The United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union … a done deal? Not so fast.
The ballot could not have been simpler or clearer. Should the United Kingdom Remain in or Leave the European Union? The Leave side beat the Remain side, 52% to 48%. Close, but a clear victory for the Leavers. Right?
Well, maybe.
It now seems many of the Leavers are claiming they “mis-voted.” They actually want to remain in the European Union but cast a Leave vote as a form of protest. They are claiming they never believed their vote would matter as the Remain side was sure to carry the day. A new second ballot, some Leavers are suggesting, is in order.
An online petition for a UK revote has been organized, with over 3.5 million signatures collected to date.
While in theory anything is possible, do not expect a do-over vote based on what amounts to sour grapes. For proper Brits, it would be so undemocratic!
There is one plausible complaint, however, which could very well trigger a revote … the ballot was so simple as to be confusing!
Nowhere in the ballot is the word “leave” defined.
The Cambridge English Dictionary gives multiple definitions of “leave.” One is to go away from someone or something, for a short time or permanently.
As one can plainly see, the ballot does not indicate if the leaving is temporary (separation) or permanent (divorce). “Leave” can also mean ” allow to remain,” as in “Lets take out these ingredients but leave the rest in.”
The master of word meanings, Bill Clinton, is an excellent guide here. What can seem so plain on its face can actually be quite difficult to decipher. Everything needs to be properly defined.
Contending that his statement that “there’s nothing going on between us” had been truthful because he had no ongoing relationship with Monica Lewinsky at the time he was questioned, Clinton said, “It depends upon what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.”
The Brits are sticklers for the proper use of their language. Some who voted to “brexit” can argue with a straight face, and logic on their side, they did not know what the meaning of “leave” was.
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