Friday, March 11, 2011

On optimistic object of "Outism"...


An interesting post on EU Referendum today regarding the need for clear reasons to be expressed about the UK's future on getting out of the EU, not just the anti-EU stuff but A Postive Object. The post refers back to WW2 and how war isn't just about the fighting: modern' political issues in 1940, far from being just "War!", were being widely discussed, one such being European political integration: "all in the more general context of defining British "war aims". It was not simply enough to fight and win, we had to have a reason for fighting, or so the argument went."

Churchill wanted status quo and suppressed any debate on the issue; Richard Stokes, Labour MP for Ipswich, said to Churchill's Information Minister Duff Cooper (who apparently agreed there was a need for a statement on war aims) "[It] is no use fighting for a negative object. You must have a positive one, and the sooner that [is] stated the better". And hence to the present and the EU.
"It is all very well wanting to get out of the EU – the "negative object". But what would we do with our new-found freedom? Where is our "positive object"? Until we have one, we are going nowhere. We emerged from the war without one, and that is why we lost the peace."
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4 comments:

Paul said...

I heard somebody say recently that it must be difficult for foreigners to understand the British as we are so obsessed with our past - that's not a critque of this post by the way - but how we don't use that past for positive aims. I'd love to hear a positive argument for leaving the EU beyond the usual scare stories and financial discussions.

Span Ows said...

Well your final sentence is exactly what this post is saying (or the EU ref post that I am linking to), a pity really. I am sure there are positives: the Swiss and Norway situations for example.

Paul said...

Interesting you should mention Switzerland, an article in the Evening Standard says that all those city boys who moved there are coming home. Apparently life in Switzerland is full of so many silly rules (it's illegal to flush a toilet after 10 p.m apparently) and business red tape that they want to come back.

Norway has a certain appeal, part of Europe but not in Europe.

Span Ows said...

LOL! Imagine a session at the pub, a curry/kebab and home...and not be able to flush the loo! I had a friend who lived there for a few years and said it was "boring", not the sort of comment you expect from expats returning home.