107 The EU

<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Combining small self-governing countries into a larger omnipotent organization using a common currency is not appropriate for culturally divergent societies because cultures with vastly different goals & work ethics inevitable exploit one another. Plus a country that loses control of its currency, loses its ability to inflate away government debt. Only multinational corporations are pushing for reduced sovereignty, and since their goal is economic advantage, their rules are too. I don't have a whole lot of sympathy or concern for the profits of corporations and, frankly I don't know anyone who does, so I'm at a loss at how the EU snookered so many presumably rational nations to join?</p> <p>Perhaps socialist types like monolithic nations for reasons of equality & paternalism. In an equality mindset, the concept of responsibility for your own actions is not a strong one. The people of small nations like Greece see the affluence of larger, more modern European countries, like Germany, and say "I want that." They were admitted to the EU primarily for geographic & historical reasons, and then borrow huge amounts of money, mostly for healthcare & pensions; this goes on for a decade-or-so then they need multiple angst-generating bailouts. There is & never was any way they could have ever paid back the loans to the foreign banks who encouraged them to borrow the money, their culture simply isn't productive enough, and the EU knew that when they granted membership, resulting in an odd if-you-owe-enough-to-the-bank-the-bank-works-for-you kind of situation.</p> <p>Is a United States of Europe even possible? It all comes down to German voters who will be footing the bill for the weaker countries for the foreseeable future. If they truly believe in their socialist ideals, the norm will be for Germany's workers to support less productive nations, plus the big nations that collapse, plus all the immigrants, and all the new EU petitioners looking for such a great deal. But there are lots of socialists in Europe so democracy explains it, unless the EU is simply Germany's way of finally conquering Europe without firing a shot.</p>