American reacts to The European Union - Summary on a Map
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- Опубликовано: 17 май 2024
- Thank you for watching me, a humble American, react to The European Union - Summary on a Map
Original video: • The European Union - S...
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Ryan, you are not ignorant. Compared to lots of your country mates you are trying to get an overview over the world, the connections and the cultures. So I cannot call you ignorant. Maybe "unknowing" but not in the sense of being ignorant. You make an effort to understand the world outside the US and nobody can expect more!
Dumb isn't bad, because one can always learn new things.
The real bad thing is ignorance. Knowing there are other ideas and possibilities and simply not care enough is bad.
For real, he's waaaayyy above average the american level 😂
@@TheGabrielPT Can't tell. Don't know any Americans privately, and if I did, they would be Americans that left the U.S. for a better life in Europe, so they are not particularly the role model American.
@@Kivas_FajoIt is Fascinating how many people have trouble with the meaning of words like "ignorant" and "dumb". "Ignorant" means uninformed, or as someone else puts it, "unknowing". "Dumb" means stupid. Neither one means unwilling to learn, though you might call that "intentionally ignorant".
@@KaiHenningsen In German it means what I said...and because English is also a West Germanic language I thought it meant the same there. It doesn't.
TIL. Thx
PS: Then according to your logic to ignore someone means what?
In Spain there is a saying: "Ignorant is not the one who does not know, but the person who does not want to know".
Just to clarify: the UK never adopted the Euro to begin with. They always used the pound. The EU is quite a beautiful clusterfuck of treaties and exemptions. GCPGrey has a very good and compact video explaining the difference between EU, Schengen, Eurozone, common economic area and associqted with the EU.
As European that was quite interesting to watch and see what can be thought of as common knowledge about Europe in the US.
Yeah and next to the EU you also have the Council of Europe, which makes it even more confusing! I think we have like 3 councils that sound extremely similar; I think the Council of Europe (which has the European Council of Human Rights as a court), the Council of the EU and the European Council.
Also you technically DO NOT need to be in the EU to adopt the euro. So eu membership and euro adoption are 2 different things
@@Valentin-oc5nhyes and no. Indeed non EU countries can adopt the Euro as it's currency as well as any other, but they won't have any controll over the monetary polucy and won't be able to mint their own Euro coins. One exception to this is actually Vatican city, which technically is not part of EU but has permisson to mint limited number of uniqe Euro coins.
@mancubwwa So has Monaco. San Marino, Andorra, Montenegro and Lichtenstein use it too
@@richardmoloney689 no, Lichtenstein uses swiss frank
What they left out is 3 of the 6 original countries already had formed an alliance still DURING WW2, the BeNeLux. The three small countries in the north-West of Europe (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg) made a pact of free transport of goods in 1944. This was already the start of alliances in Europe
even earlier. Germany was born out of the ambition to abolish customs between their regions. :)
see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zollverein
I never realised, that BeNeLux are starting letters of the 3 countries who formed it. Thank you for that. :D
I felt the tension in the room while you looked to see if the UK uses the euro 😂. UK has never used the euro, always been the pound / sterling. (jokey remark from me only, I wasn't being angry, good video!)
Maybe he thought they also excepted euro, because in Poland they except the euro even though their currency is zloty.
it is clear to see - that most monarchies had some sentimentality towards their royal currency. - thats basically it.
Rest of us gave a shit. I am quite happy with the euro.
@@zoolkhan I am pretty sure that the UK wanted to stay with the pound because it was economically better for them, not because of sentimentality. The pound has always been a strong currency.
They couldn't change guinea pigs to euro pigs.
@@zoolkhan Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain are monarchies and joined the euro from the beginning. It's a question of convenience, not sentimentality
Although Switzerland, Norway and Iceland are not member states of the EU, they are still members of the Schengen treaty, so basically there is no boarder controls between all these countries (at least under normal circumstances)
They are also members of the
European
Economic
Area.
At least at the border between Germany and Switzerland in Rheinfelden there are controls - even under normal circumstances.
@@e.s.7272 these are customs controls, aren’t they?
@@gerardflynn7382 Norway and Iceland are members of the EEA (together with Lichtenstein) but Switzerland is not a member. There was a moment where they considered it but it was short and was strongly objected to by the citizens and many politicians. Switzerland has a series of specific agreements that allow some things, like freedom of movement, and strong economic relations and agreements but they are not a member of any group.
The EEA is the closest you can be to the EU without being an official member, as they are bound by most of the laws and rules but they have no influence on them. The reason for not wanting to be a full member is to keep some independence in things that are more important to the, like fishing areas when it comes to Norway or Iceland (it is a very important industry, with a long heritage and as a member they would have to allow other members to fish there and they will have restrictions on quantities). With Switzerland it's was their neutrality and, on the economic side, their banking system.
And thus have to fund the EUSSR and follow rules/laws
I heard that France also vetoed the UK's membership because they felt that the UK didn't really understand the spirit of the European community and the peace keeping aspect of it but were only interested in the trade. And this has been proven true in later years. We can see it in how British politicians talk about Europe and the EU.
Yes, we've known they were a pain in the backside since the end of the roman empire. They left because the EU was tired of giving them exceptions to EU rules and said they'd get a better deal with the US and South Korea, the EU squeezed them for all they were worth in the leaving negotiations, knowing they'd wither away without a deal with us, France took their fish when they left too by keeping the fishing rights in the overlapping territorial waters despite them no longer being EU territory.
Well UK was kinda punished when they were leaving as warning to others, sure you can leave but it's not cheap. Its also confirmed UK was bamboozled by russian propaganda into leaving EU, because UK has American mindset and values they were very easily brainwashed as all it required was playing on their emotions, they tried and still do try same with other EU members especially Baltic countries and Poland is constantly attacked by russian propaganda and there is a lot of paid shills acting on behalf of russia but luckily it doesn't get any traction.
The alternative opinion is that the UK really did understand the spirit of the European community, and rejected if for that reason.
in this aspect, the British were right, because the EU is now a communist-socialist dictatorship that interferes with how people in a given country want to live and interferes in intimate and religious matters, and the EU promotes harmful ideologies. Today there is less freedom in the EU than in the USA which is one country and the EU is not a country and I hope it never will be!
@@robheyes6470 That's patently false, they asked to join when they saw how successful the trading union and agricultural policies were then systematically asked for exceptions to every subsequent rule until Europe got fed up and stopped listening to their whining, after which the UK tried to bargain with their membership to ask for more, to which all of Europe said "Good riddance and good luck negotiating a better deal outside the EU" and France said "Goodbye and thanks for all the fish"
When I recently spent my holidays in Malta, I went to the reception one morning with a 5€ bill and asked the head lady in charge if she could change the bill into a whole set of Maltese coins (3,86€) and the rest into whatever she had in stock.
Now I don't know if she was American or Canadian, but she definitely - to my utter surprise - had a North American accent. She looked at me twice in bewilderment, "Sir, you know you're still getting Euros, right?"
I said, "I know, i know, that's why I'm here. I'm a collector and it's awfully hard to get a full set of Maltese coins outside of Malta in the regular cycle. Malta is only a small country and they don't issue that much."
And then she looked more closely, "Oh, they all have different faces!". Then the great search began, even her colleague came to aid and they emptied every purse and wallet they had😅, very diligent. We actually managed to get together a halfway complete set, only the 5 and 10 Cents coins are missing.
But I'll never forget her face when she realized I was talking about the same currency. 😅
Hmm - maybe because you called it a 'bill' instead of a note. A bill here is a document indicating that you owe money and how much. For example we receive electricity bills, and when we're finished eating at a restaurant, we'd ask for the bill.
@@rorybrowne4973 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_one-dollar_bill
You're not wrong, but not quite right either. _Note_ has several meanings, so does _bill_ .
