Second and Third Thoughts
Obviously the wilful half-truths, wild extrapolations and baseless assurances both sides have been peddling have not helped. Here are five key questions, on five fundamental issues, worth considering before polling day.
Source: EU referendum: five questions to answer before you vote | Politics | The Guardian
The European Union is an extraordinary creation in which countries that believe in pluralism, democracy, welfare economics and the rule of law gain extra leverage in the pursuit of their national interests by sharing sovereignty. So what is Brexit’s message to the world: two fingers? Or maybe as Ferdinand Mount, the former head of Thatcher’s policy unit, says, we’ll catch the Brexiteers belting out that Millwall chant, “No one likes us, we don’t care.” Like the football team, they’ll sing it all the way to the third division.
Source: Two fingers to the world: is that your message, Brexiteers? | Chris Patten | Opinion | The Guardian
What matters to Europeans? The rule of law. Freedom of expression. Property rights. Democracy. The opportunity to build profitable enterprises. Freedom of the Press. The right to live with security and dignity. A safe, clean environment. Humane treatment of animals. Scientific progress. Freedom of belief. Freedom
Source: Europe: Project Hope — Hector Macdonald
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I have been conducting a Facebook debate with some chums about Brexit. Two (who shall remain nameless), in particular, are fiercely pro-Brexit where I am firmly on the side of #Remain. One of these Brexistas made reference to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) referring to material by Angus Armstrong to support some point he was trying to make.
For those unfamiliar with the NIESR, this is from their website:
The National Institute of Economic and Social Research is Britain’s longest established independent research institute, founded in 1938. The vision of our founders was to carry out research to improve understanding of the economic and social forces that affect people’s lives, and the ways in which policy can bring about change.
I have spent the day trawling through some of the material on the NIESR website. There’s a load of stuff, but I tried to focus on recent, Brexit-related material. What follows is selected quotes (bold text is my emphasis) from the material. I admit to bias, but I have tried to use quotes that accurately reflect the meaning of the source.
I am posting this on ODDROPS because WordPress is easier to use than Facebook for this kind of article. [Read more…]
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