If you don't read German, that's how you say, "Damn! A bad day for Europe," as declared by German Vice Chancellor and economy Minister, Sigmar Gabriel.

He spoke as the 24th of June dawned in Europe along with the shocking result: Britain had voted the day before to leave the European Union, 51.89 Leave to 48.11 Remain.

In contrast, the right wing leader of the United Kingdom Independent Party (UKIP) was joyous. Nigel Farage, who supports Donald Trump for US president, came out saying, "Let June 23 go down in our history as our Independence day."

Farage has built his career on getting the UK to leave the EU and tonight he has gotten his wish. He claimed that, as projections went for the Leave side, "this will be a victory for real people, a victory for ordinary people, a victory for decent people."

Yet this was no resounding victory, the numbers are close, the regions divided. Northern Ireland and Scotland both desired to stay. Wales and England voted to leave.

This could have resounding implications for the future of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland and Scotland have had tenuous relations with England for some time, and Scotland voted only last year to stay in the UK, largely because it meant they could stay in the EU if they voted to stay. A Leave win gives grounds for another referendum on Scottish independence. Scotland's First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon said: "Scotland has delivered a strong, unequivocal vote to remain in the EU, and I welcome that endorsement of our European status. And while the overall result remains to be declared, the vote here makes clear that the people of Scotland see their future as part of the European Union."

Demographics also played a key role: older people voted one way, younger people the other. Higher educated people split from less educated people. Even here, reactions split. One good friend of mine had a conversation with her grandmother as results came in. The grandmother was all for the UK leaving the EU. My friend, who spent several months in London, was "horrified" at the result. On Facebook, the millennials I am friends with shared BBC links and commented "I'm shocked," and "75 years of progress gone in a day."

The short-term consequences are also significant. in the first six hours of June 24th (British time), the pound dropped 12 percent, to it's lowest position against the dollar since 1985, although it bounced upward a little. Stock-markets across the world dropped, even before those in the west opened. Japan's Nikkei closed down nearly 8 percent, even before Britain's opened for the day. The Bank of England had to release a statement prior to market opening to reassure the world they were contingency planning to ensure monetary and financial stability. And when the FTse 100 opened, it was down over a percent within only a minute. Five minutes in, it was nearly 8% down. Other markets did just as poorly, with the Xetra DAX nearly 10 percent down at the same time.

Although it was thought that the Prime Minister would speak before the markets opened, in order to mitigate their crash, David Cameron did not come out to speak until 8:20 a.m., British time, when a podium was placed outside 10 Downing Street. He exited with his wife and began to speak. "Their will must be respected," he said, speaking of the British people. He thanked those on his side, he congratulated his opponents. "Britain's economy is fundamentally strong," he said, to reassure markets. He put Brits abroad and foreigners in Britain at ease, promising that their circumstances would not immediately change.

Then he called for new leadership to lead the country forward. He called for stability first, for him and his cabinet to stay in place for the next three months, looking for a new Prime Minister in October, when the Conservative Party Congress occurs. This new Prime Minister would have responsibility for enacting Article 50, the mechanism for divorce from EU. He finished with a call for unity, between Leavers and Remainers, calling on his fellow Remainers to help make this change work.

And then you have a possible domino effect. France's Marine Le Pen and the Netherlands PM Geert Wilders have both claimed it is time for their countries to hold their own referendums. Other countries, especially where right-wing nationalism is on the rise, might do the same. Each of their votes could tear the EU apart.

When Article 50 is activated, what will follow could be up to 2 years of negotiations and uncertainty as to what punishment the EU will enact as agreements are drawn up. Britain is likely to want single market access, which is going to give the EU leverage against them, even giving them the ability to force the UK to accept the very immigration provisions that it was voting against in this Brexit referendum. Even if the EU is not straight-up vindictive, they will not treat the UK as the bosom buddy it has long been.

These are uncharted waters. We can only wait and see what will happen next.