Thursday, April 24, 2014

Rebellion is brewing against the political elite that has ruined Europe...

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This brings me to the European elections that are to be held next month. In theory, they could mark a historic moment of social and political upheaval, as the subject voters of Europe challenge the political colonialism of the centre. And there are scattered signs that nationalist parties determined to smash the EU system may indeed achieve some substantial successes. In France, Marine Le Pen could lead the National Front to first place in the polls. The situation in Greece is indecipherable. Here in Britain (where we have a far stronger democratic tradition than other European countries), Nigel Farage has emerged as a brilliant leader of the insurgent Ukip, which may well get more votes than the Conservatives.

Elsewhere, the political analyst runs into difficulty. In defiance of logic, the expected anti-European revolt is simply not happening. Take the example of Spain, which has suffered terribly during the past five years and where youth unemployment is more than 50 per cent. One would expect a revolution – and yet there are no anti-European parties that are worthy of the name. Exactly the same applies to Portugal, which has suffered almost as badly during the eurozone crisis.

 A paradox is at work. It was only towards the end of the last century that Spain and Portugal emerged from dictatorships, while the former Iron Curtain countries have emerged from Communist rule even more recently. For them, the European Union represents a deeply cherished respectability. These countries seem happy to exchange the formal apparatus of dictatorship for the European Union’s emerging anti-democratic system. Full story...

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  2. Eurozone crisis is just getting started...
  3. Corruption costs European Union $162 billion annually
  4. Marine Le Pen: EU will collapse like the Soviet Union...
  5. Anger as 'profligate' EU parliament spends £174m on new buildings...
  6. Fury as Euro MPs caught faking work...

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