@@thefurbeastunderyourbed5012 This was Malta. Not the United States.
@@rorybrowne4973 Thanks for reminding me where I've been and who I talked to.
Please read my initial post. I said the lady was Canadian or American, and it's not my fault if you know only one meaning for a word.
In that sense...
@@thefurbeastunderyourbed5012 Yes; I'm aware that in North America they calls currency notes "bills", and invoices issued by restaurants after eating there "checks".
I have not noticed this terminology used in Malta, where I've lived for the past 2 years.
I guess I missed the part about the person being "Canadian or American" ( in which case I'm assuming that by "American", you mean from the United States, since if you meant the whole of America from Canada down to Chile & Argentina, then the "Canadian or" part would be redundant.
I'm not interested in arguing with you. If you're not interested in any insights I have from living in 4 English speaking countries in Europe (Malta, Gibraltar, UK, and Ireland), then fair enough.
Your comment about how all these countries came together in spite of different languages is spot on (at 10.50 or so). Take it a step further. For two THOUSAND years, these people had spent more time fighting, killing, and exploiting each other than working together. France came out of WWII saying never again, and reached out to one of their biggest rivals. It's a testament to what cooperation can do.
The fact the De Gaulle has a profund distate for the UK and the USA helped a lot, this man basicaly ran on spite ^^.
@@gaetanhillion8342 De Gaulle essentially didn't believe that the UK was compatible with the European project, and on that he was 100% correct, as proven by the events of 2016 and the Brexit aftermath. The UK joined the ECC in 1971 purely out of economic interest; the British population at large felt no particular afinity with continental Europe, and it does not feel any to this day. As soon as the UK felt that it isn't getting any economic benefits anymore, it wished to to exit the project, and so it did. De Gaulle was proven right.
@@alexverdigris9939I believe the UK can be a valuable member, but they have to some extent a similar issue as Russia. It is their colonial past and existence of commonwealth.
Obviously it is difficult for a formal world superpower to swallow their pride. You must take into consideration how much the UK has changed since WW 2.
I believe that the UK will return to the EU. Not now, nor soon, but once, they do.
@ You are right in noting the colonial past and the commonwealth, but I think you miss the point slightly.
Many Brits feel a debt of honour towards the commonwealth nations, for coming to Britain's aid in the world wars.
Any idea of preferential treatment being offered to the EU, rather than these closer(culturally) nations, has always been resisted.
It's about pride, sure, but not in the way you suggest. To maintian pride, one must have honour.
@ The EU will fall apart sooner
For me as a French, it seems normal but when you take a step back, you realise it's quite mad how so many countries succeeded to get (almost) along. And the weird things that it implies, like i bought my car in Germany with money from an account i have in Lithuania and it normal to me.
Yeah. Particularly for you Lithuanians none of this should be considered normal. Not too long ago you were stuck behind the iron curtain (from a central European's point of view). The changes you went through in such a short time were HUGE!
Don't take this for granted 😉
revolut?
Maastricht treaty was a huge arnack, plus the Euro is an arnack too. Plus the assumption that it's value is the same everywhere in Europe, which was the only argument in it's favor, is false. Just take a look at Spain lol. The Franc (for us in France) was wayyy cheaper, and so was life (well now it's even worst with Ukraine and this shrinkflation thing). Plus the Germans are doing lobbyism on energies and gas, great...
this@@valentinszabo4331
For my summer holiday, I passed through/visited nine countries, used one currency and was checked at a grand total of zero borders. It has its advantages for sure.
As a German this is what I am proud of for my people, after fighting two world wars we managed de reunite our country peacfully, without any shots fired. Ofo curse we are talking different generations, but still.
Wam się udało? Jakby nie było biedy w Polsce i strajków robotników nic byście nie zrobili
There have died many people on the way to reunification. It's called cold war.
Thank Gorbachev. He thought it would be a good idea to allow German unification to improve relations with the West. And look at it now. The USSR withdrew troops from Europe, but the United States only created new bases there. Russian are too forgiving and it harms them greatly. In Russia there is no family which did not lose family member in a war with Germany. 5 of my grandmothers siblings were taken to Germany and never returned. It is petty USSR did not annihilate Germany after the war. Germans did not pay for all the atrocities they done in USSR. Germans remember Holocaust but forget they killed Soviet citizens in concentration and working camps. And Germany did not pay for it. And now they again supply arms and weapons to their little nazi bitchies as they done in 1942. I hope Putin will forget he lived in Germany and gives an order to level German cities in retaliation.
De Gaulle said 'Non' three times before the UK was allowed to join the EEC. you've got to remember that before the European project the continent was almost constantly at war somewhere. The EU is as much a peace project as it is an economic trade pact.
Good remark! Ever since the ECSC Treaty in 1952 not a single gunshot was fired in the member states, all the way to the present 27 EU members. The EU has stopped over a 1000 years of wars in Europe.
The UK has continuously asked for special treatment and exceptions since it joined, to end up leaving for irrational reasons... I'm not a big fan of de Gaulle, but he was onto something at that time :D
As for peace, it was a great preoccupation atter the two world wars, but I would have a hard time imagining the countries in the EU area fighting eachothers nowadays. Even without the EU.
@patrino That's not how you establish causality...
I already agreed that the fear of war played a role in the initial idea of rapproaching European nations economically. That doesn't mean that there would have been any wars if the common market or the EU wasn't created.
EU nations still have individual military programs and France, for example, have been pushing for more military autonomy since the end of WW2.
There was an idea of a Franco-German EU army, but it never was achieved.
The EU is not like the USA, European countries are close because they choose to be. There's nothing preventing them to be beliquious.
There's stronger cultural ties between France and the UK than between France and Latvia who are both in the EU.
The civil war of Yugoslavia would not have been possible with Serbia and Croatia members of the EU. Even the war in Ukraine is unlikely in that way. The EU is a strategic shield for its members, as much as NATO is. Before the start of both World Wars, many citizens and leaders had a hard time imagining a war in Europe. The rest is.....
@@jaapruzius7976 I have a hard time seing how the EU could have prevented the Yugoslavian civil war. That country, artificially holding together was just ready to explode, part of EU or not.
If Ukraine was already part of the EU, it would have disuaded Putin to attack. But the perspective of such a thing would have immediately triggered a war before it could be done.
I think the video misses one of the points of why the European countries even started to union. It wasn't just for the sake of growing each other up, and "doing it for peace" is a vague statement. Sure, the European countries wanted to end the wars among them, but they also wanted to avoid becoming the war playground of the USA and USSR, and be able to keep their own sovereignty against the two superpowers. Which explains a lot of things like France vetoing the entry of UK, or the variations of acceptance of the Marshall plan or later NATO, challenging the American unilateral global leadership especially in early 2000s, the internal conflicts within the EU for individual sovereignty, ...
We need to remind ourselves that the Hollywood idea of Allies or any alliance being best friends fighting hand in hand against the bad guys and only wishing good things to each other simply does not exist. That makes compelling stories, maybe, but that's just not real (even human relationships aren't really like that to begin with, so national conflicts?). Looking at countries relationships like a high school musical only makes people see them in the wrong way. From the moment one sees History as a story with bad guys and good guys, and placing "that's that country's best friend right there" and "that one bit my feeding hand, what an ungrateful brat", you're not in History anymore. You're in romantic gossiping at best, or manipulative alienation at worst. I don't say this video does that, but people tend to default to that very easily and I see it all the time, especially when they are told a very one-sided story about History. See more international relationships as compromises games.
Wow that's even for me as a German eye-opening, never seen it from that perspective. Thank you!
We’ll said Sir
....and did we suceed? I leave the answer to someone else . This has to be approached more in general - like who when how why ... The history will write it down maybe
And now there's a mess in store.
Well that failed, anyway, France is an African/Muslim colony with American wokeness as UK or Germany.
