[trumpdong]

Yes. The EU has no army, no legal sovereignty within each country, etc. It's an alliance of countries NOT a single federal government. The individual countries remain in charge of themselves and the alliance is supposed to be structured in a way that only paases things the countries actually want.

[cassianoleal]

So you think it would be better if the EU started a war with a member state that failed to uphold the union's laws?

[lukan]

Why would he or she think that? Your questions are close to strawman arguments in my perception.

[cassianoleal]

Let's follow the timeline, shall we? It shouldn't be difficult as it's a pretty linear tree in the comments.

1. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48423657

I mentioned that Europe is a lot more than the EU, and even within the EU member countries diverge.

2. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48423908

trumpdong then makes a comment that I interpret as saying the EU doesn't have a lot of power over member states, and saying that the worst which could happen to one of them is to be kicked out of the EU.

3. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48424244

Slightly shocked by the idea that the EU should be doing something worse than expelling a member for not following the Union's rules, I use a _reductio ad absurdum_ and ask if they thought the EU should be harder and actually perform an armed invasion of a member state that didn't follow them.

4. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48425100

To my shock, trumpdong literally says "yes".

5. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48425487

I, due to the shock described above, decide to question again in more words if that's actually what they mean.

---

Hopefully that responds your question. I see no straw man, but if you still do, please present it.

[lukan]

You did not ask that:

"ask if they thought the EU should be harder and actually perform an armed invasion of a member state that didn't follow them."

You asked this:

"> the worst they can do is kick them out of the EU

As opposed to what? Armed invasion?"

Where trumpdong reploed with a affirmative "yes". So the worst they can do is kick someone out. No one demanded the EU should do armed invasion.

[cassianoleal]

They complained kicking out the worst. I suggested one possible worse possibility (again, in a reductio ad absurdum rhetoric), trying to understand what they thought should be done more than "just kicking them out". They agreed with it.

I don't know why you're taking their pain.

[lukan]

You seem to enjoy either pedantery to feel right, or genuinly missunderstood the conversation. And more pain I am not taking here.