For my British friends …

@LeopoldBloom Caveat emptor . . .

@SunshineGirl From what I understand, Brexit passed because a bunch of country bumpkins were upset over how many Poles were in the country. Don't worry, we have them here, too. Trump's base of support is country bumpkins upset over how many Mexicans are in the country.

@LeopoldBloom Funnily enough, Poles are usually the exception to the xenophobic rule (and I say that as a half Pole myself). In the UK we have the stereotypical "Polish plumber", a mythological figure with superhuman powers who substitutes for shortage skilled trades and works seven-and-a-half days a week. Our Mexican equivalents are usually Romanians, Bulgarians and Albanians (who you can always recognise by their shifty eyes and their darker skin . . ) Still, at least we don't malign the Irish as much as we used to 😷

@SunshineGirl I'm just glad the "troubles" didn't start up again, as the border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic is the only land border between the UK and the EU. Until Brexit, it was of course open, which people got used to, so there was a concern that closing it would increase hostilities. But from what I can tell, nothing serious happened.

@LeopoldBloom The open border is probably the most contentious part of Brexit. The hardliners say that its continued existence is an unacceptable compromise to UK sovereignty, but to abolish it would mean breaching the Good Friday Agreement, which ended The Troubles. It beggars belief how ignorant certain politicians were of our own constitution.

@SunshineGirl Is there a lot of undocumented immigration across the border? Or does the UK check when people come over to the main island from Northern Ireland?

I've also heard that since the Good Friday Accords, Northern Ireland is now evenly divided between Catholics and Protestants, and would probably vote to join the Republic of Ireland if allowed to.

@LeopoldBloom Sinn Fein is the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly, and after the GE, have the highest number of Northern Ireland MPs at Westminster.

@LeopoldBloom Irish citizens have complete freedom of movement in the UK and vice versa, so the internal border is not so important. However, there are reports that migrants in Normandy are taking alternative routes via the Republic.

We are a generation on from the Good Friday Agreement. The old issues mean less to the new generation. It is hardly surprising if young people consider freedom of movement and association more important than sectarian politics.

@SunshineGirl The UK and Ireland have always had a unique relationship. Since I don't live there, I don't know to what extent EU members are using access to Ireland and free movement into the UK. I would imagine that documentation is required if an EU citizen wants to work in the UK, same as if a Mexican citizen wants to work in the US. And in both cases, there will always be people who want to get around the requirements.