WHATEVER happened the European Union? You must remember it. It was God's gift to nationalist Ireland: an alternative to British rule, a provider of manna from Brussels and, originally, a defence against communism. Sure what more could Ireland ask for?
Yes, it helped to demonise the Irish people during the economic collapse of 2008. With less than one per cent of the EU population, Ireland paid 42 per cent of the total cost of the European banking crisis but, as our politicians said, it was our own fault for being so extravagant.
Never mind, you say, the EU will always be there for us in a crisis. Er, no, it's won't.
In this pandemic, every EU country introduced its own lock-down measures, ignored the rule forbidding financial assistance to industry and closed its borders.
Ah but, you insist, the EU will soon return to normal. That's unlikely, not because of the pandemic, but because of a recent court ruling in Germany. It is all a bit complex, so let me explain it this way.
Imagine that Germany is a person. (Look, if you can imagine Ireland is Róisín Dubh, you can try something similar for Germany.)
So Germany is someone living in London and deciding the rules on lock-down. But it believes those rules do not apply to it and it drives to Durham. You know the rest. Right, keep that idea in your head.
As a country, Germany is the Eurozone's ultimate paymaster and it significantly determines EU economic policy. But its highest court has ruled that the EU's legal authority does not apply to Germany.
It decided that Germany is not bound by EU rules, most of which it helped to formulate. It ruled that the EU's highest court, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) had no right to approve European Central Bank policy. (I told you it was complex.)
This means, for example, that while EU law is superior to Irish law, German law is superior to EU law. There is one rule for Germany and one for the rest of the EU (think Dominic Cummings).
Although smaller countries have previously rejected ECJ's judgments, they succumbed to EU pressure and changed their national laws. But Germany is too powerful for that.
Germany's case for disregarding EU law is based on its accession agreement when joining the EEC (later the EU). It was an elaborate treaty, which also allowed the then West Germany to include East Germany in the agreement. So when the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, East Germans automatically became EU citizens.
The Dublin government did not include the north in its accession treaty, even though Articles 2 and 3 of the Irish constitution claimed jurisdiction over the north.
(The 1945 West German constitution copied Articles 2 and 3 of the Irish constitution. In the Good Friday Agreement, Ireland abandoned Articles 2 and 3, thereby making Brexit much easier for Britain.)
So, if Germany can go it alone on EU law, can every EU state do the same (a Dominic Cummings for everyone in the audience)? If so, the EU will effectively cease to exist.
With soaring debts across Europe, the ECB will soon run out of credibility and the Euro will collapse as a currency.
The alternative is to create a single EU state, which is why Brussels plans to offer €500 billion in grants (with new taxes) to states for post-pandemic recovery.
But all 27 member states are unlikely to agree and the grants may become loans (with added austerity).
So is it time for Ireland to leave the EU, before the EU leaves Ireland? Yes, I know that's heresy, but today's heresy can be the basis for tomorrow's sustainable all-island economy.
As this column has long pointed out, there is no difference between Irish union with Britain and Irish union with Germany. Powerful countries abuse their power.
No, that wasn't my idea. Someone said it long before now. That someone was James Connolly. But sure what did he know about Ireland's interests?
