So Now We Are Terrorists

From the desk of Elaib Harvey on Fri, 2007-06-15 15:58

According to the President of Italy, Giorgio Napolitano, a former Communist hardliner, Eurosceptics are “psychological terrorists” because they suggest that there is a growing “European superstate.” Napolitano said this when he and Horst Köhler, the President of Germany, addressed a group of students at the University of Siena. The EU is not a European superstate, Napolitano said, it is a “a new form of democracy.”

What Mr Napolitano apparently means is that EU decisions are made without reference to the population, indeed against the wishes of a majority of the population in many cases. This is the current comprehension of democracy within the elites that have the temerity to believe they act in our name. It is in fact “post democracy.”

‘Post democracy’ is a term coined by Colin Crouch in an excellent pamphlet for the Fabian Society and more recently here. Basically it means that with the great complication that exists in the modern world, it is only reasonable that our governance is expropriated by those with the intellectual capacity to deal it. The common mass, ignorant and stupid as they are, are not equipped to comprehend the intricacy of politics. (Prof Crouch is not an exemplar of this approach though he sympathises with it). It is a concept that has been taken up with alacrity by many on the inside track in Brussels. European Commissioner Peter Mandelson was referring to this when in a speech in Germany he uttered the infamous words “the era of pure representative democracy is slowly coming to an end.”

What makes the attack by the German and Italian President’s more extraordinary is that they claim that this new era is upon us, but also claim that it is “utterly false” that as the Eurosceptics say the EU is “an incomprehensible, technocratic and bureaucratic system.” It is, in which case the technocrats should carry on as before without reference to the unwashed, or it isn’t and the mob should be allowed their say. You cannot have it both ways.

When the presidents of Italy and Germany start attacking Eurosceptics as mouthing “populist demagoguery” then I really take umbrage. This actually shocked the Italian girl I asked to translate Napolitano’s words for me. Her comment says it all, “These men are deliberately trying to associate Euroscepticism with Hitler and Mussolini. They must be frightened.”

Canada

Submitted by Kapitein Andre on Mon, 2007-06-18 16:06.

Ultimately, Eurocrats appear to want to create a Canada-like state encompassing all of Europe, including a Charter and various power-sharing clauses. Once this is complete, power can of course return to the people, although they will have to contend with a constitution that they cannot overturn and a judiciary that strikes down all legislation that infringes on anyone's civil rights.

Colin Crouch

Submitted by JohnM on Mon, 2007-06-18 10:31.

I'm not sure that the phrase "Post Democracy" implies any value judgement as to the "reasonableness" of elites taking decisions for us. It just describes the situation where the elite both control what matters enter the public debate and what options they have to choose from, without saying this is good or bad.

Of course, Crouch sees this from a left wing perspective - his example being the failure of the US populace to revolt after George Bush "stole" the 2000 election. This resulted from objections being defused by the business interest controlled media. It's apparent that blames the failure of Michael Moore to convince the average American as being caused not by the facts being deficient, but the growth of cynicism.

This is a useful concept for the right too, Europe has no meaningful debates over immigration or EU integration. Britain has no meaningful debate over NHS or school reform. Terms of debate usually range over "which option should government take" rather than "what should government not do".

My observation is that Crouch laments the decline of the working class movement (principally in the UK) but fails to see that this was caused by the left themselves when they abandoned coloured-blind socialism and embraced multi-culturalism instead. The left now loath the white urban poor. The working classes failed the left and now the left has moved on.

Distraction by Details

Submitted by Jari on Mon, 2007-06-18 12:01.

If ordinary people do not understand the complexity of the issues that politicians deal with, the issues are (a) not relevant, because they have no effect on the daily lives of the people or (b) relevant, although specific (some sort of technical) knowledge is required for the practical realisation of the issue.

Several studies on policy conclude, that politicians and policy makers strategically distract the attention from their 'cores of belief' (the 'why' question), in favour of the means of realisation of these beliefs (the 'how' question).

This may shed some light on politicians who claim that the issues of today are too difficult to deal with by the common man. A big chance that these politicians (a) use the strategy of distraction by details and / or (b) hold the opinion that the core beliefs of the common man are to be taken less serious compared to their own beliefs.

Politicians who hold such an opinion, display a severe distrust in the values hold by the common man. In other words: they severely distrust .. the common man. Worse, many of these politicians do not take the effort to trace the causes of the supposedly incorrect beliefs and (therefore) fail to persuade the common man with arguments. That road to EU is an escape for the incompetent.

It's not about understanding the intricacy of politics, it's about understanding the intricacy of policies.

New democracy?

Submitted by exile on Mon, 2007-06-18 00:04.

"New dictatorship" would be more appropriate. I realise now, that the European Parliament is no more than a western politbureau. The EU parliament building is no more than a western Kremlin.

These people no longer represent us.

George Orwell was closer to the mark with 1984 than anyone ever imagined. He was just twenty three years shy of the real date. 

Hidden in plain sight

Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Sat, 2007-06-16 12:22.

The EU is NOT a European superstate,it IS "a new form of democracy",and anybody who claims otherwise is a "psychological terrorist".

This is nothing short of pure,unadulterated TURNSPEAK!