Critics say EU risks ceding control of its tech laws under U.S. pressure

(politico.eu)

80 points by nickslaughter022 hours ago

7 comments

pjc5052 minutes ago
Specifically, this is another Parliament vs Commission issue. The Commission loves to have little deals away from the public where everything is quietly smoothed over, while the Parliament is trying to build popular legitimacy.
benoau17 minutes ago
All this so Meta and X can sell politically divisive and hateful advertising with zero transparency.
m-s-y7 minutes ago
Is it just me or is there not actual meat to this article? Like what specifically are the rules at issue here?
shevy-java35 minutes ago
Isn't it strange how Washington makes laws in the EU?I wonder if these lobbyists get paid a lot.
- skrebbel21 minutes ago
 Meh, you're right but the EU also makes laws in the US (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brussels_effect" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brussels_effect</a>). In the end it's not about who makes the law but whether it's a good law. Ecodesign laws making US vacuum cleaners more economical is good. Trade pressures undermining EU privacy protections maybe not so good.
 - MarcelOlsz5 minutes ago
 I like how out of all examples to pit up against eroding privacy protections was consumer vacuum stuff from ages ago.
picafrost59 minutes ago
I continue to find it bizarre that some Americans are offended that Europeans do not want to be dragged into the American corporate surveillance, advertising, and consumption cult. Will nothing be sovereign until Europe is also littered with personal injury attorney billboards, broadcasting pharmaceutical ads, and other pox marks of a degraded culture? Why search for a better way when you can normalize awful (because it's more profitable).
- gherkinnn3 minutes ago
 Better Call Saul was a docudrama.
- petcat43 minutes ago
 > personal injury attorney> ... a degraded cultureDo matters of personal injury liability not apply in Europe?
 - stavros27 minutes ago
 Suing for damages here isn't profitable enough for attorneys, because "damages" with free healthcare means "missed a week of work", instead of "got a $200k bill".
 - pjc5025 minutes ago
 It does happen, but it's way less lucrative. Tends to be limited to actual damages rather than punitive damages. There have been some scam-ish sub-industries (fake whiplash claims, suing councils for tripping over cracks in the pavement). It's very rare to see advertising for lawyers.
 - holowoodman3 minutes ago
 It's also rare because advertising for lawyers (and doctors) is strictly regulated in some member states. A sign in front of the office saying "S. Goodman, attorney, specialized in drugs, organized crime and whiplash" is OK, billboards, TV spots, newspaper ads and any kind of claims beyond "I'm an attorney and this is my office and specialty" are verboten.
 - skrebbel22 minutes ago
 FWIW it took me multiple US television shows to figure out what "ambulance chasers" are and why they exist.
 - bavell2 minutes ago
 Pretty sure this is illegal now across the board.
 - em-bee23 minutes ago
 lawyers or law firms are very limited in how they are allowed to promote themselves.
 - kasperni22 minutes ago
 mostly handled by insurance. Payouts are also a lot less, and typically standardized.
 - raverbashing37 minutes ago
 WAY less than in the USBut no you don't have ambulance chasers or personal injury lawyers trying to get millions out of someone who had a car crash and now their neck feels funny
 - Ylpertnodi35 minutes ago
 Not on dirty great billboards, no. Not yet.
- moogly25 minutes ago
 "They hate our freedom!" "They want to destroy our culture!"Every accusation is a confession.
picsao7 minutes ago
[dead]
mono4421 hour ago
[flagged]
- matthewdgreen1 hour ago
 Don't worry, everything will be expensive because the US decided to blow up half the world's oil supply.
- pepperoni_pizza1 hour ago
 Hello, six months old account that only posts anti-EU stuff!
 - Our_Benefactors39 minutes ago
 How old must an account be before expressing a consistent opinion in order for you to take those opinions in good faith?
 - em-bee17 minutes ago
 it's not the consistent opinion that's the problem, it's the single issue (EU is bad) they are purportedly (i didn't check) focused on.also, "EU is bad" is suspicious in itself because it can't possibly be that everything about the EU is bad. a good faith opinion will find some good things about the EU and be specific in what they are criticizing.
 - pjc5024 minutes ago
 This is the internet. Good faith needs to be earned, on an increasingly difficult scale now that comments may be AI-generated.
- greensh1 hour ago
 The EU is not doing anything near enough against global warming.
 - mcv1 hour ago
 They really should end fuel subsidies. We're paying taxes to promote fuel use. That's a really bad use of our taxes. (Some are apparently already being phased out, but others are not, from what I understand, and they've gone up dramatically in the past couple of years.)As for digital rules, the EU should definitely stand firm and invest in its own tech sector, instead of caving to the US. Same with everything else where our standards are higher than theirs (food, human rights).
 - mono4421 hour ago
