If not for financial reasons then for the morale and ethical reasons hit back at the Japanese for their needless murder of whales, please if you will sign the petition.
Careful Geoff, words like proximate will mark you down as a dangerous intellectual in the modern world.
Yes, of course IronDuke is correct that most views on Brexit, including mine, are opinion. As has often been observed we havenāt left yet - that, however, is about to change
But, and itās a pretty big but, we can see Brexit doing harm already. Our international reputation is shot, inward investment is down and in a world where economic growth is slowing we are ahead of the curve.
Iām not blind to problems with the EU, but the fact remains that it has kept peace in Europe for eighty years, provided a stabilising influence following the fall of the Berlin wall and the splintering of the old Iron Curtain countries and facilitated peace in Ireland - all in all not a bad record.
Furthermore Leave Vs Remain was a relatively logical choice. There is no version of Leave which I felt would do our economy good, just shades of harm, I was not persuaded that any putative gains in sovereignty were real, much less worth it and I was not persuaded of the harm EU migrants were supposedly doing to our economy. The ābestā Brexit I could see was EEA membership and that was much worse that what we already had.
Iām sorry that I can have a bit of a lecturing style - I try not to but it always comes out that way (my son moans about it so I guess itās true) but I believe passionately that we have decided to do ourselves untold harm
Iām pretty cross still about the referendum - the public was had Iām afraid. In fact I suspect that the shady billionaires who funded the campaign were also āhadā by the cake and eat it brigade on the IEA and ERG - it might be possible to continue to fool the man in the street and blame the EU, but the money men might not be so easy to dupe.
Ultimately I canāt do anything to alter what is about to happen. I can only watch, perhaps hope that somehow disaster is averted (and by this is donāt really mean Mayās deal) but knowing it probably wonāt be. I can only wish I were watching events unfold from the outside looking in not the inside looking out.
I get pissed off though when leavers call me and others who also believe we should not leave the EU (at least not now, not in this manner) unpatriotic, or traitors, or accuse our concerns as Project Fear when businesses are visibly panicked, or simply rushing for the exit as fast as they can.
Sorry for the rant, but Iām entitled to my view.
Oh and as for visionaries, visionaries my arse. Con man with vested interests who disappeared for the most part when they realised their lack of answers as to how to achieve Brexit was about to be exposed. Much easier to stand on the sidelines and criticise those trying to somehow make it work.
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Paul, personally I find your posts very informative, we often cover the same topics but you write more eloquently than myself.
Keep it up!
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Of course you are ,everyone is ,unfortunately some people think that only THEIR opinion is the right one
Sometimes it is! I went through management training and realised a large number of people all shouting the same thing can still be factually wrong but they have numbers does that alter the facts? It doesnāt really but but they win the argument through shear numbers.
Blaming the failure of a business on Brexit is easy and often deflects from the underlying reasons for itās collapse, Flybmi was a good example, a small loss making carrier who simply couldnāt compete in a saturated market and it becomes the fourth European airline to cease trading within the last six months.
I totally agree with Paul (and pretty much everyone here) that the decision to leave will have serious economic consequences for the UK and Europe that we can only speculate on and that companies all over the world with a base in the UK will take the view that itās not worth investing there in the short term until the economic impacts of Brexit are known but I also think that the media seize on the āBā word when companies make these announcements and that is all people focus on.
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Most business failure is multifactorial, something like Brexit might not be the cause per-se but it might well be the āfinal strawā for a lot of just viable enterprises.
Would Flybmi have collapsed anyway - possibly, they were losing money on all their routes and, I believe, needing government support to keep going. Is that a bad thing if it keeps nearly 400 people in a job?
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Flybmi was doomed as their investors refused to put anymore money in.
Interestingly the government is going to continue subsidising one of the routes until 2021 provided another airline takes it on so perhaps some jobs can be saved.
Now you guys please take this post with a big grin on your face.
There as been a lot of discussion on this post about dinner party rules, can I just suggest my ideal dinner party invitation list.
Peter āLoquaciousā Goble.
Mr Paul āHeadmaster " Flinder.
Mr Simonā just my opinion" Armstrong.
Graham"I would shoot the lot" Lees.
Vero" Headmam" Langlands.
Jane" I blame brexit" Williamson.
And finally Stella " ORDER ORDER" Wood.
Will take this off if any of you are offended.
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It looks as though from this mornings press conference that they are consolidating their operations to two bases Japan and the USA in order to prepare for the next generation of car manufacturering which looks to be concentrated on electric vehicles. Given Swindon plant is currently based all around diesel and petrol production I guess itās closure was probably inevitable. Japan is investing heavily in battery technologies I believe so itās probably a logical move. They probably see the US as a lucrative potential market also so I guess there decision makes sense. I do feel for the 3,500 staff loosing their jobs today especially as it looks like closure is 2021 a year earlier than last nights reports. Itās also estimated a further 10-15,000 jobs could go in the wider supply chain also. So the impact is pretty big. I live not that far from Swindon in Tidworth and Iām sure the Wiltshire economy will be hit hard by this. Wiltshire is still suffering from the consequences of the Novichok incident in Salisbury, this is just another further blow.
Itās all certainly making me think hard out the timing of my when future move to France will happen.
Iāll bring the brandy!!!
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There is one person who would be top of the list but he is not here to defend himself 
Donāt forget that when the pound falls it affects an awful lot more people on fixed incomes living outside the UK.
And the removal of Dyson HQ to Singapore.
I am not sure how the others would fare at Vero and my hands, especially Peter Goble after his last appalling remark.
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Donāt think that the guest list would ever materialise Jane, just my sense of humour, sometimes I cannot control it 
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You know me too well mick 
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Neither should you lose it, Mick, weād be the losers without it 
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If you are referring to my comments about Shemima Begum, and my response to Janiceās remark about my kicking bereaved families in the face, then say so, and justify that disgraceful and unwarranted slur.
I donāt want to perpetuate this unpleasant discussion, but I resent the implication of your bringing it up again, Jane. I was content to leave it be.
Just think positive Peter it is taking Janeās thoughts away from brexit 
Also confident that you would take my dinner party post in good faith.
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