Ɖs z ɖ last xit t Brexit. Bt in truʈ, ɖr wz onli evr wn rod
(Transcription of an article published in the Guardian on 8 December 2020)
Eni dīl wl b a tred-of btwn wlʈ n sovṛnti – ɖ pṛporśn n tîmscel r ɖ onli cnsiḍreśnz
Rafel Bẹr, 8 Dsmbr 2020
Ɖr z wn Brexit dīl. Ɖr hz onli evr bn wn. It hz bn ɖr fṛm ɖ start, olɖo hard t si ʈru ɖ fog. Its ǎtlîn hz bn dsrṇbl bhnd plūmz v reṭric n misinf̣meśn bilowñ ǎt fṛm ɖ Wsminstr p’liticl mśīn. It wz ɖr on ɖ hrîzn ɖ mornñ aftr ɖ ref̣rendm. It hz nt muvd jrñ ɖ ʈǎzndz v aurz v dbet ɖt foloud.
Ɖ dīl wz olrdi cntend in articl 50. It wz in evri bil in evri lêt-nît Comnz vot. It wz in T’rīza Me’z bacstop n Boris Jonsn’z oltrṇtiv. It z ɖ hard crṇl v a soft Brexit n ɖ soft unḍbeli v a hard wn. It z ɖ capitl v Norwījn, Cnedịn n Ostrełn-stîl Brexits. It z ɖs: ɖ YC wl gv p wlʈ in xćenj fr sovṛnti. .
In ẃt pṛporśnz n ovr ẃt tîmscel z ɖ onli riyl subjict v ngośieśn. Ẃɖr ɖt xćenj śd b md at ol z ɖ isnśl difṛns btwn līvrz n rmenrz. Ɖ s’nario w nǎ cōl “no dīl” z a we v dscrîbñ ɖ hîist prîs fr ɖ larjist porśn v sovṛnti. Ɖ trīti ɖt Jonsn mt agri in an 11ʈ aur trip t Bruslz dscrîbz a difṛnt trnzax́n yzñ ɖ sem forḿla.
Ɖ wlʈ-fr-sovṛnti xćenjret z nt dtrmind bî campenproṃsz, nr z it pegd t ɖ lebîl mūd v Cnsrvtiv MPz. It z a fuñśn v ic̣nomic n stṛtījic graṿti – ɖ difṛns in tredñmas btwn ɖ YC on its ǒn n ɖ cmbînd heft v 27 YY cuntriz. Brex̣tirz hd plenti v tūlz fr śepñ ɖ we ɖt rleśnśp wz psivd bî a Britiś ōdịns, bt ɖr wz nʈñ in ɖ box ɖt cd ćenj ɖ acćl dispziśn v forsz, nr enʈñ t pswed Yṛpiyn līdrz t sspnd ɖer ǒn aprezl v riaḷti.
Folowñ ɖ prínsipl ɖt evrʈñ lcs lîc a nêl t a man wɖ onli a hamr, Jonsn hz pǎndd awe at ɖ dmestic sîd v Brexit n dstortd ɖ śep v Britiś poḷtics. Cnvnśnz hv bn flatnd; lojic hz bn twistd; truɖz hv bn pulṿrîzd. Bt stl ɖ facts ɖt mc ɖ dīl r unćenjd.
Līvrz startd fṛm a pziśn v dnayl ɖt sovṛnti hd eni prîs at ol – ɖt Brexit wz ol upsîd. Ɖt ces restd on tū pilrz. Frst wz ɖ îdīa ɖt YY membrśp wz a drag on Britn, an unwontd sbscripśnsrvis ɖt cd b cansld n ɖ muni rīdirectd t betr cōzz.
Secnd wz ɖ b’lif ɖt Yṛpiynz wd b so sad t lūz axes t Britiś marcits ɖt ɖe wd agri t cntiny smʈñ lîc ɖ old srvis wɖt ćarj. Ɖoz ʈñz wr nt tru, bt ɖ Brex̣tirz b’livd ɖe cd b md tru bî fors v cnvix́n n a mor agresiv ngośietñstans.
Mnẃl, rmenrz sw ɖ hol dīl az a scam. Ɖ prîs wz tù hî n ɖ sovṛnti biyñ bòt wz wrʈlis. It cd nt mc Britn hefti inuf in ɖ wrld t rîvl Wośñtn or Bêźñ. Ɖr wz mor globl līṿrij aveḷbl fṛm a sīt at YY sumits in Bruslz. Ɖ bst dīl on sovṛnti wz ɖrfr ɖ wn ɖt invstd ɖ hol pot in ɖ Yṛpiyn project.
