Before Brexit, you might’ve believed that rich aristocrats meddling in high-stakes political decisions was an exclusively American phenomenon. As it turns out, the U.S. is far from the only sovereign territory that plays host to golden-haired pied pipers.
The U.K.’s tragic and far-reaching decision to remove itself from the European Union is proof positive that modern politics are, all too often, fueled by the Gut, rather than by the Head. And modern politicians? Well. They’re getting better and better at manipulating our Guts.
The outcome of the Brexit vote was made possible by widespread ignorance — ignorance deliberately fueled by duplicitous, manipulative and self-interested politicians.
Here’s how it all went down.
Lies, Broken Promises and More Lies
The first swallow of snake oil offered by the Leave Campaign was deliberately designed to appeal to the so-called “fiscally responsible” crowd. The sort of crowd that cries foul when their school taxes come due and they moan about funding the education of a child that isn’t theirs.
This lie stated that membership in the European Union cost Britain £50 million per day. Back in reality? The true figure is roughly half that.
The next extravagant lie was a related one: Namely, that the money saved by exiting the EU would be funneled instead to the U.K.’s National Health Service. So public was this promise that it even adorned the side of double-decker busses as they went about their rounds on the streets of England. As it turns out, this, too, was a total fabrication.
Appearing visibly surprised that any emotionally mature adult could take him seriously, Leave Campaign standard-bearer Nigel Farage, the very next day, admitted on television that the Leave Campaign was wrong to make such a pledge.
In other words, at a time when healthcare costs are spiraling out of control across the globe, and hundreds of thousands of human beings die or declare bankruptcy for want of affordable — or any! — healthcare, U.K. voters thought they were doing a very good thing for their country. Unfortunately, like this whole campaign, it was nothing but smoke and mirrors.
The Inevitable and Immediate Regret
There’s almost no end to the lies.
To name just one more, U.K. citizens were also led astray by not-at-all realistic promises of “wresting back democratic control” over immigration and allowing for the “free movement” of Brits across all of Europe. Again: The false drums of populism, and again: It’s not remotely true. The U.K. is still very much a part of a continental community, and many voters might be shocked and dismayed to learn that there are still rules to be followed, EU or no.
But for better and for worse, the regret is already sinking in. In fact, it began the very next day, as the smoke was still settling.
Just a few hours after the votes were tallied and Brexit went from a vague, ill-informed idea to a painful reality, the effects were already being felt. Eight hours in, the United Kingdom lost an unimaginable $350 billion — a sum larger than the last fifteen years’ worth of U.K. contributions to the EU.
This was supposed to save Britain money, was it not? So much for that idea.
We see here the outcome of the Leave Campaign’s most egregious lie: that declaring independence from the European Union would somehow be a budget-saving maneuver.
A Time for Bridges
It couldn’t be more obvious that we live in troubled times. Economic self-interest and naked avarice are parading through the streets of developed and emerging nations alike, masquerading as populism. We’re meant to believe the Donald Trumps, Boris Johnsons and Nigel Farages of the world want to return power to the hands of “The People,” but the truth is, they’re either stupid or actively evil — content to watch the world burn, like some Christopher Nolan villain sprung to life. They’ve risen to prominence in their respective countries by spinning increasingly amazing lies.
And their duplicity has been rewarded at every turn. They stand as proof that a person needn’t be burdened by an understanding of Right and Wrong to “make it” as a politician — they only need to be smart enough to wield psychology and persuasion tactics the way Ben Carson claims to wield hammers.
This is the time to build bridges, treaties and alliances — not burn them to the ground. But you know what? As tempting as it is to lay the blame, wholesale, at the feet of cranks and charlatans, the people of the U.K. — as well as Trump’s legions of followers back here in the States — have totally abdicated their responsibilities to act rationally. We all use the same internet. We all have access to the same body of accumulated information. And, assuming you’re literate, each and every freethinking adult has the ability to parse truth from — forgive me — bullshit.
Next time you sit across the table from your deeply Conservative Auntie Hilde, don’t bow to the inclination to “Agree to disagree.” Don’t give in to the fallacy of “All opinions are valid.” Opinions not based in reality don’t deserve the light of day.
And the U.K.? The U.K. deserves a do-over.