All governments are funded by "taking it from someone else", usually in the form of taxes. Member state contributions, VAT income, and customs duties provide over 90% of EU funding. These fines of companies are a drop in the bucket, not the main way the EU finances itself.
Fines were less than 1% of the revenue of the EU in 2023, to be more precise. I don't know how people here got the idea that the EU can fund itself only with such fines, to be honest.
As a US citizen residing in the EU, I can maybe play the role of an interpretor or anthropological informant. Your idea that the GDPR is just a kind of gotcha, as if the high fines were a kind of disingenuous speed trap, is a reflection of American distrust of our own government but is not a good model for understanding what is going on here.
The GDPR and high fines are an earnest reflection of the will of the European people not to have their private, personal information used in potentially harmful ways.
If I can be allowed to similarly anthropomorphize, the EU would honestly rather that US companies respect EU citizens' data rather than receive high fines. I know I would.
gman83|1 year ago
cccbbbaaa|1 year ago
silent_cal|1 year ago
rendall|1 year ago
The GDPR and high fines are an earnest reflection of the will of the European people not to have their private, personal information used in potentially harmful ways.
If I can be allowed to similarly anthropomorphize, the EU would honestly rather that US companies respect EU citizens' data rather than receive high fines. I know I would.