[ambriel]

I agree with an earlier poster than the common market was a good idea. I'd have voted for it had I been old enough at the time.

What we have now though is very much the first step to a 'United States of Europe' which, given our diverse cultures and bloody histories, can never work satisfactorily.

Were the public to have been given a referendum on joining what the EU is today, with all the hidden stuff about transfer of legislation and loss of sovereignty, I'm sure they'd vote against.

The conspiracy-theorist in me wonders whether there was a secret 'grand plan' right at the start of all these european shennannigans that plotted the development from EEC to EU to USE...?

[RUSTYME]

During ww2 the germans were making plans for the control of europe after they won . It was a monetary and fiscal plan.gt was in fact the eec . In theory they lost the war , and wouldn't have looked right to have  a group of nazis running europe , so the system was changed to the russian one . It the re emerged as the eec in 1957 , the bait used to catch everyone was ? The common market ! It worked 100%.  If the lie is big ennugh everyone will believe it . They still lie and most still fall for it . However , many are waking up at last , but is it too late ? 

[SallyintNorth]

In the booth you can pick your nose instead and shove a blank or messed up  sheet into the slot without any come back whatsoever.

Personally I think that sometimes a spoiled / blank ballot sheet can be a valid statement.  'None of the above' - but not through apathy; I could be bothered to vote because I value the democracy that I live in, but I could not in conscience support any of the candidates available to me. 

[Rosemary]

Dan's always said there should be a "none of the above" category.

[SallyintNorth]

Dan's always said there should be a "none of the above" category.

Well of course he has.  We computer and ex-computer buffs like things to be right! 

[RUSTYME]

We are sadly no longer in a democracy , we are in the eu , which is in no way a democracy , but is a dictatorship . It is run by the eu commission , an unelected elite ; a dictatorship !

[robert waddell]

so if you pause to think for a moment we beat the germans in WW1 and WW2 and yet they have still won or i should i not have these thoughts and judgments

[ambriel]

Dan's always said there should be a "none of the above" category.

Actually, just before the last occasion I had to vote in England, I discussed this with our then sitting MP and he agreed there should also.

[mmu]

That's it then, we come out of the EU revert back to the Common Market, and instead of voting for politicians, who are practically all a waste of space, marginally less so when in opposition when they try to say what they think we want to hear, we vote for none of the above.  Sorted!

[Norfolk Newby]

I worked in Brussels about 10 years ago for 18 months. I worked for one of the EU Agencies - sort of an arm's length organisation which has a specific objective. The European Space Agency is another such organisation.

Now this isn't exactly the same as the Commission but very closely linked and similar in attitude and approach.

One of the basic rules is you never, NEVER make a decision. If you do, you can be shown to be wrong the next day so prevarication is the rule of the game. Instead you hire a consultant to advise you (that was me). Then you form a committee to consider the consultant's report. Then you ask for clarification and then you hold a conference. This takes you to the next financial year when you report progress(!!) and request another 12 month's funding.

As a result little happen, the Commissioners and their staff keep their jobs and we go on paying.

Another feature of this setup is the magnificent premises to be found in Brussels and Strasbourg etc. All the comforts of a royal palace or similar (e.g. Saddam Hussein). No expense spared.

The commissioners are political appointments from the European governments and shouldn't be confused with the MEPs who we elect. Both groups claim to run Europe but in my opinion the MEPs have little to say and it is the Commission which rules by the method already described.

I was a big supporter of the European project till I worked in Brussels. I am now in two minds. It has produced a peaceful Europe but without some form of control on costs (the Commission's accounts have never been audited!!) and formally stated objectives and expectations it is going to sty a mess.

Rant over.

[Rosemary]

Please let us have a referendum 

[ambriel]

The EU is just national government writ large.

The last thing they want is to give the ordinary people a referendum, just in case they vote for the wrong thing. You only have to look at the Irish referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. The irish voted the wrong way so they decided to ignore it (when they should have thrown the treaty out) and hold another referendum later.

As for the failure to approve the commission's accounts - can you imagine HM Revenue and Customs accepting that from a UK corporate company? Why isn't our government telling them that they're not getting any more money until they can show that it's been spent properly?

The other week's vote in parliament on whether there should be a referendum on UK membership of the EU was another example. It had already been agreed that regardless of the result it wouldn't be binding yet all three main party leaders came out to decry the vote and coerce their MPs to vote against it. Why?

[sausagesandcash]

Life should never be filled with regrets. However, I do regret not becoming a politician!! If I can get my conscience removed, i'm going to go for it!!

When we got chickens..bird flu arrived, when we got pigs..along came 'swine flu'.....next year i'm keeping politicians......

[deepinthewoods]

i think we all already do that

[Rosemary]

Life should never be filled with regrets. However, I do regret not becoming a politician!! If I can get my conscience removed, i'm going to go for it!!

When we got chickens..bird flu arrived, when we got pigs..along came 'swine flu'.....next year i'm keeping politicians......