> It's more important for them that they keep their sovereignty and not hand it to corrupt unelected bureaucrats Joining EU doesn't hand over sovereignty, and

> It's more important for them that they keep their sovereignty and not hand it to corrupt unelected bureaucrats Joining EU doesn't hand over sovereignty, and the UK has now shown that leaving again isn't just a theoretical option. Norway is already part of EEA and has to implement basically every trade related regulation that the EU passes (a veto is theoretically possible, but it doesn't make sense to use it if Norway wants to stay part of EEA). So joining EU would mainly only change one thing: Norway would have a voice and a vote in the EU. There are other pillars of the EU, and Norway has some genuine concerns related to fishing and farming which have exceptions from the EEA. But I'd say it's really worth trading those exemptions for having a stronger voice in regulations around literally everything else Norway trades with EU. I also disagree strongly that EU is a shitshow (even if there are many issues as with any large system). What the EU has accomplished is unprecedented in the world IMO. It strikes a better balance of what it does and doesn't legislate compared to the US federal government, and is arguably a more mature and functional political entity. There are some powerful things the EU can't do that the US federal government can do, but that's not due to any flaw of the EU, it's a conscious choice related to keeping the member nations sovereign. Another comparable entity may be China. I don't think I need to argue that China isn't a model worth following. I think it says a lot that people in China arguably has less freedom to move/work across provinces than EU members have in EU countries. The positives that the EU has achieved far outweighs the negatives. From the very big (managing to economically integrate a very diverse set of countries, without sacrificing sovereignty, and arguably securing long term peace in western/central Europe) to the small (pushing Apple to allow third party app stores and USB-C)