This is the Platonic Ideal of a Daily Express front page.
The idea that the Daily Express would somehow be able to change Britain’s timezone was stupid. The idea that the Daily Express can single-handedly tear Britain out of the EU however is just plain cute. It’s a bit like watching a puppy try to take part in an Olympic marathon. You know it hasn’t a hope in hell of succeeding, but simply the idea that it thinks it can win makes you go “Aww” against your better judgement.
Just as last time, they claimed that 29 million people supported them based on a survey of a few thousand, the Express is once again overstating support for its crusade – which I remind you only started today – by quoting a few Eurosceptics and claiming that they represent “a huge groundswell of support … gathering behind the Daily Express Crusade“, and that the Daily Express running a front page piece about how it doesn’t like Europe is “a turning point in the battle to win back Britain’s independence“.
Edit: Now they’re claiming that “99 per cent of people agree we should quit the European Union“, when of course what they actually mean is that 99% of Express readers with a strong enough opinion to ring a premium rate number buried somewhere in the newspaper agree. Via Primly Stable and Enemies of Reason.
Anyway, as you might expect, the Express gets maybe a wee bit overenthusiastic, claiming that unemployment is high in EU because politicians are for some reason deliberately sabotaging recovery with “new job-destroying regulations” and running with a “what have the Romans ever done for us?” argument that “Almost nothing the EU has proposed or enacted has benefited Britain“.
Perhaps the ‘best’ part of the article though is when they move past mangled memories of Black Wednesday and the claims that the only difference between us and Switzerland is EU membership, and move onto history. Now, the Daily Express is always complaining that schools aren’t teaching history properly, but instead twist it to their own ideological ends. Well, I’m sure the Express won’t stoop to that lev…
The creation of the EU is explained by the perfectly understandable desire to avoid further conflict on a continent that had been the scene of two world wars.
But Britain is a land apart: A precious stone set in the silver sea, as Shakespeare so evocatively put it; a realm with a glorious island story stretching back a thousand years, with links to every continent and a language taken up throughout the world.
You know, completely unlike a France, a realm with a glorious story stretching back a thousand years with links to every continent and a language taken up throughout the world.
Or Spain, a realm with a glorious story stretching back a thousand years, with links to every continent and a language taken up throughout the world.
Or Portugal, a realm with a glorious story stretching back a thousand years, with links to every continent and a language taken up throughout the world.
Or the Netherlands, a realm with a glorious story stretching back a thousand years, with links to every continent and a language taken up throughout the world.
Anyway, I’m surprised the Express, usually rather big on the whole remembrance thing, forgets which country suffered massive economic damage as a result of those two world wars, and therefore may have a bit of an interest in preventing another one happening. Here’s a hint, it was us.
Atomic Spin 
#1 by dave on Thursday, 25th November 2010 - 18:11 GMT+0100
Whilever there are sandal wearing left wingers like you the aggressors will walk all over us. You must believe that freedom is a right. Get real mate, it has to be fought for. when one of your mates is blown apart next to you you’ll understand. but that won’t happen to you will it?
Quote. Thomas Jefferson: “The price of freedom is constant vigilance.” We have the EU coming from the north and islam from the south. Enjoy.
#2 by atomicspin on Thursday, 25th November 2010 - 19:39 GMT+0100
If one of my mates is ever blown apart by the European Union then I’m sure I’ll be rather angry. Until then, forgive me if I don’t see the EU as an “aggressor”. And we don’t fight for freedom, we fight to protect people’s freedom. It’s a minor quibble, but the fighting itself is not what produces the freedom.
Anyway, you (or least someone who was probably not actually Jefferson) say that “The price of freedom is constant vigilance”. So what’s wrong with being vigilant against the media’s constants lies and misrepresentations of the truth in order to push forward their own political agenda – surely that’s one of the biggest threats to freedom there is?
For example, you mention Islam. Fair enough, we should be vigilant about the actions of islamist extremist groups, just as we should be vigilant about any extremist group looking to push its beliefs with violence. But we should be just as vigilant about the press – and society in general – using the existence of these extremists to infringe on the freedom of peaceful, moderate Muslims by, for example, treating them all as if they could potentially be a terrorist.
Likewise, this is a clear example of the Daily Express trying to influence political opinion with dodgy reporting. Regardless of whether or not you agree with how the EU is run, you can’t claim this is a balanced, factually accurate review of the EU’s powers.
For instance, “The past two decades of European integration have turned mainland Europe’s economies from some of the world’s industrial powerhouses into also-rans, stuck in the global slow lane.” In fact, in the last decade, France’s economy has grown 40% (GDP PPP per capita – obviously these will be affected weirdly by inflation, but the PPP adjustment hopefully means they’re fairly comparable), Germany’s has grown 51%, the UK’s has grown 63% and Spain’s has grown 91%, while Japan’s has grown 42% and the USA’s has grown 37%. That doesn’t sound like Europe’s stuck in the “global slow lane” at all.
This is why I will fight articles like these. A fair debate about Europe – about anything, in fact – is a great thing, but twisting of the truth like this denies people the freedom to make a informed choice about issues that affect them.
Oh, and you should possibly take a look at a map sometime; Europe is not north of Britain, it’s mostly south and east of us.
#3 by Primly Stable on Friday, 26th November 2010 - 10:14 GMT+0100
They ran a phone poll yesterday and guess what! 99 per cent of Express readers think we should “leave Europe”.