The European Union is one of the greatest political projects in the history of mankind and yet it is also one of the most neglected. The European Union was created in the 29th century when its nations began to discuss a political union. It was not a perfect utopia, far from it, but it did represent the ideals that all great civilizations have stood for throughout time: liberty, democracy, a sense of community, a shared language, peace and commerce. Today, many of the European Union’s political leaders and citizens seem to forget that the very purpose of the EU was to form a social union; to bind together the peoples of Europe into a political entity that would represent their collective will and power.
There are some very simple principles that the EU should follow if it wishes to regain it’s former greatness. First and foremost, the EU should not adopt additional member states, but rather work towards developing its already successful political institutions. The creation of the European Central Bank is perhaps one of the most unfortunate developments that have been allowed to happen within the system. It represents the wrong concept, and the wrong practice of the EU, namely the need to centralize power and decision making into its bureaucracy. A better idea would have been for the EU to allow for a Deposit Insurance Corporation that would pool resources from all member countries, creating a sense of accountability and transparency without surrendering its control and independence.
Secondly, the EU needs to quit demanding high tariffs on imports from outside the EU. High tariffs are a major source of the current problem of deflation. Instead of demanding high tariffs on goods coming from other countries, the EU should focus on creating a win-win situation for itself, i.e. allowing goods from Europe to be imported into the member countries at low tariffs.