The game is over boys, you were weaklings and the future belongs to Africans and Asians.
It's interesting to hear Americans say they are 'going to Europe' on vacation when we Europeans don't consider ourselves to be culturally part of a 'United States of Europe', or one big block of united 'states', rather, a grouping of countries - all very unique and quite different.
They never bothered to give their country a name. Just United States of America, like there is nothing else on the continent of North America
And sadly some people in the EU wants to actually make it to be the same as the usa, just in europe.....
@@tovarishcheleonora8542that doesn’t seem like a good idea, I like the EU but I would not like the EU to become one big country 😔
That's how Europeans see themselves not acknowledging how similar they actually are. Once you travel the world, out of western and European culture, and not just for two weeks, then you'll understand that Europe as a whole is very, very similar, with nuances of course. Exception, and that is my personal feel & anecdote, are all former Soviet states. But even people from former Soviet states say that.
@@papermangd Same. But sadly there are people who want it that way. Even some politicians too.
European and 46 here. It's really great that you want to widen your knowledge about the rest of the world, especially as an American - given the average of interest for it by your fellow countrymen. We should all try our best to widen our horizons in general. But tbh what moved me the most was when you said "my parents were alive for this...". Well, I was as well for a big part of it. I clearly remember what an incredible feeling it was when they opened the borders and we could start circulating freely among all European countries [it really lift many local border tensions too: I come from an Italian region at the border with Austria and the Schengen treaty really took away much fuel from the ongoing fire between the local different ethnic communities]. The EU also financed inter-univesity programs like Erasmus, which allowed us students to study a year abroad like it was at our own university. It was an incredible feeling of opening up to a wider future. It really saddens me to see the nationalistic, eurosceptic, small-minded drift that has taken the EU these last years.
It's a sign of the decline of the European Renaissance. We are getting poorer in Europe as we have to share our wealth with the new memberstates...
@@Henk-007 That maybe true for the now but not in the future. Being small and confined leads to stagnation in markets and eventually your looking at the same problems of losing wealth as inflation increases anyway. At least with investment into new states we can diversify the markets and share new foods goods and most importantly decrease the opportunities of other unified nations from growing in competition with us rather than cooperation.
Pro and cons to everything were all gonna be poor no matter what anyway in comparison to the people who are truly wealthy.
I totally feel you my European brother! I'm 40 and was born in the (back then) eastern block. The EU was the best that could happen for this continent. It's not perfect for sure but people really don't appreciate it enough. You can always find negatives but without seeing the positives it's just an unbalanced view. Where in the world do you have a better working political and economical system on such a scale with so many different countries, cultures and languages?
PS: In Europe we have countries NOT states, you just use the word state when it's referring to the EU but don't forget that evry country in the EU is INDEPENDENT.
Since 2020 when the video in the background was made Croatia entered the Schengen Area and adopted the Euro as its currency. Moldova, Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina got EU candidate statuses without starting EU accession talks as well.
Moldova has the problem that a small part of the country in the east is occupied by Russia. They placed the 14th army and a puppet government to make sure their playground stays in line with the Kremlin.
Last time I looked Montenegro had proceeded furthest along the accession process though none of the candidate states are particularly close to joining.
And Croatia's coins have Nicola Tesla on them (the 'norwegian gold' ones anyway) ... quite cool
@@Beggar42They look so good
@@Beggar42
I'm glad you like our Nikola Tesla Eurocent coins! This genius was born and raised at the territory of nowadays Croatia so he's been given huge honour to end up on our Euro coins!
Hello from Croatia
Even during WWII the governments in exile of Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg agreed that, once free again, they would harmonize tax, tariffs, labor conditions, and more. By cooperation these 'three small ones' would become more powerful against their hostile 'big brothers', and thus the BeNeLux was born, blueprint for later EU treaties.
You could say the founding fathers of the EU were France, (west) Germany, Benelux and Italy.
Yeah, the Benelux was the real starting of the EU.
As a Spaniard born in the ‘80 I remember studying the BENELUX.
As a french, I fully agree. Benelux was the true father of the EU, giving the idea to Robert Schumann to offer the french-german reconciliation through the creation of the steel-coal agreement, inviting the Benelux to share it. Italy joined asap as the 4th "father", it also wanted to erase the WW2 bad memory.
It's since the beginning a "Peace" project, not a business project, something UK never understood, and that's the true reason De Gaulle vetoed UK in the project. Thatcher first showed De Gaulle was right, Brexit was a way for the british to endly recognise De Gaulle was right :-)
@@astree214 Honestly Britains foreigh policy when it came to Europa for god know how many years should have been a clear sign.
They where afraid of the EU. Because the one thing it fears is a united Europa. They saw they couldnt stop it so might aswell try joining it.(tough one of the other main factors was the British Empire falling apart.)
I don't really think Italy had that much if a role in that though. Benelux, France and Germany were more involved, even if Italy is also amongst the first few members.
The thing with the Schengen area is really amazing. I remember as a child sitting in the car waiting in line to cross the boarder to Poland or Czechia (coming from Germany). But then in 2004 you could just go where ever you wanted, having just a bunch of signs on the road telling you, that you are leaving your country and entering the next.
Btw. the UK never used the Euro. And countries like the Czech Republic don't use the Euro either, for they aren't part of the Euro zone.
Oh yes, this is awesome! When I go from Germany to the UK, I pass the borders to the Netherlands, Belgium and France only seeing a sign "Bienvenu en France" and "Welkom to Nederland" but a don't even have to turn the cruise control down. Then I stand at the Eurotunnel checking in and there is a border official, and I don't understand why he is there and what he wants.
Brexit was a really bad idea, people start to understand what they did to their wonderful country without a reason.
So sad. And although I am really a democrat I oppose referendums because of this horrible experience.
@@UlliStein I can totally understand that. Democracy is awesome, but if people are just not informed at all when it comes to politics, then bad shit crazy can easily happen.
@@biedl86 That's the problem! For every issue in life I pay for professional experts, when I'm ill I go to the doctor, when my car has a problem I go to a mechanic, but really important decisions I want to do myself? Why not let the people decide who should have the experience or at least the right consultants?
Fun fact: In Switzerland there is a county that had women's right to vote not before the 1990's. Because only men were allowed to vote in the referendums :-D a vicious circle.
@@UlliStein What's also analogous to that is the US court system where you have a jury of non-experts deciding for justice. There, due to new scientific findings, the system has been adjusted. The jury is educated on how they can be biased before they can work as a juror, and certainly there will be more adjustments in the future for psychology and neuroscience are always progressing. But I think that the democratic system is much more delicate than that and that it will take much longer before we start implementing education as necessary, before people are allowed to vote. I mean, in Germany we are talking about allowing 16 years olds to vote now, which is actually the opposite direction.
@@UlliStein "although I am really a democrat I oppose referendums because of this horrible experience". Mate this is a really dangerous statement and it is not very democratic. This looks like an "easy" answer to a problem, but I don't think is the right one. If people are ignorant you don't restrict their freedom or their democratic system to avoid damage, you find a way to ensure that the system can guarantee the correct education for everyone. I think this is one of the biggest problems we have today, people (and especially politicians) are too keen to take the "easy" route instead of the right, but more difficult one.
Interesting thing about Euro coins is that the other side is always identical but on the other side countries have different designs. My grandpa would always check the change if there were coins from other countries and he would save them.
Banknotes are also interesting, but it costs more to save them!
@@rjbmarchiac8693 Banknotes are the same in the whole Eurozone though.
Switzerland isn't in the EU but has ratified certain EU regulations that essentially allows it operate within the EU market like any EU member would.
Bankers.
Norway did as well. They are not a EU member, but they are on kind of an advanced partnership. Meaning Norway follows and uses many EU regulations, but on they other hand, when such regulations are made, there are at least consultations. So except for them not having the euro, they don't pay anything and don't get anything, but practically you don't notice them not being a member state visiting Norway.
