Is Brexit and indicator that the EU itself is just not workable?

[Zanza]

How many EU citizens actually could draw this image on their own, and explain the different pieces:

EU Political Structure

I would argue that image is wrong. The European Council is not an executive body. It's like an upper house of parliament where the member states vote. The representatives of the member states are not directly elected, but rather represent the democratically elected governments of the member states.

[Monoriu]

Is it indicative of a problem of the EU or the UK? 

[Zanza]

Because at the end of the day, political power is a zero sum game - any power the EU has has to come from its member states giving up some of their own, which means that fundamentally the EU must have sovereighnity over it's constituent members for it to be anything more than a glorified trade agreement.

I disagree with the notion that political power is a zero sum game. The EU has been the vehicle by which European countries established lots of supranational cooperation in all fields and this would not be as easy without an organisational framework similar to the EU. The EU limits sovereignity in some areas, but at the same time opens up new areas where policy-making wouldn't have been possible before.

[Zanza]

The current EU/Eurozone some countries benefit from the system dramatically more than others, look at Germany, which would have a much more "expensive" currency if it wasn't part of the Eurozone.

The skewed current account balance of Germany is not necessarily an advantage. We are exporting capital that is not used for investments here.

[Zanza]

A lot of that has been made possible because of NATO however. A reality far too many in the EU like to ignore. Which is one of the reasons why it was something of a disgrace that it was the EU that got that nobel-prize instead of NATO.

I think you have to credit both organisations. Who knows how NATO would have developed in the absense of a civilian integration project like the EU? Who knows how the EU would have developed without the protection from NATO?

[The Brain]

A single EU state would be horrible. Different peoples want different things. Swedes want to be insane Communists. Greeks want to suck in any and every way possible. Etc etc etc.

[Hamilcar]

A single EU state would be horrible. Different peoples want different things. Swedes want to be insane Communists. Greeks want to suck in any and every way possible. Etc etc etc.

Hasn't there been a bit of a turn-around on the insane communism in Sweden recently? Didn't they quietly drop their "get the whole third world to move to Sweden" platform?

[The Brain]

A single EU state would be horrible. Different peoples want different things. Swedes want to be insane Communists. Greeks want to suck in any and every way possible. Etc etc etc.

Hasn't there been a bit of a turn-around on the insane communism in Sweden recently? Didn't they quietly drop their "get the whole third world to move to Sweden" platform?

The refugee thing hasn't been a right-left issue in Sweden.

[Hamilcar]

A single EU state would be horrible. Different peoples want different things. Swedes want to be insane Communists. Greeks want to suck in any and every way possible. Etc etc etc.

Hasn't there been a bit of a turn-around on the insane communism in Sweden recently? Didn't they quietly drop their "get the whole third world to move to Sweden" platform?

The refugee thing hasn't been a right-left issue in Sweden.

Interesting, can you please expand? Maybe in a separate thread? I am genuinely interested.

[The Brain]

A single EU state would be horrible. Different peoples want different things. Swedes want to be insane Communists. Greeks want to suck in any and every way possible. Etc etc etc.

Hasn't there been a bit of a turn-around on the insane communism in Sweden recently? Didn't they quietly drop their "get the whole third world to move to Sweden" platform?

The refugee thing hasn't been a right-left issue in Sweden.

Interesting, can you please expand? Maybe in a separate thread? I am genuinely interested.

Pro-refugee camps have existed both on the left (Soc Dems and Communists) and on the right (Euro-style liberals). In recent decades all Riksdag parties except the Sweden Democrats were pro-refugees, until they made a 180 last year and suddenly were against refugees. The Sweden Democrats aren't really left or right (since it's the only party for malcontents it gets them from all over), they are mostly working/welfare class people who want a big welfare state as long as it goes to white people and not brown.

[Hamilcar]

Pro-refugee camps have existed both on the left (Soc Dems and Communists) and on the right (Euro-style liberals). In recent decades all Riksdag parties except the Sweden Democrats were pro-refugees, until they made a 180 last year and suddenly were against refugees. The Sweden Democrats aren't really left or right (since it's the only party for malcontents it gets them from all over), they are mostly working/welfare class people who want a big welfare state as long as it goes to white people and not brown.

Thanks, that's very interesting.

[CountDeMoney]

Is it indicative of a problem of the EU or the UK?