The French say "non"!

[acw]

Anyone else feel slightly secretly pleased that they can now put off reading the EU constitution for a little longer?  Now that the French have rejected it, we shall not have a referendum on it for the foreseeable future.  Moreover, given that this probably means a need for ammendments, there's no point in reading it yet in an attempt to get ahead of the game!

Believe me, when the time comes I will get fully informed so that I can make an educated vote.  But for now, I'm just secretly pleased that I can put this off for a while.  I find EU stuff terribly dull, but it's important so I make myself take note.

Anyone else quietly pleased we can put off the big read for a little while longer?

[bernardo]

No I am not "slightly secretly pleased"; I am hugely openly delighted.

[Peter Pedant]

It's a good idea a bit like the Euro and then when you look at the small print.....

who said, the devil was in  the detail?

 

P P

[MargeB]

I'm scared witless. WWIII here we come. (no joke).

[Loosehead]

I'm with Bernardo, I'm delighted, the French have blown it out of the water, Yippee, it's the only time I can recall the French doing us a favour! The Dutch will add another coffin nail on Wednesday. I suppose it's now unnecessary to have our own referendum. For interest Sky news poll has a no at 72% if the vote where held now. 

[acw]

Just to clarify, rather than asking "Who is anti the EU referendum?", my question was pitched at more uninformed users asking "Who's pleased they don't have to bother finding out about it yet?". 

We're not going to go to war about it.  We could screw each other's economies, but we won't start bombing each other!

[Zen]

I very pleased,lets hope the Dutch follow suit. i have yet to meet anyone in this country who is in favour.

[acw]

This thread is just gonna turn into "Who's in favour of the EU constitution?" isn't it!?!?!  There's actually a thread on that precise debate here: http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/News/Question112985.html  Perhaps comments on pro or anti- constitution should be posted there. 

I'm talking about pro and anti- READING about the constitution!!  I'm asking about having to read up on it/take an active interest in European Politics and research the thing until we know enough to vote.  I'm asking who's relieved that we can continue (those of us who already are) to be lazy on the subject for a while longer!!!!

[Loosehead]

Read the detail by all means but three words decide it for me "Qualified Majority Voting". In other words veto gone on all but a few things, result: Britain shafted even more regularly. Mmm...

[MargeB]

I don't know if I like where this thread are going. I mean, all this french bashing.

For one thing, their women are much better looking than ours. Their food is fauntasteek. And their poetry...'Oh, ma jolie...'

I'll get me cloak

[Artful]

Over here everybody received a copy of the European Constitution. I know a few people who read none of it,  many people who read some of it and a handful who courageously read it all.

Nobody said it made fascinating reading but at least they it allowed them to make more of an educated vote. Many people who said it was rebarbative, chock a block of political jargon that couldn't me made head nor tail of

[acw]

Hence, lovely Artful, why I'm so pleased I don't have to read it yet!!!  Cos it looks BIG and if it's anything like any of the many European Court of Justice judgements I have read - it takes 100 pages to say it's piece, when 1 would have done!  If and when the time comes, I will TRY to read as much as possible so that I too can make an informed decision and vote well too! :-)

[Artful]

Continued...

Luckily as the referendum drew nearer debates grew more precise and often having a copy of the Constitution in front of one made for somewhat easier understanding of whatever they were blathering on and on and on about...

Anyway the NON came out tops and now everybody is more or less in a state of "What's going to happen next". Chirac made it fairly obvious last night he wasn't going to stand down and then this afternoon it was announced he was replacing Raffarin (at least that's something positive!). Now we wait to hear who he's being replaced by: Sarkozy? Villepin? M-A-M?

So Holland is next, Denmark isn't far behind and Poland feels it is in a dilemma as the Poles wonder what to do... All very, very complicated.

[MargeB]

REBARBATIVE. Great word.

[acw]

What are you trying to say MargeB?

[QmunkE]

Doesn't it have a nice helpful blurb, we could read that and see if it's the book, I mean treaty, for us?

[acw]

Maybe it'll be sold on Amazon or similar, and we can just rely on "other buyers' views and comments" or whatever that section is called!?  Problem with blurbs and abstracts is that they are usually somewhat skewed (sp?) by the author/editor/publisher! :-(

[Dom Tuk]

Is it stipulated anywhere that a 1000 page document like the constitution has to be put through every doorstep before the referendum. The french did it and at tremendous expense. If the referendum would have gone ahead here in the UK was the british govt proposing to do the same ie. push a large document through our letter boxes?. really what percentage of the french electorate read that document. Any figures??

[jno]

hmm, yes acw, on amazon: People who bought this constitution also bought... A la recherche du temps perdu, Mein Kampf and the Daily Mail.

[jno]

ooh, my 1000th answer, chocolate cake all round

[rushnowt]

MargeB why give one sensible answer when you can give three irrelevant answers.
acw   very pleased with the with the referendum result.