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Why Ireland? Why the impact of Brexit on Irish economy?
When beginning this project, a mere eleven weeks ago, I was overwhelmed. There were so many topics to choose from, so many fascinating stories that I could write about. I was unsure which international issue would interest me and have a variety of sources that I could use in my essay. One evening, I told my dad about the assignment, and he was excited. He began listing many different international issues that could be interesting to write about. A long conversation later, which mainly consisted of me turning down his ideas, he told me about Brexit. At first I was skeptical, and told him I would have no interest in researching such a topic. I did a quick search and realized that Brexit was actually an important issue, and if it occurred, could have a negative effect on the whole world’s economy. I have never been a fan of watching international news, and don’t enjoy keeping up with the news that doesn’t directly affect me. However, I was curious as to why this was a problem for many different countries and how serious of an issue it really was. I decided this would be my research topic, especially since it would push me out of my comfort zone and force me to learn about an important international issue that I normally wouldn’t have been interested in.
Before beginning the research process, I had to figure out what angle I would approach this international issue. I came up with a few ideas, but none seemed to stand out to me. After a few days, I decided to talk to Mr. Phillips, and he gave me the idea to write about a different point of view: the impact of Brexit on Ireland’s economy. I was excited, of course, but I had no idea what to expect. I knew Brexit would be bad, with terrible economic impacts, but I had no idea that a country such as Ireland would be affected in the aftermath. I first believed that trading would become very difficult, yet I ended up learning that this issue was greater than that single problem. The peace between Britain and Ireland, secured by The Good Friday Agreement, had maintained peace between those two areas after a long period of animosity. I realized that their relationship was at stake, should Brexit occur. Still, I assumed that Brexit must have more benefits and was a wise decision carefully made by Britain. I thought the pros outweighed the cons due to the ease at which Britain's decision to leave the EU was made. The citizens of Britain knew this was a life-altering decision, one that was huge and could eventually become permanent, yet I inferred that the people chose to leave the EU out of spite. As I would soon learn, this was not the case. My expectations were nowhere near the reality I uncovered about the Brexit situation through my research.
Fortunately, I didn’t face too many difficulties while going through the research process. As I said before, it did take me a couple of days to finally settle on the angle I wanted to approach my topic from. In addition to that, I struggled to find information relevant to my topic, but only near the beginning of this process. I soon became better at sorting my research and finding substantial information. Besides those minor hiccups, I had a smooth research process.
After turning in my essay, I uncovered some alarming news regarding Brexit’s timeline. According to Peter Barnes’ article for BBC News, the Brexit bill is progressing very quickly. The UK is set to leave the EU on January 31st, 2020. It is upsetting to learn that such an event is going to occur, with no regard for the terrible consequences that will ensue. Although the government of the UK has remained unwavering in their decision to go through with Brexit, I do hope that people of both Britain and Ireland stand up and stop this injustice from destroying their economy and their lives.
After turning in my essay, I uncovered some alarming news regarding Brexit’s timeline. According to Peter Barnes’ article for BBC News, the Brexit bill is progressing very quickly. The UK is set to leave the EU on January 31st, 2020. It is upsetting to learn that such an event is going to occur, with no regard for the terrible consequences that will ensue. Although the government of the UK has remained unwavering in their decision to go through with Brexit, I do hope that people of both Britain and Ireland stand up and stop this injustice from destroying their economy and their lives.
Works cited
Barnes, Peter. "Brexit: What Happens Now?" BBC News, 10 Jan. 2020. Web. 12 Jan. 2020