Today is a sad day for Europe. Not for Europe as a geographical region. But for Europe as it emerged in the ashes of WW 2, a vision of unity that would lay to rest any fears of Europeans having to face the same horrors that two consecutive wars wrought on the continent. That the conditions which fueled the rise of Fascism and National Socialism, would never reappear.
In a EU member state, 6 members of the parliament belonging to an extreme right party, "Golden Dawn" including the head of the party, were arrested today and a party elected by 7% of the popular vote is investigated with the possible outcome of it being outlawed as a criminal organization is a screaming testimony to that failure.
It is a sad day, not because the rule of law is being imposed. But because this testifies that the rule of politics has failed. And the failure is not that of local politics but of European politics.
After all, if there is a EU member state that epitomizes the subjugation of local, or internal, politics to European ones, is Greece. A country that has become a de facto European Protectorate within Europe itself in all but name.
The Greek political system is certainly responsible for creating an uncontrollable mess that opened the doors to the first experiment of running a EU member state directly from Brussels, Frankfurt and Berlin. But from the moment the core decision making process has moved from Athens to these three European capitals, so did responsibility for the effects and results.
The Greek political class was reduced to the role of Vassals, implementing, translating, or reacting to major policy decisions taken and imposed by their overlords. No matter how inefficient, corrupt or downright incompetent, from the moment major parts of sovereignty were taken away from them, so did an equally major part of responsibility for the results. It lies with those that pull the ropes, not those who are left to tend to the frayed strands.
The experiment could have been successful. It could have been a step towards further European integration, a move forward in search of a European federal future that would certainly put an end to any fears of return to the bloody past. But it was bungled.
The painfully obvious lack of statesmanship in Europe, be it at the European level in Brussels or at the major European capitals has guaranteed this result. By a combination of bureaucratic short- sightedness, technocratic aphasia, ideological paralysis, populism and downright bloody-mindedness, it transformed a financial crisis to major European political crisis. And, if unchecked, it promises to further elevate this crisis to a European disaster, in true 20th century form.
Greece had the doubtful privilege to be the test case of European reflexes in a major crisis. But nothing is unique in Greece. Everything that exists in Greece, exists in all EU member States. The difference lies in quantity. How much corruption, how much clientelism, how much populism, how much bureaucratic inefficiency.
Certainly, as Leon Trotsky once pointed out, “quantitative changes beyond certain limits become converted into qualitative”. And this was what offered Greece on a platter a a test-bed.
The failure of European politics to stem or reverse the increment of “quantitative changes” in Greece, led Greek democracy on the defensive. “Democracy knows how to defend itself” say Greek politicians, as would any politician in their shoes, while referring the solution of an ugly and unpalatable situation to Justice.
True. But this speaks of Democracy cornered on the defensive.
If in Greece Democracy is obliged to resort to it's defensive weapons, current European tacticism and lack of strategic vision promises that gradually Democracy will follow the test case paradigm.
“Quantitative changes” are occurring all over Europe, visible to the naked eye. Extreme nationalism, with more or less overt fascist or neo-nazi undertones gains ground everywhere. Qualitative results are coming very close to the corner.
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