Democracy In Europe

Taking inspiration from the heated discussions that preceded the birth offederal government in the United States Larry Siedentop investigates what wecan reasona... » 

Taking inspiration from the heated discussions that preceded the birth offederal government in the United States Larry Siedentop investigates what wecan reasonably expect and what we have to fear from a united Europe. Despitethe profound hostility between skeptics and proponents of a united Europe theoutlines of serious public debate have barely been sketched. While skepticstalk of national sovereignty and invoke the spirit of wartime resistanceEurophiles embrace the idealism of eurozones and sound economic management.Larry Siedentop examines whether representative government is feasible acrossthe vast physical scale and human diversity of Europe. He explores the threatto local autonomy and individual freedom and he anatomizes the widelydifferent political cultures of Britain France and Germany. He balancesthroughout an understanding of the great theorists of supranational governmentespecially Montesquieu and De Tocqueville with a deep though criticalappreciation of contemporary Europe. Siedentop argues that it is only on apublicly discussed and commonly agreed upon constitution that one can hope tobuild a democratic Europe equal to the pressures it will have to withstand. «