Bt ɖt arğmnt hz nvr hd trax́n wɖ līvrz. Ɖ clem ɖt Brexit hz no valy z palṗbl nonsns t tnz v miłnz v ppl hu, bî ɖ act v votñ, bstoud it wɖ pṛfǎnd imośnl sgnificns. Sovṛnti sǎndz lîc indipndns ẃć z smʈñ ppl wont fr ɖmslvz n ɖer cuntri. Mni cd olso ʈnc v concrīt beṇfits fṛm ōtoṇmi in lw-mcñ. Ofn ɖoz ʈñz wr crīćrz fṛm Yrosceptic miʈoḷji – frīdm t d ʈñz ɖt Bruslz hd nvr stopt Britn fṛm dwñ – bt nt olwz. Enwn hu wontd a tufr iṃgreśnreźīm, fr xampl, wl gt wn fṛm Brexit. Fr libṛl rmenrz, ɖt z jst anɖr cost.
Ɖ tū trîbz meźr ɖ iśuz on cmplitli difṛnt scelz, n wl cntiny t d so. Pro-Yṛpiynz wl b dis’pôntd f ɖe antiṣpet sm dfiṇtiv momnt v vindceśn, ẃn ɖ bil landz fr ɖ holo mońmnt t sovṛnti ɖt Jonsn z irectñ at vast naśnl xpns.
Rstrictd axes t Yṛpiyn marcits wl tec a tol in jobz n forgon groʈ. Bt ɖr wl b foṛnrz n a pandemic t blem. Ɖ p’liticl frṇsz wl fîr p, insiṇretñ ɖ evidns prizntd bî icoṇmists n pumpñ ǎt ɖ sem p’lūtñ clǎd v spīśs arğmnt. A sprñtîm bǎns-bac in GDP – a sttisticl nir-srtnti gvn ɖ depʈ v ɖ Covid-indyst slump – wl b cast az a Brexit liḅreśndiṿdnd.
Ɖ tricịr part wl b cnvrtñ reğletri sovṛnti intu mtirịl pêbac t līv̦otrz. Jonsn’z śîni mońmnt canot b mltd dǎn n mintd intu cônz fr ppl huz jobz hv vaniśt bcz ɖ s’plî ćen in ẃć ɖe wrct hz bn rīrùtd via Sḷvacia. Ōtoṇmi fṛm YY rūlz afordz sm lìwe t subṣdîz inḍstri, bt most Tōriz r îdịlojicli rpeld bî ɖ îdīa v guvnmnt picñ ic̣nomic winrz. Ɖ Yrosceptic instñt tndz ɖ uɖr we, aplayñ marcitforsz az ɖ reṃdi t eni mleiz, cutñ taxz n reğleśn t prj ɖ bodipoḷtic v stet-indyst leʈ̇ji. Straṭjists in Dǎnñ Strīt nǒ ɖt sć meḍsin wd b pôzn t votrz in formr Lebr stroñholdz ɖt mc p ɖ prîm̦inistr’z ny pǎrbes.
On ɖ inṭnaśnl stej, Jonsn’z paḍlñpūl v sovṛnti wl ivaṗret in no tîm. Jo Bîdn z a frend v ɖ Yṛpiyn project n intndz t mc ɖt ɖ axis fr rnywl v alaynsz ɖt Doṇld Trump dspîzd. Paris n Brlin rsipṛcet īgrli. Wn v ɖ ynīc streñʈs v Britiś foṛn poḷsi yst t b srvñ az ɖ stṛtījic linc btwn Wośñtn n conṭnntl Yṛp. YY membrśp wz ɖ brij, n nǎ it z brnt. It canot b rbilt wɖ ɖ recrz’ tūlz. Ɖt mesij hz rīćt Nu. 10, jujñ bî Tyzde’z rtrit fṛm planz t rpydiet ɖ Brexit wɖdrwl’grīmnt, bt ɖ līgl tantṛm wl nt b fgotn qcli.
Jonsn ingejz in ɖt cnd v brincmnśp bcz h ʈncs it śoz streñʈ, bt it hz ɖ oṗzit ifct. Enwn lcñ fṛm ɖ ǎtsd cn si ɖ strucćṛl wìcnis v hiz pziśn rgardlis v ɖ hrǒic pozz h strîcs. Evri tîm h plz sm stunt t demnstret hǎ sirịs h z abt Brexit fr a dmestic ōdịns, h advtîzz ɖ foli v ɖ ʈñ in ɖ inṭnaśnl arīna. H hz boroud heṿli agnst Britn’z repyteśn az a levl-hedd, pragmatic cuntri n rlaybl alî, jst t prćis a fy mor ǎnsz v sovṛnti. It ol hz t b peid bac. Bt ɖt z ɖ dīl. Ɖt wz olwz ɖ dīl.
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