(CNN)As we reach the end of one of the most dramatic weeks in the Brexit debacle, what have we learned about the state of the negotiations, the politics of the United Kingdom and the mindset of the European Union?
Possibly that farce is more interesting than static fear, and that we live in a world of least bad options.
Brexit, as ever, is at an impasse. Rewind to Wednesday evening and that seems an absurd thing to say. British Prime Minister Theresa May had reached an agreement with the European Union on its withdrawal from the bloc and her Cabinet, after hours of tense discussion, had given her the nod to finalize that deal and take it to Parliament. Brexit, it seemed, was in its final stretch.
Then Thursday happened. At 8:50 a.m., May's Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab quit the Cabinet in protest over her deal, triggering the resignation of several other government ministers. The Prime Minister looked weaker by the minute.
Pubgoers in London watch a broadcast of Theresa May's press conference.
May then had to face a grueling three-hour session in the House of Commons, where MP after MP from all sides of the political divide said they couldn't support her Brexit plan. It was more than an hour before a single MP voiced support for her.
Hot on the heels of this indignity, rumors began to swirl that her Premiership was not long for this world, as rabble-rousing backbenchers publicly declared that they had lost confidence in her leadership and were actively seeking to remove her from power.
At the center of this mess is the fact that Theresa May has come to personify a deal that very few UK politicians can get on board with. Those who want to scrap the whole thing and remain part of the EU are ignoring the fact that this is not a decision the UK can make unilaterally.
The Brexiteers who think that May has capitulated and given too much to Brussels willfully overlook the fact that there is hardly any time left to renegotiate anything. The withdrawal agreement is done -- this was a negotiation between 28 nations; one cannot suddenly reopen it (though there is some room to maneuver on the associated political declaration around a future partnership).