Yeah Norway and Switzerland are more EU than Romania and Bulgaria lmao
@@samoht.p Smart people, with loads of nazi gold in there vaults.
@@alexanderkupke920well that’s the thing tho… they do pay a membership fee while not having any actual say in how EU works (though they are consulted it isn’t a guarantee)
Thanks, Ryan! It takes a relatively young American to remind 70-year old me, of how recent all this came about.
20:38 Croatia has joined recently both Schengen and Eurozone. I'm from Spain so perhaps I misinterpreted this on the news, but I'm quite sure it happened around last winter.
You're absolutely right! Croatia really did join both Schengen area and Eurozone from the January 1st 2023.
While much easier movement across the western and northern borders (with other EU neighbours) without border controls is something that is very cool, we're still getting used to Euro as the country's new official currency, prices will be shown both in Kuna - our old currency and Euro until the end of this year. But many of us are very satisfied with both changes and we do hope our eastern and southeastern neighbours (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Albania) join the European Union as soon as possible likewise Ukraine, Moldavia and some others furthermore east.
Warm greetings from Croatia to our European fellows in Spain
@@fapmashina1 Yeah, I knew I was right! Thanks for your comment and congrats on this achievement. You'll get used to the euro soon, my father remembers when he changed between 'pesetas' and euro and he says it was overall for the best.
Map at 06:36 includes the Faeroes in the EU which I don't think have ever been in the EU. Also the Channel Islands are shown as part of the EU and have never been. And Isle of Man.
It would be interesting to watch you learn more about the fall of the USSR given your intrigue about how it happened without major war. Gorbachev was a huge factor in that I think, and the Velvet Revolution and the fall of the Berlin Wall were such seminal events that I think you'd find fascinating.
What is major war for you? People were killed, it didnt happen peacefully
@@LU-jo2jz War is when armies of two states fight. That didn't happen in Czechoslovakia etc. There were only clashes between civilians and security forces loyal to the regime.
There was a major war in the former Jugoslavian states. It may have been a civil war or not, depending on how you define it, but a lot of people died there. And both US and russia had role in it.
@@IQEGOYes, it was civil wars, rebelions, democratic uprising etc.
@@user-jd2gi7dy5dand Yugoslavia wasn't part of the Warsaw pact. They are saying how the Warsaw pact/Soviet union collapsed whit out major war not Yugoslavia.
Lithuania had the bloodiest guerilla war in Europe's history trying to break out of the Soviet Union
Just for completeness, Croatia joined the Schengen area on the 1st January 2023.
Great video and also as a EU citizen there were several good reminders of key events that you simply forget with time. Quite frankly, how many remembered the Nice treaty? I didn't, and I live in Nice!!!
You are underestimating the sheer size of some of the US states.
EU:
Area 4,233,262 square km
Pop. 448,387,872
Density: 106 per square km
US:
Area 9,158,721 square km
Pop. 335,073,176
Density: 37 per square km
There are 54 recognised European countries; 27 of which are members of the EU.
52?? Only if you add the Balkans, the Caucassus and what else?
@@inigoromon1937 "Only if"?! Why on earth would you even omit the Balkans and Caucasus? There's also Kazakhstan and Turkey.
@@AlexGys9 That is independent nations, not countries. The UK, for example, consists of four countries. England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. The Kingdom of Denmark also consists of Denmark, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland. These are countries with their own governments, not just regions.
@@Thor.Jorgensenthis is really just semantics.
@@jeanpierreviergever1417 I... don't think you know what semantics are. Try a thesaurus or dictionary.
Yes, the Euro officially started in 2002. I'm in my 30's and in my childhood and teenage eras, the DM (Deutsche Mark) was the currency in Germany. I remember the brand new shiny coins and every grocery store had both prices, Euro and Mark, to calculate how much money it was. Even today, elderlys like my grandparents always says things like "10 EUROS? THATS 20 LIKE MARK!"
Unfortunately, the old people didn't take the usual inflation into account in their Euro-DM comparison. 10 euros today have the same purchasing power as approximately 6.90 euros in 2001. And because 1 euro is equal to 1.95 German marks, 10 euros today would have a purchasing power of 13.34 German marks in 2001. So Grandpa would actually have to say: "10 euros? That's the same as 13.45 marks!!!"
Remember those conversion calculators? EVERYONE just threw them at you. I had a drawer full of them!
Euros and Mark have a 1:1 change because you German people think you are the ones in charge of everything in the union but you are nobody
As a Swiss watching this video I was stunned that you didn’t know that Switzerland wasn’t part of the EU. Also that the UK never introduced the Euro and stayed with the Pound.
Thumbs up in trying to educate the English speaking world how complicated and diverse Europe is.
I enjoy watching your channel. Grew up in Canada but I have been living in Switzerland for the past 35 years now. My fascination of European politics, culture and history is limitless and find channels like yours educational. Keep it up 👍!
The Shengen agreement is the best!, as a Spaniard I can travel wherever I want inside the shengen whithout the need of passport, it works with any type of transport, also is amazing how powerful is the Euro and it only exists since early 2000s.
Of course the Euro is so powerful because so much economy is behind it.
I will never forget the discussion in the early 2000's on German TV where a smart economy professor said: "When I fly into a turbulence I rather sit in a jumbo than in one of 20 Cessnas".
That is the best metaphor I ever heard on that issue.
As a Czech I really want us to adopt the Euro... Love Spain btw, Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga, Granada, Palma de Mallorca all amazing places!
@@justADeni Yes that would be a great idea. Coming from Germany and visiting your wonderful country from time to time, I would love that!!
UK, Denmark and Sweden uses their own coins
And Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Romania.
Poland also still uses their own currency, altho they apparently have a timeline for when they need to start using the Euro.
but they are all tied to the Euro
The Danish krone is pegged to the euro. The Swedish krona is free-floating.
@@nettcologne9186 not true.
The UK has never used the euro.
Not as our legal currency but a few shops, especially in Londonstan, did accept it for a while as an addition to the Pound.
@@Thurgosh_OG but probably for the tourists right?
The UK will in the future, when it begs to return to the Eurozone.
@@murrayphillipson4830 we have been worse off since leaving in my opinion 🙃
this video should be called damn American reacts to eeu
Ignorant is the one who does not want to learn. Wish more americans did put this effort. Nice my dude. Cheers from Spain!
I appreciate that many young Europeans speak English, but I'd advise you not to take lessons from Yoda in Star Wars.
@@emilydavison2053 Oh, thanks for the young part. Advise from Joda I take because wise he is :D
You're quite simply the only reaction video channel I enjoy, you're very entertaining!
It's crazy how little we are taught in the US about the outside world
It's crazy how little we, EU citizens, are taught about the world outside of the EU ... or even our own little nations inside the EU. Pop quiz for all EU-citizens: name all of the 52 states of the USA. Or the 23 provinces of the People's Republic of China. Or, you know, list me all of the countries in Africa. Or, and that's putting us Europeans really to shame: name all of the 50+ European nations. Not the old names from before the USSR breakdown, but the current names. Conclusion: don't beat yourself up over a perceived lack of knowledge. We all suffer from the same type of ignorance.
@@bartrammeloo5046 those are minute geographic details. Your examples are not that significant. I'm half american and partially grew up in Europe. At least where I lived, we were taught about history other than just the national (granted mostly national/european), political geography, two mandatory foreign language (english and some other), and just in general an openness to learn and explore other countries. Though there is no way to teach or even learn everything, schools should at least present a minimum of the world as to encourage curiousity and knowledge. Most of our knowledge doesn't come from school, but school is often a trigger for us to seek out that knowledge.
Edit: your comment is a disservice to improving education in both the US and EU
@@bartrammeloo5046 No. We don't. Feel free to speak for yourself only.
@@bartrammeloo5046 Afaik US history and their member states was part of my Geography class at some point. But yeah, nothing about China. ;)
@@bartrammeloo5046 Usually it depends on people but i think in general EU people have a little better grasp of the world around them due to wars etc affecting them more.
Can most Europeans name every US state or all African countries etc. Probably not. Is not easy to remember all that and only few geography lovers can do so which is probably the same in the US.
BUT where the big difference exist is the level of the average knowledge.
For example i see myself as an average European. I don't study geography etc that much really but i still know the basics. I know the countries in Europe. Can i point all of them in the map? Probably not but a good 85% to 90% i will get right. I also know major European cities and the countries the belong do. I will never think Madrid is in Austria or Paris is in Germany etc.
Do i know every African nation? No i don't. But i know more than a dozen and i know all of them right under Europe and a few more on the map.
The same with the US. Can i point every state? No. But i know which country is the USA on the map, i know they have 50 states, i know where Texas, California, Arizona, New York and few others are. I know Washington DC and Washington the state are different, i know they have three branches of government and are a democratic republic etc, i know Canada is above that has cities like Montreal, Quebec, Toronto etc. I know Mexico is under the US and most South American countries.
I also know most Asian countries as well. I know where China or India or Pakistan or Mongolia or Korea and Japan and Iran and Afghanistan etc are. Can i name Chinese provenances? I admit not really(language doesn't make it easy as well). But i know their capital and a few major cities along with where Tibet is and Taiwan that they claim and we are having global political issues over etc.
So as an average European i don't know everything in depth but i have a general view of the world around me. I will never be so ignorant as to think Vietnam is in Africa or that Somalia in in Oceania or something. It may not be great or detailed but a general view is there.
So the question is how many average Americans are like this?
I think less than Europeans. I am certain we both have our ignorant groups and the very well educated detail knowledgeable people but how many have a lets say basic general view of the world around them?
I think that is where Europeans win. I think the percentage of Americans that have that view is less than the percentage of Europeans. Also in the completely ignorant groups i think US is slightly worse as well not only in percentage but on the level of ignorance.
An fully ignorant worst case scenario European probably can't name most European countries let alone other continent countries etc but they will at least know where their own country is on the map and what their capital is. An ignorant American though can't even find the US on the map or knows what the capital is and how many states his/hers own country has.
In my life I experienced the German Reunion, the start of a new Millennium and the introduction of a new currency and unfortunately a world wide pandemic. At least 3 historic moments for sure.
I am with you in that, just replacing the German Reunion by the end of the dictatorial regime that lasted for 50 years here in Portugal and ended in 1974, when I was still a child.
Or to say it with a Witcher meme: "I lived through a whole dark age and three supposed end of days."
USA - 9 800 000 km2
EU - 4 200 000 km2
Watch something about Mercator maps. Its fascinating. World looks quite different than you think.
Before Brexit, back in 2015 or 2014 the UK also blackmailed the EU into giving more extra perks or trigger the referendum for Brexit otherwise. The EU gave up and agreed to extra advantages for the UK and the UK still held the referendum. This says quite a lot about the quality of the British political class and how honourable it is...
8:09 No. This was very good point not ignorance. The fact that so many nations gained their independence from Russia in the same time was a miracle that should be an international holiday and a universal Day of Freedom. It creates the last three decades of prosperity and global economic grouch that is unfortunately slowly ending.
USSR not controlled, but occupied that many countries. Baltic nations included, as they were independent during Interwar Era. Declared goal of WWII was to liberate Europe, but as USSR was on "good guys" side, they were let to occupy half of Europe. Everyone forgets that conflict started when National Socialist Germany attacked Poland from the West, but they were not alone, USSR attacked Poland from the East. Why no one condemned USSR? Why no one declared war on USSR? Victorious write the History, while vanquished suffer.
If there was no USSR you would be speaking german today
@@tilenoblak7304 there was USSR in its place, and I had to learn Russian. Survived. If there was Germany, I would have to learn german instead of russian, what a "big" deal.
@@tilenoblak7304 If there was no USSR, Hitler wouldn't have risen to power as he was playing on peoples fears of bolshevism (and antisemitism, ofc)
@@liveforever141 Not only would you speak a different language the world you would live in would literally be different the world order wouldn’t be the aame as today.
Look i get it you were part of russia by force. Im from a country that was under a different country for 400 years and then 70 under a different country so i get it I really do. But there is no denying that the USSR saved Europe, like them or not🤷🏻♂️
@@liveforever141 Due to leaks of British diplomatic documents USSR invaded Poland after the deal between UK and Poland allowing USSR to take better strategic position towards Germany for the incoming war. On 17 September 1939 Polish Army recieved orders from its high command TO ALLOW SOVIETS TO ADVANCE as fast as possible.
The UK never used the Euro. It is actually mentioned half-way in the video.
It was a recognised neighbour currency, but not legal tender in the UK. Regardless of what people say, Euro scepticism was the leading contributor to Brexit, issues had been bubbling away for decades without any true resolution. The final nail in the coffin came when British Politicians used it as a Voting tool and the EU commissioner refused to negotiate and made a impactful statement world wide, "The EU will never change, not even for Britain".
Also, there is a factor in the video that is incorrect. During the immigration Spring, the EU had open arms to the millions coming in without any restrictions. Immediately after the UK voted to leave, only then did the EU realise the situation was dire and started to regulate incoming immigration... yet in the video it states it did it before the UK voted to leave. Part of the UK/EU negotiations prior to the Brexit Referendum were for the EU to slow down and regulate inbound immigration... which the EU refused, leading to the Prime Minister of the UK authorising the vote to go ahead.
Due to UK status before it left, things now have almost reached similar circumstances to prior. With the only big differences being that some additional paperwork between the two being required for protected goods and the UK no longer having a say in EU affairs. That's it. That is all Brexit ultimately achieved... oh except the typical "freedom" that the minority always scream. But on a good note, it's promising to see the UK and EU working together and all happened without much bloodshed. I say much... A MP (Member of Parliament/Politician) was "unalived" by a mental health patient in the UK in the lead up to the vote, with their motive being "the MP was pro EU". That was still one incident too many.
7:57 ... a Yugoslav might disagree with you.
8:49 ... Before the Euro, there was the ECU (European Currency Unit), though it was only used in international transactions, and, aside from some novelty coins was never circulated among the wider public.
9:10 ... Switzerland primarily stayed out because joining would mean playing by the EU banking rules and they don't want that
11:01 ... the rule in EU departments is that the director choses either French or English as the common language of their department
17:36 ... pretty much all of the negotiation was the EU asking "what do you want?" and the UK screaming, "I DON'T KNOW!!!"
19:09 ... they don't use the pound NOW ... they've ALWAYS used the pound
15:56 ... On average EU countries are smaller than US states. Sure the big ones, France, Sweden, Spain, Poland, ... are Texas-size-ish, but you also have A whole bunch of countries that are Maine-sized or (a lot) smaller.
20:37 ... Croatia has integrated since this video was made. The border checkpoints are still there, but they're no longer staffed. You just drive through them
Many major corporations run their European business from Ireland. It's completely normal for me to see something like "Google Ireland" on my bank statements.
Amazon's European HQ is in Dublin, Ireland, specifically for tax reasons.
The UK NEVER used the Euro. It is stated in the video when it reached around 2009 that (together with Denmark and Sweeden) they opted out. They have never given up the pound.
The UK and Denmark got opt outs but Sweden didn't. Sweden actually is obliged to to join the Eurozone when it meets all the Maastricht criteria. Which it doesn't meet on purpose because Swedes don't want the Euro. However, that's changing slowly, as Swedish crown got weaker and weaker during last 10 years, and many people start to see advantages of the Euro.
