What a world we live in today! Just a quick skim of the daily newspaper has more power to wake you up in the morning than that first cup of coffee!

For instance, a few recent 'expresso-type stories' include:

A big news item this week is the fate of the EU's constitution. Despite French President Chirac’s pleas, the French people voted 'no' against the European Union’s constitution, and the Dutch followed suit. Is this good or bad news?

June 6th marks the 61st anniversary of D-Day, when American and Allied forces invaded Normandy, which resulted in the beginning of the end of WWII and the liberation of Europe from Hitler’s rule. What has Europe done with, and does the European Union extend, that liberation?

President Chirac worked hard to convince the people of France to adopt the EU Constitution. But 70 percent of France's 41.8 million voters turned out on Mother's Day to cast their vote, with 55% voting 'no'. A few of the reasons sited for rejecting the constitution were: fear of losing welfare benefits and jobs, (unemployment listed as the #1 problem in Europe today); a protest vote against Chirac; and concern over immigration issues.

Chirac counted on the voters following the major political parties which all supported the Constitution. What an upset to find out he was wrong. And he’s not happy.

Emboldened by the French vote, the Dutch just voted down the constitution as well. Many sited their discontent with the unpopular Dutch government, and anger over the price increases that followed the introduction of the Euro in 2002.

Nine countries so far have ratified the constitution: Austria, Hungary, Italy, Germany, Greece, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain. There will continue to be efforts to ratify the treaty until the process ends in October of 2006. Proponents, obviously, hoping that the French and Dutch remain the only members to reject the treaty.

Well, what is this 25-nation European Union all about? At the end of this article I will list some of the suggested steps to restore a "glorious Europe" - the mindset and agenda of liberal Europe, but first a brief description of the make-up and function of the EU.

Officially founded on November 1, 1993, and formerly known as European Community (EC) or European Economic Community (EEC), the EU's stated purpose is to enhance political, economic and social co-operation.

The European Union's efforts cover every policy area, including health, economic policy, foreign affairs and defence. Resembling a federation the key activity of the EU is the establishment of one common market, with a single currency. According to Wikipedia online encyclopedia, "The members of the European Union have transferred more sovereignty to that regional organisation than any other members have to any other nonsovereign regional organisation."

Today, twelve of the twenty-five member states use the Euro for currency, including:
Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. Other nations include Denmark, Sweden, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Ten countries joined the EU on May 1, 2004: Cyprus (Greek part), the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Brussels serves as the de facto capitol of the European Commission and the Council of Ministers, and also host of some of the plenary sessions of the European Parliament.

The European Court of Justice and the Parliament's secretariat are based in Luxembourg, and the European Central Bank is located in Frankfurt.

The major issues facing the European Union currently include its expansion into the east and south, the ratification of its constitution, and…its relationship with the United States.

The EU is not the first attempt to unify Europe, there have been many efforts throughout its history since the collapse of the Roman Empire. Supporters declare that the EU is a force for democracy. Of course, as we saw in regards to the war in Iraq, several EU nations did not stand with the United States.

But there are more disagreements between the EU and the U.S. President Bush was in Brussels this past Februay, meeting with European Union member states and with NATO. He addressed the issue of EU members states exporting arms to China, stating, "There is a deep concern in our country that a transfer of weapons would be a transfer of technology to China, which would change the balance of relations between China and Taiwan."

Just this week the US and the EU filed suit against each other with the World Trade Organization. According to YubaNet.com, "The move pits Washington and Brussels squarely against each other in a months-long dispute that escalated after an April 11 deadline passed without a resolution. The United States believes financial aid given to Airbus to launch new aircraft is illegal under WTO rules, while the Europeans accuse Washington of subsidizing Boeing through military contracts."

Author of "Hillary's Secret, Richard Poe, who we’ve had as a guest on the show, wrote a piece in 2003 on "The Facist Dream of a United Europe" where he lists the following steps for a united Europe, suggested by Baron Julius Evola (1898-1974) an Italian Fascist and one of Mussolini's leading intellectual defenders, who called for a united Europe in his 1972 book Men Among the Ruins. They are:

Are these sentiments to be found in the European Union's goals? We'll save that for part 2. Perhaps the rejection of it's constitution by the French and Dutch will render that a mute point. Is this the end of the EU? We'll have to wait and see. tOR