ISIL’s target wasn’t Brussels, it was the whole idea of European Union

[unhappycamper]

http://www.juancole.com/2016/03/isils-target-wasnt-brussels-it-was-the-whole-idea-of-european-union.html

In this column Joaquín Roy, Joaquin Roy, Jean Monnet Professor of European Integration and Director of the European Union Centre at the University of Miami, says the recent terrorist attacks in Belgium indicate the need to strengthen, not weaken, European unity.

ISIL’s target wasn’t Brussels, it was the whole idea of European Union
By contributors | Mar. 25, 2016 |
By Joaquín Roy | (Inter Press Service)

MIAMI, Mar 24 2016 (IPS) – The enemy isn’t Brussels: it’s Europe. The so-called Islamic State clearly signaled this by attacking, even more than the airport, a metro station. Maelbeek is not just another subway stop in the Belgian capital. Although the symbolism could have been more dramatic if the terrorists had chosen the neighouring station named after Robert Schuman…but perhaps the tighter security there dissuaded them.

The fact is that it is the symbolic heart of the European Union. Thousands of officials from the three EU institutions – the Council, the Parliament and the Commission – pass through that stop every day.

The Council, the highest EU body, represents the sacrosanct interests of the member states, which since the outbreak of terrorism and the refugee crisis have monopolised decision-making in the bloc. The Parliament, which defends the values of the citizens, feels that its voice is being ignored. The Commission, which defends the essence of the EU treaties, has submitted to the will of the member states.

In contrast with the gratuitous accusations about the EU’s supposed inefficacy, the fact remains that historically it has been a spectacular success which has guaranteed for decades what did not exist in Europe for centuries: stability, peace, progress, justice.

[CJCRANE]

1. Stick a fork in the EU, it's done.

They keep contriving crises to try to centralize more power, but it's having the opposite effect.