I understand both points you're making, CalicoGirl.
Here's one:
"I still hold that leaving the EU will be catastrophic economically, socially and will lead to unprecendented hardship for residents of the UK.
Do you seriously expect me and the other millions of people who see this very clearly to simply sit by and do nothing?"
Well, young lady, the first time I voted was in Croydon North West whose recumbent Tory MP was the then speaker of the House of Commons, Bernard Weatherill (or whatever it was decptively called at that time).
The consequences (judged by a young and possibly ignorant VE) was that some hitherto cheap goods like sugar and lamb would become more expensive because of tariffs imposed on Jamaican and New Zealand farmers.
In my case, of course, my objections to Common Market membership were based entirely on selfish economic considerations, but there would have been a few who considered the consequences from the point of view of the farmers whose markets had been destroyed
Did I "simply sit by and do nothing"? Yes, there were more people who were concerned about BMWs than were bothered by Caribbean sugar farmers.
I didn't like it. But I lumped it.