As somebody who never thought that Brexit was an even halfway intelligent idea, watching the incipient fallout of the UK's withdrawal from the European Union is a delicious delight.
Oh, the sublime satisfaction of watching Brexiters spit feathers while wailing, "The Dutch/French/Spanish/Germans are being vile to us. It's not fair how they're treating us! Why are they treating us like this? If it wasn't for us, the French/Dutch would be speaking German."
Well, mateys, they're treating you the way you wanted to be treated: as a country that no longer belongs to the club that is the EU. The UK didn't want to be part of the single market or the customs union. It wanted to be completely separate from the EU. And now it is. And the Brexiters do not like the consequences at all.
Take, for example, the fact that - just as in the US, Australia or New Zealand (all English-speaking nations) - British people can no longer bring certain foodstuffs into EU countries. This meant that lorry drivers entering the Netherlands are now having certain foodstuffs taken away from them and destroyed.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/jan/11/dutch-officials-seize-ham-sandwiches-from-british-drivers
The reaction of Daily Mail readers is breath-taking: "We liberated the Dutch in 1944 and now they do this to us?" "Maybe we should have tulip-bulb sandwiches instead." "We should have left them to Hitler." "I'm never buying tulips and Dutch cheese again."
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9134685/Dutch-police-officers-laugh-British-truck-driver-confiscate-ham-sandwiches.html
Yesterday, there were reports on problems with fresh deliveries of fish in France. Under the new rules, UK fisherfolk can no longer land their catch in France. No, they have to land them in the UK and then export them to France. And because of all the extra paperwork, the fish and seafood are no longer arriving in France as fresh as they used to be. Some catches are spoilt - either in part or in full. The quality is, therefore, not good enough. This is why the French are suspending orders from UK fisherfolk.
https://www.reuters.com/article/britain-eu-france-fish/weve-lost-30-years-brexit-shatters-supply-chains-for-french-fish-hub-idUSL8N2JM5YG
What do the Daily Mail readers say? They say it's not fair. They say, "Well, that's why we left the EU." That is to say, they believe the French are being nasty to them so it's a good job they are no longer in the EU. They don't seem to realise that it is because they got what they wanted - to leave the EU - that this situation has come about. Really. Seriously. They are that stupid.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9139127/French-fishmongers-say-supply-chain-shattered-local-bureaucrats-enforcing-post-Brexit-red-tape.html
And it's still only 13 January, a time when trade is normally a bit on the low side. What will happen when things really get going again?
As McDonald's said so ungrammatically a while back "I'm lovin it".
Think positive. British fish are now happy. So, please, hold your tongue.
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