Yes when I lived between Belfast and Donegal I carried two coin purses, one had euros and one had pounds 😂💶💷
UK founded the rivaling European trade bloc (European Free Trade Association (known as the "outer seven")) in 1960 with Austria, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and Switzerland.
For those who travelled and traded in Europe about fifty years ago, it is extraordinary to see how the difference in development between countries has narrowed, and how all the bureaucratic obstacles to import-export have been miraculously erased. Today only language remains the real obstacle to greater standardization within Europe.
An obstacle that we don't want to get rid of, tbh. Who's ready to give up his cultural heritage for bureaucratic convenience ?
@@karlkreuzberg6122 I would not care tbh, but they are slowly doing this with english, so just keep the original language and add english. I'm from Italy btw.
just so you know, the UK never used the EURO, always used british pounds even when they were in the EU
the UK never really were in the EU and now they didn't really leave the EU ; what do we have to do to really get rid of you and to be free again?
@19:09 You can even see their currency is the oldest still accepted legal tender (instead of for its material/sentimental/intellectual value).
It's not quite clear, but it may have arisen as early as the late 8th century, which is more than 122 decades ago, therefore almost 56 times older than the Euro is now.
@@BenelliMr Really now?
So a country that tried to get in several times, got in, obeyed most EU legislation, paid some of the highest amounts of money into the EU annually and had to invoke an EU member specific piece of legislation to cease those payments and gain the ability to revoke those EU legislations.
Listen, I get it. You don't like the UK. But do everyone (including yourself) a favour and don't make yourself look like an unhinged lunatic.
He does not realize that some countries in the EU do not use the euro (it is not obligatory), but only their own traditional currency, e.g. the euro is not used by Sweden, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania or Hungary. In addition, after the debt crisis in the Eurozone in 2008-2011, EU countries that have large and strong economies, such as Poland, the Czech Republic or Sweden (as well as the UK, when it was a member of the EU), absolutely do not want to adopt the euro and still prefer their own monetary policy. The euro zone includes Italy, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, the 3 Baltic countries, Slovakia, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Finland, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Malta, Cyprus and Croatia (as of this year).
The UK hasn’t revoked many EU Regs.
What happened of Boris Johnson so-called « Bonfire of EU regulations » ?
Nada, Zilch !
And as far as EU standards are concerned, the U.K. will abide by EU standards**, in Brexternity, ( otherwise UK goods won’t cross EU borders, as simple as that) like an obedient little satellite submitted to enormous attraction pull of, ultimately, a 36 countries trading bloc.
** EU standards, present and future, without having any input whatsoever, in the drafting of said future standards.
You never stop learning, I love to watch what your learning as you teach me as well. keep it up. Love and peace from ireland.
Europe especially allow easy international couple. I'm french dating a Spanish girl, she came to work and live with me in France, no visa no questions asked. European Citizenship!
The video: The european union is a union in Europe
This guy: Oh wow!
I absolutely love Schengen. There's nothing makes me happier than the sight of a closed and boarded up customs post. :)
Schengen and the euro define freedom for me
Schengen is the main goal for which Bulgaria's weird government in unstable coalition was formed this year 😅
I remember a few years back when the train from Germany just arrived in Austria without stopping! My mind was blown away😄
@@geryddle Hopefully that government keeps going for a while, since Austria and Netherlands still blocking their Schengen entry. I travelled via train from Romania to Hungary a few weeks ago and the Schengen border was pretty interesting, needed some patience. We central Eupeans aren't used to border controls anymore.
Fine until the bad guys turn up at the border.
I absolutely hate Schengen😏
All of the largest American companies have bases in IRELAND,,, companies like Apple,, Google,,, Facebook etc, this would suggest that they are not handling over their fair share to the Federal Reserve.
Or any other Treasury.
There are two errors here. Firstly, the Reserve has nothing to do with taxation, that's the government. And secondly those companies pay taxes on the profit they make in the states. They use Ireland to reduce the taxation on sales in the EU. You have to pay taxes in the country you do business in, because you use the infrastructure there to even be able to provide the products.
@@Psi-Storm Yeah but they also don't pay the taxes in Ireland, they have set up in such a way as to have the USA identify them as an Irish company but also in a way that Ireland doesn't recognise them as an Irish company. Since neither country taxes foreign companies they basically pay no tax
Aren't those for their European operations only?
@@Psi-StormI think they end up paying about (a massive) 2% in tax. The trouble they have is then moving the money around. About 8 years ago I know the big corps was trying to get one time free (or little fee) apatriation of their foreign wealth. Not sure how it worked out for them.
After the financial crisis In 2008 it got so bad in Greece that normal people were only allowed to withdraw small amounts of the money they held in their bank account from ATM's. They were limited to a maximum of €60 (about $70) worth of cash per day.
It wasn't until 2018 that this limitation was fully lifted! (Though the maximum daily amount they could withdraw had been increased over time)
i remember in the lead up to Brexit, certain British newspapers would run stories about how "15 million Romanians were set to move to the UK" in order to scare people about being "invaded" if they remained part of the EU. mind you, 15 million Romanians moving to the UK would leave Romania vacant lol. they ran similar scare stories about Bulgaria, too.
Little update since this is the older video - from 2023 Croatia is a member of both eurozone and Schengen area.
he must of zoned out at the Euro bit, as he would have seen that the UK never adopted the Euro.
Typical Ryan, I'm afraid. He's not as bad as his brother at missing or forgetting things he's just seen but he does it fairly regularly.
the UK never adopted the Euro nor the EU; so finally we are free from the UK.
@@Thurgosh_OG... Who is his brother?
People seem to forget how awesome the EU is and what it has historically accomplished. Yes, it has flaws but it is a great achievement!
Absolutely!
Common joke:
a US-american asks "Why are there so many languages in Europe?"
EU answer: "Because Germany lost the war."
But honestly: we are proud of this diversity and tge freedom we gained. This feeling drives the help of states like Lithuania against the threat from Russia. We don't share a language, but the same understanding of freedom and culture. Of course our cultures differ, but we also have very mich in common.
You're learning Ryan. That's never ignorant. In fact in many cases you are aware of the gaps in your knowledge. That's a major step up towards more knowledge! And, yes, some of the things you blurt out sound, at least to my aging European ears, ridiculously 'typical American' and make me laugh or roll my eyes. But mosty you follow those up by questioning yourself and finding out more. And that is not ignorant at all. Keep it up! I enjoy your videos!
That you should know in your age from school 🙂
@@drakulkacz6489 Americans are like kindergarten kids. Be nice.
Switzerland has been neutral, in just about EVERYTHING, since before WW1, and only helped for the first time, when they started sending aid to Ukraine, last year... the vid said, UK never changed to the Euro, along with most Nordic countries, which is why u cant find them, ever using it...
Laughs in Nazi Gold "neutral" deals 🤣
While they aren't legally required to provide the service, you are perfectly able to pay with euro (cash) in most Danish stores. You'll just have to convert currency yourself.
The main reason why they never joined the Euro is they purposely chose not to qualify to join.
@@fastertove yeah true, u can, u just cant get Euro back...
@@gerardflynn7382 Slovakia joined and regrets to this day.
I… I’ve watched several videos of yours and sometimes though “lol ur american”, but… as a European watching this along with you, I didn’t know a lot of it either, lol. Kind of happy you said the questions and answers out loud so I didn’t have to, hah.
Everyone is ignorant, intelligent people seek to reduce their ignorance, you sir are an intelligent person. 👌
Switzerland is never part of the EU but they are part Schengen area. Switzerland is the member of EFTA(European Free Trade Agreement) and other members are Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein.
Yea... Originally Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Switzerland, Liechtenstain and Austria paired together becasue Americans think they are all clustered in one place. So why not have a trade agreement
i agree with you @@matsv201
@@matsv201 Portugal and the UK were part of it as well (both founding members)
The UNITED KINGDOM never used the Euro.
