“I am just going outside and may be some time.”
These were the last words of Captain Lawrence Oates on the morning of March 16, 1912 during the British Antarctic Expedition when he stepped out of his tent. His ill health was compromising his three companions’ chances of survival but this act of self-sacrifice could not avert Scott and his party dying on their return journey from the South Pole.
In a bizarre analogy, Nigel Farage, a figurehead of the Brexit campaign and elected Member of the European Parliament made a reference to this doomed expedition in his last speech in the Parliament earlier this month when, hoping that he can turn his back for good if the EU referendum ends in his favour, closed his speech with the words:
“So I’m going out now, I may be some time.”
Depending on the outcome of the referendum, he might be back next week to pick up his pay check.
