One or
two things from Euroscepticland (aka Britain) - Part 2
Eurosceptics
love nothing more than mixing the truth with lies (a bit like the devil in The
Exorcist), hence their popularity and the difficulties faced when
conversing with them.
I am yet
to go through what I see as their valid arguments. Beforehand, I would want to examine what I
call the Eurosceptic narrative.
It is very striking in the way that it resonates with a wide audience (at least
in the UK). It does so by exposing a few facts in a scripted way full of
cognitive bias and dissonance.
...Lack
of Democracy…
This is
the top complaint as far as Eurosceptics are concerned. Again, it is not the
purpose of the current piece to go through the actual argument itself but only
to point out its irony. We are here
talking about people who, on the whole, are fully supportive of the British
monarchy. I am yet to meet one who is not. This is a very simple question: How
can you be against the EU on the grounds that it is anti-democratic AND be
supportive of monarchy which is, in essence, un-democratic?
Furthermore,
when you dig a bit deeper into the anti-democratic argument, the European
council comes always first: Unelected people being part of the executive
decision-making process is the issue at stake. Well, surely eurosceptics should
have supported the House of Lords’ reform as proposed by Nick Clegg a couple of
months ago? No, of course, not, most Eurosceptic Tory MPs have buried it.
Pro-monarchists
argue that unelected heads of state are more stable and committed (when they
are not heading the EU, that is)
Those in
favour of the status quo in the House of Lords argue that unelected public
officers do a better job because they are less likely to be lobbied or be
partisan and/or corrupted (except when they are part of the European council of
course).
...
Corruption and Cost …
Widespread
corruption within the EU institutions is very frequently argued. I am not sure
that there has ever been a real case of corruption and it seems a fairly flimsy
argument in itself. Nevertheless, you need to have a seriously cheeky streak to
bring that up when your own country is plagued with corrupt journalists and
police officers. Look no further than the News of the World scandal and all its
ramifications.
The
notion of corruption is often mingled with the one of cost. Again, one needs to
look at one of the biggest scandals of the last few years in the UK: MPs’
expenses. The British elected members of parliament have abused public funds at
tax payers’ expense. They have consistently shown how much contempt they hold
for the idea of accountability.
… The
Elitist Argument…
When all
arguments have been endlessly debated and, for a lot of them, rationally
debunked, a Eurosceptic’s last resort is the elitist cry: The European project
has been built by over-educated out of touch people, we are told. The ‘real
people’ never bought into it and the common man’s views are not taken into
account… As opposed to the current British government, for instance, where most
of the cabinet members are privately educated millionaires.
… Double
Standards and Cognitive dissonance…
Double
standards are in play when you use two sets of different values to judge two
different systems, which clearly is the case within British Eurosceptic
circles. Whatever the truth is with regards to the weaknesses of the EU
institutions, the fact remains that the UK’s machinery of government does not
fare any better at all.
But what
is even more interesting is that the criticism addressed towards the EU is a
complete mirror of the weaknesses of the British system and institutions
themselves. One does not need to know much about psychology to suspect a
serious case of projection and scape-goating as a way of avoiding facing one’s
own issues.