Reply to: You Can't Always Get What You Want...

[Old Greg]

No they are doing what we are doing looking after our own interests'. There is no punishment just thiko's looking to blame others for their own failures.

What part of below is punishing us?

Hey Mr E.U. I want access to the free market but don't won't to contribute financially or allow those funny foreigners in.

Mr E.U. No, you can have the same rules as everyone else.

But that's not fair, we're being punished!

[Old Greg]

Indeed...

you do not seem to be refuting the first point about the EU punishing a country for exercising democracy though...

or is that just an inconvenient truth?

The article uses the word punish once.

First of all, it will face the E.U.’s unanimity requirements. All the E.U. member states will have to agree to any deal before it goes forward. This means that just one member state can block the agreement. Before the referendum, Britain could count on the help of other governments that were sympathetic to it. Now, any deal will effectively be shaped by the single government most unsympathetic to Britain’s case, and most eager to punish it, since all other member states will need that state’s assent. If one or several remaining member states want to make the establishment of an association agreement very costly for Britain, the British will find themselves in a very weak bargaining position.

Nowhere does it reference "the EU punishing" (to use your words) the UK, just one country. So the EU may take a variety of positions, but if one country for whatever reason (e.g. Spain looking for joint sovereignty over Gibraltar) takes a view that it (the country, not the EU) wants to punish the UK, then the assent of that country to any favourable deal is a barrier.

It's like an easy 'O' Level English comprehension, isn't it?

[BlueSharp]

Indeed...

you do not seem to be refuting the first point about the EU punishing a country for exercising democracy though...

or is that just an inconvenient truth?

No they are doing what we are doing looking after our own interests'. There is no punishment just thiko's looking to blame others for their own failures.

What part of below is punishing us?

Hey Mr E.U. I want access to the free market but don't won't to contribute financially or allow those funny foreigners in.

Mr E.U. No, you can have the same rules as everyone else.

[scooterscot]

Which part of 'The EU are planning to punish a country for exercising democracy' are you struggling with?

You dense fookin tw@s

Are you happy to sign all our liberties over to a central European superpower?

They're not punishing, they're protecting their interests. The remaining 27 states. Do you honestly expect them to do vice versa?

[original PM]

Strawman of the day - congrats.

Indeed...

you do not seem to be refuting the first point about the EU punishing a country for exercising democracy though...

or is that just an inconvenient truth?

[CretinWatcher]

Which part of 'The EU are planning to punish a country for exercising democracy' are you struggling with?

You dense fookin tw@s

Are you happy to sign all our liberties over to a central European superpower?

Which part of "lets walk away then" are YOU struggling with?
Thick fookwit.

[Old Greg]

Are you happy to sign all our liberties over to a central European superpower?

Strawman of the day - congrats.

[original PM]

We don't need to talk to the EU at all. We could just walk away tomorrow. Shall we do it, do you think?
I'm beginning to understand something fundamental. You thickos outnumber us immensely.

27 against 1. Yes the EU are the masters. We were part of the master once.

They have to come across hard line to protect the EU.

Which part of 'The EU are planning to punish a country for exercising democracy' are you struggling with?

You dense fookin tw@s

Are you happy to sign all our liberties over to a central European superpower?

[NotAllThere]

Article 7 of the Lisbon treaty allows the EU to suspend a member if it deems it to be in breach of basic principles of freedom, democracy, equality and rule of law.

Who knows... if the UK pisses off the EU with inaction they may well just go ahead with the nuclear option. Not activating Article 50 is a clear violation of democracy of the UK people.

The UK is a representative democracy, not a direct democracy. As has been pointed out several times, the government is not legally obliged to act on the will of a small majority of the people, so I don't think Article 7 can be invoked.

Since Farage said that unless there was a substantial majority in favour of remain, he wouldn't be going away, the government should have taken that as agreeing to requiring a 60% majority to change the status quo. Oh well, we are where we are and need to make the best of it.

[MarillionFan]

The EU has alot more to lose than the UK. The UK *could* just become like Japan.....

Feck that. I didn't vote out so I could eat raw fish!

[BrilloPad]

We don't need to talk to the EU at all. We could just walk away tomorrow. Shall we do it, do you think?

You have argued before that protectionist policies have served the US well for the last 100 years.

For the past centuries an open door policy has helped the UK. Do you think that should continue?

The EU has alot more to lose than the UK. The UK *could* just become like Japan.....

[bobspud]

We don't need to talk to the EU at all. We could just walk away tomorrow. Shall we do it, do you think?
I'm beginning to understand something fundamental. You thickos outnumber us immensely.

That's the down side to any pyramid there is always more at the bottom than at the top.

[AtW]

Lots of Serbians and Albanians here already.

Then again you live in a cultural back water so wouldn't know that.

Them Serbians are putting honest Brits out of work at Wimbledon

[SueEllen]

I'm sure we'll scrape by somehow.

Anyhow's who is going to pay our contribution to the EU budget now? <everyone looks at Germany >

Oh and don't forget you'll soon have open borders with Albania and Serbia. That'll be fun.

Ah the EU. Missing it already

Lots of Serbians and Albanians here already.

Then again you live in a cultural back water so wouldn't know that.

[Flashman]

Reasonable article: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...d=ss_fb-bottom

Highlights are:

That bloody veto again.

I'm sure we'll scrape by somehow.

Anyhow's who is going to pay our contribution to the EU budget now? <everyone looks at Germany >

Oh and don't forget you'll soon have open borders with Albania and Serbia. That'll be fun.

Ah the EU. Missing it already