Article in The Washington Post on why Leave voters "self harmed".

The Washington Post has an article by a co-director of the Political Economy Research Centre at Goldsmiths, University of London which contains some interesting stuff.  The writer is surprised that voters have cast a vote apparently against there own best interests (not all of them - 48% didn't).


He says, "It is a basic principle of economics that human beings choose things that benefit them. But last week, as the results of Britain’s referendum on membership in the European Union came in, it quickly became clear that this principle was being overturned. Not only had Britain as a whole voted for a course of action that would almost certainly make it collectively worse off, but individual regions had also voted against their apparent interests".

Apparently Leave voters share a belief in harsh and even humiliating punishment for criminals, including support for the death penalty (outlawed in Britain in 1969) and public whipping of sex offenders. Sounds right. I have friends like that.  He goes on to conclude:

Taking all of this together, a typical Leave voter has authoritarian beliefs, yet no faith in the political system to implement authoritarian policies or to improve society some other way. Under these circumstances, individuals display what sociologists call “negative solidarity,” a feeling that if they’re to suffer, then everyone should, too. Psychologically, it is perhaps easier to experience feelings of despair and powerlessness if they are collective conditions, rather than private ones.

Read the full article HERE