THE "DISCURSIVE DEFICIT"
Moravcsik and the European Union
“Sidentrop’s most fundamental error—one he shares with many in the European debate—is his assumption that the EU is a nation-state in the making,” Andrew Moravcsik writes in his “Despotism In Brussels?” However, Moravcsik makes the same error himself, if a bit more circuitously. In his articles “Despotism In Brussels?”, “Federalism in the European Union: Rhetoric and Reality,” and “In Defense of the ‘Democratic Deficit’: Reassessing Legitimacy in the European Union,” Moravcsik denies the existence of a “democratic deficit” within the European Union. His claim itself, however, is not legitimate: he attempts to legitimize to the European Union by granting it authority on the basis of state-based democratic standards while simultaneously denying that the EU is, in fact, a democratic entity similar to the modern state.
“The European Union lacks every characteristic that grants a modern European state…its authority,” Moravcsik states. Yet he asserts that “constitutional checks and balances, indirect democratic control via national governments, and the increasing powers of the European Parliament are sufficient to assure that the EU policymaking is, in nearly all cases, clean, transparent, effective, and politically responsive to demands of European citizens.” This assertion relies heavily on what is the most salient characteristic of authority in the “modern European state”—the democratic system—to make any sense at all, and thus the contradiction in Moravcsik’s argument emerges. In order to examine the intricacies of this contradiction, we shall now analyze the three endemically democratic concepts that Moravcsik claims legitimize EU authority, his assertion that each is not part of a state structure as used by the EU, and his contradictory validation of these concepts by state-employed democratic principles.
Constitutional checks and balances. Moravcsik claims that the presence and use of the Treaty of Rome as a “stable, overarching structure of political authority in Europe” should dispel Euroskeptics’ fears about the development of a European “superstate.” He proceeds to assert that while a true Constitution does not (as yet) exist, a relatively firm “de facto constitution for Europe” does indeed exist. That “constitution,” he claims, is characterized by “a set of substantive fiscal, administrative, legal, and procedural constraints on EU policymaking” that serve to limit the EU in its policymaking power.
The European Union has a common “government” called the Parliament. In the background essay it stated, “The role of the parliament is to debate and pass laws, make sure all EU institutions work democratically, and debate, and adopt the EU budget”. This means that the parliament has control over the laws, and controls the European Union budget. In Document B it mentions, “Whatever institution governs the trade of a nation or group of nations whether monarchy, dictator or parliament- essentially rules that nation”. This means that the parliament has control over the European Union. Most of the time countries
Sedelmeier, Ulrich. ‘Is europeanisation through conditionality sustainable?: lock-in of institutional change after EU accession’ West European politics, 35(1), 2012, 20-38
The case of Francovich had a significant impact on the European Union (EU) law. If a conflict arises between the EU law and the national law, the EU law highly prevails. The European Union law is a framework of treaties and legislation, which have a direct or indirect effect on the laws of the member states which are bound to the European Union. Primary and Secondary laws are the two sources of the EU law. This essay will firstly analyse the main institutions of the European Union and define various legal terms. It will then move on, to discuss the case of Francovich and the importance it had for state liability. Furthermore, it will refer to subsequent cases which are linked with state liability and had an impact on the EU Law. Lastly, my own views about State Liability will be presented.
This essay addresses the criticism firstly by clarifying the concept of democratic legitimacy and democratic deficit. It also introduces pertinent theories with a focus on the constructive and ideological complexity of the EU. Then it explains the contextual and normative relation between the EU and democracy from its history and some of the major treaties. The essay continues to the debates between advocates and critics of the EU’s democratic legitimacy, yet with a focus on the latter, further dealing with two main dimensions of institutional flaws affecting the legislative process and the insignificance of European citizens to the EU regime. After remarking conventional and possible measures to alleviate the deficiency, it draws a conclusion that the de...
The field of bioprinting, using 3D printing technology for producing live cells with extreme accuracy, could be the answer to many of the problems we as humans face in the medical field. It could be the end to organ waiting lists and an alternative for organ transplants. In 3D printing technology lies the potential to replace the testing of new drugs on animals. However, the idea of applying 3 dimensional printing to the health industry is still quite new and yet to have a major impact. Manufacturing working 3D organs remains an enormous challenge, but in theory could solve major issues present today.
The world as we know of it today has evolved over several decades of conflict. The conflicts have taken place due to many factions fighting for their rights. It began with African Americans wanting to be treated as equals. The Civil Rights became the theme of the 1950’s and continued for many years. More recently, there have been conflicts based on sexuality and gender preferences. The LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer) Movement of today has changed and evolved over the last several decades just as the American Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s which gave African Americans the fight for racial equality. The similarities and differences of both movements are striking, and deserve thorough investigation.
