The question, “Why Brexit?” has not gone away since the UK referendum. Indeed, many voters, who had to give a quick answer to a yes-or-no question, remain in doubt about the reasons for leaving or remaining. We respond with, “An answer to our question will answer yours.” Our question is, “What’s wrong with the EU?” … More What’s Wrong with EU? – New Summary
Freedom of movement for goods, services, capital and people is enshrined in the Treaty of Rome. It’s a founding principle yet most of these freedoms are “more honour’d in the breach than the observance” (to misrepresent Hamlet’s meaning). The exception is free movement of (EU) people. Why and how has this occurred? Freedom Movement of … More The Single Market and the Four Freedoms
In Lewis Carroll’s classic children’s story the White Queen lives her life backwards (in looking-glass mode) and it seems to us that EU “royalty” have a similarly distorted view. The White Queen is adamant that there shall be “jam to-morrow and jam yesterday – but never jam to-day.” Once upon a time in Europe there … More Europe Through the Looking Glass
Not everyone is as critical of the speech as we have been; here we offer a critical appraisal of an alternative reaction from a supporter. The Economist’s Europe correspondent, Charlemagne, visited Strasbourg to listen to Jean-Claude Juncker give his annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament. His take on the speech is … More State of the Union – 3 (Alternative view)
This post is a detailed, critical review of the State of the Union address to the European Parliament. This is the EU Commission’s website (in English): http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union_en At the top is the priority, which is: This is the declared priority and the one that wishful thinkers subscribe to. The real priorities, evidenced throughout the Five … More State of the Union – 2 (Critical examination)
Here is our first reaction on reading the summary of Jean-Claude Juncker’s state of the union address on 14 September 2016. We’re not anti-European, we’re anti-EU. We’re against the complacent, misguided ideologists who can’t see its extreme failures, or can see them but think the present sacrifices are worthwhile. Not their sacrifices, naturally, with their … More State of the Union – 1 (Summary)
While stuck-in-a-groove Remainers continue to disparage the growing return to ‘normality’, with their whingeing ‘ah! buttery’, and some are still calling for a second referendum to ‘correct’ the first, there are signs that a more reflective and deeper intelligence is beginning to assert itself. Even the Economist, previously driven almost hysterical by the threat and … More Settling Down – at last?
Remain campaigners continue to bewail the result of the UK referendum and to forecast gloom and doom for the country. We need to respond as positively as we can to this widespread unwillingness to accept the result. The press, like so many other organisations, was split between Remain and Leave camps. No one wants to … More Remainers Moaning
Didn’t the UK do well at the Olympics? Second only to the USA with 67 medals. Not as well as the Aussies apparently, we spotted this picture on Facebook before the Rio Games had even finished. As Algernon says in Wilde’s, The Importance of Being Ernest: “The truth is rarely pure and never simple.” One … More The Truth, Plain and Simple
The UK Referendum has been a shock to Brussels but the show must go on. Here’s how, according to two of the EU’s leaders. The EU is regrouping after the shock of the British voters rejection. Recently Der Spiegel interviewed Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, and Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament. … More The Great Deception Continues
This EU Won't Work 