The World Is Undergoing Historic Change

Beginning in 1946, the US helped Europe and Japan to be resurrected and democratic governments to be established. The US, through the Marshal Plan and other foreign aid programs, funded a lot of the rebirth of the world not under Communist control. Thus, we then had the cold war. All during this period Europe was rebuilt, its economies restarted and its governing institutions grew into the EU, the ECB, and NATO, along with numerous other institutions which ran Europe for decades. Over time, Germany once again became the predominant economy and power in the EU, and Merkel, who was able to be reelected four times, became the defacto President of the EU. Germany was able to inflict its economics and politics onto the EU and ECB, and Merkel was able to push her agenda through for the most part.

Brussels become the Washington style bemouth where the bureaucracy become its own power unto itself, and answerable to only Germany in essence. Although each member nation had a veto, the small countries really had no real power.  Over time Brussels and Merkel and the Bundesbank dictated what the rest of the EU did. Just as we saw in the US in 2016, eventually the people and the smaller nations, grew to resent being told what to do, and how to think, and who to allow into their countries. Resentment grew and it was the massive influx of Muslim refugees that became the tipping point.  Crime increased and politics and cultural norms were becoming threatened by these outsiders. Then Merkel decided herself to force the EU to accept well over 1 million Muslims, and while at first that was accepted by most, it quickly became a threat to what EU citizens perceived as their way of life, wages, and security. In addition, the crash made the economic life of most EU voters very unpleasant, and they were not getting raises or any increase in living standards.  In fact, life was becoming less pleasant, living standards declined, and now there was this huge influx of cheap labor taking their jobs, with Merkel saying suck it up. This was a recipe for revolt, and so we saw in Netherlands, Austria, Hungary, Poland, France and now Italy, a hard right push in politics.