European Parliament endorses EU constitution

[bin.dare]

http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/breaking/2005/0112/breaking34.htm

The European Parliament overwhelmingly endorsed the European Union's first constitution today but the treaty will only come into force if all 25 member states ratify it, several by referendums.

The EU legislature voted 500 to 137 for a resolution backing the constitutional treaty, with 40 abstentions, part of the lengthy ratification process expected to last up to two years.

Two countries, Lithuania and Hungary, have ratified the treaty by parliamentary vote so far. But its fate will be sealed in referendums in countries including Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Britain, Denmark, the Czech Republic and Poland, where approval is far from certain.

...

All the mainsteam parties in 732-member parliament supported the text, which will boost the EU assembly's powers, create a long-term president of the European Council of EU leaders and an EU foreign minister and streamline decision-making.
But the far left rejected it as a global capitalist charter without adequate social protection, while the far right and nationalists attacked it as a blueprint for a European "superstate" that would give too much power to Brussels.

...

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

1. EU sounds like the new US

Sounds eerily familiar to our good ol' days under the Articles of Confederation...

[eric144]

4. secede

I assume states will be able to secede unlike the US.

Am I right in saying that Lincoln used the fact that the president is directly elected by the people to prevent the confederate states leaving the union ? That sounds a bit suspect to me.

If so, there is no escape from eternal Diebold / Republican victories.

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. Yes, the constitution has a specific article on withdrawal (n/t)

[Vidar]

6. I wsh Europe better luck than the late, great US.

[VegasWolf]

2. and there's no "In God We Trust" on the euro. n/t

[DavidDvorkin]

3. Well, there wasn't originally on US currency, either

There are religious forces at work in the EU, as well. They may yet succeed in perverting the EU, as they here in perverting the US. I hope not.