This week’s announcement that Britain voted to leave the European Union seemed to shock people. People wrongly take is as a done deal. It’s not. Much is possible.

What makes Britain Britain? What makes England different from Scotland? What makes the EU a bunch of separate countries, or one union? Simply what people say.

All these things are based on agreement. And now, a slim majority say that Britain should exit the EU. It’s supposed to take 2 years. Two years is a long time. It need not happen. There are alternatives.

There many seem to be no other alternatives. Britain is either in, or out. But there are tons of options. Anything that can be described in language.

Note also that Brits voted for exit by a slim margin of 52% to 48%. 72% of Brits voted, so if they take a new vote, there are plenty more people who can sway it either way. And the vote isn’t binding- Parliament must ratify it, but can overturn it.

The main objection Brits seem to have to being part of the EU is the immigration. As poorer nations join the EU, many people have migrated. Maybe some new rules could satisfy them. If everything stays the same except they curtail immigration, maybe they’d stay. The EU can negotiate anything they want.

For a good article about the pros and cons, see this one by the BBC. In summary, it says:

They said Britain was being held back by the EU, which they said imposed too many rules on business and charged billions of pounds a year in membership fees for little in return. They also wanted Britain to take back full control of its borders and reduce the number of people coming here to live and/or work.

One of the main principles of EU membership is “free movement”, which means you don’t need to get a visa to go and live in another EU country. The Leave campaign also objected to the idea of “ever closer union” and what they see as moves towards the creation of a “United States of Europe”.

For another view, see this article in The Week.

One of the dangers of Britain leaving, and then trying to negotiate free trade deals is that EU countries would want to punish Britain to discourage other countries from leaving. That’s certainly possible, but it’s childish. There’s also an opportunity to reform the EU with its many rules that countries complain about, or make a unique deal with Britain to reform immigration. They could even make a temporary separation agreement to see how things go. Anything is possible when people converse like adults.

The real question is, can they talk about their desires constructively? And, whose desires? The various government representatives, or the people?