A new Europe or not?

Plenty of aspiring EU countries are wondering where they stand after two sound defeats for the EU constitution and at best, they're going to be stuck in this dead zone for at least a few years while the EU member states figure out where to go next. Adding eastern European countries doesn't bother me and whether or not they are in or out, traditional manufacturing jobs from western Europe are going there one way or another. The values issue may be a bit different with religion being much more popular and conservative in the east as compared to the west.

Turkey is the largest issue moving forward and I don't think I would bet anything on their addition any time soon. Turkey raises so many issues that I just don't see any EU politician brave enough to push for their membership. Europeans are a lot more racist than they recognize or like to admit and for many, the idea of adding a Muslim country to a region with Christian roots is just too much. There are enough radical right extremists in Europe to swing a vote on this issue alone. Perhaps the bigger fear is adding a country of 70 Million (and growing quickly) to the mix. Germany currently stands at around 80 Million, France at 60M, UK 60M, Poland 38M so adding in such a large voting block is bound to cause difficulties because it is a dilution of power no matter how you look at it.

For the time being, I'm not expecting any change any time soon and Europe will continue to be a rudderless ship. It looks like the "reflection" period will be lasting for some time.