 There are no subsidies, gas and diesel are the most expensive in the world, and most of the cost is taxes. But apparently, for the EU politicians, that is still too cheap, so they want even more taxes on top of that.
 - thfuran1 hour ago
 <a href="https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/indicators/fossil-fuel-subsidies" rel="nofollow">https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/indicators/fossil-fuel...</a>
 pjc5054 minutes ago
 > Notably, more than 60% of all fossil fuel subsidies granted in 2023 were spent in three countries: Germany (EUR 41 billion), Poland (EUR 16 billion), and France (EUR 15 billion).This is another one of those cases where people say "Europe" when meaning something much more country specific.I can't find any detailed breakdown of this; I'm guessing it's something to do with coal mining in Germany?France has absolutely no excuse, though. Largest nuclear power generation in Europe and subsidizing fossil fuels? I bet it's something to do with farming.
 orwin36 minutes ago
 Your bet is right, but it's based on a misunderstanding. Those are not real subsidies, those are tax exemption on farmers, fishermen, trucker and traveling nurses.
 - SirHumphrey59 minutes ago
 You are thinking too logically. In EU fuel is expensive because it’s heavily taxed AND there are a lot of fuel subsidies.Or to quote an old TV show: Hacker: One of your officials pays farmers to produce surplus food, while on the same floor, the next office is paying them to destroy the surpluses. Maurice: That is not true! Hacker: No? Maurice: He is not in the next office, not even on the same floor!
 orwin38 minutes ago
 At least in France, the fuel 'subsidies' are not real subsidies, but tax exemption for different kind of people: farmers, truckers, fishermen and private nurses (I don't have a good translation, basically health workers who go directly to patients homes instead of working at a clinic or hospital). There was also a one time relief for people with fuel heating who earn less than 40k (I'm simplifying) in 2022 because of the Russian war, but it was extremely limited.Maybe next time you imply my government is incompetent on a specific subject, do your research first. It is incompetent on a lot, don't get me wrong, but no one here need more disinformation hidden as a quip.
 - Y-bar38 minutes ago
 In 2021 Europe provided $135 Billion in subsidies to the petroleum industry. A net increase of about 30% from 2015.<a href="https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/fossil-fuel-subsidies-per-capita?tab=table&globe=1&globeRotation=55%2C10&globeZoom=2.95" rel="nofollow">https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/fossil-fuel-subsidies-per...</a>
 - mrighele47 minutes ago
 There is no point fighting against global warming if you're the only one doing it. If China, USA and India are not on the same page, the result will be that production will move even more to those countries, global warming will continue and European will just be poorer.
 - mono4421 hour ago
 Their policies are a grift to funnel money to the right people so that's not surprising.
 - 9dev1 hour ago
 Do you have anything to support that claim? Carbon taxes are a theoretically effective mechanism to tilt the markets towards more sustainable means of production, that is something most economists agree on; alas, practically they are often thwarted by caving out exceptions or delays for short-term political gain.
 - sam_lowry_1 hour ago
 You probably mean carbon credits, from the EU Emissions Trading System. Wikipedia has a lengthy and well-balanced article on the subject: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union_Emissions_Trading_System" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union_Emissions_Tradi...</a>It's an ugly and wasteful system set up instead of other, simpler measure that were politically unacceptable at the time, like higher VAT, excise duties on all fossil fuels across all industries without exception, including fuel oil for heating and aviation fuel.
 - mcv1 hour ago
 At the moment carbon is still getting subsidizes for 100 billion per year. I'd love it if they taxed it by that amount.
 - mono4421 hour ago
 If most economists agree on something, it probably isn't true. Just like every economist agreed that there would be no inflation in 2020.
 roenxi51 minutes ago
 Mmm. The language is not precise enough - if most economists agree on something it probably is true. If the corporate media gives the impression all economists agree on something, it is probably not true.Economists as a profession understand extremely well that they have no ability predict the economic future beyond what the futures markets say.
- gcanyon1 hour ago
 When Disney World is behind a sea wall, we will have deserved it.
- pzo1 hour ago
 everything is expensive worldwide more because of:- decade of money printing (quantitive easing, covid, petro-dollar)- decade of low interest rate free (created bubbles in stocks and assets)- oil price increase (war in ukraine, war in iran)as for EU climate rules this is IMHO still more a smoke screen - otherwise they wouldn't put tarriffs on chinese solar panels and EVs.
- notrealyme1231 hour ago
 Why stop there? Child work and slavery save money!/s
 - decremental1 hour ago
 [dead]