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> Talk to Europeans and they hate the EU and see it as an oppressive foreign power. Maybe you should get out of your right-wing bubble. - EU approval among it

> Talk to Europeans and they hate the EU and see it as an oppressive foreign power. Maybe you should get out of your right-wing bubble. - EU approval among its citizens hits record high as security fears grow, poll shows (https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-approval-among-its-citizens-hits-record-high-security-fears-grow-poll-shows-2025-03-25/ https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-approval-among-its-c...) - Nearly three quarters of EU citizens (74%) say that, taking everything into account, their country has benefited from being a member of the EU. (https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/3378 https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/3378)

nephihaha 10mo ago
The EU is busy clamping down on freedom of expression and forcing through Digital ID. It isn't some paradise. There are things I like about the EU, but it also has some things horribly wrong.
- Lapel2742 10mo ago
  > It isn't some paradise. Compared to the USA it still is.
  - nephihaha 10mo ago
    The EU has better healthcare and welfare overall, but fewer individual rights in other areas. Less gun crime (although this depends on region). Poverty levels vary a lot across the EU. Americans take homeschooling for granted, for better or worse, but it is banned in some European countries like Germany. Also the USA allows groups such as the Amish their liberty, which would be extremely unlikely in much of the EU where state interference would either force them out or destroy them. The US has umpteen issues but is much better for freedom of expression frankly, although it is being steered away from that.
    - watwut 10mo ago
      Right now EU is not arresting own citizens for failure to provide ID card while america does that even when said people have id card. EU is not demanding 5 yeara of social media public from kids entering in. EU is not killing fisherman to feel manly. EU is overall more democratic and more free. The parts that sux Hungary and Slovakia dont sux because of EU, but despite it. It is ok for Germany to not have homeschooling.
      - nephihaha 10mo ago
        The EU is not more "free". There are a lot of things you can't say or will get shut down for. Most of the EU does not have the same freedom of expression or religion that the USA guarantees in its founding documents. The collective cannot have freedom if the individual does not. That includes the right to disagree. The EU and USA are going down the same road. Social media is a part of this censorship of open discussion and is usually American based, but works hand in hand with the European governments. Both European and American governments seem happy to deceive citizens into a surveillance state. It is unacceptable to ban homeschooling. Some children need to be homeschooled, because of disabilities, or even high intelligence. Given the fact that Germany has suffered from both far right and far left dictatorships within living memory, anything that does not promote blind obedience to the state should be encouraged. Many parts of Europe retain a feudal mentality, which includes constant deference to authority.
        mopsi 10mo ago
        > There are a lot of things you can't say or will get shut down for. Such as? I honestly can't think of anything. > It is unacceptable to ban homeschooling. Some children need to be homeschooled, because of disabilities, or even high intelligence. European education laws prioritize the child's right to education and social development over parental autonomy as an absolute. Mandatory schooling laws have been adopted to ensure minimum educational standards and to safeguard against neglect and abuse, which is especially important when it comes to disabilities. Someone with proper training and decades of experience will educate a disabled child far more effectively than a parent whose only guaranteed qualification may be knowing how to have sex.
carlosjobim 10mo ago
I don't give very much for statistics and opinion polls. People tend to give the answer they think they're "supposed to give" in those. I base my assessment on my experience from talking to people in real life. > Maybe you should get out of your right-wing bubble. Your comment is nasty, but I don't think you're this nasty in real life. Probably you're just blowing off some steam online.
- disgruntledphd2 10mo ago
  Ok so you trust your gut and lived experiences more that population statistics. That's a totally valid approach but it's very easy to misread the popular opinion as your friends are not a random sample.
- integralid 10mo ago
  I'm from the EU. I don't know a single person that is against EU. Everyone among my friends and colleagues, including me, is strongly pro-EU. At least I know that's a bubble, because I know anti-eu people exist in my country too. Get out of yours.
  - carlosjobim 10mo ago
    Likewise, I've never met a person who has said they are for the EU or even strongly pro-EU. So it must be a question of which of the EU member countries you are in or other kind of bubbles. > Get out of yours. I suggested in my original post that Germans seem to be pro-EU. And probably neighbouring countries too. Here in this thread also appeared a fanatically pro-EU Spaniard. In Nordic countries, I've never met a person who would admit they were pro-EU. Of course they must exist, since presumably half the people voted yes to join, a few decades ago. In the end it seems to be no more complicated than people who benefit financially from EU redistribution of money are pro-EU and the people who have to pay the bill for it are against the EU.
    - saubeidl 10mo ago
      Every single EU countries population prefers EU leadership over their own national leadership. https://news.gallup.com/poll/657860/member-states-show-strong-support-brussels.aspx https://news.gallup.com/poll/657860/member-states-show-stron... fwiw: I definitely am paying the bill. But I'm also strongly pro-EU. Taxes are a membership fee for a functioning society.

nephihaha 10mo ago

The EU is busy clamping down on freedom of expression and forcing through Digital ID. It isn't some paradise. There are things I like about the EU, but it also has some things horribly wrong.

