I wish people understood the origins and structure of the EU. It grew out of a trade association (ECSC) and has very little to do with direct or even representa

I wish people understood the origins and structure of the EU. It grew out of a trade association (ECSC) and has very little to do with direct or even representative democracy in the standard sense of the word, i.e. representative of the populace. It is an external political class with only tangential connections to individual citizens. This is an issue, because it gives opponents of European integration a fairly legitimate position to be critical.