RE: https://zirk.us/@ChrisMayLA6/115589040644325032

THREAD: @ChrisMayLA6 rightly questions UK #LabourParty's "mistaken expectation of continued entitlement" wrt the #EU.🇪🇺

From my Irish perspective, that #entitlement is in most of the UK's 🇬🇧 pro-Europeans as strikingly as the #Brexiteers' mendacity. Domestically, their entitlement imposed #EUenlargement & centralisation through 6 major steps without referendum to ensure public buy-in. No public campaign to win their argument, allowing #eurosceptics to build unchallenged. #democraticDeficit

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Europe: A Power in Search of Itself

Is the European Union redefining itself, or is it simply getting lost in an arms race beyond its control?

We are at a turning point: Europe is shifting toward a more military, more strategic political project… yet paradoxically, it remains just as dependent as before. €800 billion has been allocated to rearmament without real democratic debate, and a significant portion of this budget will go directly to American industries.

Few media outlets address this head-on: is this massive militarization pushing Europe toward a security-driven identity at the expense of its democratic and social principles?

- The Paradox of Sovereignty
Europe wants to protect itself, but how can we talk about sovereignty when our weapons come from across the Atlantic? As Jürgen Habermas pointed out, the EU was built on technocratic governance, often disconnected from democratic debate. This decision is a clear illustration of that: European citizens had no say in it.

- War as a Political Project?
Carl Schmitt reminds us that states define themselves by designating an enemy. Today, Russia plays that role for the EU, justifying massive militarization. But can a political entity define itself solely through opposition to an external threat?

History shows that great powers emerge through inclusive strategic choices, not just through fear and military escalation. By reinforcing an opaque security model, Europe risks drifting away from its founding ideals.

- Europe in a Permanent State of Exception?
In State of Exception, Giorgio Agamben explains how crises are used to extend emergency policies. One might think that Europe is building an independent defense force, but in reality, it is institutionalizing fear as a development strategy.

Does this militarization truly protect us, or does it lock us into an escalating cycle of tensions?

Far from being a step toward independence, this massive arms buildup rests on three illusions:

The illusion of sovereignty → By funding our dependence on the U.S., we are not gaining autonomy.
The illusion of democratic legitimacy "No public consultation, no meaningful debate."
The illusion of peace through strength → More weapons have never guaranteed long-term stability.

So, does Europe genuinely aspire to be an independent power, or is it content to serve as NATO’s strategic outpost on the continent?

I explore this transformation in my latest article on Medium: [Read the full article here

https://medium.com/@ptit.tolier/the-eu-a-power-in-search-of-itself-1ef6ec629fa0

https://ilmanifesto.it/nel-riarmo-dellue-linsidia-dellatlantismo-senza-gli-usa

#EuropeanUnion #EUPolitics #Geopolitics #GlobalSecurity #EuropeanDefense #MilitarySpending #DemocraticDeficit #Sovereignty #NATO #GeopoliticalTensions #DefenseStrategy #SecurityVsDemocracy #PoliticalAnalysis #Habermas #CarlSchmitt #StateOfException #GiorgioAgamben #NancyFraser #StrategicAutonomy #EuropeFuture

There is a deficit in our media, where control of the platforms we depend on to inform us about the world and each other, are increasingly distant and far removed from the places that we live. In this episode I share some thoughts about how and why this matters, and where we can begin to rebalance our media #democraticdeficit #mediareform

https://decentred.co.uk/decentered-media-podcast-medias-democratic-deficit/

#democracy or #democraticdeficit ?

You decide.

#politics #westminster #GeneralElection #ge2024 #GE24 #youyesyet #YesScots #WhyNotScotland #scotland #wales #NorthernIreland

@Judeet88 whoever wins in England, it will make no difference to the rest of us in the so-called UK.

There are 3 times more English MPs than all the other nations combined.

What England wants, we get.

#democraticdeficit

#EU #AI #AIAct #EC #DemocraticDeficit: "With respect to how the EU operates and the “democratic deficit” that has often been criticized, it’s also interesting to see that the EU Commission decided to set up that AI Office even before the AI Act had been passed into law. They are in a rush, but not a gold rush for the EU economy: they’re in a rush to regulate. It is clearly problematic when the executive branch of government acts as if a law that is still in the making had already been enacted. In an acute crisis (like the recent pandemic), that could be excused. There is no excuse here. It just shows that the AI Act was pushed through by politicians who wanted to claim to have done something innovative in the regulatory field, even if it’s bad for EU innovation and competitiveness."

https://aifray.com/ai-acts-flaws-create-legal-uncertainty-mep-doubts-if-europe-even-wants-to-survive-in-the-digital-world/