The Fall of Europe - How to Screw up a Continent
Europe has fallen behind the US and it's getting worse, not better in almost everything.
I live in a small European country that is part of the European Union and NATO. I’ve seen Europe go from a reasonably decentralized mix of socialism and capitalism into a relatively coherent unity representing the best of both worlds.
I consider myself privileged to experience Europe, in all its diversity, as an open-border union with a free flow of people exploring opportunities for work and play.
I loved this part of the story
I would call this era the era of reason, cooperation, and common good. Unfortunately, what was once a beneficial force of good has rotted from the inside and has turned Europe from once a thriving pinnacle of civilization into an incoherent mess ruled by incompetent, ideologically driven politics.
Our naivety and ideological beliefs have struck Europe to its knees in record time. We wanted equality for all, inclusion, and open borders. We believed all people shared our values, which will be a net benefit for society. We tried to save the planet but ended up destroying ourselves in the process.
By “we,” I mean “weak men and women,” spoiled by the good times, prosperity, and peace we enjoyed. “We” could also be named “the great bureaucratic engine of Europe” that resides in Brussels and essentially runs Europe not as a unity of different cultures and societies but as one forcibly coherent country, always at the mercy of unelected eurocrats extorting countries' politicians into compliance through threats and incentives—mostly of a monetary kind.
"Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times." - attributed to Michael Hopf
The initial idea may have been good, as most are, but it has turned into a suicidal monster that is consuming economies, fertility, security, and prosperity and sapping the will to live out of its own citizens.
The worst part? It (the EU) is not self-aware yet. It doesn’t know it’s a monster. It doesn’t yet realize that it is the cause of our problems. It is so consumed with serving its ideals and the ethereal greater good that it is blind to reality—a reality that is coming to collect its debt.
The following is one man’s opinion. I believe it to be common sense, and if you’re not ideologically or financially incentivized to think otherwise, nearly anyone can see it. The absolute truth remains open to interpretation, as we’ve learned that just about anything is a matter of perspective. This is my perspective, and you are free to disagree.
Five biggest mistakes plaguing Europe
Forcing compliance that goes against the values, ethics, and beliefs of its members
The European Union has 27 members. It is still growing, but we’re running out of candidates to join this once-prestigious union. We’ve already seen one exit: the Brits said their farewell with Brexit. I suspect they won’t be the last.
There has been a lot of tension within the EU lately. Most of it has to do with responding to the cursed pandemic, mass migration, and suffocating rules leaning on green agendas. We can add the “Ukraine question” to this list as well.
All of these questions and problems are easily solvable if you let the countries keep their sovereignty and make their own decisions, which you then respect. The EU doesn’t allow for any of that. It’s the majority view, adopted from the USA, of course, or the highway.
No, they don’t roll in with tanks to enforce their will
They just cut the countries from funding, which is now entirely under their control (most of us have adopted the EURO and depend on EU funding). You might think, “What’s the big deal? Just say no!” and I would agree, but since most countries are so absurdly in debt, they would probably collapse if the stream of EU cash was interrupted.
The EU needs to understand one simple fact
We are not all the same. We don’t all believe in the same values and ideas. We don’t all have the same capabilities or tolerances. If you enter into a union with such diverse societies, you must accept that you will not agree on everything and that that is okay.
Regulation over innovation
I’m not exaggerating when I say bureaucrats have taken over the EU! When you have any system, company, or institution that is run by bureaucrats, you end up with a monster—a monster whose sole purpose is to feed itself and suffocate its people.
Tens of thousands of bureaucrats now have to justify their existence and absurd salaries, so they keep making up new rules and regulations. All of them are unnecessary, and none of them are helpful.
The most frightening part of this story?
We may have parliaments and presidents, but they are all subservient to the Eurocrats and at the mercy of their will. There is no more sovereignty in Europe, even though we pretend this isn’t true.
If you want proof, just look at some of the most problematic issues. See how individual countries and their people feel about things like governmental intervention during the pandemic, the forced acceptance of millions of immigrants, the cultural push of the colorful-letter community against predominantly Christian countries, and the forced adherence to regulations that are making European manufacturers fall behind the competition.
