Letter: There’s nothing patriotic about Brexit
The then UKIP leader Nigel Farage passes the Houses of Parliament in London - Credit: PA Archive/PA Images
It would seem that one of the scapegoats being prepared for when Brexit fails are Remainers who refuse to 'get behind Brexit'.
How one is supposed to support a vacuum is beyond me. Brexit is by definition a negative, dismantling process; there is nothing there of substance to support, even if one wanted to.
It's akin to being asked to admire the open wasteland of a former much loved building shortly after the wrecking ball has done its job, or to stand on the pavement waving a sandcastle paper Union Jack as the bare flatbed Brexit lorry trundles past. 'A lack of patriotism' on the part of Remainers is a consequent accusation that rankles.
We are not in essence being asked to support our country and its best interests, but rather to show antipathy towards our EU neighbours and soon-to-be former colleagues and partners. The Leave lobby measures patriotism by the volume of abuse and invective hurled at fellow Europeans and friends; and I for one will not succumb to this denigrating behaviour. As Voltaire said: 'It is lamentable, that in order to be a good patriot one must become an enemy of the rest of mankind'.
Richard Surr
You may also want to watch:
Redditch
Most Read
- 1 Nigel Farage loses nearly 50,000 followers after Twitter suspends QAnon accounts
- 2 Progressive alliance could see Labour win 351 seats at next election, new analysis reveals
- 3 Tory minister admits UK rejected EU's music visa offer in order to 'take back control' of borders
- 4 Bob Geldof takes swipe at No 10 saying 'lying is second nature' to them
- 5 What Auf Wiedersehen, Pet teaches us about Britain and Europe
- 6 Jacob Rees-Mogg says it's 'all the EU's fault' musicians can't tour Europe
- 7 The rocky road to Rejoin
- 8 The greatest failure of government in our lifetime
- 9 Fifteen ways to fix Britain
- 10 The polling that signals the plight of the Union
• This letter was originally submitted to The New European in January 2018.
• What do you think? Send your views for publication in The New European to letters@theneweuropean.co.uk
Become a Supporter
The New European is proud of its journalism and we hope you are proud of it too. We believe our voice is important - both in representing the pro-EU perspective and also to help rebalance the right wing extremes of much of the UK national press. If you value what we are doing, you can help us by making a contribution to the cost of our journalism.
