Faith, Beer, and Other Things That Interest Geoff

EU to Voters: Drop Dead

For half a century the ruling class of Europe has owned the project of European unification. Nobody bothered to ask the voters. But now they have made a mistake. Purely as a gesture, France, Holland and Britain scheduled popular referenda on the EU Constitution. The entire political and media establishment explained how a new Holocaust would follow if the referendum didn't pass. Jacques Chirac told the French that a "Yes" vote would be a punch in the nose for Uncle Sam, show up the Brits, and keep the wolf of capitalism from the door.

Surprise! A New Media has risen in Europe, and made the case against the grotesque EU Constitution. And the voters have said "No."

There's only one problem. For the EU, "No" really means "Yes," or "Maybe," or "We'll Get Back To You Later." Like the famous New York Post headline during the Ford Administration, the message from the elites is "EU to Voters: Drop Dead!"

Right after the French "No" vote, Jacques Chirac said that the EU project would keep moving along: the EU foreign service is forging ahead, EU military centralization will continue to undermine NATO, France and Germany will still want to raise taxes in Ireland and Poland to keep them from out-competing their bloated welfare economies, and the EU propaganda machine will keep whipping up feelings against the "Anglo-Saxon model" (also called free markets).

I love France's strategy for dealing with the growing, productive economies of Ireland and Poland. Make them crappy socialist economies like France.