I didn't vote in the referendum.

So it's over, it's done, the nation has spoken and we're out. I didn't vote, mind. That's right, I didn't vote in the EU referendum. Yes, I talk and comment on politics regularly (too much some would say), and I'm sure my reluctance to vote came as a surprise to some of my friends, it was a surprise to my family.  But what did I have to vote for? What was my choice? 

Vote out? Align myself with the far right, closet racists and the misinformed nationalists. Those who seek to remove our rights, relegate us to mere work drones living to work and working in poverty. No, I couldn't do that. Of course, that's not the whole picture at all. A huge number of Brexiteers were disenfranchised working class poor, abused and ignored by the establishment and marginalized to an existence in poverty.  I feel their pain and understand their anger, although not their view that immigrants have caused all their woes, they clearly haven't, it's the establishment who have. The same establishment, elements of whom, have pointed them towards the immigrants, and ironically the poor and sick, as their enemy. And, elements of whom have been actively directing the out campaign.  Voting out will not make the life of the poor and disenfranchised any better. On the contrary, out will mean more suffering, more pain, more disenfranchisement, more austerity and more hate and division. That will soon become apparent.

Or.

Vote in? Align myself with the far right, closet racists and the misinformed nationalists. Those who seek to remove our rights, relegate us to mere work drones living to work and working in poverty. Hang on! That all sounds a bit familiar.  I used to be a fan of the EU and understood the benefits it brought. One world, one people, and all that.  Although that was then. In recent years the EU has changed, embarking on a program of watering down employment rights and environmental protection to make us more competitive, embracing TTIP and as for what they did to Greece, well.  Many EU countries are moving to the right, some the far right. The EU continues to expand east, and with it NATO, purposely antagonizing Russia, in clear dereliction of the agreements and promises made at the time of Glasnost. Not to sound like an 'outer' the EU is becoming a monster, a powerful capitalist monster, at that.

Some not really much choice there. As a good friend of mine puts it, 'the opportunity to choose the least odious of two odious turds', again! I just can't participate in these charades, these illusions of choice, any more!

For 6 years those on benefits, those living in social housing, the sick, the disabled have been marginalized and scapegoated, blamed for the country's problems, pilloried and attacked by our government and the press. It was all us and the immigrants what done it. As I remember it, the EU didn't come to our  aid, the EU didn't step in to support us or hold the governments to account for said attacks. When you've been vilified by the government, the media and a population too wilfully ignorant and easily fooled to understand that it surely can't be the poorest in society that have taken all the money and brought the country to its knees, what stake do you have in society? Note, I'd say. No matter which side had won the referendum the attacks on the weak and vulnerable were guaranteed to continue; does it really matter who's kicking you, or how hard the kicks are? Not really, you just want it to stop. I wouldn't have voted out, but I couldn't vote in either, I had no reason or right to vote, I hold no stake in society, 6 years have made that clear.

The illusion of choice

So, we're off! It's time for us to decide which end of the shitty stick we'll grasp. Today the political pantomime around Britains' position in Europe has began in earnest. The actors, as with any good performance, are well versed in their lines and have taken to the stage with all the gusto of members of an armature dramatics company.  Don't misunderstand me, I didn't expect more, I long ago resigned myself to the nature and purpose of our political charade and its participants.  The charade was always most clearly visible around Europe. For the British Europe has always been a performance, a slight of hand using tried and tested set pieces, all spurious, all tired. Our leaders telling us angrily about ridiculous European rules (most of which didn't exist) we needed to fight against and how they'd stand and fight for us, whilst simultaneously doing shady back room deals to support their corporate friends and invariably being the first to sign the motions and treaties they shouted so loudly against. Europe has always been an exercise in smoke and mirror politics for the British establishment, so how could we expect that a referendum on the subject would be any different. I think it's a done deal, no real debate will be had and the real threats from what's developing in Europe will not be aired, nor will the real threats of leaving.

In my mind Europe was always a good thing, a hopeful thing. Europe gave us protection from the worst excesses of our political elites, it gave us stronger employment rights, environmental protections and human rights, it stood up for people over elite establishments and corporate interests, it would give us peace, prosperity and be a road to better more egalitarian future. I was all for it, who wouldn't be. Although sadly I have to say, in recent times I've seen Europe mutate, losing its way and its lustre. Slowly its motivations began to shift away from the good of the people to a more business orientated position, new allegiances with corporate interests were forged and blind eyes turned. The need to be competitivity was mooted, as was the need to water down some of our employment rights and environmental protections. Then Europe rounded on and destroyed Greece, and from the dark corners of Europe the right and nationalists spied their opportunity.  Whilst all the time in the background secretly European institutions worked on TTIP, hidden from the people TTIP will destroy all that is good about Europe and shift the notional power from the will of the people, to the will of the corporation. Corporations who will reign unhindered from the rule of law or sanction. Think of every despotic, dystopian scifi book you've read, that's it. Europe now doesn't appear so good, and the direction it's travelling in scares me, it should scare others too, but who knows? And, where's the real debate? All we're given are polarized half truths and blatant lies, delivered on the main by suited Marmite characters designed to divide and enrage; polarizing politicians and personalities, most with strings attached.  Even those politicians whose words I like and who I trust like Caroline Lucas appear to lack credibility on this topic, although I'm certain they're coming from a good place. There will be no working from the inside for change, merely hoping for better, and I see that as a forlorn hope. Love them for it though.

And if we leave Europe, do I think we'll fare any better? Bollocks do I! The arguments put forward by the 'Brexit' brigade have been examined, re-examined, dissected and found wanting on countless occasions. Enough to say It'll all be great. Of course. We'll need to be competitive, mind, we'll have to water down some of our employment rights and environmental protections. It's a free market out there, survival of the fittest, we'll need to be hungry. Of course we'll see the rise the right, you see we'll have to have national pride if we're to get on. And no one does national pride like the right. No dissenting now, or are you one of them! And TTIP, we'll need to embrace that if we're to trade freely. No, don't look at the detail, it'll be fine. Trust us, the government will say. Our notional power, that will have to shift from the will of the people, to the will of the corporation, we need them. It'll all be for our good and the good of the nation. Hang on, isn't that what Europe’s mooting, the direction they're travelling and what's actually happening now?

We can 'choose from phantom fears' Neil Peart told us and that will certainly be the case in the coming weeks, as the real things we should rightly be scared of will remain hidden. That's not the right type of fear, it's non profitable fear. So,  choice we've been given is, as I see it: we leave Europe, see the power of corporations, lobbyists and political elites run riot as our environmental safeguards, employment protection, human rights and public services are whittled away and our entire lives commodified; a dark scary Orwellian/ Dickian future of oppression, slavery and forever wars, for sure. Or, we stay in Europe, and see the power of corporations, lobbyists and political elites run riot as our environmental safeguards, employment protection, human rights and public services are whittled away and our entire lives commodified; a dark scary Orwellian/ Dickian future of oppression, slavery and forever wars, for sure. On the tick of a box we'll decide our futures, this is our 'choice'! It's not much of, if any, choice really. Though of course we've our freewill to decide. Which is nice. 

Neil also said that 'if you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice'. Sounds good, I'm really in no hurry to grab either end of this shitty stick.