Lapel2742 10mo ago
> It isn't some paradise. Compared to the USA it still is.
- nephihaha 10mo ago
  The EU has better healthcare and welfare overall, but fewer individual rights in other areas. Less gun crime (although this depends on region). Poverty levels vary a lot across the EU. Americans take homeschooling for granted, for better or worse, but it is banned in some European countries like Germany. Also the USA allows groups such as the Amish their liberty, which would be extremely unlikely in much of the EU where state interference would either force them out or destroy them. The US has umpteen issues but is much better for freedom of expression frankly, although it is being steered away from that.
  - watwut 10mo ago
    Right now EU is not arresting own citizens for failure to provide ID card while america does that even when said people have id card. EU is not demanding 5 yeara of social media public from kids entering in. EU is not killing fisherman to feel manly. EU is overall more democratic and more free. The parts that sux Hungary and Slovakia dont sux because of EU, but despite it. It is ok for Germany to not have homeschooling.
    - nephihaha 10mo ago
      The EU is not more "free". There are a lot of things you can't say or will get shut down for. Most of the EU does not have the same freedom of expression or religion that the USA guarantees in its founding documents. The collective cannot have freedom if the individual does not. That includes the right to disagree. The EU and USA are going down the same road. Social media is a part of this censorship of open discussion and is usually American based, but works hand in hand with the European governments. Both European and American governments seem happy to deceive citizens into a surveillance state. It is unacceptable to ban homeschooling. Some children need to be homeschooled, because of disabilities, or even high intelligence. Given the fact that Germany has suffered from both far right and far left dictatorships within living memory, anything that does not promote blind obedience to the state should be encouraged. Many parts of Europe retain a feudal mentality, which includes constant deference to authority.
      - mopsi 10mo ago
        > There are a lot of things you can't say or will get shut down for. Such as? I honestly can't think of anything. > It is unacceptable to ban homeschooling. Some children need to be homeschooled, because of disabilities, or even high intelligence. European education laws prioritize the child's right to education and social development over parental autonomy as an absolute. Mandatory schooling laws have been adopted to ensure minimum educational standards and to safeguard against neglect and abuse, which is especially important when it comes to disabilities. Someone with proper training and decades of experience will educate a disabled child far more effectively than a parent whose only guaranteed qualification may be knowing how to have sex.

carlosjobim 10mo ago

I don't give very much for statistics and opinion polls. People tend to give the answer they think they're "supposed to give" in those. I base my assessment on my experience from talking to people in real life. > Maybe you should get out of your right-wing bubble. Your comment is nasty, but I don't think you're this nasty in real life. Probably you're just blowing off some steam online.

disgruntledphd2 10mo ago
Ok so you trust your gut and lived experiences more that population statistics. That's a totally valid approach but it's very easy to misread the popular opinion as your friends are not a random sample.
integralid 10mo ago
I'm from the EU. I don't know a single person that is against EU. Everyone among my friends and colleagues, including me, is strongly pro-EU. At least I know that's a bubble, because I know anti-eu people exist in my country too. Get out of yours.
- carlosjobim 10mo ago
  Likewise, I've never met a person who has said they are for the EU or even strongly pro-EU. So it must be a question of which of the EU member countries you are in or other kind of bubbles. > Get out of yours. I suggested in my original post that Germans seem to be pro-EU. And probably neighbouring countries too. Here in this thread also appeared a fanatically pro-EU Spaniard. In Nordic countries, I've never met a person who would admit they were pro-EU. Of course they must exist, since presumably half the people voted yes to join, a few decades ago. In the end it seems to be no more complicated than people who benefit financially from EU redistribution of money are pro-EU and the people who have to pay the bill for it are against the EU.
  - saubeidl 10mo ago
    Every single EU countries population prefers EU leadership over their own national leadership. https://news.gallup.com/poll/657860/member-states-show-strong-support-brussels.aspx https://news.gallup.com/poll/657860/member-states-show-stron... fwiw: I definitely am paying the bill. But I'm also strongly pro-EU. Taxes are a membership fee for a functioning society.