No to the common purpose…
(…) The reality is that Brussels has no cure for the ills that pain Europe. The EU should be fighting intra-European protectionism — a battle that would make the continent more responsive to the challenges of globalization. Instead, Brussels frequently succumbs to what seems like a case of regulatory diarrhea, making European firms less, rather than more, competitive. Its singularly destructive Common Agricultural Policy keeps food prices high and genetically modified foods at bay — all while the people of Europe grumble about high taxes and expensive supermarket trips. For much of the past decade, Europe’s growth was low, incomes stagnated and unemployment remained relatively high — not a lot for the EU to brag about. (…)