Regulators keep suffocating companies and consistently force them to pay more taxes, adhere to more unachievable regulations, and put up all sorts of obstacles to getting funded. Everyone in the EU knows that if you want to make it big or get funded as a start-up, you have to move to the USA, at least on paper.
You don’t have to believe my words. Look at the results.
Let’s take 2008, the financial crash, as the bottom indicator and compare how the USA and the EU have done since. Sixteen years ago, the US and the EU economies were very close. Now, we’re limping behind by a large margin that will keep increasing unless we change our ways. I’ll let the data speak for itself.
Choosing mass immigration to combat falling fertility rates
Here’s a fact. Since we aren’t “making” enough babies anymore, even to replace our numbers, much less grow, we have to “import” humans. The simple fact is that Germany, for example, needs a steady flow of a few million economic migrants yearly to keep the businesses going.
An aging population will cause an inevitable downturn as the population shrinks and the young, working-age people slowly disappear into oblivion. Whether we like it or not, this is and will become our number one problem. People live longer lives and have fewer babies. Do the math!
Instead of ensuring that every possible measure has been made to encourage our own citizens to have families sooner and more plentiful, we opted for the easy way out. We imported them.
Here’s the problem. The people who immigrate for economic reasons used to be composed primarily of families. Their interests aligned with ours - to create a society that benefits families and us all. It was working. Most adapted nicely.
Nowadays, the structure of immigrants has changed, as have their countries of origin. They do not integrate anymore. They want to change the countries they’ve just moved to to be more like the ones they allegedly escaped from. Funny how that works.
Our cultures are changing, and if this trend continues, Europe will be unrecognizable in a few decades.
In the EU, over 6% of the population is non-citizen. Adding to this a generation of citizens or two, we get the clear picture that Europe is a lot more mixed than it used to be. While theories debate the exact number, it is estimated that around 8-10% of a population change heavily influences the underlying population, especially if they are more ideologically strong.
Some believe diversity makes us stronger
I used to, as well. Older and less ideological, I’m not so sure anymore. I see a lot of discontent, problems, and anger underneath the happy facade, especially since the “reality of the situation” is being ignored. That is never a good thing.
A certain percentage of legal immigration is manageable and beneficial for a country. But there is a limit, and we have long crossed it.
Once we lose control over immigration, we cannot maintain prosperity, social security, and safety. We all know this but aren’t willing to face reality in the eyes. I shall say no more and hope I am wrong.
Forcing ideology and sacrificing rationality
Listen, we all want what is best for our planet and the future generations. The green agenda sounds lovely and logical at first, but when implemented over dead bodies, it becomes a cancer instead of a cure.
We can all agree that it would be ideal to shift from fossil fuels to better, cleaner, and cheaper technologies in time, whether the underlying thesis is a scam or not. I vote for nuclear power. It’s the only sustainable technology available for this transition.
The rest can supplement nuclear plants, but they cannot, should not, and must not be what we depend on for energy!
A country has three core imperatives to ensure the prosperity of its population:
Physical safety.
Abundant resources, including food and water.
Cheap, reliable energy.
Violate the third, and the first two fall like dominos. You lose your independence and competitive advantage. Life becomes expensive, as does manufacturing. No country can be economically dominant while having unreliable and expensive energy. You also never want to have a single point of failure on something as vital as energy. You know, like the wind or your unstable neighbor (Russia).
We are not ready to transition away from fossil fuels, and that is a fact that doesn’t care about your feelings! We absolutely should build nuclear plants—as many as we possibly can. They have become safer than most others and provide the cheapest, cleanest energy by a long shot.
The problem with nuclear energy is the fear-mongering that is entirely unfounded and bad marketing. In short, almost no one makes money with nuclear power except society as a whole, so politicians and lobbies force-feed us alternative options that are far worse in every possible way.
Here’s the truth regarding the dangers of nuclear power plants:
You think you know, but you don’t know anything. If you had done your research, you would be in front of your government buildings demanding a complete transition to nuclear energy production. Instead, you allow your fear and old beliefs to rule over reason.
