Multi-award-winning journalist Fintan O'Toole took to the stage in conversation with Sarfraz Manzoor to examine how trivial lies became a far-from-trivial national obsession. "How does a prosperous and privileged country get to a point where a large proportion of the country thinks that they are horribly opressed, when they're not" he said on Brexit.
O'Toole continued on to talk about how the indifference to truth and historical fact has come to define the style of an entire political elite; how a country that once had colonies is redefining itself as an oppressed nation requiring liberation and the silent rise of English nationalism. "There's nothing shameful about English nationalism. It's not necessarily racist or xenophobic. England was arguably the first functioning nation state, there's a lot to be proud of. But why does nationalism need to be seen as an ethnic identity?!" he said.
Ending on a poignant note, O'Toole said, "If we're going to reestablish democracy across Europe, we have to put the social back in our social policies. Human beings need dignity and that is not abstract thing. It's about accessible healthcare, community, education, it's about not being treated like shit."
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