re: "EU Elite 0 Reality 1"

Amb. Charles Crawford at Blogoir (" A digital hybrid of blog and memoir presented on a daily basis, or not. ") put his finger on the weakest link in the lash-up holding the EU together.

Money quote(s):

"How many times do I need to argue that the 'basic' problem with the European Union is a failure to accept certain Realities?"

&

"It's not just about a crude cost/benefit analysis. It's about Morality.

The 'Reality' (as I see it) is that the much vaunted EU Solidarity requires certain minimal levels of discipline by all sides. No-one has ever wanted to talk about this too openly: it's all too pointed and embarrassing, since to talk about the mutual obligations of Solidarity is money-grubbing and lacking in trust. We're all Europeans, right? So what's the problem?

The problem is that the Germans see (not without some reason) many of the southern European belt of countries as being simply unable or unwilling to achieve the necessary level of collective national discipline to make Solidarity credible (running honest businesses and honest accounts, paying taxes, respecting rules - tough stuff like that), and that when these countries fall short (as they inevitably do) they expect Germany to pick up the bill." (Emphasis in original text. - CAA.)

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