Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/697149
25 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 26 JUNE 2016 Opinion the sun happens to clash with your own'). One particular comment even suggested introducing compulsory IQ tests for voters. Right: now we get to the part where I have to qualif y the accuracy of my earlier prediction. I expected (and said so, last Wednesday) that there would be a backlash against democracy as a result of this referendum in the event of a 'Leave' win. BUT… I expected this backlash to come later, and primarily from Europe's institutions themselves (and in particular, from Europe's remaining 27 governments). I didn't really predict that it would come from so many ordinary people out there… especially not from people who would be utterly HORRIFIED, if even the least of their own arguments were ever to be applied to their own democratic choices, as expressed in any referendum or election. Let's try and apply their logic to, for instance, Malta's EU referendum in 2004. You don't have to try very hard, because all the same old arguments had cropped up at the time. Remember? 'The decision to join was too momentous to be left to the electorate'… 'the media had distorted the playing field beyond recognition'… 'people were being fed misinformation and lies'…. All you have to do to appreciate the glaring irony is change places with the people who were on the losing side in 2004, and try posting the same comments again. See what I mean? "Ah, just because 53% of Malta turned out to be ignorant peasants and unwashed hamalli by voting to join Europe… it doesn't mean they were right. In fact, maybe we should just refuse to acknowledge the result, and maybe scrap democracy altogether while we're at it…" Then people wonder why history has a habit of repeating itself… Meanwhile – in case it wasn't bad enough that ordinary people tweeted and bleated endlessly about the need to 'reform' the democratic process, so that it would stop getting in the way of all Europe's finely laid plans – we now even get our own Prime Minister 'reassuring' us that he has no intention of ever allowing democracy to rear its ugly head in Malta. This is what Joseph Muscat said on Friday afternoon. "It [a referendum in Malta] would be tantamount to suicide. We're witnessing the shockwaves across the UK. We're here to protect Malta and we won't allow anyone to play with our future to score populist points. Malta chose to form part of the EU: we know the good and the bad. We can be a success in the EU. We're not going to waste time on such damaging debates. It's the government that makes the difference in people's lives." Got that, folks? If not, here's the translation: "It's the government that makes the difference in your life… not you. So let's hear no more of this 'demanding to have a say' nonsense now. Democracy is all well and good, insofar as nice little bed-time stories go… but it cannot be used as an excuse to stop us from doing what we think is right for you. In fact, who even needs democracy, anyway? After all, we now have Big Daddy Joseph to take care of us all, and to see to it that we don't take any 'wrong decisions' we might end up regretting. And with Big Daddy Joseph taking all the important decisions in our name… what could possibly go wrong?" Frightened yet? You should be.