Re: obligitory
@AC
Dunno why its autoticking anon. Cheers for identifying. Didnt notice your second comment until I responded so edited*
"None of that makes me a dumbass"
Ok you seem to be taking it pretty badly to heart, sorry for upsetting you. Your rebuttal to the UK being a success is going to the IMF in the 70's. The EU is currently cap in hand to the IMF. So by your very standards of trying to argue to remain you argue to leave. By your measurement the EU is not a success.
"Especially the part where were are successful because of the ~50% of our exports going to the EU"
Why because? Are you sure its not despite? Or that we are a success because of the opt outs keeping us just on the edge of the EU membership? Saying 'because' is a hell of an assumption, and I am happy to discuss the possibility (I am willing to consider it) but I wont assume a place performing bad economic policy and inflicting economic harm is doing us good.
"I can only say it in so many different ways before you come across as "lalalalala not listening furrners lalala suvrintee""
Look to the first bit of this reply and you will see why I think the same about you. You tell me your wrong but are unhappy I dont think your right.
"What they have in common is that they are specialist or luxury goods."
So things to trade with. Its amazing, almost like in this world we can trade! Yes the jobs we do will change, thats because being in the EU has changed our jobs. Your assumption is for the better, that it would be worse.... why? Again thats one hell of an assumption we can talk about but why?
"On the global economy, we need to compete" "The EU offers some protection from that through tariffs and trade deals agreed with the collective bargaining power of 350 million consumers."
Meet the conflict. Be global by being protectionist. Trade with the world by hiding behind nationalist borders. The government doesnt do all that trade, it doesnt service all those customers. Look at the customers, in the US Trump makes their lives more expensive so in the EU they made our lives more expensive. The govs are obviously doing wonders for us. The EU is shrinking as a portion of global wealth. While they sit on their hands China is the one making the investments and expanding into the global trade.
"We helped bail out Ireland and Portugal, not Greece."
https://www.ft.com/content/6d92bbe2-2b04-11e5-8613-e7aedbb7bdb7
https://www.businessinsider.com/some-of-greeces-bailout-is-going-to-come-from-a-fund-contributed-to-by-britain-and-george-osborne-is-furious-2015-7?international=true&r=US&IR=T
https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-2104701/Greece-crisis-UK-contribute-1bn-second-110bn-bailout.html
"Still A believer in trickle down economics, I see."
Yes. Until I am proven wrong then yes. Your claim it doesnt help if the money is in London... who pays for your public services? If the country is richer then the public coffers are filled by it. People with more money buy more things and services. Throw out the money and so far we have seen many economies fail.
"Raised tensions because Russia feels threatened by our strength. Lets face it, united we are a superpower. Also: don't confuse the EU with NATO."
Aka dont you confuse the EU with NATO. Ukraine kicked off because a more EU sympathetic leader would replace the Russian sympathetic leader. And as I said the EU then puts it tail between its legs and run off to the US for protection. Not very strong.
"The Euro seems to be doing ok vs the £, I wonder why?"
You wonder? Read my comments then, its right there. Telling me the exchange rate looks good while ignoring the economies is stupid. As I pointed out look at the economies. So the currency might be good but the EZ isnt.
"FTFY The recession was global."
you fixed nothing. Repeating your mistakes doesnt fix anything. US and UK bounce out of recession, EZ not even close. So why is the wonderful utopia of the EU still sucking bad? Why is the EU still in such dire shape?
"Yes, Euro members were not able to just print money."
Thank you. They could not meet a liquidity shortage when they needed to.
"That doesn't make the Euro bad, it makes Greece of the time ill suited to be in the Euro."
True. The EZ is too big with no stabilization mechanism and so the economies pulling in different directions conflict with each other. The single currency causing harm.
"By world rankings, we come in a respectable 5th, but the ones above us are not just *slightly* bigger, but either multiple times our size - or members of the EU."
Look at the GDP rankings of your own chart, Germany is above us and the other 3 are outside the EU. In the top 10 6 of them are outside the EU! India in #6, do you want to be in the UK or India or China? What you point out is we are a big fish.
"We just don't carry the economic clout Leavers seem to think we do"
By your own chart that is a lie. By our net contributing to the EU thats a lie. The frail little England that remain seems to believe in doesnt seem to exist. And without that the dream that we need to hide from the world and be protected by the mighty but weak EU doesnt stand. Personally I dont think its either of the extremes.
"They had other options, they could have left the Eurozone, they could have left the EU, but chose the least worst approach of accepting the bailout, even if begrudgingly."
Yup. The EU bought the private debt, made it EU debt and squeezed the Greeks badly. Not very friendly but saved the currency at the expense of people.
"We even got an exception the for "ever closer union""
Which fits for as long as the EU is nice enough not to force us into ever close union. And it wont be hard with a Blair selling the country or a May desperate to remain. Just as we were exempt from bailing out Greece.