Skeptics On Europa

From the Guardian UK:

French sceptics, meanwhile, fear the charter will entrench an Anglo-Saxon vision of a ultra liberal union that puts free market economics ahead of social concerns.

That's the British spelling of 'skeptic' and the European definition of 'liberal' - which to their mind means a generous appreciation for capitalism and free markets. Which in turn is viewed as a bad thing, especially by the French. In other words, the proposed EU constitution which is currently up for approval by member nations, and expected to earn a 'Non!' from the Gauls - is insufficiently socialist.

So I took a few minutes to skim the draft charter. My response? Well, clearly I must be a cretinous, oppressive American - because to my way of thinking, the document is the rosiest most politically-correct example of liberalism (in the American sense) that I have ever seen. It's filled with sustainable development, inclusion, diversity, the rights of children, animals, and the differently-gendered. And God, of course, is entirely absent. There is a word or two about markets, but in general you couldn't come up with a more socialist document if you roped tougher faculty at Ann Arbor or Madison and gave them a long weekend with a word processor and a truck full of weed.

The real issue, as others have noted, is that the European constitution puts the services and obligations of the state above the rights of the individual. But there I go with my quack American ideas.