About 30 people died directly, all of them in Chornobyl. The rest is speculation regarding radiation and cancers. That was in the 80s, and we no longer use that technology. What happened cannot happen with the latest nuclear reactor generation (meltdown), and even those in operation today are far safer than the one in Chornobyl.
Nuclear waste can be safely stored and even reused. What remains is minuscule and manageable. Nothing has this little waste.
So, all this panic over not even a bus full of dead in the history of time. Educate yourselves. Just because it’s scary, it doesn’t make it true.
The above table might be surprising. Nuclear is most likely the safest form of producing energy we’ve ever had - by far! Well, now you know.
Murder of EU’s core industries
The industry, especially the European car and motorcycle industry, is being suicided by ever-new and impossible-to-achieve regulations. This push has caused a significant increase in cost and a sharp decrease in vehicle reliability.
Sad to say, no penguins have been saved in the process since the EU represents about 1% of global influence. A spit in the ocean would have a greater effect on CO2 levels in our atmosphere.
Do you know what effect is tangible? The imminent collapse of the auto industry in Europe, that will lead to hundreds of thousands of jobs lost. Thanks, Mr Eurocrat. I hope you got your money’s worth!
Allowing our greatest ally, the USA, to play us for a fool
I will not expand on this one, as too much is left to interpretation. One thing is certain - we are America’s bitch, not queen, and that’s never a good thing. When our interests don’t align, we take the short straw, and America wins. In the last couple of years, they have done us dirty on several occasions, and we keep coming back for more.
"Being an enemy of America is dangerous, but being its friend is fatal." - attributed to Charles de Gaulle, the former President of France
Unfortunately, we’ve put ourselves into a position where someone will always be our “Daddy,” as we lost our independence long ago. We are no superpower, nukes, or no nukes, and everyone knows it. I guess if we need a master, I prefer Uncle Sam, as opposed to the Eastern pimps calling our names, uncles Xi and Putin.
Long gone are the times when Europeans colonized the whole freaking world. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. I suppose it was inevitable that we ended up being “colonialized” as a consequence of our own stupidity and weakness.
Many contemplate leaving Europe
Myself included, and I’m not the only one. As beautiful as it is, the problems of Europe don’t seem to be easily solvable. The more I think about it, the more I see nothing but stagnation, demographic doom, and a lack of future opportunities for our kids on this continent.
Furthermore, and perhaps of more concern to me, Europe is again turning toward ideologies for its guiding light. It has not been that long since we managed to ditch socialists, nationalists, and communists from the throne and enjoy a few lovely decades of peace and prosperity.
Unfortunately, the new generation of politicians has returned to its roots
Insane censorship, governmental overreach, overregulation, and further centralization of all power have again taken the front stage. We’ve seen where that leads, dear ones. I, for one, want none of that anymore.
European citizens' freedoms were never fully comparable to those of our American partners, but unless something changes quickly, I fear we are turning a dark corner on authoritative and central planning over our lives and economies and a downturn in prosperity, freedom, and safety.
Despite not being much for politics, I see a light across the pond
Freedom, courage, and rational thinking still exist, even if they spark controversies wherever they go. I pray some of that influence drifts to the old continent before it's too late, and we either sink much lower or overcorrect violently, for the pendulum will swing!
“A sane person to an insane society must appear insane.” ― Kurt Vonnegut,
All countries and unions have their problems
I’m just more familiar with those of the European continent because I live here. I’m well-traveled, so I don’t makeup delusions of perfection in other places. Europe is still a nice place to live if you avoid the biggest cities, and there aren’t many I would trade places with.
There is light at the end of the tunnel
As an optimist, I dare to believe that the tide will shift in time, and we will prevent the worst from happening by getting ahead of our biggest problems.
Things change all the time. A glittering light is already visible in the distance. Can you feel it? It remains to be seen whether we will first experience a long, dark night filled with terrors. I hope not, and we are near the bottom of this dark pit.
As always, we must ask ourselves what is in our control and make the best of what is available.
I suggest not losing too much sleep over matters of politics and macroeconomics—not because they aren’t important, but because we have so little influence over them. Act with determination when it is called for, but other than that, find it in your heart to trust that all will be well in the end.
Clean your house, tend to your garden, and love the people around you—and that is enough for a life filled with joy and happiness.