The European veil of intellectual and moral superiority is starting to crumble. In recent weeks, we’ve seen Europe begin to take responsibility for its defense, the rise of conservative politicians who are seeking an end to the immigration invasion, and the climate crazies seeing many of their goals collapsing under the weight of the twin realities of science and economics. Zeitenwende in German means the end of an era or turning point in history. Europe’s possible return to sanity will be our story today.
Apologies to all Russophiles, but Europe is now fully awake, with the realization that the U.S. is not their on-call military and showing an abject fear of rampaging Russian bears, for which they never contemplated or prepared, that is now not just a possibility, it’s a reality with Europe for all intents and purposes at war, primarily armed with a checkbook and too little actual military hardware.
Behind the Curtain – Europe Moves Past Socialist Names:-
While there are no titular socialist countries left in the EU, it would be a mistake to think that most aren’t providing nearly cradle-to-the-grave benefits, which very much still looks socialist. EU nations have strong social democratic or democratic socialist parties influencing their policies. Europe provides its social safety net through extraordinarily high taxation and robbing its defense budgets.
I am reminded of an incident some years ago when a high-jacked aircraft was about to fly over Swiss territory. When France called the Swiss to have them intercept the airliner, they got an answering service saying they were closed for the weekend and leave a message; I kid you not. That one anecdote explains so much more. Another aberration: Germany, Denmark, and Sweden allow their soldiers to join labor unions; you can’t make this up! Reality Bites.
As another example of European mindset, let’s talk about Europe’s grand pronouncement by government-subsidized Airbus and the EU that by 2050, new aircraft would be required to be zero emission. As anyone who knows anything about the long development cycles in aerospace and the difficulty of having regulatory bodies approve any new technology, we always knew this amounted to nothing more than smoke and mirrors—Industry Organ Aviation Week published as much in its February 24th/March 9th Viewpoint editorial. After Europe and the rest of the world have spent tens of billions of dollars/Euros on electric, hydrogen, and clean fuel initiatives such as SAF, the balloon is bursting with the realities of science and economics. Airbus is giving up on hydrogen, and several other electric/battery technology companies are declaring bankruptcy.
The reality is that less than 2% of aviation fuels are SAF today, and the cost is as much as 4-10 times more than the jet-A fuel it replaces. Europe, being Europe, doesn’t see a problem. “We’ll tax tickets to subsidize SAF.” French authorities admitted this would cause a massive drop in passenger traffic. Tres bon! (very good) Fewer passengers mean fewer flights and planes and further the green crazies who want to see an end to taking trips by plane anyway. Predictably, this nonsense is reaching its natural point of failure. The Emperor is now standing naked in front of all.
Next, let’s move on to Europe’s political change from center-left to center-right, especially as it reflects immigration sentiment. The center-right victor in Germany’s recent elections, Friedrich Merz, promised a radical crackdown on migration during his campaign, proposing that all undocumented foreigners be turned away at the border. Jens Spahn, a German parliament member, emphasized the need to “secure Europe’s external borders” and strengthen Frontex’s mandate to ensure freedom within the Schengen area. Greece and Croatia have been accused of forcibly returning migrants, a practice known as “pushbacks.” While controversial, these actions reveal a stricter approach to managing borders. At the Poland-Belarus border, reports highlight systemic pushbacks, with migrants being forcibly returned to Belarus under harsh conditions. This reflects Poland’s firm stance on controlling illegal crossings. Some European nations have introduced laws to expedite deportations and limit asylum applications, signaling a shift towards stricter immigration policies.
Two Truths & a Challenge:-
Two things are true about EU countries: A. They all have low birth rates within their established native populations. B. Their ability to provide those cradle-to-the-grave benefits has meant that European nations do not have money for guns and butter. Today, Europe is a paper tiger unable to wage modern sustained warfare. This is about to change as Germany has approved a €1 trillion spending package, marking its most ambitious defense initiative since World War II. EU-wide efforts include the “ReArm Europe Plan,” which aims to mobilize €800 billion for defense by 2030. This plan focuses on enhancing military readiness and supporting the European defense industry. NATO nations have increased their defense budgets, with 23 out of 32 members meeting the alliance’s 2% GDP spending guideline by the end of 2024.
But, there will still likely be problems following through with these promises. EU structure requires consensus decision-making, which is tough to accomplish, and each country will demand a piece of the pie or won’t agree. Europe is not making any fundamental changes to its governance that give employees vetos over any major or minor decision, and the court system is even slower and more activist than ours. Europe frequently misses out on opportunities they should win.
A great example is the ESA (the European Space Agency), which was created in 1975 and has never profited from its commercial endeavors. SpaceX has stolen much of its business with cost-to-orbit prices of $600 per kg vs. ESA at $10,000 or more. This is the norm and demonstrates Europe’s lack of competitiveness.
One last thing. Trump’s recent tariff moves have scared Europeans. With a trade imbalance of over $200 billion, Europe has little choice but to negotiate from a position of weakness. Europe is dependent on a lot of U.S. tech, banking, and military hardware—Europe’s inability to rise to challenges further cements America’s advantage.
Say what you will, but you can thank President Trump for getting Europe on the move!
Allan J. Feifer—Patriot
Author, Businessman, Thinker, and Strategist. Read more about Allan, his background, and his ideas to create a better tomorrow at www.1plus1equals2.com. Read additional great writers here.
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