Yesterday, in a post intended for the ARPLAN Blog, I discussed that Pan-Germanic Socialism within the German-speaking world could still be a relevant ideology in the 21st century. If it successfully distances itself from the racialist and antisemitic tendencies of Hitlerism, the ideology might make its own comeback under a different conception. It would serve as the antithesis to the “Pan-Europeanism” that defines the Western Bloc countries of the EU/NATO, professing Hard Euroscepticism in favor of demarcation between the German-speaking world and the rest of Europe. The ideology will argue for ideas contrary to what is promoted by Pan-Europeanism.
To comprehend the geopolitical implications of Pan-Germanic Socialism’s opposition to Pan-Europeanism, it is important to make sense of Pan-Europeanism first. Pan-Europeanism refers the belief that the nations of Europe share a common political, cultural, religious, and social identity, distinguishing themselves from the rest of the Western world. It stresses that wars among European nations can be curtailed by forging closer political-economic ties tantamount to the establishment of a “United States of Europe.” In fact, the idea itself assumed its proper form during the interwar years, giving rise to the EU/NATO once Europe was split between American and Soviet spheres of influence after 1945.
Yes, Pan-Europeanism’s foremost manifestation is the EU/NATO as it currently exists, its realization made possible through the process of European Integration. As I had pointed out in my earlier writings, the present organization of the European Union is in final analysis an elaborate Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization the military alliance tasked with enforcing the terms of that FTA. Various European political movements and parties in favor of Pan-Europeanism are aware of this, and they believed that further European Integration will finally give the EU/NATO its proper political form. This political form has to be realized by the pursuit of European-style Federalism, followed by further expansion and enlargement of its IGOs (Intergovernmental Organizations). The obvious problem of further European Integration beyond the current state is that the nations of Europe will eventually lose their National Sovereignty.
The implications of European Integration leading to the loss of National Sovereignty is what chiefly motivates the rise of Euroscepticism among the EU/NATO member-states. The spectrum of Euroscepticism varies, ranging from the “Soft Euroscepticism” adhering to reform of the EU/NATO to the “Hard Euroscepticism” that deems the EU/NATO to be irreconcilable with national and class interests. On the Political Left, Euroscepticism is fixated on economic issues, whereas the Political Right expresses its Euroscepticism on social issues. Although the line between the two forms of Euroscepticism tends to blur at times, Pan-Germanic Socialism’s version of Euroscepticism is more straightforward and less ambiguous.
In its most fundamental form, Pan-Germanic Socialism advocates for the unification of the German-speaking world under a single contiguous nation. It perceives Pan-Europeanism as an ideological enemy on grounds which are political, religious, economic, financial, cultural, social, and military-industrial. Adoption of Pan-Europeanism in the German-speaking world means acceptance of Neoliberalism. In addition to the loss of financial and economic sovereignty associated with the Euro and privatization, there is also the subordination of German values to European ones, the loss of military sovereignty vis-a-vis NATO, and the obstruction of all efforts to unify the German-speaking world. Politically and religiously, there is the acceptance of Liberalization and Secularization which concur with the development of Parliamentary Democracy. Given these factors, it is understandable why Pan-Germanic Socialism, if given any power, would present serious opposition to the EU/NATO.
Categories: Philosophy
The Fourth Estate 
Leave a Reply