The European Union (EU) is fundamentally democratic and is evident through its institutions, however, the current democratic electoral structure is of great concern. The EU is a new type of political system, often referred to as a sui generis, implying its uniqueness as there exists and a non comparable political body. The EU can neither regarded as a ‘state’ nor as an ‘international institution’ as it combines supranational as well as intergovernmental characteristics (Hix, 1999, p7). In this regard it has developed its own understandings of what democracy is. It is evident that the development of and spread of democracy is a central concept and foundation to all politics within the EU, and remains focuses on makings its governing institutions “more transparent and democracy”. The recent Eurozone crisis, it’s associated anti-crisis measures and the recent enlargement of EU have however re-invigorated debate about the EUs democratic legitimacy. At the heart of the debate are discussions not about whether the EU is an all-encompassing democratic institution but rather what are ‘democratic deficits’ or the democratic shortcomings that exist within this powerful economic and political union. Underpinning these divisions as Schmitter argues, are different understandings of what democracy is in the modern context and more specifically in the unique context of the EU. This essay will argue that the EU presents a unique type of political system that is fundamentally democratic, however, there are democratic shortcomings within its procedural and institutional structure.
The European Union stands on the threshold of unparalleled change over the coming years. The next waves of enlargement will be unprecedented in nature and continental in scale. This process has gained so much political momentum that it is now irreversible.
The gay rights movement has made great progress in the United States, compared to generations ago, with the legalization of marriage in some states, and also the gaining of certain equal rights. Many people today accept homosexuals within society, and society in general is more...
Lelieveldt, H. and Princen, S. 2011The politics of the European Union. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Europe has a history of war and conflict that predates living memory and the idea of a united Europe is something that appears repeatedly in that history. Hitler, Napoleon, and the many Roman Emperors all sought a united Europe. Their quests although in many ways motivated by a horrifying desire for power sparked the minds of philosophers and other political thinkers to imagine Europe united in harmony and peace despite national differences. Today we have the European Union which is quite unique. After the horrors, bloodshed, and economic disaster of the twentieth century, in a desire for peace and harmony and economic and political prosperity twenty-seven states have limited their national sovereignty.2 With national interests and ambition still in mind these countries see the European Union and supranational governance and the benefits of peace and prosperity therein as something worthwhile. However, in the history of European integration there has been much conflict and Euroskepticism. Some see unity in diversity and diversity in unity as impossible, and the existence of differentiation in the EU as highly problematic. However, differentiation in the European Union’s integration process is not the hindrance it is often defined as, rather it creates further cooperation in Europe bringing the European Union closer to its objectives of peace, and economic and political growth, resulting in a more effective and efficient bureaucracy. Differentiation in the EU’s integration process has created more successful integration as it allows the nations who wish t...
People nowadays might get the impression that the 3D printing technology is a relatively new concept in our daily life. However, 3D printing technology is invented and utilized in many fields such as creating human organs in healthcare, building architectural models in engineering, even forming components that can be used in aeronautic fields long ago. Since Charles W. Hull has invented the 3D printing technology in the 1980s, scientists, engineers, and even normal people were and still are trying to discover more possibility of the usages and changes on this technology. Same as every invention of the new technology, with its undeniable beneficial effects, 3D printing also faces lots of limitations
The idea was to improve 3d printer with special technology, a single printer, with multi material features, can transform from any 1D strand into 3d shape, 2d surface into 3d shape or morph from one 3d shape into another. The shape of 3d technology is basic mode for 4d. Objet Connex multi-material technology is an 3D printing important part of his work – and is being used extensively in this new process. The Connex multi material technology allows the researchers to program different material properties into each of the various particles of the designed geometry and harnesses the different water-absorbing properties of the materials to active the self-assembly process. With water as its activation energy, this technique promises new possibilities for embedding programmability and simple decision making into non-electronic based materials.
The technology and complex foundation of additive manufacturing (AM) or more commonly known as 3D printing is still being widely explored through trial and error processes to improve this innovative field. Consumer goods such as clothes, food, decoration, household objects and tools, fragrance and so much more has good prospect within the spectrum of AM applications. The 3D printing machine enable industrial designers, mechanical engineer, packaging designers, graphic artists, marketing staff, fashion designers, interior designers and the like to create prototypes efficiently. How is timing more efficient with AM? Time to market shrink significantly as the 3D printer help designers and engineer bring their creation to life swiftly. All matters of aesthetics and functionality can be seen and reformed for optimal quality with AM.
The treatment of the LGBT community in American Society is a social injustice. What most people think is that they just want to be able to marry one another and be happy but that’s not it. They want to be treated like humans and not some weird creatures that no one has ever seen before. They want to be accepted for who them are and not what people want them to be and they deserve the right to be who they are just the same as any other human being. After all the discrimination they have endured they should be allowed to be who they are and be accepted as equals just like people of different skin color did in the times of segregation. We have a long way to go as a country but being the greatest country in the world in the eyes of many great America will make big steps to make things fair.