Brexit Day has arrived

@Asylum (47893)
Manchester, England
June 23, 2016 4:10am CST
For those who may not be aware of the term, Brexit is the name coined to describe the referendum on whether Britain should Exit the European Union. This is the day that the majority of the British public have been eagerly awaiting. The polling stations are open from 7 AM to 10 PM and I expect a larger level of voting today than we ever get for a general election. There have been many polls on the topic over recent days, although in reality we have absolutely no idea what the final outcome will be. It is unlikely that the final results will be availabler until the early hours of tomorrow, but I shall be watching with great interest to see the outcome.
19 people like this
17 responses
@WorDazza (15833)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
I have already voted and unlike my belly button, I'm an outy!! For me it's mostly about the fact that EU laws are made by an un-elected commission making it an extremely undemocratic organisation. I believe the term "punished" has been used from within the EU as to what must be done to the UK if we decide to leave. Not really much of a place to be if the best way to prevent people from leaving is to threaten to punish them. I'm all for free trade agreements but I really don't see why we have to be the political playthings of an unelected group to achieve that. Even Len McCluskey said that the expansion of the EU to incorporate Eastern European countries was a massive economic experiment at the expense of the ordinary working man. And why do so many big businesses want us to stay in? Simple! Easy access to a cheap labour force! I find it strange that so many 'remain' supporters I know are so anti-globalisation yet the creeping homogenisation of European countries is a sure fire way to ensure globalisation continues apace.
7 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
@WorDazza Those who are undecided should consider the available options. If Britain leaves she can always rejoin, despite what some would have us think, but if we remain there will be no going back on the decision.
3 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
That makes 2 LEAVE votes so far, so we just need a few more million. There are many issues that people do not even consider. A perfect example is that if a British politician wishes to introduce an unpopular piece of legislation, they simply claim that it is an EU mandate.
3 people like this
@WorDazza (15833)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
@Asylum Well my household is 3 - 1 in favour of leaving and at least 6 other people I know are definite leave voters. Quite a few more were, as of yesterday, undecided but swaying towards leave mainly thanks to the intervention of a certain Mr. Jean-Claude Juncker.
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (458091)
• Switzerland
23 Jun 16
For no apparent reason, the stock exchanges index are up this morning. We still know nothing and we will know nothing until tomorrow. If you exit, we will be two among the European countries not to be part of the Union and to have our own currency.
4 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
We were thinking of leaving and offering Switzerland as a replacement.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (458091)
• Switzerland
23 Jun 16
@Asylum Switzerland already voted and it was a NO. Now for 8 years we cannot repeat the question and the vote.
3 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
@LadyDuck If Britain votes LEAVE then it will be interesting to see how many other members states hold a referendum.
3 people like this
• Preston, England
26 Jun 16
the devastation the result has caused is making many pro-leave voters regret what they did - we need a time machine now more than ever
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
26 Jun 16
The only devastation that has resulted is simply panic along with a media striving for the usual sensationalism. The process will take 2 years and has not even begun yet, so all problems are imaginary. I have no regrets about the way I voted.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
26 Jun 16
@arthurchappell The stock market fluctuations are a panic reaction and do not reflect the true value of the companies, which has not changed. Scotland having a new referendum and house prices going down the pan are both pure speculation.
1 person likes this
• Preston, England
26 Jun 16
@Asylum Nicola Sturgeon is already pressing for the Scots to go to referendum - that is not speculation, it seems inevitable
1 person likes this
@Wordly1 (470)
• Kingston, New Hampshire
23 Jun 16
England is at a critical point of it's history. With all governments leaning toward socialism and the influx of illegal immigrant 'so called refugees', I think it's high time Britain looked out for Herself. Best of luck and God's Blessing.
3 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
This is becoming a major problem and Britain is not even being allowed to govern it's own borders these days.
2 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
@Wordly1 I am surprised that such information is available, although it comes as no surprise to me.
1 person likes this
@Wordly1 (470)
• Kingston, New Hampshire
23 Jun 16
@Asylum From a News clip I read recently, it seems that the Queen, herself, is not really fond of the EU.
2 people like this
@blitzfrick (2890)
• United States
23 Jun 16
I watched as the EU treated Greece so shamefully. What arrogance! What bullying! As an American my sayso carries no weight whatsoever, but I'd love to see the EU crumble. I like Europe with individual countries with their own currency and controlling their own destinies.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
Greece has been treated badly in many ways. During the massive influx of refugees last year there were thousands arriving by boat on Greek shores. The EU criticised Greece and demanded that Greece defended our borders better, but the EU refused any financial support to assist them. My biggest grievance is the way that Germany believe they have the right to govern the whole union.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
24 Jun 16
@blitzfrick Hopefully we can say Auf Wiedersehen to Angela Merkel tomorrow, but it is still too early to tell.