The UK has never used the Euro, they have always used the Pound Sterling (commonly referred to as just "The Pound", abriviated as GBP)
Fun fact: While Switzerland is not in the EU, they are part of the Schengen (ie, I, as an EU citizen can get into citizen freely), and single-market (ie, Swiss and EU companies can easily trade with each-other)
You're definitely not making a fool out of yourself, mate ! Americans tend to be very self-centered when it comes to anything outside the US, but you're open-minded and curious enough to want to know more, that put you at the top of your country (which is the worst).
Yup. This. I'm sceptical he's actually an American. Way too curious! 😂
@cabritanscorgaming: you should not believe every nonsense. Europeans were also in the 20. century rather self-centered and in the US European history was usually also part (of course to a lower degree). the main difference is that in Europe you cannot avoid to talk about Neighbor countries if you talk about your own history. but likely 95% of Europeans got just within the last 10 years an idea about the baltics, eastern europe countries, the different capitals (many cannot tell them today). Another aspect was the cold war situation and the after-ww2, which automatically brought the US more into focus (then also with pop culture, movies etc.). it is typical that bigger countries are a bit less focused on smaller ones just like most of the time Germans didnt care/notice much about Austria while Austrians had an overfocus on Germany with all kind of love/hate aspects (most Germany were even not aware of, for instance to be called 'Piefke'. Thats an information most Germans even dont know till today;)
Different languages yes, but a shared European heritage. Proud EU citizen here!
Hear. Hear.
Not a proud EU citizen here.
My country should leave the EU, we pay for everyone else, this must stop.
@@mgordon1713 Really? You write English exactly like an American.
@@mbd6054 Too many American movies I guess
@@mgordon1713 your not realizing everything you get back trough the economic opportunities EU membership provides.
Take one long look at the hot mess that is BREXIT...
Continue, Ryan, that's pretty great, what you do. I need to admit many things I don't know about the USA, but this is the first step actually fighting prejudices. Love watching you since quite a while! Please carry on and all the best with your young family.
I'm 46 and lived through the last phase of the cold war. People say that we live in troubled times, but the costant fear of thermonuclear war and of being pulled to the Soviet Union (at least here in Italy with a communist party on the verge of winning the elections and sparking a civil war) permeated everything at a level we can't even imagine now
They forgot a step, before the European coal and steel community there first was the BeNeLux, directly after the war wich began the coörperation between Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxemburg, that was the real start of the EU
yeah when other European nations saw how how well the Benelux countries where able to work together so streamlined (and that just after WWII) they became inspired and thought it would be a good example of how the whole continent could become.
without the Benelux there's a good chance we never would have gotten the EEC and later on EU.
UK never adopted Euro, they always used pound
When the UK tried preparing to join the Euro by joining its predecessor the ERM it was a disaster.
@@peterjackson4763 They also knew that they would have to have a national referendum on adopting the Euro and the Brits would have said 'No', no matter how many referendums they tried.
What's the videoanalytic plugin you're using?
The UK never used the Euro. They have their own currency, which is, in fact, more expensive than the Euro.
You just watched the part of the video which made it clear the UK (along with original member states Denmark and Sweden) didn’t join the Euro. I’m sure you also watched a video last month where this came up and you asked the same thing!
Typical Ryan.
18:22 UK has never used the euro
Haven't even watched the video, yet, but i gotta say, that not knowing a piece of history, that doesn't affect your day-to-day-life doesn't make you an idiot. Knowledge can be amassed anytime and foreign history is definitely an extra-mile and not part of the fundamentals
You are all so well educated when it comes to European history!!! I am deeply impressed!!!!
We have had, free of charge, a 5 years crash course about the EU, it’s history, what it does, an education i.e. obscure technocratic acronyms engineered in Brussels, the Single Market, the Customs Union, courtesy of the British !
😁
Wow... so the European Union is one year older than the Czech Republic (which is where I'm from). Interesting.
The former Czechoslovakia decided to divide and since January 1993, our two countries are known as Czech Republic and Slovakia. Like Ryan said, it feels like ancient history but actually, it wasn't THAT long ago. It's kinda mindblowing.
What's more amazing is how fast you guys managed to develop since joining EU. If you look at Czech Republic and Slovakia today, it's like you never were communist. I just wish Romania and Bulgaria would've had the same progression.
@@jonsnow7092is EU on the moon and I don't know?
@@eedragonr JWST, the most advanced human-made thing, was put into orbit by an EU rocket. difference between EU and Russia is that people have toilets inside.
@@eedragonr Generally speaking the ESAT is on parity with Indian ISRO, and there was only one (succesful) orbiter sent around the moon. But you should know that NASA and other agencies around the world don't spit on European spaceborn experiments and apparatus for their projects.
About the soviet collapse and eastern Europe, there was some violence. In particular, there were the Yugoslav wars, which saw Yugoslavia disintegrate into a bunch of different countries with different ethnic groups trying to murder each other.
Ukraine and Bulgaria were almost entirely peaceful (EDIT: I can't believe I forgot Poland! Also in this category of peaceful democratic transition). Basically just referendums.
Romania's transition was quite a bit rockier, with an uprising turning into a coup which resulted in the summary execution of Ceacescu, the dictator of Romania.
Czechoslovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania had peaceful protests which gained momentum and resulted in their independence.
Hungary is a special case in all this, they had been under direct military occupation since 1956 when they attempted a country-wide uprising. The Russian troops finally left in 1991.
And as far as i know, we Hungarians made the first revolution against the Soviets in the states of the iron curtain.
Although Yugoslavia was never part of the Soviet Union. It was a communist country, but has always refused to become part of the union.
@@CaptainKevinDarling Very true. It dissolved during the same timeframe as the dissolution of the USSR however, and it would be disingenuous to talk about eastern Europe in that timeframe without mentioning it.
Dude im Lithuanian what u talking about!??? To this day we honir on thr january 13th 13 people that were crashed by russian tanks in 1991!!!! Stop the peaceful rumour
@@user-cs4fg7bh4r In comparison to Yugoslavia, it was relatively peaceful. There was no full-blown war. The civilians were not shooting at OMON, and although Soviet police reacted in their typical aggressive "crush dissent at all costs" style, they generally used blanks and rubber bullets. It is of course a tragedy that 14 people died for your independence, but the hostilities were still comparatively light.
The demolition of the Berlin Wall became possible after communism was overthrown in Poland in 1989.
What's missing from this clip is that since 2023 both Moldova and Ukraine obtained candidate status to the EU and are set to join pending some administrative and judicial reforms.
If this were to happen the only former USSR members on the European continent which are not members of the EU would be Belarus and Russia itself.
And yes, the collapse of USSR is remarkable in how peaceful it was, but we're still seeing echoes of it's collapse with the later wars in Moldova, Georgia, Nagorno-Krabakh and of course Ukraine. These conflicts can be thought of as part of the collapse of the USSR, even though they happened years or decades later. And I don't think we've seen the last of it.
2:28 I totally get that you say only 6 countries. because the eu is so much larger now. But imagine living in that time having 3 opossing ww2 countries come together to prevent another war. The european comunity of coal and steel united them with the BeNeLux to shape(place the foundation of) the peace that we're enjoying today.
It was a miracle so short after WW2!
Yeah it must have been wild but why did you say only 3? When all 6 stood on opposing sides in WWII.
Allies (France,Belgium, Luxembourg,The Netherlands)
Axis (Italy, West Germany)
Good that he is finally studying the subject because those countries are usually waiting for the Americans to liberate them as the main form of defense.
Peoples were sure tired from wars, but there also were a handful of visionary politicians who understood that another Versailles treaty was not the solution (and to be honest, the USA imposed their vision for peace on us anyway, discouraging any revanchist posture) and that an unpreceded oportunity was to be seized.
