Although both projects have been discussed for years, Germans and their neighbors only now seem to be awakening to the dramatic impact these changes will have on their daily lives. And the more they ponder the consequences, the less enthusiastic they seem about the transformation that lies ahead.
Opinion polls indicate that support for European unity is fast eroding.
In France, voters chafe at the debt and deficit restrictions required for the euro, which are seen as job killers. The latest survey by the Allensbach group showed that only 21 percent of German adults questioned want to introduce the euro by the turn of the century, while 52 percent oppose the idea. A separate poll showed that 77 percent of all Europeans feel their politicians did not inform them sufficiently about the single-currency plan. An Essay on Europe. Similarly, the once popular notion of expanding NATO to embrace the new democracies of Eastern Europe is provoking apprehensions in the public mind about future defense burdens.