I'm somewhat of the feeling of the second paragraph. However, in some ways it is happening in the EU. As the EU enlarges, it generally creates a larger area of free travel/work/residence. Heck, if the US and Canada opened up immigration 100%, there wouldn't be hell because the countries are pretty similar. Some might prefer Canada or the US, but it would likely be generally equivalent. In those cases, I guess I don't see the reason why controls are still strict. I think that's what the EU mitigates: as it expands to include countries as they attain a close enough level of development and other goals, movement/work/residence freedom doesn't mean mass chaos. If the EU, Aus, NZ, US, Can, Japan, and a few others offered open immigration between them, I don't think there would be a lot of chaos. So, it's genuinely possible to make significant progress from our current situation without the hell stage that complete abolition would involve.
Since I have the option to ask, I'm wondering if you see criticizing immigration policies as different from criticizing about anything else?
I've yet to see a border that made sense to me. It looks like there are people on the one side, and people on the other. And then there are people that would like to be on the one side or the other that are being stopped from going where they want to by people in the middle.
By what right those people in the middle are obstructing the people that want to move is beyond my ability to comprehend.
Let's just say that borders have a special place in my heart and that immigration policies by extension do as well.
I'm curious as to how much longer the Schengen space will subsist. As EU-skeptic parties rise in opinion polls again, it will not be long till all conceivable social issues are blamed on immigrants.
Several generations ago it was normal that Europeans had a major war once a generation. Every village in Germany, France, Britain has a monument in it with long lists of names of men who died. Today we can all move freely, work together, share ideas, in many cases even share the same currency, etc. That sometimes causes friction, people like to complain, and newspapers run the occasional sensationalist headline to sell copies. The reality is literally millions of EU citizens now travel in, do business with, interact with, study in, and (in the case of EU elections) even vote in each other's countries. We've come a very, very long way. It has become so normal it almost isn't mentioned any more. Does that mean everything is perfect when different cultures meet? No, of course not. But at least we're not killing each other anymore.
I hope next year when we reach the 100th anniversary of WWI (the sheer scale of the carnage is difficult for us to even fathom today) more is made of how far we've come. And if you think that this progress was all inevitable, consider as a counter example that in our lifetimes there was still ethnic cleansing happening in Europe in Yugoslavia. Peace is hard work, we should all be very thankful.
I totally agree with your view. As an european that sae the EEC become EU and (most) national currencies being replaced by the Euro, I am myself a supporter of tighter european integration and increasingly closer relations between neighboring countries. And I am sure that most of my fellow europeans will not like it if they ever have to start using their passports again just to go next door.
I believe the problem right now is that most european politicians fail to understand your last paragraph. They simply do not remember (as I do not, but I make an effort to imagine) what it was to be at war and the damage that this caused to Europe and the World in general.
When german leaders are quoted as calling southern europeans "lazy" and greek politicians evoke the Nazis as a defense thesis... you feel that something went really wrong. It's old wounds opening again and each one looking for the best way to put the blame on their neighbor.
Thank you for mentioning this. I was asked once in an interview (for a scholarship to business school) "do you think the EU is a success?" the answer of course is a resounding 'yes' for the reasons you mention. The primary goal of the EU is European peace and that is has delivered wonderfully. Politicians can fight over fiscal this and fiscal that, but so long as they fight with words not guns we can live in peace. We owe the founders of the EU a great debt of thanks.
No doubt that the EU is a success. I'm just saying that there's a (high) risk that it will degenerate if political discourse doesn't change. Words may lead to hate and hate may lead to war.
I hope human progress will keep this from happening, but these are probably the most critical times for the EU since its beginnings as ECSC.
Bah. Immigrants always have been blamed for everything bad, in Europe as everywhere else in the world - but the Schengen Accords work both ways, and Germany and France want those markets. They'll never go away.
"Some might prefer Canada or the US, but it would likely be generally equivalent. In those cases, I guess I don't see the reason why controls are still strict"
Well, are they? Border control at US/Canada seems to be more for everybody else rather than Canadians/Americans.
Most people are 'waved' through. Except for the need of a work permit, I'd say it's pretty non existent.
Depends on the side... when crossing into the US (as a Canadian) everyone in my car was taken separately into a tiny room and grilled by an agent, and our car was searched extensively. The whole process took about 3-4 hours, all of us had clean criminal records and were just passing into the US for a day to be tourists in Maine. On our way back the Canadian agent waved us through.
I've been through many airports' passport control and customs. I haven't had a major issue. With the Canadian/US border in NY. Thats another story. I've had to park to the side and go to a different area while the car got searched and they grilled me about everything I did during the weekend [US side]. The Canadian side was worried I'd steal all of their jobs during the weekend. This was all for a quick weekend trip to toronto.
Since I have the option to ask, I'm wondering if you see criticizing immigration policies as different from criticizing about anything else?