Richard Corbett

I have refused to link to Richard Corbett MEP because I understood that he did not allow comments for the same reason I have avoided even reading him. For some reason I just did and it is evident that he has now authorised comments.

Hence I have now added him to my blogroll by way of welcoming him to the world of Bloging.

Filed under : The New Privileged Class
By Ken
On March 18, 2008
At 1:58 pm
Comments : 0

Instead of Democracy

Headlines make the point that polling has taken the place of democracy, instead of allowing us the people a real voice we are inundated with the results of polls conducted and financed by the EU.

The EU relies on the results of polling to pretend that it is listening to the people, several times this week I have come across headlines that claim the people of Europe want the EU to do this or expect the EU to do that, and because the EU does not have to ever face the public the EU can and does choose which of the polling results it will listen to those which support its plans are promoted to give a veneer of respectability those which fail to deliver the required answer are quietly dropped.

The majority of people in western Europe want a referendum on the Lisbon treaty, is one headline that is certainly not going to be promoted by the EU, have they even asked the question?

This puts into perspective EU Business headline Majority of west Europeans back big name for EU president

However the article then goes on to explain that this is only the results of an internet poll conduced for the Financial Times by Harris.

So how can they claim that majority of us in Western Europe want someone like Blair to be the first president, the same is true of all the other polls the EU uses to back its claim of being democratic.

And we also have the famous participatory democracy, part of the EU commissions plan D project run by Margot Wallström, which according to the blurb

is intended to stimulate a wider debate between the European Union’s democratic institutions and citizens

In November last year Margot Wallström kindly allowed one of the British invites (Helen Duffett) of a pilot, to write a post for her blog. Explaining how exiting it was to be selected at random as the British representative to go on to the Synthesis Event in Brussels on 9 and 10 May. The purpose of this event was to bring together the results of all 27 National Consultations and to identify the recommendations which should go forward to the EU summit in June. Helen told us that she was mindful that she should pass on the UK views accurately, allowing no personal bias.

So now instead of 6000 (Harris poll) some apparently from the USA, which itself is very small sample, being asked questions, on which to form EU policy, the system of participatory democracy whittles that down to 27 invited individuals who feel confident that they can pass on the views of the rest of all the other people in their state.

My comment at the time still stands;

Helen I am glad you enjoyed your time, but you should remember that participatory democracy is not real democracy, the purpose of real democracy is not to “stimulate a wider debate” and with the greatest of respect you were not in a position to “pass on the UK views accurately” Those views will only be known when we all get a say and we can all make a choice and when once that choice has been made the political leaders must accept that choice.

Real Democracy is not on the EU agenda so instead the EU will use those who are willing to participate in such democratic charades to inform its policy, but of course with always the proviso that they get to make the final decision on whether to accept your recommendations or to consign them to the rubbish bin, Real Democracy happens when the rubbish bin is not an option.

Now I fully accept that the headline about what sort of President the majority of us want for the EU is not going to be the final word on the subject, that will be left to horse trading in secret by the members of the council of the EU, but it is polling which will be used to inform that horse trading.

The EU system has been specifically designed to remove the participation of the peoples of Europe’s in its decisions and to also be a self supporting in that it does not require the participation of the peoples. So polling and plan D are nothing more than propaganda techniques designed to make people like Helen Duffy feel that they have a voice in the proceedings, whilst the rest of us can feel confident that the Helens in the future who will be invited and then randomly selected, have the capacity to pass on the UK views accurately.

In reality our democracy is being participated and polled to death.