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Topic: European Union

Since some other discussion here got pretty much into this direction, i was wondering what you peope, specially europeans, expect from the EU. What do you want it to become? or better not become?
Should it replace our current european nations? or simply put them together closer?
Shall the EU stay just an economical and juridical union as it is now? Or shall it also become a political and military Union?
How shall the relation between national states and EU be?
Do we need a President of Europe? A European Army? European welfare?

Somehow i miss such a discussion in public here in germany.. i hear people moaning about the EU spending their money. I hear people moaning about EU making this and that. I never hear what people actually expect from the EU.

unfortunatlly i have to do some work now so i can not write down my oh so glorious visions.. i will do that later:)

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Re: European Union

I want the EU  to act as a political alliance, although that is not always feasable. An EU military would be much appreciated if it wasen't for the language barrier. A plolice force that can act over the entire EU would be nice instead of the one on federal level.

Not many people know this, but I own the first radio in Springfield. Not much on the air then, just Edison reciting the alphabet over and over. "A" he'd say; then "B." "C" would usually follow...

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3 Reply by BiefstukFriet (edited by BiefstukFriet 28-Nov-2008 09:11:58)

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Re: European Union

Should remain an economic entity and should stay away from national enviormental and social politics. I do not want an extra layer of goverment that decides how I should run my life.

And if we want to kill off an annoying mole/rat like species that endangers our dykes, we bloody should be able to do so without some eurocrat sticking his nose in. tongue

Je maintiendrai

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Re: European Union

Well i'm saying it should replace a layer of politics instead of adding one like now

Not many people know this, but I own the first radio in Springfield. Not much on the air then, just Edison reciting the alphabet over and over. "A" he'd say; then "B." "C" would usually follow...

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Re: European Union

The EU should be a confederation of independent nation states,setting common standards only where it is beneficial.
If  the EU really wants to be a federal state there should  be  more transparent structures and separation of powers,
right now it looks more like the Byzantine Empire or Soviet Union 2.0.But its not a good idea.

The inmates are running the asylum

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Re: European Union

The EU, when you ask me should lead to some sort of United States of Europe, but in a confederational way. I want the EU to set the global political decisions, to be a military unity, be an economic unity and so on. That doesn't mean individual countries aren't free to decide on things for their own though, but the global views should be on a European level.

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Re: European Union

couldnt agree more.

I want the EU to set foreign policy goals. I want the EU to make one european army.
A european police would also be a good things.

Education, healthcare and such should remain with the national states.

Removing one political layer sounds good.. but i wonder how to do.. right now in germany we have the states like bavaria, northrhine westphalia and such. and we have the fed. we could make the current fed. to act like states do now.. but therefor a lot of competence would have to be removed from the states which will be not so easy.
the new fed. gov. should be on european basis then.

Maybe the EU could do some educational minimum standarts and such.. so its guaranteed that EU citizens with certain qualification meet the same standarts all over the EU. For sure.. only minumum standarts. and not the whole programm.

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Re: European Union

I couldn't care less, much how i don't care about the internal workings of China, the U.S. or Russia. Your internal politics are your business and although i support your freedoms, they are yours to fight for.

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Re: European Union

great u let us know this then:P

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Re: European Union

I would like the EU to become closer, maybe one day becoming a single country, although I cannot foresee that happening in my lifetime. One single EU would have a much louder voice in world affairs and trade agreements than conflicting messages from each member state, see the confusion and therefore complete irrelevance the EU member states comments on the Russia V Georgia thing was. I would also like to see wealth split more evenly across the world and a good start to that would be helping the Eastern members and future members attain the same standards of education, healthcare and general living as the western members. A united EU having a united police force would make it more difficult for criminals to go on the run and a united armed forces would help back up a united foreign policy message which is important for the EU to become a counterweight to the power of the USA and the emerging power of China. Someone somewhere has to talk some sense don't they?

There are a lot of problems to overcome first though such as agreeing on a single official language if billions of euros aren't to be wasted in translation, having a fairer population weighted voting system without retarded rights of veto and I'm sure lots of others that I can't think of off the top of my head. Yes to a more united EU, yes to a European president, yes to joint armed forces, joined up police forces and now let's go invade the USA X(

tweehonderd graden, dat is waarom ze me mr. fahrenheit noemen, ik reis aan de snelheid van het licht, ik ga een supersonische man van u maken

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Re: European Union

How could  a common foreign policy ever work? There are so many different interests and loyalities.
For instance,i find the polish hostillity  torwards Russia crazy.
Frankly,i couldn

The inmates are running the asylum

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Re: European Union

Well the interests and loyalties of Texans are very different to those of New Yorkers yet the USA manages a common foreign policy. If everybody agreed then politics wouldn't exist.

tweehonderd graden, dat is waarom ze me mr. fahrenheit noemen, ik reis aan de snelheid van het licht, ik ga een supersonische man van u maken

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Re: European Union

"How could  a common foreign policy ever work? There are so many different interests and loyalities.
For instance,i find the polish hostillity  torwards Russia crazy."

