Death to Belgium: Long live the EU

An interesting article by Morgan Meis on the crisis facing Belgium and the possible salvation offered that land by being in the EU.

In more radical terms, this would mean that the nation state in general, in Europe, could become superfluous. A shocking thought, no doubt. But with the EU providing a federal role, and local and regional governments doing the rest, what good is the nation? The nation state can simply be replaced by direct regional relationships with the transnational body called the EU. If Catalonia is part of the EU, what need for Spain? If Sardinia is an EU member, why the extra baggage of Italy? This isn't to say that all national entities must be dissolved, simply that many of them have outlived their usefulness.

Interesting and maybe practical in some places. But as with everything European, one size does not fit all, and one man's solution to intractable, linguistic, cultural, ethnic problems is another mans tyrany.

As he admits,

Perhaps it will never work out that way. Perhaps the inherent tension between different regional identities always drives people into conflict. Maybe the whole project of the EU will collapse into a disaster that will make the nightmare of last century's world wars look like a good-humored rehearsal for Armageddon. Maybe people simply love killing too much. But I, for one, am learning to appreciate the new separatism. Death, I say, death to Belgium.