Please, Terry, have a look at European Charter of Fundamental Rights. The Lisbon treaty makes it legally binding for the member states, except for the UK and Poland which have negotiated an opt-out clause.

From my distant vantage point, the EU seems to be the rule of elites and bureaucrats.

Your vantage point might be too distant. Try to look closer and, please, favour information over clichés.

"Dieu se rit des hommes qui se plaignent des conséquences alors qu'ils en chérissent les causes" Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet