PrintMarch 20, 2007
Europe's self-serving illusion
The European Left has long peddled a fantastic lie about Europe's history since World War Two. This is one of those Politically Correct lies that are repeated over and over again, until people start believing it. Here's a BBC lead sentence just yesterday,
"The European Union claims it has secured peace among historical enemies, spread democracy to its neighbours and created a new model of international co-operation."
The story goes on to review 50 years of history of the EU. But something very big and important is utterly missing.
This lie by omission is central to European Union mythology, and it would be fine if it were true ---- but it ain't. Because obviously, what's missing is America's role in repeatedly rescuing Europe from its home-made catastrophes. The European Union could not exist without sixty years of American sacrifice for Europe. Today, a mass of Eurohype evades the truth: That Europe even today cannot defend itself, that it is spending less than half on defense than twenty years ago, and that in consequence it is utterly dependent upon American blood and treasure to keep it secure.
So Auntie Beeb is claiming for Europe what in fact was accomplished by such men as Harry S. Truman and Ronald Reagan, with broad political support in America.
Along with a slew of other childish lies, the European Union and its supporters on the EuroLeft --- who see it as the new, improved Soviet Union --- render the whole project more and more dubious.
When a group of people feel the need to mouth obvious lies over and over again, it's a good bet that they are trying to cover up a sense of inferiority and shame. We don't need to rub in the truth, except that Europe seems more and more unhealthy; after all, the grandiose European past is rife with similar lies. The need to lie about fundamentals like security is dangerous, and this one covers up a continuing record of gross irresponsibility among Europe's political class, which is still sucking off Uncle Sam's, well, you know what, while ranting at us every day. This is not healthy.
As the EU keeps telling us, Europe now consists of 450 million people, with a strong currency (in fact, too strong, but that's another story), a giant industrial base, an educated work force, and all the other ingredients of political power. But Europe has neither the guts nor the honesty to deal with the world as it is.
That is why Europe constantly needs to blame America. Because if they ever stopped, they would have to look at reality --- including current threats from a newly teeth-baring Russian bear, from Iranian missiles and forthcoming nukes, and from the European Union's own lack of democratic legitimacy. The EU is being built on quicksand, largely to please its own exploitive elite, without even elementary accountability.
The "new Europe" of Poland, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and other former Soviet colonies are much more pro-American, because they can't deny their own life experience. If we walk away from a human catastrophe in Iraq, they will take that as a signal that American resolve has weakened fatally since the Cold War, and everybody will then make their own peace with the Russians (and soon perhaps, with resurgent German and French nationalism as well, parading as European socialism). So it is vital for the former Soviet Bloc colonies to support the United States, and they are doing it at considerable political costs to themselves. Bulgaria is sending troops to Iraq, the Poles are planning to station anti-missile defenses (to defend Berlin, Paris and London, very much against the Left's agitated denial), and Vaclav Klaus, the president of the Czech Republic, is pointing out the fraud of the Global Warming guilt trip. This is heresy, of course, to the EuroLeft, which is now desperately trying to shut up the skeptics.
Political lying always signals bad news. When lies spread, as Political Correctness is designed to do, bad signals become ominous. They infect the sciences, as they have with Global Mourning and Mad Cow disease, the bird flu, and other agenda-driven tabloid news. These days there isn't much difference between the New York Times and the Weekly World News: They are both full of sensational fiction parading as fact. At some level Martians Invading New York is less pernicious than Conservative Racists Plot for Power. Unchallenged lies are a pox on the body politic, and we are lucky to have a New Media to try to set the record straight.
Europe has been subjected to lie campaigns now for decades. The New Media are still weak around the world. But truth has a magnetic appeal to people who have secretly questioned the PC media in their own minds. If Europe is to recover health, it must learn to tolerate the truth, and to take responsible actions based upon it. A New Euromedia are the only hope.
James Lewis blogs at www.dangeroustimes.wordpress.com, as time permits.
