Just a gallup

On the second half of March The Financial Times came out with an article that reflected the results of a poll made in 5 bigger states of the EU and in the USA. In the following review I’ll give a small summary and a few comments.

• 44 % of citizens think life has got worse since their country joined the club.
• 25 % of the Europeans questioned felt life in their country had improved since it joined the EU.
• People questioned in the US were much more pessimistic concerning the Emus usefulness to the environment and the economy.
  
  Something from the brighter side:

• 35 per cent of respondents thought the constitution would have a positive impact on their country, compared with 27 per cent who thought the opposite. By far the most negative response (48 per cent) came from Britain.

In spite of many complaints about the EU, including a widespread view that it is too bureaucratic, only a minority thinks their country would be better off if it seceded from the union. Only 22 per cent of respondents in Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain thought their country would be better off if it left the EU, against 40 per cent who believed it would be worse off.

In my opinion – nostalgia is what makes people think, that the quality of life has gone worse since joining the EU: the grass used to be greener, the sky bluer and everything seemed to be better; that is how especially the older generation thinks, who seen these so-called golden sixties. (I presume several haven’t noticed, that France, Germany and Italy already were in the EEC at that time). I also think, that many aren’t acquainted with the conditions before the EU (about 50+ years ago). The progress has certainly been, in West-Europe too!

Before: After: