General > General Technical Chat
BREXIT - what it means for small manufacturers
SilverSolder:
--- Quote from: Cerebus on December 16, 2020, 09:03:08 pm ---
--- Quote from: schmitt trigger on December 16, 2020, 06:54:02 pm ---My personal take, as an EU outsider who has traveled extensively to Europe for over 40 years, is that since the EU’s inception, individual countries have become less individual and more homogenized, more “European” for lack of a better term.
It is something very subtle, and can’t really pinpoint anything in particular or that sticks out. But there is something in the background.
Again, this is only my personal perception. I could be full of it.
--- End quote ---
I think you're right. Part of it is the effective dismantling of borders. I know quite a few Europeans who live near borders and nowadays don't think anything of popping into another country to do some shopping, or go for a meal. Before the 'free movement' era that was something that was highly unlikely to do on a whim, you'd at least need your passport, you'd have to do some advanced planning in some cases. (Britain has been the odd man out in this regard, as there's a dirty great strip of water in the way between us and everybody else.)
Over the past 25 years I've done a fair bit of working around Europe on occasion; I definitely get the feeling that there is much less of a tendency for Europeans to think of Europeans from other countries as 'foreigners' in quite the same way they would have 30, 40, perhaps 50 years ago.
--- End quote ---
Wonder if there is a correlation between a country being isolated by geographic features (water, mountains) and "feeling very sovereign"?
schmitt trigger:
Might be.
Even from my very first time in Europe, I was amused that Brits would describe people across the channel as “Continentals”.
Back then and previous to the EU, one could purchase an Eurail Pass which would be honored by all of the Western European countries. With the exception of the UK.
coppice:
--- Quote from: SilverSolder on December 16, 2020, 09:38:23 pm ---
--- Quote from: Cerebus on December 16, 2020, 09:03:08 pm ---
--- Quote from: schmitt trigger on December 16, 2020, 06:54:02 pm ---My personal take, as an EU outsider who has traveled extensively to Europe for over 40 years, is that since the EU’s inception, individual countries have become less individual and more homogenized, more “European” for lack of a better term.
It is something very subtle, and can’t really pinpoint anything in particular or that sticks out. But there is something in the background.
Again, this is only my personal perception. I could be full of it.
--- End quote ---
I think you're right. Part of it is the effective dismantling of borders. I know quite a few Europeans who live near borders and nowadays don't think anything of popping into another country to do some shopping, or go for a meal. Before the 'free movement' era that was something that was highly unlikely to do on a whim, you'd at least need your passport, you'd have to do some advanced planning in some cases. (Britain has been the odd man out in this regard, as there's a dirty great strip of water in the way between us and everybody else.)
Over the past 25 years I've done a fair bit of working around Europe on occasion; I definitely get the feeling that there is much less of a tendency for Europeans to think of Europeans from other countries as 'foreigners' in quite the same way they would have 30, 40, perhaps 50 years ago.
--- End quote ---
Wonder if there is a correlation between a country being isolated by geographic features (water, mountains) and "feeling very sovereign"?
--- End quote ---
When I've had discussions about the EU over dinner with people from various EU countries, most people seem very much against the EU moving towards a United States of Europe, but very much in favour of relaxed borders. My impression is the desire for sovereignty is widespread, and quite separate from having the more casual flow of people across borders we see today.
SilverSolder:
--- Quote from: coppice on December 16, 2020, 10:21:06 pm ---
--- Quote from: SilverSolder on December 16, 2020, 09:38:23 pm ---
--- Quote from: Cerebus on December 16, 2020, 09:03:08 pm ---
--- Quote from: schmitt trigger on December 16, 2020, 06:54:02 pm ---My personal take, as an EU outsider who has traveled extensively to Europe for over 40 years, is that since the EU’s inception, individual countries have become less individual and more homogenized, more “European” for lack of a better term.
It is something very subtle, and can’t really pinpoint anything in particular or that sticks out. But there is something in the background.
Again, this is only my personal perception. I could be full of it.
--- End quote ---
I think you're right. Part of it is the effective dismantling of borders. I know quite a few Europeans who live near borders and nowadays don't think anything of popping into another country to do some shopping, or go for a meal. Before the 'free movement' era that was something that was highly unlikely to do on a whim, you'd at least need your passport, you'd have to do some advanced planning in some cases. (Britain has been the odd man out in this regard, as there's a dirty great strip of water in the way between us and everybody else.)
Over the past 25 years I've done a fair bit of working around Europe on occasion; I definitely get the feeling that there is much less of a tendency for Europeans to think of Europeans from other countries as 'foreigners' in quite the same way they would have 30, 40, perhaps 50 years ago.
--- End quote ---
Wonder if there is a correlation between a country being isolated by geographic features (water, mountains) and "feeling very sovereign"?
--- End quote ---
When I've had discussions about the EU over dinner with people from various EU countries, most people seem very much against the EU moving towards a United States of Europe, but very much in favour of relaxed borders. My impression is the desire for sovereignty is widespread, and quite separate from having the more casual flow of people across borders we see today.
--- End quote ---
The way my Continental family/friends view it is - in general - that the EU is a "lesser evil" and they think it is good that they have a say and a veto. There seems to be a general sense that if there wasn't an EU, one would have to be invented and it would end up looking not too different from what we have.
I agree that the balance between local and federal power in the EU shouldn't be pushed too far towards the federal model. The EU must not slide into the kind of messy politics that we have seen e.g. in the United States on the federal level - that would more than reason enough for me to vote Leave!
VK3DRB:
The Poms could get some leverage out of Brexit, like having imported or locally produced electronic products not having to comply with the EU's ridiculous CE Radio Emissions Directive (CE RED). You cannot sell a $5 AM radio is the EU without having it comply with this RED directive. CE RED is bureaucracy gone mad, resulting in huge compliance testing costs and extended delays in getting product to market. It gets a lot more costly if you design device with two transceivers, like Bluetooth and WiFi using a third party module in your product. Change the plastic enclosure a slight amount, and you have to retest the lot again. The only winners are the regulatory compliance test houses. The Poms will do well to dump this European CE RED stupidity, and adopt something more sensible like Australia's regulatory compliance (RCM) or the USA (FCC).
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