Posted on 01/29/2013 11:22:32 PM PST by Olog-hai
“A decade of war is now ending,” U.S. President Barack Obama declared Monday. Maybe that’s true in America, but it isn’t true anywhere else. Extremists are still plotting acts of terror. Authoritarian and autocratic regimes are still using violence to preserve their power. The United States can step back from international conflicts, but that won’t make them disappear.
Fortunately, there is another power that shares America’s economic and political values, that possesses sophisticated military technology and is also very interested in stopping the progress of fanatical movements, especially in North Africa and the Middle East. That power is Europe. …
A number of obstacles must be overcome before the European Union could become the world’s policeman. Although combined European military spending does make the EU the world’s second-largest military power, it still isn’t enough for a sustained conflict. Some Europeans, most notably the Germans, would have to overcome their post-Second World War abhorrence of soldiers. Other Europeans, most notably the British, would have to be convinced, as others have concluded, that Americans just aren’t that interested in NATO anymore. … These are big obstacles. But what’s the alternative? If America is to enjoy “peace in our time”—an expression now deployed by both Barack Obama and Neville Chamberlain—while the rest of the world remains at war, then someone else will fill the vacuum. …
(Excerpt) Read more at fullcomment.nationalpost.com ...
With due respect, it's not the EU imposing this. It's what the British people want...
Yet one more propaganda piece from the 0bama regime...the EU is a mess - everyone knows - and to churn out an article like this - have it published on the Internet show s such complicity towards lies and deceit. This continues the liberal agenda - more socialist lies - and maybe the public will swallow it...
No one is buying the Kool-Aid Jim Jones...Ann Applebum needs to go back to the Shire and leave the real world to those of us who aren’t living in fiction.
The US is on the road to rapid decline: militarily, economically, and culturally.
Europe spends nothing on defense. The US and UK provide it free of charge. I would think ability to defend oneself is probably a superpower prerequisite, no?
At least the Europeans know how to anneal a bolt, which puts them miles ahead in military prowess over the ChiComm apes.
That alone qualifies the Europeans for some minor military roles when needed. The English and French can still field some kick-ass ground pounders.
Since when is the expansion of Islamism, and that which identifies the USA as the “Great Satan”, not a US interest? “Intervening where we have no interest” is nothing but liberal propaganda; the USA has never done that.
The Founding Fathers would be horrified at rampant pacifism in the USA while warmongers were rising in the world. They would identify it as the same trait that would have left the colonies tied to the British Empire and thus weakened. Brush up on the Founding Fathers; I already provided a direct quote from one of them.
Member States shall make civilian and military capabilities available to the Union for the implementation of the common security and defense policy, to contribute to the objectives defined by the Council. Those Member States which together establish multinational forces may also make them available to the common security and defense policy.No opt-out here. The European Defense Agency has been active since 2004, as well. On top of that, there is also the “solidarity clause” of Article 42, that being in Section 7:
Member States shall undertake progressively to improve their military capabilities. An Agency in the field of defense capabilities development, research, acquisition and armaments (hereinafter referred to as “the European Defense Agency”) shall identify operational requirements, shall promote measures to satisfy those requirements, shall contribute to identifying and, where appropriate, implementing any measure needed to strengthen the industrial and technological base of the defense sector, shall participate in defining a European capabilities and armaments policy, and shall assist the Council in evaluating the improvement of military capabilities.
If a Member State is the victim of armed aggression on its territory, the other Member States shall have towards it an obligation of aid and assistance by all the means in their power, in accordance with Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. This shall not prejudice the specific character of the security and defense policy of certain Member States.Since there are no more “pacifist” member states of the EU, then all of them are obliged to pitch in as the EDA sees fit to command them to do. All it will take is one more attack on EU soil (this clause wasn’t in the Treaty of Nice). And of course, Article 51 of the UN Charter says the following:
Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations, until the Security Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and security. Measures taken by Members in the exercise of this right of self-defense shall be immediately reported to the Security Council and shall not in any way affect the authority and responsibility of the Security Council under the present Charter to take at any time such action as it deems necessary in order to maintain or restore international peace and security.
OPEC Has Already Turned to the Euro
GoldMoney Alert
February 18, 2004
...The source for the euro exchange rate is the Federal Reserve, and I have calculated the euro's average exchange rate to the dollar for each year based on daily data.We can see from column (4) in the above table that in 2001, each barrel of imported crude oil cost $21.40 on average for that year. But by 2003 the average price of a barrel of crude oil had risen 26.0% to $26.97 per barrel. However, the important point is shown in column (6). Note that the price of crude oil in terms of euros is essentially unchanged throughout this 3-year period.
2001
As the dollar has fallen, the dollar price of crude oil has risen. But the euro price of crude oil remains essentially unchanged throughout this 3-year period. It does not seem logical that this result is pure coincidence. It is more likely the result of purposeful design, namely, that OPEC is mindful of the dollar's decline and increases the dollar price of its crude oil by an amount that offsets the loss in purchasing power OPEC's members would otherwise incur. In short, OPEC is protecting its purchasing power as the dollar declines.
But the population of most of Europe is declining; about the only countries with a healthy growth rate are Bosnia and Albania. If the EU is a superpower, it won’t be for long.
And the countries with big birthrates, worldwide, are often predominantly muzzie. The way the EU plans to grow is by suckering in more members. Before the debacles in Greece and Italy, and close calls elsewhere, the underdeveloped candidates probably cooled on the idea, looking instead at the Turkish model — neither in nor out, but enjoying most of the economic benefits without surrendering sovereignty.
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