The New Papacy

Everybody seems to be getting excited about Tony Blair becoming EU President. I think that possibility was torpedoed yesterday by Gordon Brown's clumsy support.
But surely the real concern is the office itself. We are assured on one hand that this is merely a President of the Council - no more than a Chairman of the Board - while Blair's people are clearly campaigning for a bigger role closer to that of the President of the United States, and one thing we can all be certain about is that over time this will be the evolution of the European Presidency.
Now I am not necessarily against this. I am no clinger to the pretensions of Britain's imperial past. I am not a little Englander. There are clear advantages to a federation of nations particularly in this so-called global economy. My concern is the evolution of a profoundly undemocratic system of governance. European nations have, after centuries of struggle, developed systems of government which take some account of the wishes of the governed whereas the EU has steadfastly set its face against consultation. Thus we end up with a constitution with no popular mandate, a European Parliament with no influence and now a President who is to be chosen by an effective College of Cardinals.
Black smoke or white smoke a President will be imposed upon us. The mediaeval Papacy returns!