>>39
There are many good reasons for this treaty. One is that as long as it is not ratified the treaty of Nice is in effect which is extremly shitty and ineffective.
One concrete thing were "Ireland" for example looses now is: if the European Elections are held in 2009 after the treaty of Nice rules Ireland has lesser members than it would have with the Lisbon treaty, because "the maximum number of seats allocated to a state would be lowered to ninety-six, from the current ninety-nine, and the minimum number of seats would be raised to six, from the current five."
Now you if you now think that the European Parliament is a joke that does not have to interest you, you fail. In effect it has become a very powerful entity. That you and so many other European citizens are not interested in what happens there only gives power to the people and organisations that do.
The powershift away from the national level to the supranational level cannot be reversed, you can vote "no" on everything and wave your national flag as much as you want. If there are no legal structures under democratic control on the European level that work, there will be other structures "extra-legal" that are working, Multinational corporations for example, sects or the stronger countries will impose their interests on the smaller. Also think about how ridiculusly small Ireland is and most European countries on the global scale. Even Germany, the most populous and strongest does not really impress anybody in the world, Britain and France are laughingstock in their decay, not to speak about Italy and Spain: nor the USA, Russia, China really give a shit about them nor do the lobbies of the MNCs. So if the EU is weak, it's citizens will have their interests more likely dictated by the entities that are stronger, and that is not Sinn Fein believe me.
National "sovereignty" is one of those concepts were the flag-fetish is always revoked, but if you think of it: the normal citizen of Europe would be more powerful in a united and strong Europe than in a weak, by having his interests defended on a global scale. In the EU of the Lisbon treaty every country still had it's balance, plus the democratic representation make sure that in those 61 fields decisions are to be taken that are true compromises. Think about what every European country really can move in those areas alone and you will see that there is not much of an alternative.