The European Union’s Democratic Deficit and Options for EU Democracy in the 21st Century. EU Centre Singapore Working Paper No. 22, August 2014

The European Union (EU) is widely acknowledged as a successful example of economic and political integration of nation states today – a slate of democratic institutions such as the European Parliament have also been developed and European citizens now possess extensive political and civil rights by virtue of the introduction of European citizenship. Nevertheless, the EU is said to suffer from a so called “democratic deficit” even as it seeks deeper and closer integration. Decades of institutional design and elite closed-door decisions has taken its toll on the inclusion and integration of European citizens in social and political life, with widening socio-economic inequalities and the resurgence of extreme-right parties during in the wake of the debt crisis in the Eurozone. This paper attempts to evaluate the democratic development of the EU through the use of a process-oriented approach, and concludes at the end with discussions on the various options that the EU and its citizens can take to reform democratic processes and institutions in Europe.

De Gaulle and Europe: Historical Revision and Social Science Theory. CES Germany & Europe Working Papers, No. 08.5, 1998

The thousands of books and articles on Charles de Gaulle's policy toward European integration, whether written by historians, political scientists, or commentators, universally accord primary explanatory importance to the General's distinctive geopolitical ideology. In explaining his motivations, only secondary significance, if any at all, is attached to commercial considerations. This paper seeks to reverse this historiographical consensus by the four major decisions toward European integration taken under de Gaulle's Presidency: the decisions to remain in the Common Market in 1958, to propose the Fouchet Plan in the early 1960s, to veto British accession to the EC, and to provoke the "empty chair" crisis in 1965-1966, resulting in Luxembourg Compromise. In each case, the overwhelming bulk of the primary evidence speeches, memoirs, or government documents suggests that de Gaulle's primary motivation was economic, not geopolitical or ideological. Like his predecessors and successors, de Gaulle sought to promote French industry and agriculture by establishing protected markets for their export products. This empirical finding has three broader implications: (1) For those interested in the European Union, it suggests that regional integration has been driven primarily by economic, not geopolitical considerations even in the least likely case. (2) For those interested in the role of ideas in foreign policy, it suggests that strong interest groups in a democracy limit the impact of a leaders geopolitical ideology even where the executive has very broad institutional autonomy. De Gaulle was a democratic statesman first and an ideological visionary second. (3) For those who employ qualitative case-study methods, it suggests that even a broad, representative sample of secondary sources does not create a firm basis for causal inference. For political scientists, as for historians, there is in many cases no reliable alternative to primary source research.

An EU mechanism on Democracy, the Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights. CEPS Paper in Liberty and Security in Europe No. 91/April 2016 Thursday, 21 April 2016

The European Union is founded on a set of common principles of democracy, the rule of law, and fundamental rights, as enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on the European Union. Whereas future Member States are vetted for their compliance with these values before they accede to the Union, no similar method exists to supervise adherence to these foundational principles after accession. EU history proved that this ‘Copenhagen dilemma’ was far from theoretical. EU Member State governments’ adherence to foundational EU values cannot be taken for granted. Violations may happen in individual cases, or in a systemic way, which may go as far as overthrowing the rule of law. Against this background the European Parliament initiated a Legislative Own-Initiative Report on the establishment of an EU mechanism on democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights and proposed among others a Scoreboard on the basis of common and objective indicators by which foundational values can be measured. This Research Paper assesses the need and possibilities for the establishment of an EU Scoreboard, as well as its related social, economic, legal and political ‘costs and benefits’.

Democracy,

Natural rights of man.--Principles of democracy.--The Constitution.--Political economy.--Social welfare.--Religion.--Foreign affairs.--Appendix: 1. Axioms and dicta. II. Opinion of contemporaries. III. Select bibliography (p. 283-285)

History and social intelligence,

Mode of access: Internet.

Democracy and freedom.

Mode of access: Internet.

Practical applications of democracy

"Second edition."

Democracy and liberty /

"First edition, March 1896. Reprinted May,... 1896... November, 1903."

Essays in social justice,

What is justice?--The ultimate basis of social conflict.--The principle of self-centered appreciation commonly called self-interest.--The forms of human conflict.--Economic competition.--How ought wealth to be distributed?--How much is a man worth?--Interest.--Socialism and the present unrest.--Constructive democracy.--The single tax.--The question of inheritance.--The question of monopoly.--The cure for poverty.--The responsibility of the rich for the condition of the poor.--Social service.--How ought the burdens of taxation to be distributed?

Nationalism and education since 1789; a social and political history of modern education,

This book is an elaboration of a syllabus for a course in the history of education published in 1919 by Teachers college, Columbia university, entitled Democracy and nationalism in education."--Pref.

The religion of democracy : a memorandum of modern principles /

Another edition (San Francisco, D.P. Elder) has title: The religion of democracy; a manual of devotion.

Crowds; a moving-picture of democracy

Mode of access: Internet.

The unfinished programme of democracy,

The crisis of democracy.--The tests of democratic progress.--The pecuniary standard.--The redemption of work.--The achievement of liberty.--The practice of fellowship.--The organisation of government.--A democratised world.--Education into democracy.

The Russian peasantry, their agrarian condition, social life and religion;

The Russian agrarian question.--The moujiks and the Russian democracy.--Paternal government.--Hard times.--Popular religion.--The rascol.--Rationalistic dissent.--Modern sectarianism.--The tragedy of Russian history.

The city : the hope of democracy /

Mode of access: Internet.