I agree and i dont agree. I find the polish politics to be crazy at all. totally do not fit the EU as it is now:P they complain too much and such hehe.
but generally... missile shield is just a good example.
Poland is a part of the EU... they say they want the missile shield.. most other EU countries think its silly ( at least i think it is that way.. correct me if i am wrong).
missile shield is a thing that effects the whole EU security.. so it should be EU buisness if a EU member state can do that. Poland can choose.. follow the EU or leave the EU. Both is not acceptable for the,.. so i tell you.. we need to invade!

genereally the US is a good example.. For example Gladiator and BW would probablly never agree on a common foreign policy.. still both are US citizens and both in the end live with the same policy.

For sure we would also need a change of thinking in the people. people now are french.. dutchies.. germans.. sweds. whatever... EU can only work if they begin to be europeans in the first way.
We need a common identity. I think the Euro was the first step into that direction. I myself would call myself a rhinelander in the first place.. then a european, then a german. I feel closer to the netherlands then i feel close to bavaria.

Language is not a big deal i think.. besides the french and the spanish.. i think all EU member countries teach english as 2nd language so most of the population should allready be able to communicate. For sure english lessons would have to be more intense in the future but i see that happening allready also. at least where i live. Any other language then english just makes no sence since english allready is the most common and sorry.. i dont mean to offend anyone.. but it also is one of the easier languages to learn (this seems not to apply to people with french as their mother tongue:P).

Also we need a new hymn.. i really dont like our current:P

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Re: European Union

actually new yorkers had to go to texas and shoot them to make them toe the line...

Galveston was the last Confederate stronghold, didn't surrender until June 1865, was killing yankees until the end

I want the EU to be a unitary government capable of accepting instructiosn from washington

you DID ask

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Re: European Union

If the EU were to emerge as a strong superstate, then that would be a very very bad thing. I like to think of the EU as the Holy Roman Empire, it's Germany without any strong central authority. But if it were to develop a central government, like the German Empire in 1872, then oh shit and that would disrupt the global balance of power.

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Re: European Union

Disrupt like China is disrupting the current global power balance? Because frankly it's not really th

Je maintiendrai

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17 Reply by Justinian I (edited by Justinian I 28-Nov-2008 21:25:17)

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Re: European Union

> BiefstukFriet wrote:

> Disrupt like China is disrupting the current global power balance? Because frankly it's not really th

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Re: European Union

That's not very original.

Je maintiendrai

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Re: European Union

it would not disrupt the bop unless it wanted to project military power outside of its borders...

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Re: European Union

Ever since world war II ended the western world has looked to the USA for leadership, protection and shelter from evil things lurking in the world such as Russians. Surely it is about time that Europe stopped slobbing about waiting for the USA to take action to protect the interests of the west and then criticising at every opportunity. It is time for Europe to take it's interests into it's own hands and stick up for itself instead of hiding behind the USA and being bitter to the USA for it. China is growing more powerful, Russia is becoming a bigger bully and within the next century big brother USA may not be the dominant force in the world anymore. Unless we want to be taking orders from a country that runs free thinkers down with tanks and claims that Buddhist monks are terrorists then it is time to stick up for ourselves as a world power in our own right, whether that is in co-operation or disagreement with the USA. As a united power the EU might actually even be able to meaningfully disagree with USA. i.e. be able to sway USA foreign policy instead of just spineless whining that is inevitably ignored. For the EU to be such a world power it needs to join together. Individual discordant messages from small countries backed up by shit all get nowhere, but the combined populations and economic clout of the EU as a whole can not be ignored by anyone else on the planet.

tweehonderd graden, dat is waarom ze me mr. fahrenheit noemen, ik reis aan de snelheid van het licht, ik ga een supersonische man van u maken

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Re: European Union

As for a new anthem, I propose Bitches Aint Shit.

tweehonderd graden, dat is waarom ze me mr. fahrenheit noemen, ik reis aan de snelheid van het licht, ik ga een supersonische man van u maken

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22 Reply by The Yell (edited by The Yell 28-Nov-2008 22:14:57)

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Re: European Union

balance of power equals "the bop"

Kissinger would spin in his grave

hmmm "ode to joy" IS  a lame anthem

The core joke of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is that of course no civilization would develop personal computers with instant remote database recovery, and then waste this technology to find good drinks.
Steve Jobs has ruined this joke.

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Re: European Union

How about Never Gonna Give You Up? We could Rickroll the olympics

tweehonderd graden, dat is waarom ze me mr. fahrenheit noemen, ik reis aan de snelheid van het licht, ik ga een supersonische man van u maken

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Re: European Union

last time i checked Kissinger was still alive

The inmates are running the asylum

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Re: European Union

yes that is why I said he WOULD spin  not that he IS SPINNING

its the subjective...or...I dunno ask ZoZ

I think Dust in the Wind would be a good anthem too

The core joke of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is that of course no civilization would develop personal computers with instant remote database recovery, and then waste this technology to find good drinks.
Steve Jobs has ruined this joke.

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