The SSRs (Socialist soviet republics) had some degree of autonomy and the countries that emerged from soviet occupation were previous SSRs, member states of the Soviet Union. Later in the same year or the year after they dissolved the entire union. Leading up to midnight the soviet flag was lowered over Moscow and precisely at midnight the flag of the Russian Republic waved over Moscow.
”The Great Recession of 2008 to 2009 was the worst economic downturn in the U.S. since the Great Depression. Domestic product declined 4.3%, the unemployment rate doubled to more than 10%, home prices fell roughly 30% and at its worst point, the S&P 500 was down 57% from its highs.”
You know what I really admire is the fact that you’re actually broadening your historic knowledge. This base is the building block required to stack on future knowledge and understanding.
It’s fascinating to check out your reactions as you pretty much present as the “average guy” and associated insights - as well as an amusing sense of humor.
Best greetings from Northern Germany 😊
The most mind-blowing thing about the EU is that most of the countries in Europe have thousands of years of violent history with each other, not to mention two devastating "great" wars in the 20th century that practically decimated our continent, as well as ancient gripes that dates back to the earliest recorded history. It is why I will always support the EU as a concept, even when I disagree with specific policies: A unified Europe has led to an unprecedented era of peace on a continent with a long and bloody history of senseless conflict.
yeah for millennia empires tried to rule Europe (among others: Romans, Charlemagne, Napoleon, N*zi's, USSR) and after 2 devastating World Wars and the looming danger of being annexed by the USSR. Europe finally (gradually) came together and managed to unite in a peaceful way with keeping every member state sovereign.
the EU is (probably) the biggest and most successful peace project ever tried in the world. and for EU citizens it has brought unparalleled benefits.
ps. of course there are still flaws but if you look at the age and size of the EU it's only logical that there are still some problems that need to be ironed out.
but those problems are small in comparison to all the benefits of the EU (only just the safety from another (world) war makes it worth it)
I disagree.American and Russian nukes have kept the peace in, a far less powerful and confident, Europe.
@@leithblower Uh... We have very different definitions of peace, if you consider the threat of nuclear Armageddon "peace".
Yes long live the European peace we live in!
Pax Europae
@@leithblower You're right and wrong at the same time. Sure the nuclear threat stopped a third world war, but it didn't kept peace. think of Vietnam, Korea, first afghanistan war... During that time, the european continent was at peace certainly because of the proto EU. Think about it, every forty years France and Germany duke it out, after Schuman ? No war there, and it's still the case.
Russia don't really fear the US, it's fear EU because it work, mostly and i think that's why they unlawfuly occupied Crimea when the people of Ukraine turn toward the EU.
Or i can be completly wrong too ^^. About Russia... I'm pretty sure of myself about the nuclear threat ^^.
Switzerland and Norway are not in the EU officially, but practically (economically) they are. At the same time they both have such a strong economic background that they don't actually need to be in the EU but basically are part of the single European market.
The UK has never used the Euro. They were attempting to adopt the Euro in the 1990's, but thanks to not meeting the financial criteria that were set for joining the Euro, they never did.
Switzerland has never been part of anything since the early 1800s. They have a very strong tradition of neutrality.
Greenland leaving the EU was definitely not like the UK leaving.
The UK kept behaving like a cat - when they were outside, they wanted to be inside and once they were inside long enough, they wanted out again - but when we opened the door for them they just kept nagging.
I wasnt alive when Greenland left but England as a country is very good at nagging. As far as Im aware, the other parts of the UK wanted to stay but England has the most inhabitants by far.
Ireland has the lowest corporate tax rates across the EU, so most international big companies have their european headquarters over there.
7:47 Except for Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova, all those countries already existed before WWII. They were annexed by the USSR, and were in a sense still at war. It's not really surprising that they would regain their original territory (with maybe some minor border changes) after the collapse of the occupying regime...
Wasn't Moldova part of Romania Pre WW2? And Ukraine/Belarus where part of the Russian Empire before the Soviet union Although I do believe they revolted like Poland and the Baltic's if you mean that?
@@Maur0dm Not to mention that ukraine's name is basicly just "border land" as i heard. And idk why people nowadays want to make it like as if ukraine were a thing for a long them when its only exists since '91.
Both Belarus and Ukraine were actually independent for a while between the Russian Empire and the USSR.
Ukraine fought for its independence for four years before Bolsheviks took over. And the resistance continued until WWII or thereabouts, hence the genocide of kulaks (farm owners) in the 1930s for example.
@@tovarishcheleonora8542 No, it doesn't, it is a separate nation with it's own language, culture and history orgin back from Kievan Rus. The name of the country itself formed since independence and soviet union, but it doesn't mean Ukrainian ethnos didn't exist before.
@@nataliebos872 "it's own language"? 😆
That's just a dialect of Russian. Literally.
And before you come with "but the sounds", well, dialects usually tend to have different sounds than the main language.
Also, "ukranians" are definitelly not a different ethnic group. Even if some people want them to be.
An additional little tidbit to the 1991 that kind of happened fast in the video: While you are correct in that the USSR fell apart and all those former member republics gained independence peacefully, but there is another thing subtly happening on the map that wasn't peaceful: The dissolution of Yugoslavia, and that was a bloody affair, with various ethnic conflicts and wars collectively called the Yugoslav Wars lasting until 2001. One event that might be known to Americans from this war is that the only shootdown of an F-117 Nighthawk happened in this conflict in 1999. And even today there are tensions in the region with the whole Serbia vs Kosovo situation.
Quick clarification. The Eurozone contains countries that have the euro as currency. The Eurozone is not another name for the EU. I have seen people confuse this.
This is about the European Union but there is another free trade organisation in Europe, EFTA (European Free Trade Association), that includes Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
These countries still do have reservations about joining EU so EFTA still exists (used to include UK, all the Nordic countries and more before they joined EU) but there is an agreement between the EFTA countries (excluding Switzerland) that created EEA (European Economic Area). EEA is basically EU/EFTA free market/trade/movement of people/jobs between the countries within these two associations.
Which has to fund the EU
@@Salfordian EFTA has to pay to be in EEA that is for sure but I guess it is also getting some benefits though not in the same matter as a EU member state. Yet still the EFTA countries do not want to join the EU.
@@MrPicky EVERYTHING is about money, other peoples money when it comes to the EU & all those new countries who joined and waiting to join want those handouts, yes the EU has to bribe them
The uk never adopted the euro as a currency
The UK always was an opportunistic member of the EU, one foot out the door from the get go, with a million & 1 exemptions, wanting the benefits but not the costs.
The UK never adopted the Euro. They didnt feel like it apparently and just said "nah we good bruv" and just kept the Pound even whilst being part of the EU.
The Comparison between the US and the EU is flawed. Yes both have memberstates but thats it. More like the EU would be if Countries from Guatemala to Canada would bond together to form a new political Union with common Laws, a Parliament, Council and Court of Law.
Edit: And crucially, drop their border patrols and allow free movment of goods and people, imagine Republicans hearing that lol
and the population isn't that close either.
EU has around 450 million
US has around 325 million
that's almost 50% more in the EU, and that's a big difference.
it's why the EU is able to make companies comply with it rules and regulations, like the USB-C adoption of Apple.
@@ChristiaanHW The fact that the EU is still at core a bunch of independant countries mean that it's harder for lobbies to influence the EU because it requires to lobby both the EU representatives but also 27 countries if said countries sees an interest in voting an EU rule.
Of course lobbies does influence the EU, mostly when the ruling isn't a big concern or even go against the interest of several member countries, but it's still a big difference.
@@LeSarthois And then there's the other 27 non-EU countries in Europe, that they also need to negotiate with.
@@Thurgosh_OGI'm wondering where did you get 27 non EU states? I can only think of 14 baring microstates And 18 whit them included?