[CS-FSLUG] OT: THE EU VOTE....GOOD article.

[Fred A. Miller]

AUDREY'S MISSILES
A weekly newsletter dedicated to the peaceful
reform of the United States government.

THE EU VOTE

         The voters in France have rejected proposed changes in the 
constitution of the European Union.  What does this mean for the future of 
Europe?  It is very significant because all twenty-five of the current 
members of EU must ratify the new constitution in order for it to be 
adopted. Nine countries have already done so: Austria, Germany, Greece, 
Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.  US news services 
are reporting that the people of the Netherlands have rejected it by more 
than 60%!  The referendum is nonbinding, but Dutch leaders have pledged to 
accept it, so long as the result is clear and turnout is above 30%.   Parts 
of the proposal are said to be changes that can take place without popular 
referendum, and those may take place anyway, but the main changes in voting 
procedures which were thought to be necessary to prevent deadlock appear to 
be lost.   What considerations drove the vote?    Initially, many 
commentators were blaming the unpopularity of the governments of France and 
the Netherlands, but since the vote  more thoughtful evaluations are emerging.

         Some of the voting may have been emotional.  Politicians usually 
preach acceptance of all religions and cultures because it promotes peace 
and stability and is helpful to business interests.  But the Muslim 
religion and culture is objectionable to those who oppose the subjugation 
of women, (They are less than property in many Arab countries.) genital 
mutilation, tolerance of multiple wives, religious encouragement of a high 
birth rate, and government by clerics.  But we must not say this in public 
or to flush the Koran down the toilet!  (Some aspects of Western culture 
are not admirable either.)  There is a huge Muslim population in France, 
and the French and the Dutch see the Muslim incursion as a challenge to 
their culture, a threat to their way of life.  Many voters may also have 
considered the fact that Turkey, ninety percent Muslim, has an application 
pending to join the EU,  and they may have believed acceptance would mean 
even more jobs lost.  And then, there is the reality of ethnic ghettos, the 
well-known case of the  assassination of a prominent politician in Holland 
by a radical Islamic Muslim, a general increase in the crime rates, a 
failure of the immigrants to inter-marry and adopt the culture of their new 
environment, and the intense competition for jobs.  Unemployment in France 
is now about ten percent, and many  Frenchmen blame immigrants from Eastern 
Europe and North Africa.  What the Europeans have been doing with their 
Union, the United States has been doing with porous  borders and trade 
agreements.  All of these policies are designed to take advantage of cheap 
labor.  Massive immigration of foreign people into any country is 
understandably unpopular, and no thinking person should be surprised by 
this vote.  Why can't Americans vote directly on these questions?   (Is 
Europe more democratic than the United States?)  The US government would 
never permit such a referendum because the "non" vote would be 
overwhelming.  The very concept of the world's system of nation-states is 
based on territorial protection.  It is a basic form of self-defense,  an 
innate trait of humankind.

Sources:
<http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/05/21/news/union.php>http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/05/21/news/union.php
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0530frencheu.html, 
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0530frencheu.html, 
http://www.dw_world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1599282,00.html, 
http://www.abc.net.au/cgi_bin/common/printfriendly.pl?http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2005/s1380217.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2005/s1380217.htm] 
http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000006&sid=aITjHL7G2Otk&refer=home#

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