[swilhelm73]

You ignore the import I think of something like a Mosley endorsement of a European Union.

Churchill wanted a Union to keep Germany in check and face the Soviet Union. Germany, of course, is if anything overly pacificist now, and while Russia isn't a perfect liberal democracy, it isn't about to rush to the Rhine either.

So why then would one of Europe's premier fascists endorse the idea? Because it was a good vehicle to advance his ideological agenda.

Yes, calling the EU the 4th Reich is hyperbole. But one can easily see an EU in 20 years where most of the political power is held at the supernational level by a tight nit political elite with little to no need to answer to the will of the people.

[AngloSaxon]

"Germany, of course, is if anything overly pacifist now, and while Russia isn't a perfect liberal democracy, it isn't about to rush to the Rhine either.

So why then would one of Europe's premier fascists endorse the idea? "

The problem with your argument is that you're talking about the Europe of today and a fascist leader (Mosley?) from the 1930's, who is, unless I'm mistaken, quite quite dead.

[rogermellie]

your hypothasis also fails to take into account the new 'constitution' of the EU. its mainly an amalgamation of the previously separate treaties, but it does significantly extend the european parliments powers in holding the commission to account, it also removes european political power from some areas and makes bi-lateral agreements between interested states more of a likelyhood.

it also of course increases the areas subject to qualified majority voting, but all of these changes are subject to the approval of national parliments and in most cases in europe, a puplic referendum.

most importantly, all members of the EU are able to cecede from the EU should they wish to do so.

i remain interested to know how a club which your need to volunteer in order to join, can then help make the rules that run the club and choose its officers, and can then leave at any time, can be portrayed as an unelected dictatorship.

[tjwmason]

So why then would one of Europe's premier fascists endorse the idea? Because it was a good vehicle to advance his ideological agenda.

I wouldn't go quite as far as to call Mosley one of the premier fascists, afterall Mussolini, Hitler, and Franco all actually gained power (b.t.w. Hitler was a Nazi, which I would hold to be a very different ideology to Fascism).

Many lefties have also supported, and continue to support, the E.U. Many old-style High Tories do. Many Americans have done so. This is the point, European union provides a strong locus of power, thus the movement which controls the E.U. has a good vehicle to advance its agenda, whatever those agenda are. An aeroplane is a good vehicle for travelling between countries, and it carries all types of people - so too the E.U. is a good vehicle for promoting an ideology, and it could be used to promote any ideology.