Last night, chatting about presentations and simple ways of making them better, I was reminded of: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos. It’s ancient advice about how to persuade an audience of a point of view. The importance is to see a place for all three in a presentation.
Looking at the day’s news, I see we are still on the brink of a deal. Negotiations drag on and on. Both EU and UK give the impression that they are stretching their negotiating mandates to try to come up with a good solution but time is ticking.
Outside of the negotiating room there remains the task of convincing different audiences that a deal is a good one. So, what of the classical three. In the UK, the media and politicians revel in Pathos. It’s almost as if the other two are consigned to be back seat drivers. For Ethos and Logos, objectivity is a must. Being honest means being factual. Arguing rationally means applying the facts.
Unfortunately, there are only a handful of places to go for that objectivity in the British media. So, it does make a difference to read the foreign media. For some common sense, I recommend the thoughts of Julian King[1], the UK’s last European commissioner. I agree that everybody stands to lose out with No-Deal.
This week we carry on with a multitude of unknowns. Only one thing is for sure. Life after 31st December will be different[2].
I do wish press articles would not say: “Otherwise, the U.K would have to strike individual agreements with EU countries to bypass these concerns, ……” Striking individual agreements with non-EU countries is what is happening. Striking individual agreements with EU countries will not happen. The reason for this is that for the major areas of interest the EU has competence[3].
It’s worth noting that the harmonisation of civil aviation requirements and procedures started a long time before the formation of European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
[1] https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/brexit-the-uk-and-eu-both-need-to-put-aside-emotion-and-cut-a-deal-1.4425580
[2] https://www.politico.eu/article/5-things-to-know-about-post-brexit-aviation-airlines-eu-transition-cargo-travel-passengers/
[3] https://europa.eu/european-union/topics/transport_en
John Vincent 