I'm a European, and proud of that
Although the rest of the text might not reflect it, it's true. I was born in the Netherlands, a nice progressive country with tolerant people and a quirky way about them that you might either love or hate. The Dutch have always been proponents of not beating around the bush and will tell you when they don't agree or like something, in no uncertain terms, and quite bluntly, without holding back. This quality (or shortcoming, depending if you're at the receiving end or not) is one I have always liked of what little culture the Netherlands still has.
So, after that little preamble, it's time for a litte Dutch directness towards the European Union. As the title of this blog suggests, I'm against it. First let's get one thing out of the way:
Europe is NOT the European Union
I love Europe. I love the many languages, countries, cultures and attitudes of the many countries Europe as a continent consists of, but trying to unify it through one big economy and judicial system is in my opinion a really bad move. Europe is incompatible with being a big superstate. Previous attempts to unify it have resulted in wars and massive loss of life. This is one of the many reasons countries inside Europe need to be sovereign.
The EEC was a good idea
Before the EU existed, there was an economic community. Countries would trade with each other with reduced tariffs. Coming from the second world war, it was an awesome way to jumpstart economies and reduce regulations. This caused a boom and eventually brought down the great Berlin wall. At least, I think the economic rise was a big factor in this. A community like the EEG was pretty much ideal. Not perfect either, but certainly better what we have now. Back then, countries could make their own trade deals with countries outside of the EEG, and they had control of their own laws. It all worked pretty well. Even with the Schengen agreement.
Where it went wrong
But then as the EEG was contently humming along, the bureaucrats in Brussels went too far. It started with the Maastricht treaty, which basically instituded a single currency and created the European Union. I thought this was a terrible idea back then, but the worst was still to come. People in the European Commission wanted a European constitution. So they drafted one. They were poised to get it implemented everywhere, but France and the Netherlands forced a referendum on the issue. It got shot down. It later reappeared as the Lisbon treaty. Ireland forced a referendum. It got shot down again. Not content with the result from the Irish referendum, they issues another one and pulled out all the stops with the propaganda and the fear mongering. It worked.
So, what's my issue with the EU then?
My largest issue with the European Union is that it is undemocratic, bureaucratic, too costly and over-regulatory.
I'll start with the over-regulation.
The economic problems countries had after the second world war were mostly caused by over-regulating, because strict regulation does work in time of war. The EEG lessened regulation and it brought economic prosperity.
We see the results of over-regulation already. There are so many laws created by the EU, it's almost inconceivable. Regulation has screwed the pooch so bad, we have regulations on oven mits and how hard vacuum cleaners can suck. It's a nice segway to my next point, but realize that creating laws costs money. It's a pretty stupid way to burn through taxpayer money.
Speaking of money...
The EU is a big money sink, especially for the richer northwestern countries (Netherlands, UK, Germany, France, to name a few). They pour billions into the EU coffers and they get nothing back. Meanwhile, the whole EU circus moves from Brussels to Strassbourg and back every week. The EU bureaucrats enjoy all kinds of benefits for basically doing fuck all. Not a week goes by and some scandal about misrepresented funds gets reported. The EU is burning though metric assloads of cash, and we're paying for it.
So, what about democracy?
I said the EU was undemocratic. It is. There are 3 bodies that can put laws into effect. The European Commission, the European Parliament and the European Council. Of those three entities, we the people only control the contents of one of them, namely the Eurpean Parliament. But they have one vote out of three. The other two are not elected. At all. And they have 2/3rd of a say. Moreover, the European Parliament can not instigate new legislation. Only the Commission can do that, and they are not elected. Basically, the EU has all the control, with none of the responsibility, because we can't kick the fuckers out when they do an awful job (and granted, they are doing a shit job).
Those are my main concerns with the EU. Can it be fixed? No idea. Let's explore it.
Can the EU be fixed?
Yes, sorta, but the Eurocrats won't like it. First of all, the European Commission and Council need to be disbanded, and the Parliament must be given a lot more power. The main reason is because that's the body we can elect. That would take away my biggest problem with the EU, which is it's ivory tower oligarchy and fake democracy.
The above I won't see happen any time soon (because the bureaucrats don't like to give up their gravy train and revolving doors). The UK made a good first step. Leave the EU. I hope many more countries leave. But I think I might leave the EU first.