The Wreck Of The EU

John Hinderaker of Power Line has an interesting take on the creation of the European Union, which is looking more and more stillborn:

When American corporations have lost their way and can’t figure out how to improve their market position, a common “solution” is to merge with another similarly befuddled company. This allows both companies to “grow,” and permits executives to put off hard decisions for years amid talk of “synergy” and restructuring. I think a similar phenomenon has been at work in Europe, where merger via the EU has been seen as a solution to all sorts of problems that Europe’s peoples and politicians lack the will to address in a more meaningful way.

If the EU is the equivalent of befuddled companies merging, it sounds like that would make it the transnational version of the old Penn Central Railroad, but with berets and Hugo Boss suits instead of conductors’ uniforms.

And we all remember how well the PC worked out. Hopefully this doesn’t mean that America’s Congress will feel compelled to create a European version of Conrail to bail out the EU, though.

Update: Speaking of the EU, get a load of this Arthur Schlesinger-worthy quote about it from the BBC.