The Imperial Myths Driving Brexit
ALEX VON TUNZELMANN notes:
“For more than
three years, the world has watched Britain attempt to act on the result of its
2016 referendum and leave the European Union. Yet while the causes of the
Brexit vote were complex, the causes of the catastrophic handling of the Brexit
process might be familiar to anyone versed in imperial and postimperial
history.
They stem from what
appears to be a belief in British exceptionalism: the idea that Britain is
inherently different from, and superior to, other nations and empires….
Brexit is exposing
flaws in the British political system and culture, but they are not new.
Exceptionalist thinking has long helped insulate that system from the criticism
and reform it needs.”
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