England should feel the consequences for voting to leave the EU.

[Meldread]

53. By that line of reasoning, any state could leave the United States.

Mississippi doesn't like the fact that gay people can get married, they can't have prayer in schools, that they can't imprison women for having an abortion, and can't put black folks "into their rightful place." They might not feel that they are getting the full benefits of being part of the United States, because you know "states rights" are being violated and all that jazz.

By your logic they should just be allowed to vote to leave with no repercussions at all. In fact, not only should they be allowed to leave, they should be granted virtually all the benefits of remaining members of the United States with none of the disadvantages.

Oh, but wait! It's totally different! Actually it isn't. The UK has ceded some degree of sovereignty to be part of the EU, and has made numerous agreements with the EU over the years. Now they are about to break those agreements in an attempt to reclaim their sovereignty.

I am not making the argument that the EU is a perfect--or even a good--institution. I believe the EU is in desperate need of major reform, and that at the moment its role is largely destructive for some countries (though the UK isn't one of those countries). This is an argument for reform of the EU, not an exit that could cause the collapse of the EU and return Europe to a pre-World War status of squabbling nation states.