Politicians can point the finger at themselves — not the voters

THE referendum result must surely show that a vast number of our politicians are detached from reality and the ordinary citzen.

It is the height of arrogance for them to blame the electorate for getting them into the political mess they say exists now.

By presenting to us an extremely complicated, under-explained and widely unacceptable proposal, which many admitted they had not read, surely it is they who are responsible.

Had they spent more time explaining what was involved they might have had a better chance of obtaining the result they required. However, when they participated in broadcast debates, they resorted for the most part to contradicting, interrupting and talking down those on the no side. Indeed, at times it degenerated into farce and it was impossible to hear what anyone was saying.

It is clear who lost out as a result — just as it is obvious a democratic deficit exists, which even your reasoned editorial (June 13) could not help to make up.

Unanimity figures highly in the Lisbon Treaty proposals, and now with the big-wig politicians and bureaucrats in Brussels telling the remaining countries to proceed with ratification, I wonder how many more people around Europe are — like me — wondering what part of unanimity they do not understand.

Brendan Hurley

Nursery Drive

Ardfallen Estate

Douglas

Cork