As Brown’s rejection of calls for a referendum (and in the process Labour’s manifesto pledge) remind us – we should not be so naïve as to trust the words of our elected representatives. That said, it is no use complaining unless you take the effort to learn a little about the issues on which you whinge.
Without the slightest knowledge of the world around us we are sure to vote for the politicians we deserve. A recent event at a London sixth form college made this point in a fantastically simple way. Asked where most institutions of the European Union are located the audience fell silent, until one brave numskull chanced ‘Bolivia’. Incredible, but not because of that one brave numskull; incredible because not a single one of the 200+ students assembled raised as much as a twitter at their ignorant peer. Even the member of staff on the front row failed to express the slightest surprise at the failure of one of their students to locate the correct continent, let alone city, of the institution that generates most of the new law by which we must live.
Perhaps it was a lack of oratory skill and the students had been left comatosed, but imagine for a moment if the 200 students actually weren’t aware of where the EU’s home is – scary stuff. And then remember that (roughly) more than 700,000 other students will be joining the electorate within the next twelve months – scarier stuff. Brown will certainly have called an election by then but the point remains, the young electorate is almost totally clueless about the EU and wholly unable to voice any meaningful opinion about the Reform Treaty, whether they are given a referendum or not.
That’s why the ‘I want a referendum’ campaign has dual importance. Not only must it place pressure on the government to hold a referendum but it must also inform the public about the realities of the Treaty and why there is a need for that referendum. They seem to be doing both as well as possible (see ‘our case’ on their website – better still go one further and then sign up as a supporter!), but it will be an uphill battle with such little background knowledge of what the EU itself is all about. It is an even greater task to educate about all those developments that have left us in the current mess and the desperate need to get out of it.
However, we are trying! EUFacts, Civitas’ easy-to-use facthseets on over 70 aspects of the EU and its institutions, has recently been totally updated and reformatted. Take a look…
Comments (2)
I remember reading an opinion piece in the Herald Tribune back in March by some Euro luminary whose name I forget, a member of the commission, the trilaterial committee thing too...in which he said. Look the EU has a grand purpose. It stops wars (debatable) and is necessary. It's necessary in a regionalised world. The EU has expanded and now it's gridlocked (not really). It needs a clear voice to negotiate. We set this up in the EU constitution. It was a long constitution. The French rejected it. They can't have read it. It must be ignorance (remember it was 'just a tidying up exercise' - though we read it - it wasn't)...again. We at the EU know best. We're experts. We have the long view. So, we're resubmitting it. We're doing it again. And if, for some reason they say no, then we'll do it again until they say yes.
Which really underlines the EU process, led by mandarins on a project and not the will of the people, which is scorned.
The EU is using a method of abuse. When you keep on saying no and getting ignored you learn that democracy is a sham and are bullied into accepting it. Because once you've said yes, you can't go back. It's done.
Which is charming. Maybe it was Brezinski. Someone like that. I was just shocked how honest it was. Really peeved me.
Posted by chas | October 3, 2007 10:25 AM
Posted on October 3, 2007 10:25
It is becoming increasingly apparent that the architects of the European Union have long been aware that the best way to get that institution cemented in the lives of the European people is to wait until those who knew a different method of government and a different national identity have died out.
Posted by Henry Kaye | October 1, 2007 5:41 PM
Posted on October 1, 2007 17:41