Is Anyone in Europe Paying Attention? What About Here in the U.S.?

For almost two years I've been pointing to the European Union, saying that everyone should watch what is going on. It is a replay of what happened in America when the writers of the U.S. Constitution created a union of independent states and over time the federal government worked to centralize power, and up to this day has worked to eliminate the rights and liberties of citizens. The same thing is now happening in Europe, the only difference is that Europe is much more socialistic, and things are happening at a faster pace. What took 200 years to occur here is happening in one-fourth the time there.

Recently the European Court of Justice ruled that the EU could suppress criticism to protect its reputation. What this means is "death to whistleblowers." This is one step farther than the laws of our own land where you cannot sue the government without its permission. At least here we can still criticize the government…for now.

The case in question centers on British economist Bernard Connolly, who in 1995 wrote a book criticizing European monetary integration. EU officials dismiss the matter as a staff case. Connolly was dismissed from his position with the EU government for writing the book without permission from his superiors in Brussels. This is bigger than a staff issue; it is a case about free speech. The EU court basically said that Europeans aren't allowed to question the actions of their governments, or at least of the European Union government. The court ruled that criticism that damaged "the institution's image and reputation," could be restricted, and that the EU could resort to a legal device used by fascist governments to suppress dissent in the 1920s and 30s: "the protection of the rights of others."

In effect, the court said that the European Commission could arrest someone who criticizes the government, and thereby the "people's rights" are protected. Isn't this the kind of thing the Nazis and Communists were known for? In his book, Connolly warned that the European economic and monetary union was a threat to democracy and freedom. These are the words that the judges singled out as offensive. Political correctness gone crazy: these words can be outlawed!

The court ruling defies half a century of case law by Europe's other court, the non-EU Court of Human Rights. The Human Rights Court has ruled repeatedly that governing bodies may not restrict criticism in such a way. The EU court obviously does not consider itself bound by the European Convention on Human Rights. If this ruling is allowed to stand, it extends the EU court's domain, transforming it from a commercial court dealing with market issues to a full-fledged supreme court.

People need to wake up and take notice of what is going on in Europe. The European Commission is making itself the argument for why multinational governments, courts, and ruling bodies should be avoided at any cost (watch out for UN activities). As with our own American union, joining a larger political body tends brings few benefits and costs individual liberty.

Southerners should be paying specific attention because once the EU has caught up to the U.S. federal government in the amount of centralized power it has, then the EU bureaucracy will speed past the U.S., and our federal government will take it's queues from the European Union. At that point, the four monolithic, totalitarian governments of China, Russia, the EU and the U.S. will work together in the name of "peace" to "provide" for all their citizens. In reality they will subvert our liberties and ensure their power by recognizing each other's right to suppress their citizens. How better to validate your own abuses than to endorse the abuses of a fellow tyrant?

Very few Europeans seem to be paying attention to what is happening. Mind you, since Europe is already so socialized, and political correctness has been much stronger over there for a longer time, like sheep the people follow along, believing their leaders have their best interest at heart. Not true. Like our own politicians, all the talk of "for the people" really means that the EU leaders are only concerned with increasing their personal power over others. It's hard to control people in a free society. It is much easier to control them in a totalitarian state. That is where they are headed. A new "Dark Ages" is looming in our future.

Our U.S. leaders are too friendly and approving of what Europe is doing. They want to "lead" (meaning control) like the Europeans do. Southerners need to shift into overdrive on educating our fellow Southerners, and other Americans, if we want to save what's left of the Republic and its liberty-loving institutions. If we aren't careful, just as we think we are ready to step out on our own, the federal government will have already shut and locked the gate to our cage.


Jeff Adams
14 March 2001