Catholic Sharia? You can't be serious. Besides abortion being banned in Poland under the pressure of the Church, to my knowledge, the two situations are anything but comparable.

You're right, they're not comparable. Poland has considerably more pronounced theocratic tendencies than, say, Egypt (which is better compared to a Latin American banana republic than to Mideastern theocracies).

So, North Africa is rich in natural resources and the EU needs to integrate this region so that we can avoid colonial expropriation of their natural resources. How noble!

So you're in favour of colonial expropriation of other people's resources? That's the sort of attitude that makes white people unpopular, y'know.

I have a simpler idea: the EU can enact a law which levies a 100% tax on all energy imports from North Africa and finance development projects.

It is possible that there are more moronic ways to encourage economic development in North Africa, but off the top of my head I cannot think of any.

Then everyone will vote for you because we'll all be paying 3 Euros a litre of gas instead of 1,50.

You believe that internal combustion engines will remain an economically viable option for the majority of our transportation needs?

That's cute. In the real world, however, internal combustion engines are between a half and a full order of magnitude less efficient per ton- or passenger-kilometre than electric vehicles, so internal combustion is only really justified in airplanes and heavy, independently operating machinery like agricultural combines and heavy earth-moving machinery. It is not a serious item on any retail budget in a sustainable political economy. (Not to mention the fact that said internal combustion engines will run on ammonia rather than gasoline, and I really don't want amateurs dicking around with an ammonia power engine...)

If I understand correctly, you're suggesting that the legal, political and religious system in these countries will have to adapt to EU norms before they can be admitted to the Union.

To an extent.

In other words: we're gonna tell them how to organise their governments and run their societies.

No, I'm telling them that if they do this, then they are welcome in the European Union. If they do not wish to do this, but wish to remain in a trade and economic development framework, then they are welcome in that sort of integration with the European Union. And if all they want is a mutual defence pact, then the EU should be open to that.

How far they wish to pursue integration is up to them. I'm just confident that the EU can offer the best deal on the table. But if they disagree, well, they're sovereign states.

- Jake

Austerity can only be implemented in the shadow of a concentration camp.