European elections: The parliament has distanced itself from the community

The different parties have lauched their campaigns for the European Parliament elections. The left-liberal daily Süddeutsche Zeitung predicts the elections will be a total failure: "The European elections will be a disaster because the parliament and the institutions of the Community are more distant than ever, because seldom before have people seen so few good reasons to send an unfamiliar representative to an unfamiliar parliament. … Europe has never seen itself as a major player in the world, as a strategic unit working for its own interest and - as pathetic as this may sound - for the common good. Yet together the states of Europe carry considerable clout, which indeed they need to compete against the market power of the US and China. … The European Union must leave the ups and downs of depression and euphoria that have defined its rhythm for decades behind it. It needs the power of continuity. And to achieve this it needs its own set of operating instructions - the Treaty of Lisbon."

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