The E.U.: Hell hath no fury

American Thinker ^ | Nicholas J. Kaster

[RoosterRedux]

In the midst of negotiations to implement Brexit, E.U. president Donald Tusk sneered that there was “a special place in hell” for those who pushed Brexit “without a plan,” a comment seemingly designed to foil an agreement.

The Brexiteers have responded in kind. Nigel Farage tweeted that after Brexit, “we will be free of unelected bureaucrats like you and run our own country.” He added, “Sounds more like heaven to me.”

Jacob Rees-Mogg, Conservative MP, said that Tusk’s comment “shows exactly why the British people rejected the EU in the first place.”

“Britain is implementing the will of the people,” wrote Rees-Mogg. “That is democracy, but Mr. Tusk represents bureaucracy, so is incapable of understanding the popular mood.”

Or perhaps he understands the popular mood too well. Back in October, a Washington Post financial writer wrote that “[t]he fear that Brexit could encourage more countries to leave gives the E.U. a powerful incentive to make Britain’s exit as unattractive as possible.” Viewed from this standpoint, the E.U.’s vindictiveness toward Britain serves as a message to any other member nation that contemplates withdrawing.

[dp0622]

I’m not saying there’s gonna be a shooting war in Europe, but things could get ugly.

Economic war, though, SOMETIMES leads to a shooting war.

and one would be amazed how pacifists can change so quickly into killers.

[SunkenCiv]

Nigel Farage tweeted that after Brexit, “we will be free of unelected bureaucrats like you and run our own country.” He added, “Sounds more like heaven to me.” Jacob Rees-Mogg, Conservative MP, said that Tusk’s comment “shows exactly why the British people rejected the EU in the first place.” “Britain is implementing the will of the people,” wrote Rees-Mogg. “That is democracy, but Mr. Tusk represents bureaucracy, so is incapable of understanding the popular mood.”

Thanks RoosterRedux.

[Sa-teef]

"“Britain is implementing the will of the people,” wrote Rees-Mogg. “That is democracy, but Mr. Tusk represents bureaucracy, so is incapable of understanding the popular mood.”

Tusk is just some of the scum that's floated to the top of the Brussels swamp. They fear representative goverment and the will of the people, as they should. Their corrupt behavior has earned them the hatred of many citizens.

UK will do fine under WTO rules, standing on their own feet and the Germans will be quick to want a trade treaty....but not before they are free once more of the EU.

Mz May is a corrupt old bat who did her best to derail the Brexit. She deserves to be put out.

[FLT-bird]

This article is spot on. The Yurps are overplaying their hand here. If Britain leaves with no deal in place, it is their huge trade surplus with Britain that will get it right in the neck.

Meanwhile the Italians and Eastern Europeans will continue to just thumb their noses at Berlin/Paris.

[avenir]

"...how quickly pacifists can turn into killers..." I hear ya.

[mewzilla]

Meanwhile, the EU has launched its SPV with Iran: INSTEX.

Nice allies we got there, eh?

[Gay State Conservative]

“Britain is implementing the will of the people,” wrote Rees-Mogg. “That is democracy, but Mr. Tusk represents bureaucracy, so is incapable of understanding the popular mood.”

I love Jacob Rees-Mogg (as well as Nigel Farage).I would strongly encourage anyone with some free time to do as I've done and spend some time on youtube listening to him speak in Parliament,and elsewhere.

However,in this comment I suspect that he hasn't gone far enough...hasn't been bold enough.I can easily...*very* easily...imagine Tusk as having been a key figure in the intimidation of Lech Welesa and Solidarity in Gdansk during the 70s/80s/90s.

Translation...I can see Tusk,like Manuel Barosso before him,as being an unrepentant Marxist/Maoist.

[ColoCdn]

Phenomenal!!! Very well done!

[HChampagne]

The Brits have always been a pain in the ass. The Romans could not handle them. The Normands were absorbed (they speak English, not French), and look what they did to Hitler. It is only fitting that they are continuing their legacy now.

[ebmiller57]

What the Pro EU Brits can't seem to get is that the Leave movement is about Liberty and local control. Unaccountable Bureaucrats in Brussels is no way to run a country.

[Robert DeLong]

The plan should be, just walkaway and do not look back. If they adopt that course it will bring the E.U. elites to an honest brokering table. Then tell them what you will do as part of the divorce settlement.

[Cronos]

Donald criticized those who wanted to leave without a plan. Having a No-Deal Brexit is still a plan. however May has spent two years not even planning. There is no plan, not even a "let's chuck it all and go no-deal"

THAT is unforgivable. She should have decided two years ago, or at least last year that 'the UK leaves with no deal, fine, let's prepare for it" - but the UK is not prepared for a No-deal, it hasn't done anything about the Ireland-NorthernIreland border, nothing.

[RoosterRedux]

Theresa May is an incompetent bureaucrat and nothing more. It’s no wonder that she was a “remainer.”

[Cronos]

If Britain leaves with no deal then EVERYONE gets hurt, but the Brits the most as two thirds of their business is with the EU. And most of their manufacturing relies on cross-country supply chains.

The EU is perfectly willing to have a trade deal with the UK, but if the UK wants something like Norway or Switzerland has, then it needs to allow freedom of goods, services, capital and EU citizens. If they want something else then they need to negotiate the terms just like anybody else

The UK under WTO terms will be just like everybody else. They will not "do fine" - but they won't collapse economically yet. They will have a hit of anything from 2% to 4% GDP in the 2 year horizon. After that, it all depends on how well their government manages it

But that's the crux - May has NOT managed anything so far, so expecting her to manage the no-deal Brexit is a larf

[Cronos]

The EU hasn’t done INSTEX — Germany, France and the UK did it. Yes, the UK too. The EU was not involved.

[Cronos]

That's actually inaccurate

1. "The Romans could not handle them" -- well actually
   1. the Romans fought the Britons - ancestors of today's Welsh and Strathclyde. These were later pushed west by the invading Germans (ooops, Saxons)
      
   2. The Romans crushed the Britons and under Claudius conquered England and Wales and remained in that part until abandoning the islands in 430 AD
   staying there nearly 400 years is hardly "not handling them"
   
   
2. "The Normands were absorbed (they speak English, not French" - actually no, the Normans pushed out nearly ALL the Ruling Saxon lords, and they spoke Gallo, not French. AND the English language spoken by the Anglo-Saxons was not "english" any more than Latin is the same as French. Here's the Lord's prayer in Anglo-Saxon

   Fæder ure þu þe eart on heofonum;
   Si þin nama gehalgod
   to becume þin rice
   gewurþe ðin willa
   on eorðan swa swa on heofonum.
   urne gedæghwamlican hlaf syle us todæg
   and forgyf us ure gyltas
   swa swa we forgyfað urum gyltendum
   and ne gelæd þu us on costnunge
   ac alys us of yfele soþlice

   - it was similar to Friesian and other Germanic dialects. The mongrel language English was a mix of some Germanic words with Gallo. Right now only about 20% of English words are of Germanic origin while 60% are Latin, French, other Romance origin
   
   
3. "Look what they did to Hitler" -- that's true, they did concede to him and then in 1939 do the phony war -- they could have, with the French, invaded Germany and prevented hte Holocaust and the bloodlands and ended the war in 1940 with millions of lives saved, but they didn't
   
   However one does need to give credit - they stood up to the Nazis until the Nazis collapsed under Soviet manpower and American military equipment

[Cronos]

well they can walk away. The EU isn't stopping them. The only thing the EU is hard on is that one of the EU members, Ireland, has the Good Friday deal signed with the UK where the UK promised to have an open border between RoI and NI

the UK can do anything else and the EU says "your choice", but the UK can't renege on the irish open border it agreed on -- and the UK is the one who wants border controls there.

[FLT-bird]

Cronos: If Britain leaves with no deal then EVERYONE gets hurt, but the Brits the most as two thirds of their business is with the EU. And most of their manufacturing relies on cross-country supply chains. The EU is perfectly willing to have a trade deal with the UK, but if the UK wants something like Norway or Switzerland has, then it needs to allow freedom of goods, services, capital and EU citizens. If they want something else then they need to negotiate the terms just like anybody else The UK under WTO terms will be just like everybody else. They will not "do fine" - but they won't collapse economically yet. They will have a hit of anything from 2% to 4% GDP in the 2 year horizon. After that, it all depends on how well their government manages it But that's the crux - May has NOT managed anything so far, so expecting her to manage the no-deal Brexit is a larf.

Two thirds of current trade is with the EU. Those percentages were radically different before Britain joined the EU and could well shift back to other markets once Britain leaves. Its not like Britain was a poor country prior to joining the then European Community. I agree that May has done nothing except roll over or Brussels and try to ram down the throats of the British people a worse arrangement than they had before Brexit. That failed. Britain obviously needs to move in a different direction. I agree that a bridge will be needed to buy Britain a little time to negotiate new trade arrangements. I'd like to see the US offer them a deal to do just that.

[Cronos]

Theresa May is incompetent, period

Her previous stint as Home Minister was just as incompetent.

After june 2016 the UK had clear options

1. Ignore the referendum - this was not a binding referendum in any case - in the UK sovereignty rests with parliament not with the people.
2. Implement a hard, no-deal Brexit and prepare for this
3. Negotiate an in-between deal but have the details agreed at least by March 2018

It did nothing, absolutely nothing. There IS a special place in hell for people who don't lead their nation one way or another. Anything would be better than the waffling we've seen