I guess I should ask you on what you base your perception that the EU is a "heavy machine", any more than, say, the UN.

I dislike any large bureaucracy. They tend to take on a 'life of their own'.  UN is as bureaucratic as the EU, I'm sure.

Migeru:

I guess what makes the UN more attractive than the EU in the eyes of the Norwegians is, then, that the UN is toothless and demands no concessions as a condition of membership, while the EU demands legal changes on accession and in the future, as agreed collectively?

I guess that is partly true.  Norwegians are fiercely independent. Giving up hard won freedom (to join any organisation)is not something we would do lightly. We prefer cross border co-operation on an equal basis, I suppose.