We Interrupt This Blog...

...to register our shock and dismay about the Brexit we awoke to this morning. We have spoken to many Brits these last two months and encountered none in favor of leaving. Most wanted to talk rather about Trump, whom they find appalling. The entire debate, as we traveled the south and west, seemed sufficiently low-key as to discourage alarm. But the polls were wrong, and the world is different now. We expect no sudden changes for travelers such as ourselves...except an immediate boost in our dollars' purchasing power. We've been visiting the Isles since 1979, and the GBP right now is at nearly the lowest we've ever seen. As some twit twitted: "All Britain on sale...10-15% off...steak and kidney pies for all." There will be a few days of chaos and more dire predictions, and then things will begin to find a new, uncertain, and volatile "normal." The one conclusion I draw is not to underestimate the attraction of nativism, bigotry, and jingoism. Perhaps the Brexit will serve as a lesson to us across the Pond.