David Brooks, "The Technocratic Nightmare": What of the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton?

In a New York Times op-ed entitled "The Technocratic Nightmare" (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/18/opinion/brooks-the-technocratic-nightmare.html?hp), David Brooks, who lived in Brussels and covered the European Union for the Wall Street Journal during the first half of the 1990s, focuses on the EU's dysfunctional nature:

"The European Union is an attempt to build an economic and legal superstructure without a linguistic, cultural, historic and civic base.

. . . .

When sacrifices are necessary, the European identity dissolves away.

The mess threatens to bring down the European project and European economies. It threatens to send the world into another global recession."

Brooks concludes:

"And the final curse is that while building Europe in this way was a mistake, Europeans cannot now simply reverse course. If the euro was immediately dissolved, the Deutschmark would surge, nearly every other currency would plummet and the imbalances would create a global catastrophe."

Nowhere, however, in Brooks's opinion piece is there reference to the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton, who single-handedly symbolizes the ineptitude of this diabolic union. In case you didn't know:

• Before assuming her EU position, Ashton was almost entirely lacking in foreign affairs experience.

• A former chairwoman of the Health Authority in Hertfordshire, she has never held elected office.

• Ashton has a BSc degree in sociology and has a life-sized Dalek (a fictional race of extraterrestrial mutants from the British science fiction television series "Doctor Who") in her sitting room.

• Ashton served as national treasurer of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, which is suspected of having received funds from the Soviet Union.

• Ashton enjoyed a relationship with a hard-line communist tied to some of Britain’s most militant union leaders.

• Needless to say, in her current capacity, Ashton has spent much of her time censuring -- you guessed correctly -- Israel.

Notwithstanding the fact that she is suspected of having received funds from the Soviet Union as national treasurer of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Ashton heads EU security policy. This is a cruel joke.

Crueler still, with Iran plotting to kill the Saudi ambassador to Washington (http://edition.cnn.com/2011/10/11/justice/iran-saudi-plot/index.html), threatening to sink US carriers (http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2011/07/ap-iran-to-target-us-carriers-if-attacked-070911/), and warning of its intention to deploy warships off America's East Coast (see: http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/world/10356471/iran-says-could-deploy-navy-near-u-s-coast-report/), Ashton, of all people, has been encharged by Obama to deal with Ahmadinejad and the friendly mullahs (see: http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/10/21/idINIndia-60055220111021).

Yes, Europe is on its way to hell, and could easily drag the US into the abyss, given Obama's willingness to "lead from behind."