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The European Union is not Europe

I have always liked the English actor Patrick Stewart, especially for his role as Captain Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation. However, I would lie if I claimed that my admiration of him has not been marred in any way by his open pro-EU anti-Brexit opinions. (Quite naturally, and obviously, he is 100% entitled to his opinions and I would, quite literally, defend to the death his right to have and express those opinions. But that doesn't mean I have to like those opinions and agree with him.)

Extreme leftism seems to be disproportionately prevalent among actors, for some strange reason. From what I have seen, it appears that at least 90% of all actors, at least in the biggest western countries, are very leftists, spouting all the radical left-wing rhetoric. (This seems to be in drastic contrast with comedians, who seem to be more keen on opposing extreme leftism. Perhaps because the extreme left hates comedy and wants to kill it, because comedy is "offensive" and "politically incorrect".)

Anyway, like so many anti-Brexiteers, Patrick Stewart expressed the oft-repeated sentiment that Brexit took Britain "out of Europe". As in, Britain is not part of Europe anymore.

This is a rhetoric that pro-EU people, such as politicians, have been repeating over and over. They talk as if the EU is Europe. If you leave the EU, you are leaving Europe. You are not part of Europe anymore.

I don't really understand where this notion is coming from, or why it seems to be such a big talking point. What do they mean "not part of Europe"? "Europe" is not defined, and has never been defined, as being the same as the European Union. They are most certainly not synonymous.

Norway is not a member of the European Union. Does that mean that Norway is not in Europe? I have never heard anybody make that claim.

This all looks like a rather strange notion that if a country is in Europe but has never been part of the EU, then it's still in Europe alright, but if an European country has joined the EU and then leaves, then it somehow stops being an European country? How does this work? It makes no sense.

If Britain is not in Europe anymore, according to these people, then where is it? Has it become its own independent continent or something? The continent of Britain?

All this talk is just asinine. I must say that my respect for the intelligence of people like Patrick Stewart, who I used to admire, has diminished quite a lot.

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