Sculpture outside of European Central Bank Photo:Wikipedia |
A recent primer on the EU attempts to clarify the dysfunctional
union of 28 countries which has not been very successful in promoting “peace,
stability, and economic prosperity,” by harmonizing laws and common policies on
economic, social, and political issues as envisioned by a hand full of European
socialist elitists.
To join the European Union a country must first have a
functioning democracy and a market economy. This is interesting since a lot of
the former communist countries were in social and economic chaos following the
fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989. They were not exactly functioning democracies
or supply and demand-based economies; they were former dictatorships with
centrally-planned economies, some of which are still struggling with their
understanding of what a democracy is.
The EU members share a customs union, a single market in
which goods, people, and capital move unimpeded by borders, a common trade
policy, and a common agricultural policy as dictated by Brussels. A common
currency, the euro, is shared by 19 countries; these nations had to give up
their monetary policies, no longer controlling interest rates, the money
supply, or their ability to mint and print their own currencies.
The Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) with its
Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP) cooperate with the area of Justice
and Home Affairs (JHA) “to forge common internal security measures.” https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RS2137.pdf
To govern this multi-national behemoth, the EU has
established numerous bureaucracies:
-
The European
Council (composed of EU heads of state or government and the President of
the European Commission; this president is appointed by the member states to
facilitate a consensus) – The Council meets several times a year at “EU Summits”
in order to set EU policy
-
The
European Commission – is the EU’s executive branch composed of 28
commissioners, appointed ty agreement to five- year terms approved by European
Parliament; one commissioner is president and the other 27 have specific duties
such as trade, agriculture, energy, etc.
-
The
Council of the European Union (Council of Ministers) – represents national
governments and enacts legislation put forth by the commission; the presidency of
the council rotates every six months among its members; the country holding the
presidency sets the agenda
-
The European
Parliament – elected directly by EU citizens to represent them for
five-year terms; it has 751 members who were elected on May 2014; each nation
has a number of seats proportional to their country’s population; the
Parliament cannot initiate legislation but it can share legislative power with
the Council of Ministers in specific areas, accepting, amending, or rejecting
proposed EU legislation via “ordinary legislative procedure;” the Parliament
allocates the EU budget with the Council Members of the European Parliament caucus
(MEPs), not based on nationality, but political affiliation via the eight
political groups; some MEPs are
non-affiliated; the pay for these functionaries is quite generous
-
The Court
of Justice – ruling on binding laws
-
The Court
of Auditors – looks at management of finances
-
The
European Central Bank – manages the euro and monetary policy
-
Advisory committees
– in charge of regional economic and social issues
(Kristin Archik, The European Union: Questions and Answers,
September 4, 2015)
On economic and social issues, EU member states have
given up their national sovereignty because the EU decision-making has been
transferred into the hands of a supranational
authority. Decisions in foreign policy require “unanimous consensus of all
28 member states.”
Are you still a state if your borders no longer matter? It became quite painful to watch the smaller
countries in Europe, with their open borders, being invaded and trampled by the
hordes of so-called “refugees” from Syria, Iraq, Somalia, and Turkey, demanding
passage to Germany and Sweden where the welfare systems are more generous.
The Lisbon Treaty, signed and effective since December
2009, attempted to give EU more influence in the foreign policy of each country
and to increase “democratic transparency.”
The U.S. has supported the European Union for political
reasons of “democracy building” and for trading partnerships. EU and U.S. are
pursuing a comprehensive free trade agreement, the Transatlantic Trade and
Investment Partnership (T-TIP), not unlike the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
Disputes remain on issues of data protection and climate change.
Some U.S. Congressmen are beginning to pay attention since
the European Union has been plagued by the Greek debt crisis, the massive
migration from the Middle East and Africa, and “the rise of anti-EU populist
political parties.”
The movers and shakers in key bureaucratic EU positions are:
-
Donald Tusk, the former Prime Minister of Poland,
is the President of the European Council, appointed for a two and a half year
term
-
Jean-Claude Juncker, former Prime Minister of
Luxembourg, is President of the European Commission
-
German MEP Martin Schulz is the President of the
European Parliament
-
Federica Mogherini of Italy is the High
Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
EU member countries handle their own fiscal policy but
the monetary policy is directed from Brussels for those members that have
adopted the euro as their national currency. Denmark and the U.K. have opted
out of the euro. Nineteen of the 28 EU countries use the euro which is
beneficial in trading and in tourism. http://europa.eu/about-eu/basic-information/money/euro/index_en.htm
After a country becomes an official candidate to the
accession to EU, the applicants must adopt EU laws and regulations. Becoming a
member of the EU has transformed some European countries into “functioning
democracies and more affluent societies” but they did so at the expense of large
and successful western economies that have paid for this transformation. Driving
across Eastern Europe, it is easy to see the massive construction,
modernization, and remodeling projects paid with EU funds and loans. There are
six countries currently under consideration to EU membership: Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia,
Turkey, and Iceland.
Further read:
CRS Report IN10065, The 2014 European Parliament
Elections: Outcomes and Implications, by Kristin Archick.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFascinating subject. I was shocked to find Margaret Thatcher supported Britain joining an earlier version of the E.U., the Common Market.
ReplyDeleteIn Europe, and the U.S. we are being subjected to a modified version of the 1930s German Lebensraum, when Germany invaded bordering countries, mostly against those countries will, so Germans could have 'living space.' Lebensraum II is Arabs invading countries near & far, so Muslims can have 'living space' WITH leadership of the invaded countries laying out the welcome mat, complete with a panoply of welfare programs to ease their way, smacking their citizens in the face with massive deficits and social conflict. Variations of this is going on all over the Western world, except Japan:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3366575/Senseless-Syrian-refugees-foisted-remote-Scottish-island-high-unemployment-poverty-given-perks-locals-don-t-enjoy.html
The earliest idea for the E.U. that I can find is the Coudenhove-Kalergi Plan (circa 1920s):
Kalergi proclaims the abolition of the right of self-determination and then the elimination of nations with the use of ethnic separatist movements and mass migration. In order for Europe to be controlled by an elite, he wanted to turn people into one homogeneous mixed breed of Blacks, Whites and Asians. So, looks like we're all becoming Sudanese, Libyans, Syrians now (just fill in any failed state you can think of).
Caro,
DeleteYou are right on all points.
The states that join at this point will only be failed states as they will benefit and healthy states will be dragged down. I can see something like this happening in the Western Hemisphere with the U.S. and Canada being dragged down by cuba, mexico, argentina, etc. Perhaps the climate treaty is the springboard for this to happen.
ReplyDeletePaBlum, I think that is the idea with the TPP and TIP so called trade partnerships. They are not partnerships, it's a way to steal the wealth of the west, redistribute it, and create one world government while deliberately impoverishing the United States, turning it into something far worse than a banana republic.
Delete