I stand with President Schulz

[RB TexLa]

Kick them out of the EU as fast as possible.


“I doubt it is only in the hands of the government of the United Kingdom,” he said. “We have to take note of this unilateral declaration that they want to wait until October, but that must not be the last word.”

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. That would be very stupid.

There are a huge number of agreements to renegotiate, not to mention the fact that procedurally, the referendum is advisory and not binding, and it still has to be ratified by Parliament. The rules under which the exit is to be done (something that's never happened before) provide for up to two years before the exit is final. It's also possible that another referendum could be offered that would un-do the first one. The whole situation is much too complex to unravel quickly.

[RB TexLa]

2. The EU is looking to remove the timeframe and decisions from the UK

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. And that would be stupid, too.

There are enormous complications from all this. A rapid exit would make the economic consequences even worse than they already are.

[RB TexLa]

4. When a country makes a statement there are consequences

The UK shouldn't really have a say in what consequences they have to suffer.

[OldEurope]

5. Wrong. Greenland exited.

And also: There are rules for exit in the treaty of Lisbon.

[Angel Martin]

6. before Sargent Schultz makes these sorts of pronouncements

he should check with Germany, France, Holland etc., all of whom have large trade surpluses with the UK, and see if they want to start a trade war against Britain.

[roamer65]

7. Schulz yet again is ignoring treaty rules.

The Lisbon Treaty defines the rules for withdrawing from the EU. He needs to reread the treaty, specifically Article 50.

[MADem]

9. The referendum is non-binding. There's many a slip twixt the cup and the lip.

Of course, it may be too late.

Already people in UK who were for leaving are now saying "You mean it will have THAT effect? That's not what I voted for....I want a do-over!!!"

Cameron is done, but this issue might not be.

Add to it the twist that UK was scheduled to take the reins of the EU next.

More to the point, I find myself in agreement with the millenials on this matter--they're the ones who have to live with this mess:


'This vote doesn't represent the younger generation who will have to live with the consequences': Millennials vent fury at baby boomers for voting Britain OUT of the EU

Young Britons voted in droves for Remain with 72 per cent against Brexit
Leave campaign won, with 56 per cent of 50 to 64-year-olds backing Brexit
Young people protested by Parliament and vented anger on social media

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3658671/This-vote-doesn-t-represent-younger-generation-live-consequences-Millennials-fury-baby-boomers-voting-Britain-EU.html#ixzz4CcWP6b71

[RB TexLa]

10. Right but the EU is wanting to move to take the choice away from them

[tritsofme]

11. The president of the European Parliament doesn't exactly get final say...

Or really much of a say.

There are procedures set by EU treaties that lay out the timeline and method for withdrawing, and these aren't going to be changed on the fly to spite Britain.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

12. The way I read the remarks

sounded as though Schulz is saying Britain can't wait until October to invoke Article 50. Whether they can or can't, I don't know, but it doesn't sound as though he has any say over the timeline once Article 50 is invoked.

And I tend to agree with him - invoke Article 50 and get the process started. No reason to drag it out any longer than necessary.

[RB TexLa]

13. He's not alone in wanting those people out now.

[MADem]

15. They can't--they can nudge and pester, but UK has to invoke Art. 50 by formally

notifying them, by letter or speech, of their specific intent. This is why Angela Merkel said, in essence "Get off their asses--they'll get to it soon enough." She's no fool; she's looking at the BIG picture, to include all the heavy lifting UK does in the defense infrastructure of Europe. It's not like we talk much about the Fulda Gap anymore, but Merkel has that (rhetorically, at any rate) to keep in mind, what with Putin acting up like he is.

Now, it's unlikely but it is possible that the electorate could make a huge stink and unpick this mess by requesting another referendum. They could also DEMAND a new PM who will be elected on a promise that he'd call for a Do-Over.

Further, Scotland could maneuver to try to prevent UK from leaving by challenging the process and saying it disenfranchises them. I believe they are already making noises in this direction.

It would seem that many idiots thought that LEAVE meant "Oh, boy, all those (insert rude term for someone of dusky complexion who worships in a different fashion than most of the white and pink people, and/or who does not speak English with one of the common UK accents) will have to push off, go home, get out of MY neighborhood! Joy to the World!" Racism and xenophobia "informed" (term used advisedly, there) their vote.

They didn't stop and think it meant "Oh shit, who will do my hair and nails at a discount? Who will come and clean my flat for next-to-nothing? What? I can't buy cheap German beer and cheap Italian wine in the market anymore? Why are all these European goods getting so expensive, now? Oh crap, what will happen to my job in the financial sector? It's going to Dublin--and I'm being fired, as I'm not from an EU country anymore--bloody hell!!!"

Those nitwits who voted LEAVE are going to learn what it's like to live in interesting times. And UK will -- if this does come to pass -- learn what it will be like to be outside the circle, and having to try to coordinate larger international issues with a body that doesn't like them, trust them or feel a need to share with them.

It's going to be very difficult, indeed.

[cherokeeprogressive]

14. Who suffers the most from a UK exit from the EU?

I'm going to say the number of people angry with the UK over this vote leads me to believe the consensus is the EU suffers most because now other EU hostages want to be rescued as well.

If the above is true, once again you're standing on the wrong side of the street.

Betting the EU doesn't kick with you.