The European Union: Will Europe Survive The 21st Century? An Article by Walter A. McDougall

Introduction

The article, “Will ‘Europe’ Survive the 21st Century? A Meditation on the 50th

Anniversary of the European Community,” written by Walter A. McDougall (2007), outlines the evolution of the European Union (EU) through a two-part analysis. The first part, entitled “The Other Age Born in the Year 1957,” extols several impactful historical events in economics, the role of religion; and, the strengths and weaknesses that led to the formation of the EU. The second part, “The European Union in a Wider World” provides a closer look at Europe through the political lens focusing on events in the recent past and present. This part highlights the impacts from the events of World Trade Center on 9/11, the questionable decisions made after by the West, the challenges faced by an influx of immigration and cultural diversity on the rise; and, the dissension of native Europeans. McDougall identifies three prominent threats, which he believes will affect the future success of the EU: deficiency of foreign policy, the Asian challenge and the Islamic challenge. How members of the EU react to the current problematic areas and the actions taken by the European Commission will outline the level of success the EU will experience going forward.

The Historical Lens

Many in history have envisioned a unified Europe. Some might think that it was the final destination after so many struggles and vast restructuring this geographical area has had to undergo. A union that would allow for cohesiveness, while still allowing each country to maintain its own unique characteristics was the vision for a New World. McDougall’s analysis supported the formation of the European Union as being an eventuality predicted by many. In 1944, in a final testament ma...

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...tonpost.com/opinions/ european-union-nations-see-an-uptick-in-economic-security-at-just-the-right-time/2014/04/12/1c167918-c0f0-11e3-bcec-b71ee10e9bc3_story.html Hodges, H. (2007, August 06). Walter McDougall on Europe at 50 years [Web log message].

Retrieved from http://gypsyscholarship.blogspot.com/2007/08/walter-mcdougall-on-europe-at-50-years.html

McDougall, W. (2007, July). Will “Europe” survive the 21st century? A meditation on the 50th anniversary of the European community. Retrieved from http://www.fpri.org/ articles/2007/07/will-europe-survive-21st-century-meditation-50th-anniversary-european-community Sotiris, P. (2014, April 07). Greece's left and the European union: On the need for an anti-euro and anti-EU position. Retrieved from http://www.globalresearch.ca/greeces-left-and-the-european-union-on-the-need-for-an-anti-euro-and-anti-eu-position/5376912