Click here for more information , including a recommended reading list and examples of past winning essays. Students should note, however, that a new consensus among scholars on both the left and right interprets the Second Amendment as an individual right to keep and bear arms rather than a collective right. But many Europeans believe that the euro will ultimately serve only the interests of the EU bureaucrats. The euro's problems began soon after its birth. Since its creation in January 1999, the euro has fallen 25 percent in value.
European voters are also often ambivalent or hostile to the euro.
Simply put, the euro is a flawed institution for achieving a noble goal. The euro began with the recognition that national bureaucracies are often counterproductive, serving either the interests of politically connected pressure groups or bureaucratic self-interest. The real test will come after January 2002, when 11 of the EU's 15 countries will discontinue their national currencies and adopt the euro for all transactions. Far less risky would be for these countries to allow the euro but also to maintain their national currencies, thus allowing citizens to vote for one monetary unit or another on a daily basis. Carrying this logic further, countries could allow European banks to issue bank notes that could be accepted as money.