Tuesday 21 November 2017

Socrates and Brexit



It's a little bit like when small children keep on asking "why?". It is perhaps a little bit more sophisticated. I'm currently posing a series of questions on my Twitter feed which also send them over to Facebook. Look out for them. Get involved.

I asked the other day about how exactly leaving the EU would benefit our children and grandchildren. I received no convincing answer. Soon there was quite an argument between Brexit supporters and Remainers. Both sides were talking with emotions and few used verifiable facts.
There were some opinions, and these are fine, either way. Many of the claims on both sides, however, were not backed up with critical evidence. 

I still feel duty-bound to persuade people Brexit is wrong. I find the Socrative method useful.
It's a matter of using open questions:
Why is Brexit good for our children and grandchildren?
How is trading with bigger countries better that trading with those close by?
What do you understand by Brexit?
What is it you dislike about the EU?
How have we lost our sovereignty to the EU?
So, what is the role of the Euro MP?     
How could the EU be reformed to make it work better?
How does leaving the EU make our borders safer?
How does leaving the EU help us to avoid food banks and homelessness?
What are the advantages of Brexit?

Of course, you must be able to answer the same questions about Remain. How confident are you about giving a well-reasoned, critically informed response to the following?
Why is remaining in the EU good for our children and grandchildren?
How is trading with bigger countries better that trading with those close by?
What do you understand by the EU?
What is it you dislike about Brexit?
How can we retain sovereignty and remain in the EU?
So, what is the role of the Euro MP?     
How could the EU be reformed to make it work better?
How does remaining in the EU impact on our borders?  
How does remaining in the EU help us to avoid food banks and homelessness?
What are the advantages of staying in the EU?

Now the kiddies' version.

Why is Brexit good for me?
Because we can make trade arrangements with bigger countries.
Why is it better to trade with bigger countries?
Because they have more to offer.
What do they have to offer that we can't get here?
Gas, oil, cheaper clothes.
Why are the clothes cheaper in bigger countries?
Because they can make them cheaper.
How do they make them cheaper?



Monday 6 November 2017

EU Funded projects





How will we do this in the future?

 

Arts

3D and 4D constructions on historical sites
Funded small press
Scottish poetry
Indie film Companies
International outreach  
Support for major gallery
Playwriting at a university
Animation companies

 

Education

PERFORM – science learning

Wales

Lido refurbished
Railway stations revamped
Waterfront museum  
Marina transformed
Town centres improved
Sailing academy established
A465 improved
University estate restructured
Historic house restored
Welsh language centre restored
High-tech research backed at a university
Flagship employment programme backed
Marin energy backed
Funds for under-20s rugby
Welsh food centre supported
Youth apprenticeships backed
Long-term sick helped into work
Masters in Finance backed
Welsh-Irish partnership backed

Towns

NEC Birmingham
John Lennon airport
Manchester Museum
Birmingham: International Conference Centre, Symphony Hall, Think Tank Museum,  City University,   

= tip of iceberg – Google  "EU funded projects in UK" for many, many more and the details about these.