Re: Saddening
I think you will see the brexit was a cold shower for the rosy and - clearly - idealistic image held by many nations in Europe, that the Brits, while definitely quirky (well, you know, first the world empire and then - just a little, miserable island, can't blame them, eh) are, nevertheless, level-headed. They were seen by many as a EU's rudder, to straighten some of the wilder Eurocratish ideas, but generally a positive role, staying with the ship. The same thinking was applied when Europe was watching the brexit referendum. Brits are not stupid, they always know what's best for them, and it's pretty obvious you're better off in the club, even one with a few rules that you don't like rather than being out in the open, where the rest of the world is NOT your friend, but competitors, at best. That was the general perception of the Brits in Europe. Sure, the British have their weirdos like Farage and his 350 milion for NHS, and they have gutter press banging on about how the Czechs or Poles ate all their pond fish, and the "migrants" taking over "this great nation", etc., but hey, this is fringes, this is... color, crazies, every country has their share. But the Brits are steady and when they think about it and when it comes to voting, they will vote - reasonably.
Bzzzz
They're just like everybody else, wow! Throw a few simple slogans at them, and they'll take the bait, forget reasonable, welcome "emotional" and make the Britain Great again. Real debate... nope. Real figures? Lies, all lies spun by EUcrats.
The Brits are just like every hypocrite - they belittle foreigners for everything foreign, but can't be f... to do those dirty, low paid jobs and don't mind at all profiting directly, as their employers, and indirectly, by paying lower prices in shops through those low paid job done by foreigners. They don't mind when the foreigners pay British taxes, but boil with indignation when they dare use the social services those taxes pay for. In short, they're just like every other nation in this world. Shock, horror, I tell you! So it is a true brexit, for both sides, I think.
And now they can't even admit the facts: that in many industries whatever incentive there was to do business in Britain, the incentive, post-brexit is GONE, and A LOT of business has - quietly, very quietly but also very steadily - been moving out of and away from the UK, because, hey, this is, like the membership in the EU, the downside of being a part of an open world. Business leaks to stabler markets, safer, steadier profits. And if the Brits want to re-invent themselves, sure, go ahead, but it appears they still haven't got a f... clue as to what they want to become, post-EU - and how to get there. But hey, why worry with such petty details, they will figure SOMETHING out, right? (facepalm)