1 person likes this
• United States
24 Jun 16
@Asylum I agree with you 100%
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (325759)
• Rockingham, Australia
23 Jun 16
And at least half the world will be watching with you! History could start to be rewritten on this day.
2 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
@JudyEv They are making many claims without offering any real justification, which is pure conjecture.
2 people like this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
Yes, this has been a great surprise to me. In my opinion it should only be of interest to Britain and the EU, but the USA has taken a great interest. I never expected this referendum to attract such global attention.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (325759)
• Rockingham, Australia
23 Jun 16
@Asylum They are saying it could have a huge impact on our economy too. There would be wide-reaching ramifications.
1 person likes this
@hereandthere (45651)
• Philippines
23 Jun 16
i wonder how many filipinos are qualified to vote there and what their preference would be.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
Very few I should imagine because they would have to be British citizens. There are no doubt some but I cannot imagine very many.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
@hereandthere No, I shall be calling there soon on my way into the city. This will be the first time that I have bothered to vote in 10 years.
2 people like this
• Philippines
23 Jun 16
@Asylum have you cast your vote already?
1 person likes this
@garymarsh6 (23393)
• United Kingdom
26 Jun 16
Well I have been and casted my vote. It was only a fluke that I noticed as we were on our way to our usual polling station that we noticed they had moved it. I may have a suspicious mind but it made me even more determined to cast my vote. I have never had to queue in my life to vote so this was a surprise which just showed how the populace were interested in doing the right thing!
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
26 Jun 16
The turnout was extremely high, which was naturally expected. This was also the first real democratic vote during my lifetime, yet some people are still complaining.
@just4him (306196)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
23 Jun 16
I hope it goes well.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
For me "Going well" would equate to a vote to leave the EU.
@Lucky15 (37346)
• Philippines
23 Jun 16
How is it? Heard it just over the news yesterday
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
The voting has closed now but no results are in yet.
1 person likes this
@Mike197602 (15487)
• United Kingdom
23 Jun 16
I hope the outies win but I'm pretty sure remain will win.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
It is really difficult to assess, so I shall simply wait and see.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
@Mike197602 The voting ends in 6 hours, so your estimate sounds about right to me.
1 person likes this
@Mike197602 (15487)
• United Kingdom
23 Jun 16
@Asylum shouldn't be long now...maybe 12 hours or so.
1 person likes this
• United States
23 Jun 16
I hope it goes the way you hoped it would. The financial world is in a frenzy here today.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
24 Jun 16
The British Pound rose rapidly this week and has fallen a great deal during the past hour, but this is just speculation and constitutes inaccurate figures.
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
24 Jun 16
@Jeanniemaries I wish that I had purchased Euros yesterday while the British Pound was unrealistically high.
• United States
24 Jun 16
@Asylum Today would be a good day to buy stocks.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109857)
• Los Angeles, California
23 Jun 16
I think this voting will be larger than any PM election.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
That is virtually certain because most people have very strong views one way or the other.
@responsiveme (22926)
• India
24 Jun 16
I am aware of the term as the news is being covered extensively in my morning paper, but it doesn't really affect me much. The news about Jo Cox's murder is a shocking and unwanted part of it for all sane people. Also , because the media like to play with words there was a "Rexit " news for India which had greater significance for Indians.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
24 Jun 16
Then you will probably already be aware that Britain has voted to leave the EU.
1 person likes this
• India
24 Jun 16
@Asylum yes that too.
1 person likes this
@Inlemay (17714)
• South Africa
23 Jun 16
Well I am no political expert therefore I cannot say a word on this and the news is saying "are the British In or Out?" time will tell - I see the pound is a little down on the RAND exchange today, but not much
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
This happens at every major election or referendum, stock markets fluctuate in anticipation of a result that we cannot even guess. The same happened when Scotland voted on whether to remain in Great Britain.
1 person likes this
@Macarrosel (7498)
• Philippines
23 Jun 16
Oh, I think I miss the news about Brexit for I have no idea about it. Well, the word Brexit catch my attention for it is a nice name for a pet dog.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
That would be a great name for a dog. This referendum is only of real importance to Britain and the European Union, although the USA seems very interested in the outcome.
@tzwrites (4835)
• Romania
23 Jun 16
I hope Britain stays because I think there will be economic problems if they leave, but who knows, I'm waiting to see what the results are.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
23 Jun 16
Many people have claimed the risk of economic issues in the case of a LEAVE vote, but none have offered any justifiable reason.