rather strange notion of democracy, where a

popular vote erases all need for an effective opposition to the governing bodies. In fact, if in 2019 Erdogan

succeeds in being elected president under the new constitution, he will effectively be Turkeys first
democratically elected tyrant. The fact now is that Erdogan can theoritically stay in power until 2029, having

already won every election since 2002. The constitutional change abolishes the non-party-political nature of

the presidency, as in the United States, but without the counter-balancing checks and controls.

Paradoxically, it would have been better if the country had voted for change by a much larger majority than

just a few percentage points. Instead, Erdogan is now focused on silencing a sizeable opposition at home,

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 and even more sceptics abroad. His reaction to the Dutch government refusing entry to two of his puppets,

was foreboding of what may lie ahead. All this from a man who would not be against the death penalty. As for

EU membership, he can knock as hard as he can on the EU door, its remaining firmly shut.

If this change is agreed in the 16 April referendum, then Turkey will quickly
become an autocracy, and after that it could, of course, turn into a pure
dictatorship Mithat Sanca (opposition deputy HDP)

God willing, these results will be the beginning of a new era in our country.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, 2017

The UK is has always been a model of democracy for everybody to follow. When Ronald Reagan delivered a

speech to the Commons in 1982, he described the building as a shrine of democracy. The parliamentary
democracy in the UK is under threat and, what is worse, most people

are not even aware of this. In calling a general election, Theresa May

has, barring surprises, succeeded in crushing an already depleted

opposition. She has used the democratic tool at her disposal. Although

she can deny it as vehemently as she wants, there is no doubt that the

timing of her announcement, in stark contradiction with her previous

statements, coincides with her partys very strong lead in the opinion

polls. It is quite possible that her present majority of 17 in the House of

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 Commons, shall run into triple figures come June 8th. As opposition

party, Labour is in disarray and is not capable anymore of aspiring to

win a general election. It is in search of a leader capable of convincing,

and ideas capable of seducing. As for the liberal democrats, although they are, potentially, capable of
reversing or at least severely pruning Brexit, this would go so much against the wish of the people, that it

would be social and political madness to implement such a change of heart. The referendum result, however

bad the campaign was, must not be overturned. Parliament knows that and has not interfered with the

process, contrary to what certain newspapers have said.

And second, who are they to lecture anybody on democracy? Miliband and Clegg both fought tooth and nail to

deny the public a referendum vote in the first place. Not only that, they are now trying to stick up two fingers

to their own constituents by seeking to allow Parliament to block the referendum verdict. Daily Mail,

October 2016

Parliament does not want to block the referendum verdict. It wants to monitor what sort of Brexit the UK

will implement. If the country must work for everyone, so must Brexit. And that includes Remainers.

Every vote for the Conservatives will make me stronger Theresa May, April
2017

She was referring to her negotiating position of course, but I find the first part of the statement more

interesting than the second. The UK electorate who voted Brexit had no idea at the time of the vote, and
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 have no idea now of what they actually voted for. This general election should have taken place before

Article 50 was triggered, and not after. It is also ironical that the institution so many see as undemocratic

and despise, the House of Lords, has tried to bring some sense and wisdom to the Brexit saga. What was so

undemocratic in wanting to protect the rights of millions of EU citizens lawfully living in the UK?

Theresa May has made no secret of wanting to deliver Brexit without involving parliament. Having lost the

battle to bypass parliament, she is now seeking to democratically win the hard Brexit war by silencing all

detractors. Dissent or even objection are words that are missing from her vocabulary, and if parliament
doesnt bend to her wishes, she will simply bend parliament. There is an acrid scent of democratic

revolutions of bygone days, in which Theresa May wants to be the one and only mistress.

At this moment of enormous national significance, there should be unity here in
Westminster, but instead there is division. The country is coming together, but
Westminster is not. Theresa May, April 2017

For Theresa May, the country may be coming together, but her vision of Brexit has fallen apart a long time

ago, if it ever existed in the first place. More than a decade ago, EU enlargement and a change in the EU
constitution were imposed on the UK by the EU, with the full approval and participation of the UK

parliament, but without the consent of the people. Now, it seems, the exact opposite is happening. The
people have given their consent for Brexit, but its parliament that is being usurped.

All in all, you could forgive me for waking up one morning and not knowing whether it was the UK or
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 Turkey who had voted to leave the EU. Similar democratic discrepancies in the two countries are too obvious

not to be noticed. The UK is fast resembling a dubbed version of Turkey, in terms of its tangling with, and
interpretation of, democracy. During the dubbing, you may have missed out on a few swearwords, but you
can still follow the plot. The trouble is, it seems that were all watching a disaster movie.

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ONE EXPAT AND HIS BLOG

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 Welcome to 2017, the year after the year before. If you think that 2016 was eventful, you aint seen
nothing yet. This blog was originally about the EU and Brexit. Understandable because Im half a British
expat living in continental Europe (my other half is French). In my intro page I did mention that this

blog is like cheese and will mature, and so it has... So many things are happening in the world that its
obvious that not everything revolves around Brexit (at least until March). My opinions havent changed

though, and I still think that smashing the EU door is certainly not the political answer to the UK's
philosophical dream. As for the blog, it still revolves around philosophy, politics and has a tinge of satire.

Can philosophers and other learned individuals help me understand what the hell is going on?

PULL ME ALONG

C ON SE QU E N T I ALI SM D E MOC RAC Y E LE C T I ON S E U ROP E AN I D E ALS E X I ST E N T I ALI SM F RAN C E F RAN AI S

F RE E D OM I N T OLE RAN C E LG BT SOC I AL C ON T RAC T UK X E N OP H OBI A

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